OnFire Letter

OnFire #272 Rusty Hinges and Kindness

2012-01-20T18:13:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #272 Rusty Hinges and Kindness

We live in a 70 year-old-house with lots of character, which simply means there are lots of things which need to be fixed. A few weeks ago I realized that I had become so accustomed to the creaky hinges that I could actually recognize the sound of each door. The bathroom made one noise, our bedroom another, and each of the bedrooms made their own distinct sounds. It astonished me, first of all, that I had become so used to this, and second, that it took me until now to do something about it. And, that it was such a simple thing to oil the hinges. Such a little thing - a few drops of oil and a few minutes, and the doors were swinging silently.

We can be like those hinges. Sometimes we get a little creaky, and we don’t even realize it, but kindness is the oil on the hinges of our relationships. It doesn’t take much, and a little goes a long way.

Scripture is littered with reminders to be kind. “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” (Ephesians 4:32)

From this and other passages we see that kindness means to love each other, show compassion, and even extend forgiveness. Our motivation ought to be gratitude: that we are kind because we realize that God was kind to us.

The word for “kind” in Greek is an interesting one, and it shows up in interesting places:

“For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:30)

The word translated as “easy” is actually the same word for kind. We could read, “My yoke is *kind.*” The yoke was a wooden beam placed across the shoulders of work animals so that they could pull an implement behind like a cart or plow. It had to be carved and formed with care or it would chafe and cut. Jesus promised to be kind and to do the heavy spiritual pulling in our lives.

This helps us understand kindness better. Kindness is about easing the burden in other people’s lives. When people come away from us, are they lighter or heavier in spirit? Do we chafe them, rubbing them the wrong way, or do we treat them “easily” ? Kindness is more than an act. It is our mannerism, the words and tone we use, the words we don’t use, our patience, how well we listen.

As I prepared this material for a sermon I preached last week, I began to see that some of my relationships had grown a little creaky. I needed to apply a little oil of kindness. It doesn’t take much time, and a little goes a long way.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy
OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Jan 20, 2012. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #271 Who Likes Change?

2012-01-04T03:37:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #271 Who Likes Change?

Happy new year to everyone. I hope it will be, anyway – filled with joy, peace and satisfaction regardless of what happens. I don’t normally bother with new year’s resolutions, but I do think about change. I reflect on what changed last year and I wonder what will happen this year. There are always a few things which frustrate me which I hope to change. And, of course, there are always situations over which I have little control, and I hope simply for the strength to hang on for the ride.

Some changes we choose – to lose weight and exercise, pay down debt, do things differently, do something we’ve never done before. These are the changes we initiate because we hope they will make a positive difference in our lives.

And then there are changes we do not choose. These are brought to us, dropped in our laps and we are left to deal with the results. It has been said that the only one who likes change is a baby. Babies know they’ll be warm and dry, but when change affects us we rarely have a guarantee that things will go so well for us. I guess that’s what makes it so hard for us. We’d like to be able to prepare ourselves and take some little comfort in knowing that we have done all we could do, but there is often little we can do.

Isaiah 6 opens in just this kind of state. “In the year that king Uzziah died...” This simple opening sentence tells us more than when this event happened. It tells us something about fear for the future. We enjoy smooth transitions in government, but this was not always the case in the ancient world. While Uzziah was, generally speaking, a good and godly king, there was no predicting what would happen when a new king stepped into power. A new ruler could raise taxes, go to war, and oppress the people. There is a lot of fear and uncertainty tucked into these few words.

The next line is hopeful, thankfully. “...I saw the Lord seated on a throne...” To be seated on the throne was a symbol of power. God was in charge. Despite the uncertainty over a new king, Isaiah had reassurance that God was still in control. No matter who sat on the throne in Jerusalem, God would still sit on his throne, where it really mattered.

This is a good word for us as we face a new year. We will never know all that will face us in the upcoming year, but of this we can be sure. God is still on his throne. There are changes which we will welcome, and some which will be difficult, but God will not step away. He is always faithful. May this be a year when we say, “In the year that ____ happened, I saw the Lord seated on his throne...”

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Jan 4, 2012. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #270 Christmas, Star Trek and From Away

2011-12-15T03:42:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #270 On Christmas, Star Trek, and From Away

I grew up on Prince Edward Island, a beautiful place but not without its interesting ways of doing things. There is an expression every Islander learns from an early age to describe someone not born on PEI. “From away” is the phrase used to explain that someone does not hang from the branch of an Island family tree.

It is important for Islanders to be able to “place” someone, and so introductions and initial conversations often revolve around where people grew up, where their families live, maiden names, parents’ names. I call it the Family Name Game, and most Islanders of a certain age do it instinctively. You introduce yourself and the wheels of the other person’s mind start turning.

“Dennis.... Are you related to the Dennis’ in Ellerslie?” Everyone in Prince County knows Dennis Motors and wonders if there is a connection. If I’m talking with someone who lives closer to the middle of the Island, they might ask if I’m related to anyone in Charlottetown because a number of Dennis’ live there. This is how the name game works.

“No,” I reply. “My dad is from O’Leary.” (The original Dennis family settled near Ellerslie, but two descendants moved near O’leary and that’s where my family comes from).

“Yeah?” The response at this point is always hopeful. They are close to making a connection - they know someone in O’leary or have relatives there - “What’s his name?”

My father knows a lot of people, so sometimes this helps to make a connection. Sometimes not. They’ll probably ask about my mother’s family, or I might volunteer the information. This often helps because the name is common in that area. (I can almost predict that the Islanders reading this are now thinking about emailing me for the information because they don’t have enough info to finish putting the family connections together. The instinct is powerful.)

They will probably follow up by asking if I know someone they know. There are extra points if I do, with an additional measure of goodwill if the person is related to either of us. This is how the name game works. With my Island family credentials firmly established, conversation moves on to some bit of Island news, weather, or politics. There is a mutual feeling of trust because we share a common bond as Islanders. (Of course, if the family name has bad history this can also work against someone. Thank the Lord for great families!)

My wife was not born on PEI but the name game is played with predictable results. Her maiden name is not an “Island name,” which results in polite inquiry: “Where is your family from?” As soon as she tells them her parents live off-Island, the topic changes with a gentle, “Oh...” And forever after it will be said that I married a girl “from away.” There is no harm or malice intended. It is simply a signal to other Islanders that she cannot be “placed” in a family they may know. I’m sure this kind of thing happens in other places, too.

There is something comforting about connecting with someone from the same area because we share background and roots. We get the inside jokes and understand the idiosyncrasies of the people. It is not something which can be bought or earned. It comes from knowing the same people, going to the same schools, walking the same routes, knowing the same people, being born in the same place.

This is why it is so important that Jesus came to earth and was born as a baby. If had he been beamed in from heaven like a figure in Star Trek, he would be “from away” and could not have been “Immanuel - God With Us.” Jesus came to us as fully God but also fully human. He was born, learned to walk, grew up first as a child, then was a teen, and finally a man.

John 1:14 says, “The Word (Jesus) became flesh and dwelled among us.” Hebrews 4:14 tells us, “We do not have a high priest who unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who was tempted in every way as we are....” It makes me wonder - was Jesus ever bullied at the synagogue? Did he have pimples? Did girls have crushes on him? What did he do when an attractive woman walked into the room?

Of course, I fully believe Jesus treated people with utmost decency and respect. I’m simply thinking out loud to make a point. We can trust Jesus with anything because there is nothing we face which Jesus didn’t face. He encountered it all, maybe not in exactly the forms we do, but the essence of the testing was the same. Jesus was not “from away.” He gets it because he was born here.

May this Christmas be a reminder that Jesus is “Immanuel - God with Us.” May this thought add extra meaning to the holiday season, and point us, not to the gifts, food and parties, but to the Saviour who was born to be one of us. Hebrews 4:16 sums it up: “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”

I hope this helps. Have a Jesus -centred Christmas and we’ll connect in the New Year. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Dec 15, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #269 Seasons of Intensity

2011-11-24T03:15:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #269 Seasons of Intensity

Hi Folks:

One fall when I was in seminary, I noticed the leaves were gone. That wasn’t so remarkable since it happens every year. What caught my attention was that I couldn’t remember that the leaves had even changed colour. It was a little freaky.

There are seasons when we go through intense times. I’m in one right now since our church is searching for a senior pastor. We have a part-time interim senior pastor and a part-time worship pastor. Even still, there are extra responsibilities. I’ve been through this process before. When I was a youth pastor our church went two years without a senior pastor. I survived and even discovered some strengths, so that experience is helpful now.

But I’d be lying if I said there isn’t pressure and frustration. A lot, actually. I was trying to think of an appropriate metaphor or analogy, but I haven’t had the time. It takes a lot of energy to deal with the wide range of emotions I go through on a daily basis - the surge of adrenaline to deal with something important quickly, the disappointment of letting someone down, the frustration of having to put off even important things, the insecurity of making decisions normally made by someone else, the pressure to meet deadlines.

It's a wild emotional ride between the extremes of being overwhelmed on the one hand, and the excitement of feeling like we’re on the edge of a breakthrough, on the other.

I’m betting there are people who can identify with this experience, that I’m not the only one who feels these things, and so I wanted to pass along some thoughts that are helping to keep me from feeling like I’m going to lose it.

“Someday this will all be worth it in the end.” Someone told me this during their family crisis one time, and it has stuck. I keep it on my bulletin board, and it is a variation on Romans 8:28, “All things work together for good for those who love the Lord.”

“Don’t do anything to make it worse.” Or, stated in another way, “Don’t do anything stupid.” Temptations look sweeter and distractions look more interesting when we’re tired and under pressure. Giving someone a piece of our minds is generally not a good a idea. Revenge is never worth it.

“Treat people like people.” I have to guard my tone, especially. And, my thought filter doesn’t work as well. Sadly, the people closest are the ones to see this side of me. I have to be very careful.

“Be more careful with major decisions.” These decisions may be life decisions or purchases: buying or selling property, changing jobs, change in marriage status. Stress changes the way we think and so we have to be careful not to think the first idea is the best one. We need to get more advice and take more time.

“Maintain important life routines.” While we can’t always control the circumstances which swirl around us, structure helps us put one foot in front of the other. I go to bed and get up at regular times and try to eat on schedule. I help get the kids off to school in the morning because this is part of a routine. And each week I take one of the boys for breakfast.

“Eat properly and get exercise.” This is part of routine, but more than this, when we’re under stress we have to take better care of our bodies. These days I’m doing things like parking further away from the door, taking the stairs when I visit at the hospital, or getting off city transit at an earlier stop to make sure I add some exercise even in small ways without taking a lot of extra time in my day. My dream would be to go to the gym or pool, but there isn’t time or money for this, so I add exercise in other ways.

“Look for the bright side.” Last night my snow blower wouldn’t start. It started in the summer, and it started a couple of weeks ago, but not last night when there was 20cm of snow in my driveway. Grumble, grumble. But, on the other hand, I got some exercise. That’s the bright side.

“Don’t give up Bible reading and prayer.” OK - I’m the “trained professional” in this area, and I face this pressure all the time. My guess is other people do, too.

“Put one foot in front of the other.” Every once in a while I have what I call a “low motivation day.” I feel blaw, unmotivated, not like working. I do anyway, but take care of some things that don’t need as much brain power. I find the feeling passes as I keep going.

"Problems don't get better by procrastinating." Some problems are not the crises they first appear to be, but generally speaking I find it better to tackle things quickly. When I put them off they always seem to come back, worse than before, and make more work. If I have to tell someone about a problem, expecially a mistake I made, I have found it better to get it out of the way. Bad news early is better than bad news late.

“Find ways to add fun-factor.” After not being very involved in youth ministry for a few years, this fall I stepped back in to help our youth groups. It was an extra that I couldn’t really afford time for, but it was too important for the youth of our church’s families, mine included. This has turned out to be a real joy. I’m also working with a youth band again and we did a worship service in our church a few weeks ago. This has been life giving, a real joy which adds “fun factor.”

“One day at a time.” This is my mother’s favourite, and I have found it to be true. We need to plan but worry is something different. As Jesus said, “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” (Matthew 6:34)

Life inevitably brings seasons of intensity. I’m in one right now, and maybe there are OnFire readers in their own season. As always, I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Nov 24, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #68 Audacious Faith

2011-11-08T03:39:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #68 Audacious Faith

I felt like a fool last week. After hearing what I thought were gunshots, I called 911.

I was awake at about 1:30AM one night when I heard a big boom. There is a train yard nearby and we often hear the clangs and crashes of shunting cars, but this was different, less metallic, more “boomy,” like a shotgun blast. As I lay there wondering if I had actually heard a gunshot, I heard a crack, followed shortly by another big boom. As a hunter, I was convinced I had just heard shots from at least two kinds of guns.

The police response was swift. Less than 5 minutes later 3 or 4 squad cars arrived and began rolling through the neighbourhood as one of the officers took my statement. Did I know anyone in the area with guns? Could it have been fireworks? I felt silly, but he reassured me. A few weeks before, they had responded to a report in another part of the city and someone had actually been shot. They patrolled for half an hour or so, but I don’t think they found anything.

Since then I have reviewed the events in my mind. Did I actually hear gunshots? Was it just the trains? But what about the sharp crack? I remain convinced I heard shots, but it is hard to believe, especially since no one else seems to have heard them.

The issue of sounding like a fool came to my mind as I reviewed the last of the “little faith” passages.

When the disciples asked why they could not heal a boy, Jesus replied, “Because you have so little faith.” (Matthew 17:20)

The phrase “little faith” drew me to the passage, but the next sentence caught my attention. “I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, `Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you."

How much faith is enough faith? With only a small amount of faith we could do extraordinary things. And yet, it seems we don’t often see the incredible happen. Small faith seems to be the problem. Certainly we believe that the same God who created the mountains could move one if he wanted. His strength is not to blame.

There is part of this discussion which sounds like crazy talk. Casting out demons and moving mountains seem to be the fantasy stuff of movie legends. Are we foolish to think this could be real? For us? Right now?

This is exactly the point. Faith often appears foolish. It defies the reality we see with our eyes in order to recognize the one God sees. In this way faith does not always make sense. In fact, it may go against what many view as “common sense.”

The challenge of this passage is to have an audacious faith, a bold faith which believes even when it goes against popular opinion. Audacious faith is not limited to what we have seen before. Rather, it dares to believe in what many think is impossible. I am challenged by these words. When is the last time my faith passed the “crazy test?” Good question....

I hope this helps us all to have a stronger, bolder, audacious faith. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Nov 8, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire 267 Mini Beetles Cereal

2011-10-29T04:09:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #267 Mini Beetles Cereal

What’s worse than finding a worm in your apple? Half a worm.

I thought about this lame old joke as I cleaned out some cereal. It had been in our cupboard for a while, but not finding it stale I dumped it into my bowl. A few moments later, I glanced down and noticed some dark pieces floating in the milk. My first thought was that they were bits of cereal, but a hunch told me I should investigate further. Unless I accidentally picked up a box of “Mini Beetles” instead of our usual variety, there were insects in my food.

It only takes a little bit of something to affect the whole lot. A little salt makes soup tasty. A little catalyst makes epoxy harden. And a few bugs ruin breakfast.

In Matthew 16, Jesus uses the analogy of yeast to convey the idea that a little teaching can completely change us, for better or for worse. In case we need reminding, bakers add yeast to bread dough so that it rises. It doesn’t take much, but once it mixes thoroughly it affects the whole batch.

That was the point, actually. Not long after Jesus fed thousands of people by multiplying the lunches of a couple of boys, the Pharisees and Sadducees challenged Jesus to produce a sign to prove he was legit. We often paint these spiritual teachers as mean ogres, but we must remember that they were very popular and highly respected. These revered religious leaders held a lot of sway among the crowd, including the disciples. Jesus saw this and warned them about the “yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” (16:6)

The disciples thought Jesus was trying to protect them from cheap bread, but he had something else in mind. “You of little faith... do you still not understand?” (16:8-9) In Mark 6 we see the same story from a slightly different perspective: “...Are your hearts hardened? Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear?” (6:17-18)

The disciples were not firm in their faith about Jesus, and the constant questioning and pressures from the Pharisees and Sadducees produced conflicting thoughts. The disciples ought to be able to see for themselves that Jesus was the real deal, but the doubts and teachings of these popular spiritual leaders were attractive and it was hard to resist the pressure. It was easier, perhaps, to follow the crowd even though it would be a denial of all they had witnessed.

“You of little faith.” These are tough words. No one wants to be seen as small or little. Jesus challenged them to commit. Had they not seen? Had they not heard? In just a little while, Jesus would ask them, “Who do you say I am?” Could they see for themselves that Jesus was the One? (Matt 16:15)

This is an important word for our day and age. Never before have we had such a wide array of views available to us so easily. And, what is more, never have there been so many people questioning who Jesus is. Sorting through all these opinions can be difficult, especially when some of these people are popular speakers and writers.

It is always important to remember what Jesus has done for us. We have the proof of who Jesus is by what he has done in our lives. Has he made us kinder and more compassionate? Has he healed relationships? Has he changed us to make us better people? Do we feel more peace and security? Has he provided in difficult situations? Does he give us hope for the future? These are as much a sign to us as the miracles in Jesus’ day.

There will always be people who doubt, but let us not forget what Jesus has done for us so that our commitment may be strong.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 29, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #266 Sway Bars for Christians

2011-10-13T09:15:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #266 Sway Bars for Christians

An important part of a car’s suspension system is the sway bar. This device is designed to limit the amount of side to side roll - called sway - during turns. It doesn’t look like much, usually a long piece of round steel formed into a kind of U shape, but its job is important because it improves handling and comfort. Those of us who live in New Brunswick can be proud. Wikipedia tells us that a man from Fredericton was the first to patent the bar in 1919.

We humans could use an anti-sway device. When things are smooth and straight the decisions of life are easy, but when we experience twists and turns we begin to sway. We know what we ought to do, but the complications of life make it hard to believe that we can do it.

This is the nature of doubt. We go back and forth in our minds. We get caught between two opposing ideas and don’t know which one we can trust. Often, we know what is true, but we can’t make up our minds what to do about it.

“I know, but...” is the mantra of doubt. We could fill in the blanks for lots of things. I know yoghurt has less calories and saturated fat, but ice cream is what I really want. I know I should read more, but.... I know I need to lose weight, but....

Let’s bring this around to the topic of faith. “I know I should trust God more, but...”

The books of Matthew, Mark, and John include the account of Jesus walking on the water, but only Matthew tells us that Peter also walked on water that night. In Matthew 14:22-32 we learn that the disciples were rowing across the lake on a windy night when Jesus walked on the water to meet them. The disciples thought he was a ghost and were afraid, but Peter suggested a test. If it was Jesus, he should command Peter to walk across the water also.

Peter did walk on the water, but v.30 says he began to sink when he became afraid of the wind. Jesus saved him from drowning, and then asked him, “You of little faith, why do you doubt?”

It wasn’t that Peter had no faith. As crazy as it seems, he climbed down out of the boat onto the water and started walking. He had enough faith to start, but then the wind and waves scared him. The problem was that he began to sway, to waiver in his conviction and commitment even though he was doing it.

Sometimes we set out in a direction for the Lord, and we’re doing it, perhaps even experiencing some success. But then we become afraid, and we second guess whether it’s the right thing to do. I’m reminded of Paul’s words in Galatians 5:7 “You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?” It is natural to experience doubt, but we do not have to give in. Rather, faith and faithfulness (the two cannot be separated) mean that we will trust God to continue despite our doubts.

We don’t talk much about doubt. Maybe we hope it will just go away. Maybe it’s our way to avoid those whom we fear will rebuke and shame us for such thoughts. I love the words, however, of Jude 1:22 “Be merciful to those who doubt.” Sometimes we need the comfort of someone who comes alongside to say, “You can do this. In fact, you ARE doing this, just keep going.” And sometimes we need to say the words to someone else. In this way little faith becomes bigger faith.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.
Troy

OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 13, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at http://www.onfireletter.com/ . Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #265 Little Faith: Fear

2011-09-28T04:24:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #265 Little Faith: Fear

We continue to look at the things which trip up our faith. 6 times Jesus rebuked lack of faith. Last time we looked at worry, and this time we look at it’s relative, fear.

A few years ago I went rapelling. I felt like I would shake apart as I backed over the edge of a 70-foot cliff. Even though I was afraid, the most amazing thing happened about half-way down. I realized I was doing it, and it felt great. I paused my descent, look around, looked up and down, and was truly surprised. I did not expect that terrifying experience of hanging so high above the ground to be so wonderful. I discovered I could trust the rope, trust the people holding the safety lines, trust my own ability to hold on. When I finished I ran back up the path to get in line again.

In Matthew 8 we find the disciples in the boat with Jesus, travelling from the area of Capernaum to the other side of the lake. A violent storm arose and when the waves started to fill the boat, the disciples (among whom were a number of seasoned fishermen) woke Jesus. "Lord, save us! We're going to drown!"

Jesus responded immediately, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” (8:26)

In this exchange we discover that fear may affect our faith and hold us back from trusting God.

I don’t believe the issue was fear itself. This is a natural reaction. The issue was the impulse to think, “I shouldn’t have come in the first place.” Or perhaps, “Is this why God brought me here, only to abandon me at the worst time?”

The insight for this comes from the verses leading up to this episode. In verse 18 Jesus gave the order to get into the boat and cross the lake. Jesus was ready, evidently feeling that it was necessary to leave right away. One man offered himself, claiming he would follow Jesus wherever he went, but Jesus answered in a way which leads us to think the man was secretly afraid of the lack of security and comfort Jesus could offer: “Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” (8:20)

Another man was willing to follow Jesus, but wanted to wait until he had the chance to bury his father (8:21). There was nothing wrong with wanting to fulfill this family duty, but timing was the issue. Jesus was leaving and so he had to make a choice. When it came right down to it, would he follow Jesus, or was he more afraid of how his family might react if he did?

The disciples followed when others had not (8:23). This was a good thing, but when the storm hit and the waves beat the boat, they really were not much different from those they left on shore. They gave the impression of faithfulness, but fears battered their resolve. “It would have been better if we had stayed with those on shore...” I think that’s what they were thinking when they cried out, “Save us, we’re going to drown!”

Fear is what we feel when we no longer feel safe, when we worry, when we move past our level of comfort, when we exceed our experience, or when present circumstances remind us of past trouble. It is a natural emotion and we all feel it.

The difference between fear and faith is this. Fear says, “I can’t go forward,” or “I wish I could go back.” Faith says, “I am afraid, but I will move ahead anyway because I trust God to bring me through.”

This is not about conquering our fears. It is not by our mighty strength that we do this. Sure, motivational speakers pump us up to make us realize that we were stronger than we thought. But even they have fears they cannot conquer. No one is fearless, but that’s not the point..

Faith is about being afraid, but moving ahead anyway because we trust that God is in it. Faith is about believing that it is better move ahead, even in fear, than to stay where we are or to go back. In this way faith is related to courage, but it is a courage grounded in the belief that God is good and that God goes with us.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.
Troy

OnFire is a bi-weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Sept 28, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

Onfire #264 Little Faith Big Faith: Worry

2011-09-13T14:30:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

Onfire #264 Little Faith Big Faith: Worry

I read lately that worry is a negative emotion. Really? Is there someone who thinks that worry is a positive emotion? Would anyone mistake it for something good? Look at all the synonyms: anxiety, nervousness, concern, disquiet, anguish, apprehension, fear, torment, uncertainty, and the list goes on. I don’t think people lie awake at night because they have so much joy in their hearts.

Worry is the first of the “little faith” topics. Jesus spoke about worry in the sermon on the mount. “O, you of little faith,” he said. Why worry about what we will eat or wear since God feeds the birds and dresses the flowers? Aren’t we are more important to Him than these? I’m summarizing, so be sure to read the whole passage in Matthew 6:24-34.

It would be interesting to know how much worry costs us. We take expensive trips to “get away from it all.” We treat ourselves to take our minds off our problems. We fill our lives with activity and distraction hoping our problems will just go away. We haven’t even talked about the more destructive things we might do to try to forget our problems for a time. Nor have we talked about the cost of illnesses brought on by worry. Ironically, it all comes with a price tag, and then we worry about that, too.

Speaking of irony, sometimes we worry because we have nothing to worry about. How many times have we wondered how long it would be before something bad happens again!!

The solution to the problem of worry comes from the context of the passage. In v. 24 we read, “No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.” The first mistake we often make in understanding the passage is to separate this verse from what follows. Often we insert a stop here and read the next section as a different topic. Money, then worry. But we cannot separate the two because Jesus connects them in v. 25: “Therefore...”

The second mistake we make is thinking that love of money is the source of the problem. We get this from Jesus’ statement, “You cannot serve both God and money,” but this is not where Jesus started: “No one can serve two masters.”

Worry is about divided loyalties. We say we follow Jesus, but actually we’ve allowed another master to step in front. That other master may be money, but it could also be pride, our ability to think, plan, to improve ourselves, or even the desire to escape. In order to discover the other master we are trying to serve, we might ask ourselves, “My life would be better if only...”

How do we get back on the right track, to serve God wholeheartedly, and with great faith? “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (V.33) Jesus tells us that we can leave worry behind by choosing to focus our thoughts and attention on God and serving Him. We can choose not to worry. This is not like the old song, “Don’t worry, be happy.” This is the choice to focus on something better than worry, on making God’s thoughts our thoughts. When we do this, worry goes away, and God makes sure we have the things we really need.

I’m not going to pretend to have this one mastered. I have to admit that I’m a little uncomfortable writing because I feel the sting of rebuke. I find myself worrying about things all the time, maybe not about what I will eat or wear, but certainly about finances, problems and situations, and all sorts of “what ifs.”

For all of us it all comes down to trust. Do we trust God to provide what we need, when we need it? Worry is the clue that we’re trusting in something we think we can provide. Jesus reminds us that our way doesn’t work. “Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?” (V.27) Jesus calls us to trust in God’s ability to provide.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.
Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Sept 12, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #263 Stacking Stones

2011-07-05T03:42:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #263 Stacking Stones

Summer means that OnFire will not be regular as we have vacation Bible school, a youth mission, vacation, and our annual Baptist assembly. I’ll send out as I’m able, but I know it will not be regular over the next few months.

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While on a canoe trip with some friends a few years ago, we came across a rock cairn. We were expecting it because we had read about it in our guidebook, and one of the guys also knew there was a geocache located there. Even still, I was a little surprised to see this pile of stones in the middle of the wilderness. I’ve forgotten the story of why it is there, but a pile of stones like that means something.

Not long ago I was reading in Joshua 4 and came to the passage where the Hebrew people crossed the Jordan. What a great day it was. After wandering in the wilderness for 40 years, they finally went into the Promised Land. And, what a miraculous set of circumstances it was. Just as their fathers and mothers had crossed over the Red Sea on dry land, they crossed the Jordan on dry land when it was at flood stage.

To commemorate the occasion, a man from each tribe picked up a rock from the river bed where the priests carrying the ark of the covenant had stood, and carried it to their camping location that night. The twelve rocks became a lasting marker of what the Lord had done.

As I read this passage, I was struck by the fact that someone had to carry those rocks. 12 men had to lift them from the river bed, hoist them to their shoulders, and carry them to wherever their camp was that night. We’re not talking river pebbles. To make an effective marker out of twelve stones, they would need to be large, as big as the men could carry. 12 marbles would never make someone stop and ask, “What happened here?”

It occurred to me that sometimes God asks us to pick up a big stone and to carry it for a while. Life hands us an additional burden which we must bear for some time.

That thought wasn’t very encouraging when I first had it. I considered that I had enough burden to carry without thinking of more. But thankfully another thought occurred. They only had to carry them from the river to the camp. I’m sure to those men it seemed long enough, perhaps too long depending on the location in the area of at Gilgal. But it was not indefinite or forever.

My problem is that I would like to know “How long?” There are some answers we just don’t have, but these words seemed to suggest that it would not be forever. There would be a time to set the burden down.

It’s not everyday that passages lift off the page, but that was a neat day and I had one more thought. At the end we’d be able to say, “Look what God has done.” In the same way those stones represented God’s power and strength to bring the Hebrews across the Jordan River, there would be something we can point to as a reminder that God was with us.

It’s not enjoyable to pick up a rock, to lift a burden for even a short time. But I drew some comfort that day and I hope it provides some comfort for you.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published July 5, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #262 Father's Day Talk

2011-06-22T04:09:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #262 Father’s Day Talk

OnFire is different this week. I have adapted a talk I gave to the men of our church on Sunday.
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A Few Years Ago...
You will recall that I have two boys, now 17 and 15. Five or six years ago, when the oldest was 10 or 11, I began to feel some unease about raising them. It felt like I was leaving the side of one map but I didn’t have the next map. I was moving into new territory and I wasn’t sure the kinds of things we would face. More to the point, I wasn’t confident about my own ability to lead and parent them.

I tie this feeling to my parents’ s divorce when I was about that age. In these really formative years I didn’t have an active role model in the home about how to be a dad. Thankfully this sense of unease faded and I learned some important things about God and being a father. Understand, this was not a grand revelation, but came as the result of a process over many months. I hope this will help other dads and encourage the rest of men, whether grandparents, uncles, teachers, youth group leaders, friends and neighbours. We can help each other in this important task of raising children.

The Fatherhood of God
During this time I developed a new sense of the Fatherhood of God. John 1:12 began to have more meaning to me:

John 1:12 - Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God*

I realized once again that I have a perfect Father in Heaven and this eased my worries. Other passages lifted off the page and taught me both about the fatherhood of God and about what being a good father is all about.

Luke 11:11-13
Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead? Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!

2 Corinthians 1:3ff.
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort,...

Ephesians 1:17
I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better.

These passages and others were comforting, encouraging, and they taught me about what it means to be a good father.

I Found People Who Were Good Examples
I’ve always been a conscientious parent, but it became even more important to me to find people who were good, strong, positive role models. Thankfully I didn’t have to look far. My grandfather and uncle were especially important. After my parents’ separation I spent a lot of weekends and summers with them and they were good examples of men who lived out faith in Jesus Christ. I had these memories to fall back on, and in addition there were friends and other men in our churches I could look to. They provided examples of godliness, character and diligence which helped a lot.

I Paid Attention to What Works
When I find a good example, especially of someone whose children actively live out their faith in Jesus, I pay special attention to the parenting style, attitudes, actions, home life, discipline and correction, and anything else I can get insight into. Likewise, I also pay attention to what doesn’t work. Generally speaking, several things were affirmed to me.

Our faith has to be genuine. Where I saw sincere faith in parents, children were tons more likely to be engaged in faith.

We can’t live a double life. Where I see an attitude of “do as I say and not as I do,” the children tend to disappear from church life at a young age. At about the same time, I was talking to lots of men who grew up in homes where this happened, and they were deeply cynical about religion of any kind. I became very aware that my children were paying attention to what I taught at church, and if I was not the same person at home as I was on the platform, it was a sure recipe for parental disaster.

Character Counts
I am amazed to hear my boys express opinions which sound a lot like me, even when I don’t remember talking about that topic. They are so impressionable. I was reminded during that time that I need continually to work on my own character because my actions, attitudes and words come from deep within me. Character counts and I was reminded to model godly Christian character for my boys.

Apologize and Make Things Right
I became very aware of the times I blew it. Our children see us at our best, and our worst, and they know when we’ve blown it, so there is no sense denying it or covering our tracks. I broke something belonging to Ian out of anger one night. Ironically, it was a stop sign he had made. What a horrible feeling. I apologized after, and we made a new sign together which still hangs on his door.

I learned something about God’s grace during this time. In His grace, we have a chance to redeem a situation by saying “I’m sorry.” Not that it makes it right - of course not. But we have a chance to model how to handle things when we get it wrong. We show by our example how to apologize and make things right. Thank God for redemption.

Time is Love
At about that time, I realized how busy I was, and would probably always be. And, I also noticed how different from each other my two boys were. I needed a way to get them on their own regularly so that I could pay proper attention to them individually.

At that time I started a weekly appointment with them where I take each one out for breakfast on alternating weeks. This is non-negotiable and the only time we don’t go for breakfast is when I’m out of town. On the rare occasion I need to attend a meeting at that time, I reschedule breakfast for another morning that week. I wanted them to know that for those 30 or 45 minutes, they have my undivided attention.

Its interesting - neither boy talks about these times, but both could tell you whose turn it is. These times have become very important for us.

Not Done Yet
I shared these things on Father’s Day, not because I thought I was the model, but because I hoped it would help. Our boys have a long way to go yet, and so this is stil a work in progress. However, if I felt that kind of unease and fear about parenting my children, then others probably do and maybe something that helped me might help others. I also wanted other men to know that they have an important role, even if they do not have children at home. Just as I found encouragement and wisdom by following the example of those around me, they could be an encouragement and example to the rest of the men and to the children in their lives.

I hope this help. Be on fire.
Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published June 21, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #261 Flick the Switch

2011-06-18T01:54:00.000-07:00

OnFire Enouragement Letter

OnFire #261 Flick the Switch

“Don’t forget to turn it on,” a friend reminded me as he showed me how to start the chain saw.

I couldn’t imagine why he would tell me such a thing. After all, it seemed obvious that to begin I should flick the switch from its off position. And yet, since then I have forgotten (many times) and wondered why the machine wouldn’t start after at least 20 pulls.

Sometimes the instruction or advice we receive sounds so obvious we wonder, “Why would anyone need to say that?” Like the line in the chain saw manual operator’s manual which says, “Do not stop chain with hand.” But, I can tell you that there have been times after hitting a rock or nail when I thought about reaching down to check the chain, even though it was running at the time. Sometimes we forget the obvious.

After Paul was stoned and left for dead, he and Barnabas returned to some of the cities where they had preached in order to strengthen the believers and appoint elders. In Acts 14:22, Luke tells us they were “reinforcing the hearts of the believers, calling them to remain in the faith,” and saying that “through many troubles it is necessary to enter the kingdom of God.”

He had to tell them this? Wasn’t it obvious that life was full of hardship? And, how was this supposed to encourage and strengthen them?

This was the piece of advice that reminded me of my chain saw. We sometimes forget the obvious, that life brings troubles. There is something in us that makes us think our hardships should at least fade if we are faithful, but we should not be surprised when we face trials and difficulties.

How was this encouraging? Paul and Barnabas strengthened them by reminding them of their goal - to enter the kingdom of God. There would be much difficulty, but if they remained faithful through the trouble, they would enter the kingdom of God.

A friend once cleared some land but left some trees in the middle of a bog. “Take what you want,” he offered. I needed firewood, so I took him up on the offer. It was tough work, hauling and dragging it out by hand since I couldn’t get a truck in there and I didn’t have a four-wheeler. But the goal was a warm fireplace to relax in front of. I kept reminding myself it would be worth it in the end, and it was.

That difficulty was over in a day or two. Life’s trials often last longer, but Paul reminds us that it will be worth it in the end.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published June 10, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com . Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #260 To Be Bold, or Not to Be?

2011-06-03T05:33:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #260 To Be Bold, or Not to Be?

Hi Folks:

OnFire has been shortlisted for a writing award by the Word Guild in the category, Article: Blog Series. For Word Guild see http://www.thewordguild.com/ For the full list of finalists see http://canadianchristianwritingawards.com/#Shortlist of Finalists

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There is a time to be bold, and a time to back off, and there are times when I wish that it was more clear to me which was which.

When Paul and Barnabas went out to preach about Jesus, they were bold. We see this in Acts 14 as the two went to Iconium, where they spoke boldly and spent considerable time there (14:3). When a plot developed against them, however, they decided it was time to leave (14:5-6). Clearly, some situations call for boldness, while others call for wisdom to back off.

When we took our youth group to a baseball game in Boston one time we found people in a few of the seats assigned to our group. Not wanting a confrontation in a strange city, I rationalized that it was OK since our seating section wasn’t full and we all had seats, even though our group was now split in two. It was one of my leaders who took it upon herself to get our seats back. It was a time to be bold.

Fear is not a helpful guide. Fear may help us recognize danger, but it cannot tell us whether we need to be bold or back off. Sometimes the very thing we need to do is to stand even when it is not safe.

Paul and Barnabas did not back off just because they were threatened. After leaving Iconium, they went to Lystra where they healed a man. People were so astonished that they thought Paul and Barnabas were Zeus and Hermes, 2 Greek gods. To prevent the group from offering sacrifices to them they waded into the crowd, which actually brought them closer to death. A group from Iconium was there and persuaded the mob to stone them. Paul was left for dead and dragged out of the city (14:8-20).

For Paul and Barnabas, it was not about their safety. Sometimes we face stones of opposition because we are doing the right thing. We shouldn’t forget that most of the apostles were martyred.

Be bold? Or back off? I have found some things that help. I pray for wisdom since God promises wisdom when we ask (James 1:5). I try to learn from the mistakes I have made in the past. I look for advice from people who are wise in these matters. And I try not to let fear rule the day. Easier said than done, I know.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published June 3, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #259 Hey Goody Goody

2011-05-25T03:21:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #259 Hey Goody Goody

Hi Folks:

I’m back form the Blue Ridge Mountain Christian Writer’s Conference. I attended classes on devotional writing, voice, and digital media, and learned a lot about the business side of writing. We had the chance to meet with agents, editors and publishers, and while this was nerve-wracking, it was also encouraging.

Last week Jan and I celebrated 21 years of marriage. Always hard to believe it has been this long. One day at a time really adds up. We went out to eat and went to the musical “King and I” put on by a local high school.

Blessings for your week.
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“Hey Goody Goody - what wrong?”

We were in library class at Athena Intermediate School and things weren’t going well for the teacher. Some of my classmates were less than kind and actively resisted her attempts to gain control. More than once that semester she steamed off to bring back the principal.

Things weren’t going so well for me, either. Not everyone was going along with the crowd, but it seemed that way and I felt the pressure to join in as they dropped books behind her back, mocked her, and ignored her instructions. “Goody Goody” was their name for those who didn’t help. I didn’t like the attention and it stung like a slap in the face. There was a veiled threat of “join us or you’re the next target.”

It wasn’t supposed to be this way. I became a Christian the summer before and I was sure that my life was going to get better. Rather than improve, however, it seemed that some things actually got worse. It didn’t seem fair that being a Christian put me in a tight spot between the crowd and God.

I obviously survived this crisis of faith since I am writing about it now, but it was tough and I can remember the sights, sounds, and even smells of that library experience like it was yesterday. For me it has come to represent how being a Christian can actually make some things about life harder, not easier.

When Barnabas and Paul began to travel to tell people about Jesus, they experienced some tough things. Time and again after Acts 13, we read that they went to a new place, spoke boldly, some people responded by following Jesus, and others responded by trying to kill them, literally. We have to think that, after a while, they began to wonder - isn’t there an easier way? Wouldn’t it just be easier to give up?

But this is not what we see. After one early incident where Paul and Barnabas were forcefully expelled from the region, they continued on their way and “were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 13:52*) This seems to be the way they reacted each time. Rather than discourage them, their troubles empowered them to go on.

There is promise in this for us. Even though it would be easier sometimes just to go along with what others are doing, there is a joy that only comes from obedience. There is a sense of God’s presence that only comes when we stand against the test. Going along with the boss’s crooked scheme may save a job, but it will not bring joy. Gossiping in the lunchroom makes us feel like we fit in, but won’t bring peace. Standing up for what is right may not win us friends, but God blesses with joy and the Holy Spirit.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published May 25, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #258 “But God Told Me”

2011-05-05T05:39:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #258 “But God Told Me”

Hi Folks:

First, a correction from last week. Mark had fourth place finishes with Team Canada at the World Sport Stacking Championships. I confused my colours. Bronze is not fourth place.

Jan had her stitches taken out from her carpal tunnel surgery. Get this - she needs to soak her hand in warm, soapy water four times a day. Doing the dishes is actually good for her hand.

Ian turned 17. It still amazes me that I have a child this old. I was 17 when I went to college. I hope I was more mature, but something tells me not to ask a question I don’t want to hear the answer to...

Next week I go the Blue Ridge Christian Writer’s Conference in Asheville, North Carolina. This is THE Christian writer’s conference. I’m excited, but also a little nervous.

Blessings for your week.
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A friend of mine has worked in Christian radio for many years and he tells me that they sometimes receive music recordings which are really bad, often accompanied by scribbled notes saying that God had revealed to them that they should be on the radio.

Often these recordings are bad on several levels. To begin, the recording itself is of poor quality, using old tape technology, a cheap microphone and a department store keyboard, with people singing and strumming in the background. The musicianship may also be poor, with off-tune singing and out-of-tune instruments.

How do you argue with God? Did the letter not say that God spoke? Their approach was simple. “When God tells us the same thing, then we’ll put you on the radio.”

After returning to Antioch from their mission to deliver relief money, Barnabas and Paul were appointed to travel in order to spread the news about Jesus Christ. The way this happened is fascinating. Acts 13:1-3 tells us they were with a group of other prophets and teachers, worshipping and fasting, when the Holy Spirit revealed that the two should be set apart for this work.

The issue of discerning God’s voice can be tough. We once got caught in the middle of a tiff between two sets of friends over an apartment. It was promised to one couple, but the other couple kept saying, “But God told us we should have it.” We need to be careful about playing the “God card.” In the end it went to the couple to whom it was originally promised.

There are some important principles we see in these three verses. First, they were prophets and teachers, well-respected, trusted and time-tested leaders with level heads and maturity. Only after they had proved themselves faithful in smaller matters did God lead them in something bigger.

They were worshipping and fasting together. When it comes to church matters, it is hard to take people seriously if they don’t worship regularly with God’s people. That they were fasting highlights their involvement. Their spiritual practices came at a personal cost. They weren’t dabbling, playing around at the edges.

There was a group involved. One or two might easily confuse their own desires with the voice of God, but a group has more credibility.

They sought confirmation in ever-widening circles. We see five prophets and teachers listed as part of the church at Antioch, but it is evident that there is a larger body which confirmed God’s leading. Someone had the original direction, the five agreed, but it was the larger group which agreed to send them out.

There was a process of spiritual discernment that involved the larger body. They needed time to confirm God’s leading and they needed the rest of the body to be involved. It was only after fasting and praying that they laid hands on them to confirm this was, indeed, from the Holy Spirit.

In my experience, people are often 1) not willing to test the direction, or 2) impatient with confirming God’s leading in ever-widening circles.

First, the words, “God told me that...” are serious. We will either be right... or wrong. If we’re wrong, we’d better figure it out. Second, a sense of God’s leading does not entitle us to run roughshod over people or to question the depth of their spirituality if they suggest we test the matter.

Third, God does not lead contrary to his already revealed will. It is not God’s voice which suggests someone ought to steal, cheat, or have an affair, for instance. As a pastor, I have heard all these things.

Fourth, a sense of urgency should not blind us to the need of confirming God’s leading in ever widening circles. Again, what do we have to lose? If we’re wrong, we need to know, but if we’re right it will be confirmed. Generally speaking, the bigger the idea, and the more people involved, the wider the circles need to be.

And finally, we haven’t talked about the issue of timing. Even if the direction is from God, this does not mean that we should act immediately. Obedience sometimes means waiting for the right time to act.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.
Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published May 4, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #257 Things We Assume Work

2011-04-27T04:56:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #257 Things We Assume Work

Hi folks:

What a full few weeks it has been leading up to Easter. Our senior pastor has resigned, effective in June, and so we are going through pastoral transition. I will remain in family ministries to maintain stability for a future senior pastor. We have an interim pastor coming in.

Jan and Mark went to Dallas for the World Sport Stacking Championships. Mark had second, third, and fourth place finishes in individual events in the 15-year-old category. Team Canada won three bronze medals. His picture appeared in the paper at this site: http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/search/article/1399786

Jan had her surgery for carpal tunnel last week. She is getting by on regular acetaminophen and is already feeling some relief. It will take about 6 weeks to recover from the surgery, and then there will be therapy. At some point in the future she will have the other hand done also.

You will remember that Jan’s brother, Bruce, died suddenly in January. We will have the memorial service this Saturday in Saint John. Please include Jan’s family in your prayers since this opens up their wound once again.

Blessings for your week.
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While on vacation a couple of weeks ago, I started to repair a section of ceiling which was damaged by a leak in our bathroom. As I pealed away the blistered paint and applied new drywall compound, I was perplexed to find that one section wouldn’t dry. Since the original damage happened two or three years ago, it didn’t make sense that it would still be wet, so I went looking for the problem. As I opened up the access hatch to our bathroom plumbing, there it was: a small drip in the shower diverter.

As I drive around our city, I can see the evidence of a long, hard winter. Our neighbour replaced his wind-damaged roof last week. A barn near our house collapsed under the weight of so much snow. A steel shed from one of those do-it-yourself kits looks like a giant smacked it from above. The top was flat and the sides bulged round.

We never think about our plumbing until we find a leak. We never think about the roof over our head until it stops doing its job. Integrity is a quality no one notices until it is missing.

This seems to be true in people as it is in buildings. We never think about integrity until there is a problem. We assume people around us act in good faith and, in fact, we count on it. Every time we pay a cashier, swipe a card, sign a contract, leave our car with a mechanic, hire a tradesman, invite a guest into our home, or drop off the children to a program, we trust that the people involved are honourable. That’s why we feel betrayed when we discover that integrity has broken down.

Integrity was the issue for Barnabas and Saul when it came time to deliver a gift to the believers in Jerusalem. A prophet by the name of Agabus predicted there would be a severe famine and so the Christians in Antioch decided to send money to their brothers in Judea. Acts 11:30 records simply, “This they did, sending their gift to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.”*

This seems to be another one of those insignificant verses we pass over on the way to some deeper insight, but we should not miss the fundamental issue of character. They had earned the trust required to deliver this money and they did not disappoint. How refreshing it is when we find people who are absolutely trustworthy.

Integrity is about what we do when we think on one is paying attention. What will we do when we think we won’t be caught? What will we buy? How will we spend our time? Where will we go? How will we treat people? Can people trust us to do the right thing? Can they count on us to avoid doing the wrong thing?

Barnabas reminds us that integrity needs to be our centre, our basic operating principle. I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published April 26, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #256 Direction and Timing

2011-04-13T07:19:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #256 Direction and Timing

I was in my car one day when I drove past the house of one of our church families. I knew them well and had been to visit them many times. I wasn’t aware of any great need or a reason why I should drop in on them, but this day I felt practically compelled. A few kilometres passed as I decided whether to go in. Should I? Shouldn’t I? What was I “supposed” to be doing? Was I scheduled to be anywhere else? Was this something I needed to do in the near future, or that day?

I turned around and when I knocked on the door it opened to a place in crisis. I’m not going to fill in the details of their particular issue, so no worries if you think I’m telling your story. Indeed, several people on the OnFire list may think I’m telling their story because this sort of thing has happened to me often enough that I take these promptings very seriously.

God’s direction and timing in apparently unimportant moments are a big part of the story about Barnabas in Acts 11:25-26. Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Paul and brought him to Antioch. These verses look insignificant, but this act will prove to be extremely important in the spread of the good news about Jesus since Paul and Barnabas will be sent out in Acts 13 to preach and establish churches in many cities throughout the ancient Roman world.

How did Barnabas decide that he needed to find Paul? Was it simply a desire to see a friend? Did something in the conversions of the Gentiles spark Barnabas’ imagination? Did he see an opportunity for the gospel since Paul had already engaged Grecian Jews in Jerusalem? Why not just go back to Jerusalem with his report? Did he figure that Tarsus, 250km by land and less by water, was closer than Jerusalem, which was more than 500km away? Did someone back in Jerusalem suggest that Barnabas find him? Was it a spontaneous decision or part of something planned in advance?

Of course we don’t have the answers we would like, but we can see important lessons for us in these simple verses.

God is constantly working to align events for His purposes. Paul’s life was in danger in Jerusalem so the leaders sent him to his home city of Tarsus. God used this “set-back” to advance the gospel outside Jerusalem.

Barnabas was sensitive to God’s direction and timing. These are both crucial for the faithful follower. Not every idea is a good one, and not everything should be done right away. Even when we feel the direction is solid, God may simply be planting the seeds for something to happen later.

God uses both the “spontaneous” and the long-term . Sometimes we glorify on-the-spot leading as in the story I told earlier, but let’s not make the mistake of thinking that the Holy Spirit is only “spontaneous.” Sometimes direction takes months or years to come together. Anything involving more than one person to plan will take some amount of time. I have served on boards where we planned changes for years in advance.

Erring on the spontaneous is not my weakness, quite the opposite. As any of my friends will tell you, I often labour over decisions and so I sometimes need to remember that God may also lead in the moment. Either way, we must always be careful to discern whether direction is from God or simply a distraction.

God sometimes “interrupts” our plans. Barnabas went to Antioch for one reason, and God used him for another reason. I hope I’m sensitive to God’s direction so that I am effective in my faith and do not wander aimlessly from one thing to another. At the same time, I also hope I am sensitive enough to recognize when God’s plan interrupts what I wanted to do for the day.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published April 13, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #255 Barnabas and Change

2011-04-01T07:25:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #255 Barnabas and Change

As I’m writing this morning, my computer is updating one of the programs, and to be honest, its driving me nuts. The update manager promises that I will have an improved user experience with a new look, new features, and great new free down loadable apps. It sounds promising, but I’m a little sceptical. My experience is that not all updates are improvements in this user’s interface. It doesn’t help my mood that the update is hogging the CPU and slowing everything down. Oh, and get this, just when I clicked to check its progress, yellow and red letters in the middle of the screen tell me “installation failed.” So much for that.

Before you’re tempted to write to me with one of your own stories about computer trouble, to ask what the application was, or to suggest something related to changing my operating system (usually these letters contain phrases such as “drop kick,” “have you tried...” or “linux”), I’m going somewhere with this, so lets not get distracted. Sometimes we resist change (computer related or otherwise) because we don’t know where its going or because we have not had a good experience in the past. The situation is not unlike what we find in Acts 11.

The persecution of the early church drove Christians out of Jerusalem. When Stephen was martyred in Acts 7, many left for Judea and Samaria, but as zealous persecutors like Saul pushed further and further to find them, Christians travelled into other regions as well. In one of God’s many ironic ways, the persecution spread the good news about Jesus.

In Acts 11, a change happened which caught the attention of Christians back in Jerusalem. Instead of the scattered believers speaking about Jesus only to Jews, as they had done in places like Phoenicia and Cyprus, a few believers in Antioch started telling the stories about Jesus to the Greeks. The result was that a number of Gentiles turned to Jesus.

So what’s the issue, you ask? This was a new thing. The message about Jesus started among the Jews, and so at first it did not seem natural that Gentiles might come to the Lord. Was this a new act from God, or something which only had the appearance of good and would cause trouble later? This was the question which arose among the leaders back in Jerusalem .

What to do? They decided to send Joseph, now nicknamed Barnabas, “Son of Encouragement,” to be their eyes and ears so that they might discern the issue. We pick up the story in Acts 11:23-24:

“When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts. He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.”*

It was a great strategy. Being full of the Spirit and a man of faith, he would be able to tell if this was from God. First, it takes one to know one. If we’re going to recognize a movement of the Holy Spirit, we need to be “full up,” filled and relying on the Spirit to lead and guide.

Second, it does indeed take faith to see a new work from God. Often God leads in new ways which require us, as it did for those who went before us, to step in faith, to move in a new direction in a new way, unlike the ways He has led in the past. Too often in our churches, we look back upon “glory days” but forget that those steps were not free from controversy and required a lot of faith, just as they do now. Personally, I’d love to hear more stories about how church leadership overcame the obstacles in those steps of faith rather than to hear about how successful things used to be. We can’t go backward, only forward, and we need to hear these accounts of how God gave courage and strength.

And then, finally, it was a great strategy because, if this was a move from God, the new believers would need someone like Barnabas to come alongside of them, encouraging them and demonstrating what a person of the Spirit and faith looks like. And so we read, “he encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.” Who better to do this than Barnabas?

I think we are living in an exciting time and are seeing some neat new movements of God. There are many effective entrepreneurs of the gospel who bring new thinking, new ways to engage the culture, new ways to worship, new ways to do church. At the same time, I also see that there is much controversy, and much risk that some movements may not be of the Spirit. Hardly a week goes by without receiving email warnings about this or that writer and their supposed heretical teachings.

Sorting through this requires faith, discernment, humility, and willingness to see that God may be leading differently than He did in the past. We have ways of testing these things, and we should. God will not lead in ways contrary to his revealed will in Scripture, and His people are expected to reflect character and behaviour in keeping with true repentance. We can be sure Barnabas tested this change against these things and was then able to recognize this new move of God for what it was.

Every new move of God needs people like Barnabas to discern and also to encourage. In this he stands as an example for us as we live in these exciting but changing times.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published April 1, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #254 Can a Tiger Change Its Stripes?

2011-03-25T04:18:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #254 Can a Tiger Change Its Stripes?

I have added two more introductions to Bible books on my website. Isaiah and John are now part of my Bible Reading Tips page http://onfireletter.com/page15.html

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I owe my ministry to people who have taken a chance on me. I wasn’t out of school very long when I found that things don’t always work the same in life as they do in the classroom. What seemed so easy to decipher in a case study was much harder to discern in real time and soon people were beginning to question whether they made a mistake in calling me as their pastor. I didn’t know it at the time, but thankfully there were people who saw something in me and advocated on my behalf. “Just give him a little time” became a kind of byword.

Since then there have been many other times when people have stuck their neck out for me. I know about some of them because I was there when they laid their reputation beside mine. What an encouragement to know someone would stand beside me when I was otherwise alone. It didn’t take long in ministry to understand that I was the newcomer to the church and to the community, and most often people side with those they know best.

It is a risky thing to stand up for someone, really an act of faith, because there is no guarantee that things will work out well. I promised to attend court with someone with a troubled past. On the appointed day I couldn’t find him at the courtroom. His lawyer asked what I knew and I simply told him we had been meeting and he seemed to be taking initiative to change his life. It was a 15-second conversation at most.

When the judge asked where he was, the lawyer gave a little speech saying that he did not know the location of his client, but that his minister (me) was present, he was attending church and that he was taking steps to turn his life. He was simply doing his job, presenting the best side of his client, but I felt used. We later learned that he had stolen his landlord’s van and gone on a joyride to Quebec.

In Acts 9 we see the miraculous conversion of Saul. Jesus appeared to him while he was on the way to Damascus, where he planned a full-scale persecution of believers. We should not doubt that he was going to make good on his “murderous threats,” (9:1*) but this changed when he met Jesus that day.

We have the benefit of being able to read the clear evidence of his conversion. He stopped arresting believers and started preaching that Jesus is the Son of God. Ironically, his own life came under threat and he escaped one night by being lowered outside the city wall in a basket. The church in Jerusalem did not know this. When Saul came back it was hard to believe that this tiger had changed his stripes.

It was Barnabas who saw the change in Saul and took him to the apostles. Once again, he proved his nickname as “Son of Encouragement” by standing at Saul’s side when few would take the risk. Here we see the power of an encourager. Would we have the incredible account of the spread of the gospel in Acts if Barnabas had stayed silent? Without this encourager, would we have so much of the New Testament?

Our churches need encouragers. As a pastor I need encouragement. But more than that, there are people who are trying to make a fresh start by the grace of God. Many times I have seen people shut out of church life by others who think it is just a matter of time before they slip and fall again. I understand this feeling because I’ve been burned a few times myself.

Encouragement is not without its risks and in this we don’t have to be naive. But Barnabas provides an example of the power of encouragement. Can we make room in our hearts to encourage, to stand at the side of people that we are tempted to give up on?

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published March 25, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #253 What’s in a Nickname?

2011-03-18T05:40:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #253 What’s in a Nickname?

Hi Folks:
Nicknames can be a lot of fun, at least once we get past the mean ones. I was, shall we say, a portly young lad, and 6 year-old boys can be very cruel. But, thankfully, that was a long time ago.

Like I started out to say, nicknames can be a lot of fun. In school there was one boy everyone called “Soup” because his last name was the same as a major brand of canned product. In our college dorm guys picked up names like “Mick” and “Nobby.” Mick rhymed with “Rick,” his real name, and “Nobby” started when someone switched letters of his first and last names.

Our student has picked up the name “Chia,” partly because her own name is hard for us to say properly, and partly because it is a cute name and she is full of fun.

In Honduras last year, I picked up the nickname “Toro,” which is Spanish for bull. It stuck one day as a bunch of us were sharing a laugh while we shovelled sand. “Troy” was hard to pronounce, and I did a lot of the wheelbarrow work. One of the men made horns with his fingers against his head and pointed to me.

I love that Jesus called James and John the “Sons of Thunder.” Were they just so loud? Did they have a roaring kind of laugh? It sounds like the kind of nickname that comes when people enjoy each other’s company.

In Acts 4:36 we read about a man named Joseph who was a Levite from Cyprus. In many ways this tells us that he was a very ordinary kind of guy, but as the verse continues, we see that he picked up a new name from the apostles. They called him “Barnabas,” and Luke translates this as “Son of Encouragement.” What would we call him now? Perhaps “Sunny” ?

Luke introduces us to Barnabas because he will be an important figure at Paul’s side later. He is never again called Joseph in the New Testament, always Barnabas. The name seems to fit, and that’s not a bad way to be known.

For the next little while we’re going to look at what made Barnabas such an encouragement. The first thing we see is that he gave money, but this is not why he was encouraging. Other people in Acts gave money and they were not called encouragers. In fact, this little blurb about Barnabas in Acts 4 leads into a section on Ananias and Sapphira, who gave money but did it with the idea of making themselves look spiritual to other people. It was the way that Barnabas gave the money that was so encouraging. There was no pretense, no hidden agenda, no strings, just a spirit of generosity and wanting to help.

As a teenager, I was once asked by a good-looking girl to go to a banquet with her. Normally this would have been very exciting because I didn’t get that many offers. The way she asked me, however, suggested that she was hiding something, or perhaps she was making sport of me. I had heard her making fun of people to her friends, and I suspected I was next. The same offer from someone who genuinely cared would have been very different.

That was what made Barnabas stand out. His generosity and kindness was sincere. No one doubted the spirit or manner in which he gave. He saw a need and looked for ways he could be involved, even if it meant personal sacrifice.

People like this are encouraging. They build us up because we know they’re not looking for something in return. We won’t owe them or be indebted to them. They’re just trying to help.

We can learn a lot from Barnabas. May we not fall into the trap of helping someone because of what we might get out of it. Sometimes we get disappointed because we helped someone and they didn’t say thank you or come to church with us. We have to be careful about that. Our helping has to be genuine, from the heart, without expecting anything in return.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published March 18, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/.

OnFire #252 - A Noisy Place (Silence and Solitude)

2011-03-18T05:36:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #252 - A Noisy Place (Silence and Solitude)

Hi Folks:

Jan and I were out shopping and there were times when I had to tell her I couldn’t hear her, not that there is any problem with my hearing, but because the store was noisy. I’m not even sure we perceived it, or perhaps we were used to it, but there was noise all around us. The freezers hummed, the lobster tank bubbled, the shopping carts clacked and rattled, people chatted. We didn’t realize how loud it was until Jan’s voice disappeared among the noise.

I like a little noise and buzz around me. Most mornings I get up and turn on the radio in the bathroom to catch up on the news while I shave. When we were students Jan knew she could find me in the large cafe area of the student union building. Believe it or not, that’s where I studied my Greek and Hebrew in seminary, in the middle of the crowd, watching people coming and going, and repeating my vocabulary words under my breath.

Noise and hubbub are all around us and sometimes we even enjoy it, not the noise perhaps, but the sense of being in motion, of being around people, not being alone, and getting something done. Maybe that’s why this next spiritual discipline can be a tough one.

Solitude and silence are the practices of getting away from other people and removing spiritual “noise” in order to encounter God. This is different from just getting away. We’ve all had the feeling that we just need some peace and quiet and so we go somewhere, to the park, garage, or for a drive. The purpose then is usually just to go somewhere where no one can find us and we can “turn off.”

The purpose of solitude and silence, however, is not to hide, but to remove noise so we can hear God as he speaks to us. There is a pattern we see in the Bible about this. It was only as Moses turned away from his normal routine to investigate the burning bush that God spoke to him.* God did not speak to Elijah in the wind, earthquake or fire, but in a gentle whisper. Jesus often withdrew from the crowds to pray in “lonely places.” Peter went up to a rooftop to pray, and Paul and his companions were looking for a place to pray outside of Philippi when they met Lydia.

I know God can speak to us in great, dramatic, noisy ways. Look at Paul on the road to Damascus, for example. But it seems rather that God prefers to get us alone somewhere where he has our attention. I would venture to say that it is much better for us to listen for God’s small voice. If God needs to speak to us in a loud way to get our attention, then we haven’t been listening and there may be big changes coming. Again, look at Paul on the road to Damascus...

In silence and solitude we “get away,” but we take the Bible and perhaps a notebook or journal, and we intentionally meet with God in prayer. One way to do this is simply to turn off the phone, computer, radio, music, and tv. There are lots of times when this is not possible because there are other people around the house. Be creative. I have used a storage closet, a tent in our backyard, the car, my workshop, a corner of the library, a coffee shop in another town, and even a friend’s basement for micro-getaways. For longer periods I have used a friend’s cottage or camp.

I once did a 20 minute exercise in a Sunday school class to show that even a short time of silence and solitude can be very powerful way to draw close to God. I asked people to be quiet. We prayed silently for the first five minutes as a way to settle into the process. Everyone read Matthew 5:1-12 and answered the following questions silently. What verses stand out? In what ways do you feel blessed? In what ways have you experienced the truth of these verses lately? Are there ways in which these verses seem odd to you? Are there ways you sense God is telling you to change? How do you react to this? How do these verses intersect with your life right now?

The questions were really just a process for letting God speak and provided a structure for using the time. Instead of wondering what to do, I provided an outline. As we become more comfortable with being quiet we won’t have to worry about what to do. We’re simply giving God the opportunity to speak to us.

Our world is a noisy one. Lots of people and problems draw our attention. But when we take the opportunity to turn off the noise of the world, even for a short time, we allow ourselves to hear God’s small voice.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published March 11, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com. *Paul on the road to Damascus (Acts 9). Moses (Exodus 3:1-3) Elijah (1 Kings 19:11-13) Jesus (Matthew 14:23; Luke 5:16; Luke 6:12; Luke 11:1) Peter (Acts 10:9) Paul in Philippi (Acts 16:13)

OnFire #251 Journaling and the Word

2011-03-04T07:50:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #251 Journaling and the Word

There is something very powerful about words. Through them we communicate our thoughts, express our feelings, make our ideas come to life. Think about it for a moment. There was a time when the universe was nothing but a thought, an idea in God’s vast and creative imagination. We had no earth, no sun, moon or stars. No trees or birds, dogs or cats, elephants, ants, fish or whales, and we certainly did not have us. None of it existed. Just darkness and nothingness.

Then God spoke and suddenly idea became reality.

Words have power to create. Not in the way God creates, of course. But with them we have the power to be creative, to express emotion which was only a feeling, to bring into being something which was only a thought.

I don’t want to be too philosophical about this. I’ve never had much patience for people who seem to live in some other-world, dreamy, idealized kind of place. But at the same time I am amazed by the connection between us, God, and the power of expression through words. Put it all together and we have Jesus: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

This brings me to the spiritual discipline of journaling. In journaling we gather our thoughts, express our feelings, record our memories and speak to God through our fingers.

Writing helps me to focus my thoughts. In traditional prayer I sometimes feel scattered and my mind wanders. God sometimes uses that wandering to bring people and things to mind, but at other times it is frustrating because I can’t gather myself productively. Writing helps slow me down and finally express what is swirling inside me, whether bad or good.

Journaling helps me to remember deeply moving spiritual events. How soon we forget those high points of meeting with God or of answered prayer. I don’t often go back through my journals, but I know those moments are there. Interestingly enough, I have had a few moments when writing in my journal has become a high point with God and I have that record.

I have used a couple of approaches which you may find helpful. Always start with prayer. This may or may not be written, but prayer helps to separate this from other forms of writing. Commit this time to God.

In option #1, we simply start writing our thoughts: current life, prayer requests, praises, confessions, goals, fears, frustrations.

In option #2, we begin with a passage or verse. The verse may come from a retreat, a daily Bible reading or devotion, or even the pastor’s message. Write it out. Summarize it in your own words. Then record your responses to it _ your questions about what it means, good things you like about it, and even the bad things you react against. This is the crucial part, because growth does not always come in our good reactions, but in our questions and negative responses. Why do you think you react against this? Don’t get caught in analyzing it - be more concerned with what is going on in your heart and your spiritual condition than with trying to apply what you saw lately on an afternoon talk show.

In both approaches it is important to remember that, like prayer, journaling is a two-way communication process. Not only do we want to tell God what is going on through our fingertips, but we want to make sure that we allow time for God to respond in the conversation.

Finally, it is OK to write our only-half-formed thoughts. In contrast to speaking or teaching where we want to present a formed conclusion, journals can help us express, work through, and develop the thoughts we still can’t make sense of. Sometimes we get glimpses of something important, but we can’t put the pieces together. Sometimes we’re confused by conflicting parts. We’re working through something, but we don’t even know what it is. That’s actually OK, and where a journal can be particularly helpful. Its just us and God, we don’t have to put it together right now. We can give the pieces to God in writing.

There are some neat passages dealing with writing and the power of recording our experiences with God. For a sample of these, see the longer web-version of this at my website (here) or http://onfireletter.com/OnFire251JournalingandtheWord.htm

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published March 4, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #250 Spiritual Disciplines and Bible Study

2011-02-24T18:41:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #250 Spiritual Disciplines and Bible Study

This week Jan came to me and told me there was a notice on the computer that said we had three viruses. She wanted to know what to do. “Don’t click anything,” I said. Viruses are always a possibility, but something about it sounded odd.

The windows on the screen looked very official. There were red boxes and warning symbols and it looked pretty good, but when I looked at the details, the warning did not come from our antivirus program. I am sure that if Jan had clicked, we would have been infected by whatever cyber disease it was hiding.

I recognized the problem only because I knew our computer well-enough to recognize the false program. I’m no expert, but I know enough to recognize some basic issues.

The same thing can happen to us in life, that we end up following advice or a philosophy of life which does not lead us in a good direction. “If only I had known...” There is a way to better know, and that is to study and understand the Bible.

This leads me to my favorite spiritual discipline, Bible study. The study of the Bible is the intentional, concentrated effort to dig into its depths, to understand passages at deeper levels, to connect its history, thoughts and themes. My ultimate goal is not knowledge for its own sake, but rather to understand God better.

As part of a list of ways to please God, Paul reminds us to grow in the “knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:9*). Later he tells the church in Colossae how hard he is working to strengthen the believers in Laodicea “so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding” and not be deceived by “fine sounding arguments.” (2:3-4) The risk was real. Paul knew some who had wandered from their faith because of “godless chatter and opposing ideas of what is falsely called knowledge.” (1 Timothy 6:20). We need to have enough understanding to act like Jesus and to protect ourselves from being deceived.

The study of the Bible as a spiritual discipline is different from my devotional reading. My devotional reading is designed to connect me with God through a relatively short passage of scripture or to take me through the Bible in a given period of time. In the study of the Bible we want to get to the heart of what the writer meant by asking a number of questions.

Who was the author? Who was the audience? Why did he write? What were the historical, cultural and geographical contexts? How does this passage relate to the ones which lead up to it and follow? Is it a main point, or is it part of something bigger? How does the passage relate to the rest of scripture? Are there nuances and subtleties in the wording the author used? What does the passage teach us about God? About human nature?

Once we answer these questions, we have a good idea what the author meant and we move to the next step. How do we apply it today? Knowledge in the Bible always has components of action and relationship. We study the Bible in order to know God better in relationship and to live in ways which are pleasing to him.

Jan loves cards, and she loves a particular kind of card. I have learned that it makes her feel especially loved when I take the time to find this kind of card for her special occasions. This is like Bible study. I have studied my wife and I apply what I have learned to draw us closer together. In Bible study I apply what I have learned to draw closer to God in relationship, attitude and action.

It is interesting to me that there seems to be increasing interest in disciplines like prayer and fasting. Nothing wrong there. But I sense a decreasing interest in Bible study. I can think of some reasons for this. It is hard work and we like easy answers. More than once I have tried to explain a passage and someone has told me, “Pastor, just tell me what it means.” Maybe I was boring them, but sometimes details matter.

There are other reasons why this is hard. Good, understandable resources are not always easy to find. The internet is not always helpful for this. And, it takes an investment in time and tools. But we are not alone in this. Many churches have libraries. Some pastors don’t mind lending their resources. Many churches have an older person who is something of a Bible scholar who doesn’t mind sharing.

And while we can study the Bible on our own, we may also do this in home groups and Sunday school classes. In fact, this is where the “old fashioned” Sunday school curriculum excels. In this setting, instructors often use the accompanying “Teacher’s Commentary” to understand and teach the passage for the day. To many people, this lacks glamour and excitement, but don’t underestimate its power and effectiveness at helping people to understand and apply the Bible.

As Christians, we shouldn’t be content just to let someone always tell us what the Bible means. Most people, with a little time and patience, can learn some basic skills like reading in context which will improve Bible understanding and make us less likely to be taken in by some popular, but deceptive theory, philosophy, or advice.

I hope this helps. If you have specific questions about some aspect of biblical study, I would love to help. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Rev. Troy Dennis, B.A. M.Div., M.A.(Th). Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Feb 24, 2011. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire # 248 Fasting #3

2011-01-27T13:31:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire # 248 Fasting #3

Hi Folks:

We’ve been talking about fasting for the past several weeks and finally we arrive at the practice itself.

If we do a quick survey of fasting passages in the Bible, we find several prominent reasons. Fasting was a sign of mourning. People fasted to mourn the passing of king Saul (31:13) and David’s staff questioned his lack of fasting after the death of his child (2 Sam 12:21).

On this theme of mourning, fasting is also a way to grieve over sin as a sign of repentance and turning from idolatry and sin (1 Sam 7:6). Interestingly, both Nehemiah (1:4) and Daniel (9:3) had a sense of collective guilt, and so they personally fasted for the sins of their whole nation.

Fasting in the face of imminent calamity is a common theme in the OT. The people sought God’s direction before going into battle (Judges 20:26). Jehoshaphat proclaimed a fast when he heard an army was coming. (2 Chron 20:3-4). At the order to destroy the Jews, the people fasted in Esther 4:3.

Impending trouble and petition are closely related. David fasted and pleaded with God on behalf of his deathly-ill child (2 Sam 12:16ff). He also humbled himself and fasted for his adversaries when they were ill (Ps 35). Ezra sought direction from the Lord and petitioned for a safe journey (Ezra 8:21-23).

Joel 2:12 sums up a lot of the reasoning behind fasting: “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” Fasting is about returning to God. As we saw last week, it is not for us, but for God (Zech 7:5). We fast because we want to draw close to him and so we offer the sacrifice of our personal comfort as a gift to show that we understand life is not about us.

The example of the prophetess Anna adds another facet. She rejoiced upon seeing the infant Jesus and couldn’t help but talk about him to all who longed for “the redemption of Jerusalem.” This longing for the future which God has promised seems to motivate her spiritual disciplines (Lk 2:37-38). Through fasting and prayer we participate in bringing God’s promises and future into being at a deeply spiritual level. God does not need us, but he allows us the privilege of being part of it, of having a front row seat.

We see these elements come together in Acts 13 and Matt 4. The believers in Antioch were fasting when they received direction from the Lord about setting apart Barnabas and Paul for missionary work. They also fasted as part of the act of commissioning (Acts 13:2-3). Fasting was a way to draw close to God, repent of sin, to inquire and seek direction for the future, and participate in God’s broader plan for expanding his kingdom. We should not be surprised that Paul and Barnabas, in turn, appointed elders in the churches through a process of prayer and fasting (14:23).

In Matthew 4, we see that Jesus ate nothing for 40 days in the wilderness just before beginning his public ministry. We can imagine most of these same elements as part of his fast: drawing especially close to the Father, seeking confirmation about direction for the future, and executing the plan for salvation. He did not need to repent, but we see that fasting is spiritual preparation for the testings he will face.

Jesus taught about fasting in Matthew 6:16-18. As with so much of the Sermon on the Mount, the issue seems to be that spiritual matters may become a source of pride and conceit: “Do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting.” In spiritual terms, this is the equivalent of showing off on a bicycle. “Hey everyone, look at how good I am!” In this way Jesus echoes the message we saw in Zechariah and Joel. The fasting of the hypocrite is not for God, but to look good, to earn God’s blessing and favour, or feel good in comparison with others who are “less spiritual.” We must always be careful to examine the motives behind our spiritual disciplines - are they really for God?

This teaching raises the question of how much I should hide my fasting? It is one thing to take a personal retreat or to fast at home where no one will really know, but how do we do this and go to work, for instance, where co-workers may ask why we are not eating? This is not the issue we may fear it is. To begin, we need to live in such a way that no one will even consider that we are being self-righteous. Second, people do not notice as much about us as we might fear. I’ve heard it said that if we really knew how little time people spent thinking about us, we’d be disappointed. Third, while we don’t want to advertise our fasting, we need not fear if people ask us why we are not eating. It may spark a valuable spiritual conversation.

How do we go about fasting? Fasting is a simple concept, but I believe it is something we need to be intentional about.

We need to determine why we are fasting. Is it simply to grow closer to God? To inquire from God? For wisdom or direction? Petition about a personal, family, or church matter? Intercession on behalf of someone or a situation?

We need to determine what we will fast from and for how long. Fasting is normally about giving up food, but may instead involve tv, computer, coffee, meat (sometimes called a “Daniel fast” based on Dan 1:12), or something important to us. For the purpose of this discussion, we’ll use food as the example. How long we fast may vary from a part day to much longer.

We need to pray as we begin. Include confession for our sins. Plan to pray in regular intervals.

One of the great things about fasting is that we can devote the time for food preparation and eating to scripture and prayer. It is amazing how much more time we have when we are not planning to eat.

We can use hunger pangs as prompts for prayer. Hunger was not the issue I thought it would be, but even still we can use it as helpful reminder to pray.

Keeping a journal or notebook through this time is important to record experiences or capture insights and ideas.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Jan 27, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #247 Fasting #2 A Table Saw for Jan

2011-01-27T01:14:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #247 Fasting #2 A Table Saw for Jan

Last week I recounted some of my early experiences with fasting. Fasting was not part of my upbringing or background, but through scripture and the example of people I respected, my perspective on fasting changed from being something that people on the fringe did, to a deeply meaningful part of my spiritual practices.

This week I want to talk about what fasting is and is not. For this, I want to start with Zechariah 7:5 for the spirit of how we need to see fasting: “... was it really for me that you fasted?” As God spoke through the prophet Zechariah, we see that the people had highly disciplined spiritual practises, including fasting at prescribed times of the year, but their hearts were not in it for God.

Rather than fasting as a gift of devotion from the sincerity of their hearts, they fasted with the hope that God would bless them in some way. It would be like giving Jan a table saw for her birthday. While some women might appreciate this practical and useful woodworking tool, Jan is not among them. The gift really wouldn’t be for her, but for me. If their fasting was really a gift of devotion to God, they would change their ways to bring justice and show compassion because these things are important to God (see vv. 8-12).

This sets us up to talk about what fasting is not. Let me get this one out of the way. Fasting is not about losing weight. I first thought that fasting would have the added benefit of helping me with this, but I have never noticed a difference.

Fasting is not about twisting God’s arm to give us what we want. This is perhaps a crude way to put it, but there is something in us that makes us think that God is obligated to us because we do something for him, that if we just fast and pray hard enough then God will give us what we want. In this case fasting is not for God but for us.

A variation on this theme is that if we fast we will win God’s approval or love. There is something in us which thinks that the more we do, the more God will love us. Until we uproot this dangerous weed, we will always fear that we are not doing enough to win God’s love. We always need to remember that God’s love for us is constant and we do not need to earn it.

Fasting is not about being Pentecostal or Baptist, or Anglican, Presbyterian, United, Catholic, or some other flavour of Christianity. I’ll speak from a Baptist perspective because that’s what I am, but you may identify from your own experience. I’ve heard it put this way... “I don’t fast because that’s Pentecostal.” As I read my Bible, I don’t see anything to point to fasting as a particularly “Pentecostal” experience. Strangely, as Baptists we pride ourselves about being “people of the Book,” but we clearly see Paul fasting in the book of Acts. This attitude may have more to do with an “us and them” perspective on our brothers and sisters in other denominations.

Fasting is not about escaping the evil nature of the flesh. I’m not sure where this teaching comes from, but every once in a while I come across someone who believes that fasting is about escaping or purging ourselves from the flesh. Behind this belief is the thought that the spirit is good and the flesh is bad. This duality does not exist in scripture. And in passages like the one in Zechariah, we see that fasting is about relationship, about drawing near to God and offering ourselves to him.

“... was it really for me that you fasted?” The best kind of gift is the one given without the expectation of a return gift. If someone gives me a gift, but then makes it clear that I am obligated to do something in return, it isn’t much of a gift. But this is not always the way we look at our relationship with God. “I gave my money, so why didn’t God do something?” It is the same with fasting. We need to examine our motives so that our fasting is a gift to God.

We’ll cover some more aspects of fasting next week. I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Jan 19, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #246 Fasting #1

2011-01-11T03:46:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #246 Fasting #1

Hi Folks:

Happy New Year. We had a good Christmas. Jan’s parents joined us for Christmas eve and Christmas day. We had lots of family time together since our boys did not go back to school until today. We spent New Years with some church families and other friends.

Mark spent a lot of time working on a video for a class project on stereotypes which is really creative. Ian got his first paying photography job as he was hired by a couple of families to take pictures of their children playing hockey.

At church we’re preparing for the annual meeting. I’m starting a small group emphasis this week, and I’m helping a little more with the music and worship planning at our church as our music director finished at Christmas. Things are busy, but they always are. I guess you could say we are back into routine.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We resume our series on spiritual disciplines. As we come to fasting, I have to say that this is something I am relatively new to, less than 10 years. I don’t remembering hearing about fasting as I grew up, except when a medical test was involved, and then it was something unpleasant to be endured for the hope of a diagnosis.

Of course, I knew Jesus’ teaching about fasting in Matthew 6 and I saw examples in the early church . This led me to understand that Christians may fast, but I never heard of anyone who did this until I went to Christian college, and I must confess, I thought the ones who did were a little weird. They always seemed to be a little odd, a little too zealous, and uncomfortable to be around. It was hard to criticize them since scripture is full of positive examples of fasting, but I wasn’t about to join them, either. In my mind I placed it among the fringe elements of Christianity.

I didn’t think much about it again until I became the pastor of a church on Grand Manan, a small fishing island located two-hours-by-ferry off the coast of New Brunswick. Grand Manan is a tight community of about 2000 people where many are related by blood or marriage, and so when tragedy strikes everyone is affected. Sadly, in one year four young people under the age of 22 were killed in accidents related to alcohol or drugs. The Island was in shock and scared for the next generation growing up.

Amidst the cries for better police presence and more youth activities, someone suggested that the churches have a combined service of prayer for the young people. As this idea picked up steam and a date was set, it was also suggested that we should fast to prepare for the meeting. Again, it was hard to criticize the idea since fasting is plainly modelled in the Bible, so despite my misgivings I went along with the idea.

I really was scared as the day approached. How bad would the hunger pangs be? I remembered feeling really hungry as a child just waiting between lunch and supper. What would it be like to miss a whole day? My boys were young but even still I worried about what they would think when I sat down to supper with them but didn’t eat. As it turned out, my fears were unfounded. When I started to feel hungry, I remembered why we were fasting and prayed for the young people. We explained things to the boys at supper and they accepted it easily.

If you talk to people on Grand Manan who were at that prayer meeting they will recall what a blessing it was. The church was packed and there was such a feeling of the power and presence of God. These combined services continued monthly for a while and eventually waned, but those first meetings were incredible, and sparked something in me about fasting. What seemed weird or strange, only an academic possibility before, became real and exciting. I began to look forward to them because during those times I felt so much closer to God and felt a part of something bigger going on. Since then I have fasted to seek direction from God, petition on behalf of others, and as part of retreats and mission trips.

I tell this story (like a lot of OnFire stories) because I figure that if I have these thoughts and experiences and I’m the “trained professional,” then maybe others have them, too, and by telling my story others might be encouraged and strengthened. I already had the knowledge that fasting was biblical, but no experience. As I tentatively took a few steps I discovered that fasting can be an incredibly rich and rewarding spiritual experience. I’m not going to say it is easy, but it was not as hard as I feared, and I’ve had times during fasting when I’ve thought, “People would pay to feel this good.”

Next week I’ll lay out some biblical foundations and explain a little about what fasting is and is not. Until then, I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Jan 11, 2011. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #245 God Uses Ordinary

2010-12-15T05:09:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #245 God Uses Ordinary

Does this happen to anyone else? I sometimes feel caught between two pressures about Christmas. On the one hand I think I should do something new, create a new tradition, do something special, even though I don’t know what this would be. On the other hand, sometimes I think Christmas gets in the way of other things I need to work on.

I’ve been thinking about these things this week since I realized that Christmas is next week. Next week. I tend to put my proverbial nose to the proverbial grindstone and then I get surprised when I lift my head to breathe once in a while. I went to the Christmas accounts in the Bible looking for some kind of answer to this pressure, and was surprised by what I found. I don’t normally find an answer this quickly.

It seems to me that God likes the ordinary because He uses it so much. He uses ordinary people, ordinary places, ordinary circumstances. Look at all the ordinary in the Christmas events. Joseph and Mary were ordinary people in many ways. Would we have noticed anything about them to suggest that extraordinary things would happen through them? Not likely. The census that took Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem was an ordinary event in Roman life. The shepherds were ordinary folks trying to make a living for their families. The Magi were looking into the stars as they normally did when they spotted the star that led them to Jesus.

That a tyrant like Herod would cause people to flee for their lives is, unfortunately, fairly ordinary in history. Bethlehem and Nazareth were normal places. If anything, they were so normal that more sophisticated folks looked down on them as being backwater. There was a whole lot of ordinary going on in that first Christmas.

And yet in the middle of all this ordinary, a lot of extraordinary happened. There were dreams and visions, angels, angel choirs, visiting shepherds, astrologers with gifts, and words of prophecy about this young Jesus. God works among the ordinary, using the ordinary, to do extraordinary things in extraordinary ways.

I saw something in this for me at Christmas. Extraordinary things happen in the middle of a lot of ordinary. We will do a lot of ordinary things this Christmas, like shopping, cooking, eating, decorating, gathering, opening gifts, travelling, and following traditions. These are the regular things of Christmas but we should not be fooled. In the middle of these ordinary events God can do some very special things, but we need to be prepared to see them for what they are, or we will miss them.

In the middle of an ordinary meal God can spark an extraordinary conversation. A typical party may provide an unusual opportunity. Regular traditions may result in new memories. When we’re least expecting it, someone says something funny. Even the act of merely hanging around together can mean so much, and so we don’t want to underestimate what God may be doing through very normal things.

I realized that ordinary traditions are OK, and that I shouldn’t wish away Christmas. Rather, I need to slow down and enjoy the time I will have those closest to me, not to be planning my next events, but simply enjoying these ordinary things knowing that God is in them.

I hope this helps you in this Christmas season. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Dec 15, 2010. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire 244 Loading the Dishwasher (Prayer)

2010-12-10T04:16:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #244 Loading the Dishwasher

I opened the dishwasher this morning and noticed that several of our small plastic tumblers had turned over. Instead of being empty, clean and dry, they were filled with dirty dishwater. Something about the way I loaded the machine caused them to catch the cleaning jets and flip over. Just as the way I loaded the dishwasher made it ineffective, there are things I may do which block my prayers and make them ineffective.

Sin blocks our prayers. Proverbs 28:9 tells us that “If anyone turns a deaf ear to the law, even his prayers are detestable.”* Is it reasonable to expect God to respond to our prayers if we actively rebel against him? In this case, prayer of repentance (1 John 1:9) is the place to start.

The way we treat people affects our prayers. In Isaiah 58 the prophet notices how eagerly they seem to seek God, but their well-disciplined spiritual practices mean nothing because they cheat their workers and can’t get along with each other. “You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.” (58:4)

Unforgiveness is another prime blocker. “Forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors.” (Matthew 6:12) Just in case we missed the implication, Jesus follows up with direct teaching: “... if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” (6:14-15) The problem is that we expect to receive a lot more forgiveness than we are willing to give, but it is not meant to be hoarded.

The way I treat my wife affects my prayers. Peter reminds us, “Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.” (1Peter 3:7) If I lead my family by threats and anger, or worse by intimidation and violence, if I insist that my opinion is the only one which really counts, if I disregard my wife’s hopes and desires for our future, if I dismiss her needs and feelings, if I am unfaithful to my vows, I will hinder my own prayers.

There is a part of me which reacts to these as being unjust or unfair. Shouldn’t God just listen to me anyway? I’m not at all comfortable with the idea that my prayers sometimes bounce off the ceiling because of what I am doing. But every time as I read these passages I see the gap between my life and my desire for more effective prayer. If I want to be more effective and powerful in prayer I must change the way I conduct my relationships with God and others.

Prayer is not only about our relationship with God. As we look to God we are pointed back to our relationships with others. And so the cycle ought to repeat over and over as we continue to be transformed spiritually and relationally.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Dec 8, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire # 243 Printing and Prayer

2010-12-01T04:27:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire # 243 Printing and Prayer

Friends of mine run a printing company and so when I visit them I often spend time at their shop. I love to watch the machinery in action because so much of it is very simple in concept, but hard to automate. Take the process of printing, for example, which is applying ink to a piece of paper. We experimented with it as children when we drew on an eraser and pressed the image onto a notebook. Printing is a simple concept, but obviously more is involved if we want to publish a book at any kind of productive rate.

Prayer has this same kind of simplicity and complexity. At the centre of it all is the simple idea that we talk with God. What could be easier than conversation, right? The complexity comes as we move to make it an automatic process of our hearts and minds.

We get the idea from the gospels that it was not easy to teach the disciples to pray. We have the Lord’s Prayer in Matthew 6 and a slightly different version in Luke 11, which suggests multiple attempts by Jesus to teach them. Luke 18 records a parable designed to teach them pray and not give up. Jesus modelled prayer by going off to pray (Matthew 14; Mark 6; Luke 6), and sometimes he even took disciples with him, as was the case at the time of his transfiguration (Luke 9:28). But even with all of this attention, the disciples didn’t get it since at Gethsemane they kept falling asleep even after Jesus told them to watch and pray (Matthew 26:41).

We see ourselves in these passages. Deep, passionate prayer does not come as naturally as we might think. The simple prayer “Lord save me” rolls off the tongue easily enough in a thousand variations, but it is hard to sit down for more than a few moments without becoming bored, distracted, tired, or deciding that more pressing things draw our attention.

How do we change this? After all, we see glimpses from scripture that prayer can be more. The psalmist was passionate about prayer. It seemed natural for Jesus to withdraw to those lonely places to pray and he poured himself out at Gethsemane. Indeed, Jesus’ last words on the cross were in prayer: “Father, into your hands I commit my spirit.” (Luke 23:46*)

Prayer changed for Jesus’ followers after the resurrection, and so we read in Acts 2:42 that “they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” After the resurrection, prayer became as natural to them as eating.

There are two aspects of the resurrection we need to grip if our prayers are to change. First, we need to meet the risen Jesus. Lots of people believe in dead jesus, the teacher / healer / philosopher / doer of good deeds, but that is not enough. We need to encounter Alive Jesus, the Son of God raised from the dead: “if you confess with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” (Romans 10:9) Why should we expect prayer to be meaningful or effective if we don’t actually believe the One to whom we pray?

Second, prayer changes when we come face to face with the grace and power of God in the resurrection. God wanted so much to have a relationship with me that Jesus died to make it possible. Paul said it clearly enough, “While we were still sinners Christ died for us,” (Romans 5:8) but Jesus said it first: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son...” (John 3:16) And then to demonstrate His power, the Father raised the Son. Doesn’t it make a difference to know God would do this for us? Doesn’t it change the way we think about God? Doesn’t it make us realize there is nothing God cannot do?

This same God wants to chat with us, for us to talk with Him and He with us. As I come to terms with this, it makes it easier to pray. I am more motivated and interested. Being devoted to prayer as they were in Acts 2:42 doesn’t seem so odd.

Next week we’ll continue to look at prayer. In the meantime, I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church in Moncont NB Canada. This letter published Dec 1, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #242 Bible Reading

2010-11-11T05:00:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #242 Bible Reading

We continue our series on spiritual disciplines and this week come to Bible reading.

A few years ago I wrote an article on Bible reading and posted it to my website at http://www.onfireletter.com/. I have updated it and added a few more things.

An OnFire reader wrote,

I begin with good intentions, but often get bogged down for some reason. Either because I get confused about what I am reading or because I don't know where to go next. . . . maybe if you gave people some sort of outline? Something for each day of the week, to read, in between the Onfire emails. It could be an outline for reading through the Bible in a year, or some "homework" to help people get more out of Onfire. That is just a suggestion, but it is coming from someone who gets totally lost sometimes while trying to read the Bible without a guideline of sorts.

She and I wrote back and forth a few times as we worked out some suggestions. Here are the results, which I hope will help.

The Spiritual Warfare of Bible Reading
Our enemy knows that the Bible is God’s word. It is one of God’s “communication networks,” so like any general in battle, Satan tries to disrupt communication lines to confuse his opponents (us). We don’t need to be afraid of Satan - after all, Jesus gives us his authority (Matt 28:18). But we do need to be aware of his schemes, and this is one of them. So, be aware that Satan will send distractions of all sorts when we try to get serious about this. Pray about this before, during and after. Keep a notepad for things you remember to do during this time.

Starting Point
Where to start can be a problem for both new and experienced believers. For the new believer the Bible seems so big, so, where to begin? It seems simple enough, but since we are followers of Jesus, why not start with Matthew. Don’t worry about understanding everything. A regular dictionary can help with some words. A notebook also helps to record what you discover. I use the margins in one of my Bibles. When you are finished with Matthew, you can read it again, or move on to Mark, then Luke, John, Acts. . . . You get the idea.

For the seasoned believer it can be a question of “been there, done that.” We have to be careful not to assume we won’t find anything new. Since God’s word is living and active (Heb 4:12), we also know he will continue to reveal himself and his will to us as we read and pray. We need to approach this with the right attitude. As Paul said, “I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, . . .” (Eph 1:18-19). God continues to reveal himself to us.

The seasoned believer can start with an area which is not as well-known. Try the Old Testament prophets, for example. Isaiah, Jeremiah. Listen to God’s heart as the prophets pour out God’s concern for justice and holiness. See how these are connected to the downfall of a nation. For something a little less challenging, try the letters in the New Testament, or the historical books of 1-2 Kings and 1-2 Chronicles.

Starting in new territory can be a little daunting because there is so much history and so many unfamiliar names and places. Even still, listen for God’s voice in them and let your heart be moved as you watch the news at night. Some good tools like Bible maps, a concordance, and Bible dictionary are good here. More on these below.

How Much to Read?
This is not an easy question to answer. There will be some who can handle reading through the Bible in a year or less. Others will get bogged down in some of the tougher or less captivating books. Sometimes a section will grab your attention and you’ll spend a lot of time there. Other times you’ll read through and nothing jumps out. Sometimes we are motivated, sometimes not.

I recommend a chapter or two, but more if you feel like it. If you get drawn in, then it might, of course, be less. If you are convicted by the Spirit about a matter, you will need to stop and deal with this.

The object in this is not a program, as such, but a relationship with God. We want to spend enough time that our heart focus changes from what we were doing or need to do, to God. Its like spending time with my wife. She wants to know she has my full attention when we talk, so sometimes I need to close the laptop, stop what I’m doing, sit down with her, turn off the tv, send the children downstairs, or take her out. I need to look at her. I listen. I say things which show that I’m listening, without stealing her chance to say something, because it has to be about her, not me.

It sounds odd, but this is not usually the way we think about it in church. I was taught to read the Bible because it was good for me, like taking my vitamin C pill as a child (mmmmmm, love that tangy orange!!!) Of course, it was good for me, and at the time I needed it to be this way. But, as I got older, I needed to make the transition from simply reading to relationship. It took someone probing me (uncomfortably, I might add) about my lack of reading for me to realize it was really about the relationship. At that point it changed from a chore or a new years resolution to something I am much more interested in.

How Often?
It depends on how much we want to grow and understand. In the context of financial giving, Paul tells us, “Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.” (2 Cor 9:6) I think the same principle applies. Spiritual growth is a function of the time and effort.

Obviously, every day is best. Sometimes this becomes difficult. And sometimes, it is a matter of faith to take the time because there seems so much to do. When you get out of routine, don’t fret it, but don’t put it off, either.

Note this - we could easily fall into a legalistic thing where the goal becomes the act of reading. This is the wrong way around. We read for relationship. God doesn’t love us according to how much Bible reading we do. He just loves us.

Some people react to the idea of reading everyday because it sounds too much like legalism. It’s interesting that the two systems look alike, but they differ in the intent. Do I read because I’m afraid someone will think I’m not a very good Christian if I don’t? If I answer “yes,” then I’ve slipped into legalism. Does the idea of reading the Bible everyday sound tedious and boring? Then legalism is probably to blame. Good relationships are exciting. Comforting. Affirming. Challenging.

Bible Reading Program
I have not suggested a Bible reading program, and would hesitate to do so, because it is hard to suggest something which would fit the spectrum of OnFire readers. There are new believers and veterans. Some are mature in their faith, some are less mature. Some have an incredible depth of Bible knowledge and some don’t. We may be on the same journey as we follow Jesus, but we are not at the same point on the road. I find Deuteronomy and Leviticus interesting because I like the intellectual challenge, but they bog a lot of people down. The prophets challenge my commitment to working out my faith in very practical terms, but the Hebrew poetry and history can be daunting for others. You get the idea.

You can design your own program, but there are there are a host of Bible reading programs out there. Radio Bible Class (“The Daily Bread”) has suggested readings to take someone through the Bible in a year. So does the Bible Society. Other programs will take you through in 2 or 3 years. For iPod users, there are a number of free reading programs in the iTune store.

Also - you may be involved in a small group or Sunday school class. In this case you might want to follow a reading program or choose Bible books which go along with your group’s study.

Approaches to Bible Reading
Regular Bible reading is a spiritual discipline, but there are different ways to read, each with its own strengths and intentions. I use them all at different times since there is no “either-or.”

Devotional Reading - usually small passages, up to a chapter in length, designed for quick reading but still put the reader into the Bible. Sometimes accompanied by a reading or story, such as in the “Daily Bread.”

Block Reading - larger passages of scripture, sometimes whole books, in a sitting. This is helpful to see themes, understand how different passages relate to each other, and to become immersed in a biblical book. One of my favourite approaches.

Repeated Reading - over a given period of weeks or months, we read and re-read sections or entire books. Helpful to learn these passages in-depth. We tend to see new things each time we read the section.

Bible Study - an intentional digging into the meaning of the passage to understand it in its context, to relate it to the rest of scripture, and apply it to our lives. This is important for Bible study and sermon preparation, but can also be very enjoyable. Another favourite approach.

Bible Memorization - we memorize verses or sections of the Bible so that we can recall them later in time of need.

Basic Tools
There are some basic tools which may greatly enhance your Bible reading. You can get really fancy in this or take advantage of a host of material on the internet. However, be careful on the internet. Some sites are more interested in preserving their particular doctrinal views than on biblical accuracy.

Bible - Sounds basic, doesn’t it? It may help to read a passage from a few different translations. It is often hard to translate the nuances, so checking against a different translation can help. Plus, reading from a different translation from what we are used to can bring out things we didn’t see before. www.Biblegateway.com has many to choose from, free, online.

Notebook - for insights, questions, notes, etc.

Dictionary - for words you don’t understand.

Concordance - If I couldn’t have any other tool, I would have a concordance for my translation, and I would have it on computer. A concordance provides a listing of passages by word. Obviously, a computer speeds up the search process. I can look up passages when I can’t remember the reference and I can do research on places and people easily with this. The internet has many of these to use. I have one on my computer and my iPod.

Bible Dictionary - This is a resource of articles on selected Bible topics, people, and places - great for providing a basic overview. I have several book editions, but now primarily use versions for my computer and iPod.

Study Bible - A good study Bible includes basic notes on various texts and topics. The NIV Study Bible is almost 25 years old now, but still a very good resource.

Bible Maps - Some Bibles include basic maps, some do not. These can be very helpful to get a picture of the biblical situation. Place names take on new meaning when you know where they are and what happened there.

There is So Much I Don’t Understand
Me, too. Don’t give up, because you don’t need to understand all of it for God to speak through it. I find that I gain new insights all the time, even in passages I know well. The goal is to know God better through his word. Again, its like my relationship with Jan. I know her better now than I did when we first married. If I had thought, “I don’t want to get married until I can understand her,” we still wouldn’t be married. But I can say I know her better.

I hope this helps. Be on fire,

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Nov 12, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com.

OnFire #241 A Luxury We Cant Afford

2010-11-11T03:39:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #241 A Luxury We Can’t Afford

I have a love-hate relationship with the flyers which land in our driveway every week, rolled tightly and stuffed into a clear blue plastic bag. I resent that they arrive uninvited and must be dealt with, adding to the pile in our recycling bag which ultimately must be taken to the curb each week. When I see them there, I line up the car as I pull into the driveway and attempt to squash that roll of flyers, while Jan either rolls her eyes or tells me I shouldn’t because she will need to check the grocery flyers. I figure that an extra crease or two won’t hurt.

I must confess, however, that there is a part of me which enjoys the flyers. Are there any bargains? Is there something we have been planning to buy which is finally on sale? And, sometimes it is nice to dream about some of the things we see, even if we know they are luxuries we cannot afford.

The thought has occurred to me that we sometimes view spiritual disciplines in the same way. They are nice, we’d like to have some for ourselves, but they are really luxuries we cannot afford at this time, not with regard to money, but time. Where does the time come from if we can’t keep up with what we do now? Someday, perhaps...

Jesus spoke about this. “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.” (Matthew 13:44-46*)

In back-to-back parables, Jesus used business as an illustration. If we had the opportunity to make a lot of profit, legally, wouldn’t we take it? And wouldn’t we do everything we needed, even if it meant selling everything else? In one case a man discovered buried treasure and bought the field in order to gain the treasure. In the other, a jewel dealer discovered a very valuable pearl. In both cases they sold all they had in order to make the sure investment.

We understand this as good business but the application is where we have trouble. The stories are not about business, but about seeking after God: “The kingdom of heaven is like...” I can understand in my heart that there is opportunity for great gain spiritually as I read my Bible, pray, write in my journal, fast, or especially if I take some time for silence and solitude. But all the things that must be done call out like a siren. I don’t think I’m alone in this.

And yet there is the chance for great gain. This is what drove the people in Jesus’ stories, causing them even to sell all they had because of the opportunity. If we are to see spiritual disciplines in the right light, we must see them, not as luxuries which cut into our time, but as opportunities for great gain.

I am truly impressed and inspired when I see people taking advantage of this principle. I spotted a truck driver in a parking lot reading his Bible one day. A mother of young children I know keeps a Bible in the bathroom. People I know keep prayer lists on their I-Pods and Blackberrys. These are all busy people, but understand they need that time with God and so find ways to make it happen.

I’ve not talked much about spiritual disciplines even though this is my third letter. The difficulty, I find, is not in understanding how to do them, but in seeing them in the right light so that I approach them with the right attitude. For me this makes all the difference. For years I saw them as something I needed to “fit in,” and I was hit and miss. Any consistency I developed came after I changed the way I think about them. Its not perfect, please understand. Time pressure is a constant battle I face and feel. But attitude makes all the difference.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Nov 5, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #240 Large Fries and Diet Cola

2010-10-28T15:07:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #240 Large Fries and Diet Cola

Hi Folks:

When I was a teen hanging out with my friends, our weekend ritual was to rent a movie and then go to McDonalds for a snack. A creature of habit, I ordered the same thing every week - large fries and a diet Coke.

I thought that the diet Coke would somehow counter the effect of the greasy French fries. This exercise in wishful thinking seems really funny to me now but at the time it was discouraging since I exercised regularly in the pool as a lifeguard and swimming instructor, but wasn’t losing weight. The problem was that I didn’t make the connection between the different areas of my life.

There is a parallel to our experience with spiritual disciplines. The effect of regular spiritual practices is not automatic. Just because we take part in spiritual practices does not mean we will grow spiritually, change, or feel closer to God. We can have regular spiritual habits but still not grow because there are areas of our lives which are not God-honouring.

Let me show you two examples from scripture.*

Isaiah 58:3-4 “Why have we fasted,” they say, “and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed.” Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarrelling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.

These people had strict disciplines of prayer and fasting but they had two problems. First, they thought God was obligated to them because they prayed and fasted. And, second, in the same way that I could not see the connection between french fries and my weight, they could not see the connection between their behaviour and God’s quietness. God had a problem with the way they exploited their workers, their selfishness, tempers, and violence.

We see the same issues in Zechariah 7:4-5 : “When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and seventh months for the past seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted?”

Like Isaiah, the people had highly disciplined spiritual practices, but they were doing them for the wrong reasons. Spiritual disciplines are not about pleasing God so that He will give us what we want. God is not obligated to us in some kind of “You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours” kind of way. In this way they really fasted for themselves, for what they could get out of it.

Spiritual disciplines are not for us. Spiritual disciplines are about giving God the opportunity to reveal himself, and in this way they are really about Him. The goal of spiritual practices is to see things as God sees them. If this had happened in Isaiah’s or Zechariah’s time, the people would have understood how their unchanged lives acted against their spiritual discipline. As we begin to see things through God’s eyes our hearts are changed, and changed hearts lead to changed lives.

I hope this helps us understand the nature of spiritual disciplines. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 27, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #239 Spiritual Disciplines for Everyday People

2010-10-20T04:30:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #239 Spiritual Disciplines for Everyday People

When I was in high school jazz band we went to the annual regional competition and discovered we had learned a section of music with the wrong rhythm. So with less than 24 hours to relearn the music, we practised the section over and over until our chops burned. We rested, and then did it over and over again until we had it right. It was hard work because we had practically memorized it the wrong way. Even still, we retrained ourselves to do it correctly and managed a second place, if I remember correctly.

In the same way that we had to retrain ourselves to play the music correctly, Christian growth and maturity involves a retraining of our thoughts and actions. Romans 12:2 says, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

We’re going to start a new series, this time on the topic of spiritual disciplines. Disciplines in this sense are good habits. Spiritual disciplines are regular practices and good habits which help the believer grow spiritually, transform character and relationships, and experience closeness with God. In essence, they help us retrain.

I’ve been teaching a Sunday school class this fall called, “Spiritual Disciplines for Everyday People.” My goal is to take the mystery out of the disciplines and help people put them into practice in their own lives. I don’t come at this as an expert, but as someone who has the same time challenges as everyone else. I know I should read my Bible more, pray more, be closer to God, but so many things seem to get in the way, important things like serving God and other people. This may sound familiar.

While spiritual disciplines are the good habits which help bring spiritual growth, I wish there was a different word to describe them. We all know we should have more discipline, to exercise more and eat less, to do push ups and push aways. Its hard work to discipline ourselves to do the right things.

This is where we need a change in perspective. A few years ago our oldest boy was popping caps when he hit his thumb with a hammer. We were on summer vacation at my mother’s cottage and I could hear him setting them off against a rock. Bang, bang, bang, thud. Almost immediately I heard him howl and then he ran to find me. With tears in his eyes he held up his thumb to reveal a small blood blister which had already formed.

“Cool,” I said. He stared at me as if to say, “Are you crazy, this hurts!!” I continued. “That’s the first of many blood blisters you’re going to have as a man.”

A look of wonder came across his face as he stared at the blister. “Cool.”

A change in perspective helps us to see that the goal is a closer relationship to God. The goal is not to add burden to our lives, another thing on the to-do list. When I started dating Jan, I did not say, “Oh, great! One more thing to add to my list of things to do.” That would have seemed very silly. We looked forward to every moment because we wanted to be together and we grew closer because of it. We even set aside some other things because we loved being together. That’s the perspective we need as we approach spiritual disciplines.

And so I hope this series will help and encourage you. Set aside time to read your Bible and pray, even today. Over the upcoming weeks we’ll talk about adding depth and meaning to your time with God, but Bible reading and prayer are at the heart of it all.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 20, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #238 Rescue From the Mines

2010-10-14T19:09:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #238 Rescue from the Mines

If you’re like us, you probably watched the recovery of the miners in Chile. Stuck over 2000 feet underground for almost 70 days, the 33 men survived the collapse of a mine on August 5. Feared dead initially, they were discovered alive after an amazing 17 days when a hole was drilled into their cavity. Since then, rescuers worked to drill a hole big enough to lift the men one at a time in a steel cage. Amazingly, all were rescued.

I’ve been thinking about this for some time, that we might compare their rescue to the second coming of Jesus. All metaphors or comparisons eventually break down, but check this out.

Life here on earth is dark and bleak compared to what awaits us in heaven.

We are without hope unless we have a Rescuer

Our Rescuer put communication in place through the prophets, scripture, and prayer.

Our Rescuer came down to put the plan into action

We need to prepare ourselves in order to be ready for the journey to the surface

All eyes everywhere will be watching when Jesus returns

We will rise to meet Jesus

There will be great excitement on that day

There will be a great reunion when we are rescued

I would hate to press things too far, but I think you get the idea. The rescue of the miners in Chile reminds us of the great hope all believers have in the second coming of Jesus Christ. As Paul tells us in Titus 2:13, the second coming is our “blessed hope.”

As we remember the miners being rescued, let’s not only marvel and give thanks that they were rescued, but may we also give thanks that our Rescuer, Jesus Christ, is coming back for us.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 13, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #237 Foundations of Praise

2010-10-06T19:25:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #237 Foundations of Praise

Hi Folks:

As we approach Thanksgiving in our own family, this letter is as much for us as it is for you. Jan’s hands continue to bother her, and we continue to search for answers. We pray constantly about this, but her hands still ache and fall asleep, and if anything they are worsening. She has a hard time sleeping through the night because of them. At times this takes its toll on Jan and she becomes discouraged.

We try not to say much because there isn’t much to say and we don’t want to inflict others with our afflictions. But it is our struggle currently and these words spoke to me this past week as I prepared for our church’s Thanksgiving newsletter.

And so I pass them along to you with the hope that they encourage you as they encourage us.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

If you visit my office, you will see that there are always several piles of books, files, or papers sitting on my desk. These represent projects I am working on, but aren’t complete. In this way they are both reminders so I don’t forget, but also symbols of frustration over incomplete work.

With unfinished projects in mind, this verse stood out for me lately: “With praise and thanksgiving they sang to the Lord: ‘He is good; his love to Israel endures forever.’” (Ezra 3:11*) They sang this song at the completion of the foundation of the new temple. The original had been demolished about 50 years earlier in war, and as people returned from exile, they began work on the second temple.

It seems odd to me - Why stop to praise God when there was still so much work to be done? After all, it was just a foundation. There were still walls to put up, rafters and roof to install, doors to hang. Why pause to celebrate at the laying of the foundation? These simple verses teach us something about the nature of thanksgiving.

They celebrated even though the work was not yet complete. How many times do we become discouraged by projects we haven’t finished, work that isn’t done, and prayers yet to be answered? Every once in a while we need to stop so that we can look back and see what God has accomplished. This is what the returning exiles did, and they were able to praise God as a result.

I’m not very good at looking back. There is too much planning ahead to reflect in the past. But here is something I find at work in my own mind. I get frustrated if I only look ahead. I need to look back, to see the ground we’ve covered, the work that has been completed, the victories that have been won. God is good. I need to remember this to keep from getting frustrated about all there is to do.

They celebrated the work God was going to do in the future. The foundation of the temple was a promise which declared, “There will be a glorious building here someday!” We too can celebrate the fact that God continues to lay foundations in our lives.

A few days ago I drove past a building which someone had started but not completed. There was a foundation and a floor, but it must have been started years ago because it was falling in and trees were growing up from the cellar through the holes in the floor. There are times when our best-made plans come to nothing, but this is not the way it is with God. He will continue to build upon the work He has done in the past, and for this we can be grateful. God is not done yet.

At Thanksgiving we pause even though there is still much work to do because we want to celebrate the foundations of our lives. God has accomplished so much, and he has left foundations upon which he will build for the future. May we sing with the people in Ezra’s day, “He is good; his love endures forever.”

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 6, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #236 Mainly Good is Partly Bad

2010-09-28T19:34:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #236 Mainly Good is Partly Bad

Hi Folks:

Last week was a tough one for our family as my maternal grandmother passed away early Thursday morning. She was a strong believer, and so this makes a real difference. It means we can grieve with hope in the resurrection.

She was 92 and lived in her own home until she entered hospital the day before she passed away. Her home was always warm and welcoming, and some of our best memories are sharing meals at her table. Whenever we were home on vacation in the summer, we always had evening lunch with her. It was very fitting that our family ate our meals together in her home. We will miss her very much.

We appreciate your prayers for our family.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Every once in a while I start out for one place and end up in another. I thought I knew where I was going, only to realize that I was not where I ought to be.

While leading a bike camp once, I took a group of young teens on a walk. The plan was to follow one path for a little while, stop for a Bible study at about sunset, and then hook up with another path using flashlights to return in the dark. It was a great plan, except that the two paths didn’t connect. By the time we realized this we didn’t know if we were closer to one end of the path or the other, so we continued until we came out at the other end two hours later. This was definitely not where I had planned for us to go.

As we near the end of Titus, Paul summarizes the teaching he wants Titus to emphasize. All through the letter he has stressed goodness in the life of the believer and he turns to this theme one more time.

“Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order that they may provide for daily necessities and not live unproductive lives.” (Titus 3:14*)

This sentence ties the book together. Titus must appoint church leaders on Crete who love what is good (1:8), in contrast to those who are rebellious and unfit for doing anything good (1:16). Those who are age-advantaged should teach the younger what is good (2:3), and Titus himself is to be an example for the younger men (2:7). Goodness should not only be a trait of leadership, however. Jesus gave himself so that his people might be eager to do good (2:14), and this ought to be the goal for every believer (3:8). In this way, Titus reminds the people to do good (3:1).

Paul touches this theme for a final time. “Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good...” Goodness does not come as naturally as we might hope. It’s not that we aim for bad, but we end up there sometimes because we forget where we are going spiritually, and so without goodness firmly in mind we don’t do everything necessary to arrive at the proper destination.

We shouldn’t settle for being mainly good because mainly good is still partly bad. That’s like arriving at the proper destination only part of the time. The good news is that we have some control over this. We can learn devotion to doing good.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Sept 29, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #235 Warped is Not Good

2010-09-16T18:53:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #235 Warped Is Not Good

In one summer job the boss asked me to help build a deck. I really didn’t know what I was doing, but thankfully there were people around who did. Someone made me a spacer for the decking. Someone else showed me how to make the ends even.

No one told me about stacking lumber, however. The maintenance crew delivered more decking one day and tossed it off the truck. Not knowing any better, I left it as it was, looking like a giant game of pick-up sticks. Without the even pressure of laying flat, the planks twisted and we had quite a job to use some of them because they were warped so badly.

The Apostle Paul knew warped. He wrote in Titus 3:9-11, “But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn him a second time. After that, have nothing to do with him. You may be sure that such a man is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned.”*

Evidently there were people dividing the churches in Crete because they continued to stir up religious and theological controversy. Genealogies and quarrels over the law were two examples. I don’t think Paul was condemning the keeping of family records as a matter of history and interest. Rather, it seems people claimed closeness to God based on the location of their branch on the family tree.

Controversies come and controversies go. We have no shortage of foolish controversy in our own age and in my first year of Bible college I was involved in more than a few. Sadly, we measured other people’s faith against the standard of our own doctrine. In our arrogance, we felt that we were closer to God because we saw things “correctly.”

We were obviously not the best judges of our own spiritual state. How ironic it must have seemed to everyone else that we thought we were so close to God, and yet we showed our immaturity, perhaps even warped-ness, by our divisiveness.

How can we tell the difference between legitimate theological issues and foolish controversies? When is it time to stand up for what is right, and when is it time to keep our opinions to ourselves to avoid being divisive? Primary doctrines are worth standing up for. These are the traditional and historic doctrines which define us as Christians - the trinity, deity of Jesus, personhood of the Holy Spirit, creation, fall of humanity, the incarnation, atonement, death and resurrection of Jesus, the second coming, final judgement, and the inspiration of the Bible are all examples of primary doctrine.

Secondary doctrines tend to be the divisive ones. The second coming is a primary doctrine, but the manner and timing is a secondary doctrine, with theological differences over the rapture and millennium. Believers ought to be encouraged to study for themselves and know what they believe, but should not allow themselves to become divisive over secondary doctrines.

There is also primary and secondary morality. The ten commandments are primary, as an example, and we are not free to tamper with this morality. Whether we dance or play cards, eat meat, or support gun registry, however, are secondary and we can look to Romans 14 for Paul’s handling of this.

How will I know if I am in a foolish argument? I need to check my own heart and actions. Do I need to win at any cost? Do I think that others are idiots because they don’t believe the same way I do? Do I doubt their salvation because they differ from my views? Do I find myself raising my voice (or fists!!) or making threats to make my point? Do theological discussions turn into arguments and quarrels when I am involved? Do people tell me I need to calm down?

Again, we are often not the best judges of our own spiritual state, but if we answered yes to any of these questions, we may be divisive and need to take warning.

Finally, we do not need to coddle divisive people. Because of their forcefulness, we are often afraid to do anything about them. Warning them is for their own good and ours. Like Ezekiel’s watchman, we need to look out for each other and this includes helping to set people back on track spiritually by warning them. If they do not respond, it is a sign of their hardness and Paul tells us not to waste our time and energy further.

Just as warped lumber is not good, neither is warped spirituality. There are ways to have theological discussion and debate, but they do not include divisiveness.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Sept 16, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #234 Hoping Well

2010-09-08T02:35:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #234 Hoping Well

Hi folks:

I watched several spiders last night as they sat in their webs. Every day they do the same thing, that is, they spin and wait, spin and wait. The object of their spinning is to catch insects for food. So, over and over they spin, knowing that if they are patient they will receive their next meal as soon as it flies into the web.

What hope the spider has! He knows that sooner or later his efforts will pay off. A fly will get caught, the web will shake, and it will be lunch time. And so the spider will spin, knowing with certainty that his spinning will not be in vain.

Our actions reflect our hope. In 1896, George Harbo and Frank Samuelson set out in an 18-foot-long open boat without sails or engine on a 55-day voyage to be the first to row across the Atlantic. The sons of immigrants from Norway, they hoped to become famous and have a better life. This hope fueled them to a record which lasted for 114 years.

Hope in this sense is not wishing in the way we often use the word. “I hope it will not rain on the weekend” merely expresses our desire for good weather. The kind of hope we’re talking about is the certain expectation of future events. We know it will happen, we’re just waiting for it to become reality. That’s the spider sitting in the web.

Hope is a key to understanding the different behaviours listed in Titus 3:1-8. Paul sets up a compare and contrast between a Christian and non-Christian way of life, a kind of before and after picture of the way things should be for the believer. “At one time,” he says in verse 3, we “were foolish, disobedient, deceived, enslaved by passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.”* Without doubt, we were not all as bad as we could be, but we can recognize that our lives before Jesus had elements of these traits. At our worst, we lived for ourselves without much regard for others.

Christians, on the other hand, are to respect authority, be obedient, ready to do good, not slander people with our words, be peaceable, considerate, and humble. (3:1-2)

Hope is the difference between these two pictures of life. If we do not have hope for the future, then we will act it out. We will feel like we need to grab everything we can get for ourselves, regardless of the cost to someone else, because our only hope is to be selfish. If, however, we believe that we have hope for the future, we will act less selfishly because we know that the future holds good things for us anyway. This is verse 7, “...having been justified by grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”

The spider spins his web because he expects it will bring food. For the Christian, godly and unselfish behaviour is rooted in the expectation of eternal life with Jesus. We can give ourselves away in this life because Jesus carries us into the next. We can devote ourselves to doing what is good (v. 8) because we know the future with Jesus holds good things for us.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Sept 8, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #233 Rebellious Tools

2010-09-08T02:33:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #233 Rebellious Tools

Hi Folks:

Now that I’ve finished painting my carport, it is time to tackle some other projects around the house, so this week the job was to fix and adjust cupboard doors and hinges. On some cupboards the screws which hold the hinges are loose or stripped and so I have to tighten them or do something to keep them from falling off. Most have paint in the corners which keeps them from closing. And some rub and scrape because the wood has warped over time.

So, I got out the tools and worked on the cupboards until they closed better. At one point I had a vast array of implements spread across the floor since it took screwdrivers, chisels, planes, a drill, and glue to do the work. But now they open without scraping and close without slamming, and they stay closed, too! I haven’t finished them all yet, but at least the most annoying ones are done.

Tools are great things as long as you can get them to do what you want. It’s a good thing they don’t have a mind of their own, or who knows what might happen. A chisel is difficult enough to use without carving too deep or slicing one’s fingers. If it could act on its own it might veer off in some new direction, gouging wood in the process. Imagine what the drill would do if it didn’t want to work. As we reached for it, it might rev its motor as if to say, “Back off - you’re not the boss of me!”

As Paul continues to instruct Titus, he reminds the people to be “subject to rulers and authorities” in Titus 3:1.* It is interesting that Paul would say this even though he had many run-ins with authorities in various cities. In Philippi he was flogged and imprisoned. Later he spent four years being bounced around the legal system between Jerusalem, Caesarea, and Rome. Many of Paul’s letters were written from prison.

In Romans 13 we find out why Paul would say this. Rulers and authorities are God’s servants (Rom 13:6), and therefore this is not only a matter of avoiding punishment, but also one of conscience (13:5). “Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honour.” (13:7)

It is silly to think that a chisel might decide to veer off on its own, or that a drill might refuse to do its work since they are inanimate and incapable of deciding for themselves. We, on the other hand, sometimes make decisions because we resent someone else telling us what to do, and so we veer off to do our own thing or simply refuse to cooperate.

Part of Christian maturity is putting down the rebellious urge within us which says, “You can’t tell me what to do.” It started when we gave our hearts to Jesus, declaring that “Jesus is Lord.” As we acknowledge that we are actually people under Jesus Christ, it becomes easier to recognize authority. As we begin to understand that we are not our own we can give honour where it is due.

It is hard for God to use us if we are rebellious. In this way this issue is not only one of being subject to earthly authority. If we won’t give honour here on earth where we can see with our eyes and touch with our hands, we’re not likely going to honour the authority of Jesus either. A sharp chisel is a great tool in the hands of a master. May we bring honour to our Master as we allow ourselves to be tools in His hands.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. This letter published Sept 2, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #232 On a Tear (Rhymes with Pear)

2010-08-25T03:38:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #232 On a Tear (Rhymes with Pear)

Hi folks:

The Dennis family is all back under one roof. Ian finished at camp and is home again. It feels good to be all back together again.

Ian began driver’s education this week. This is a little strange, but one of those necessarily things along the path to independence. On Sept 1 he will write his knowledge test and then start his student driving. Wow.

Mark has a job interview Thursday for a part-time job at a local nursing home. Again, wow. Steps to independence.

Blessings for your week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This week I finally finished the painting I have been working on this summer. It was more involved than I anticipated because I had to replace some trim boards, which led to replacing some rotten boards underneath the trim. But to do that I had to take off some sheathing, and then I didn’t always have time to work on it, so what seemed like a simple project seemed to drag on and on.

This week, however, I sensed that I was close to the end and that if I just kept at it, I would complete it. The end was in sight and so I didn’t waste time getting started and barely took time to eat. As we might say back home, I was “on a tear” (rhymes with pear), meaning that I was determined to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. A newer expression might be “Get R’ Done.” The end was so close all I wanted to do was finish.

Last week we looked at Titus 2:11-15 and talked about goodness, which is the goal of our faith and character development. This week we want to look at the same passage but this time we want to see the motivation.

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good....*

There are two motivations in this passage to live godly, upright lives. The first is God’s grace. We ought to be so grateful that God has taken mercy on us that it translates into behaviour and action. This is what Paul means when he says that grace “teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age...”

The second motivation in this passage is the return of Jesus Christ: “...while we wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ...” In the case of my painting, every dip of the brush and every stroke of the roller brought me closer to the end. For followers of Jesus Christ, each moment brings us closer to our “blessed hope.” Every day brings us one day nearer to the “glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” This is where faith comes in, because unlike painting, we cannot see it with our eyes. But even still, we sense it, we know it, and it motivates us to finish strong. Our strength and hope are renewed because we are near the finish.

We are more motivated and we work harder when we know the end is near because we know that we are almost finished. May the second coming motivate us to live completely and fully for Jesus Christ. We are almost done.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published August 25, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #231 The Paint Covered Ladder

2010-08-17T17:07:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #231 The Paint Covered Ladder

Hi folks:

I have been borrowing a step ladder from our neighbour because we don’t have one our own. I’m not sure how old it is, but it is obvious that it has long been used for painting because there is a thick and conspicuous layer of paint on the top step and on the shelf. This layer is truly impressive - not just a few drops, but drop on drop, on top of many other drops so that it is a thick coat. I likely contributed my own globs to those of other painters over the years.

This week we are looking at Titus 2:11-15:

For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope--the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good....*

This is a key passage in Titus and pulls together themes of hope and goodness. The second coming of Jesus gives us hope for a better future and inspires us to live self-controlled, godly lives. This is why Jesus died, that we be saved from our sin and in turn be eager to do what is good.

This theme of goodness shows up in various ways throughout the short book. Church leaders must love what is good (1:8), in contrast to the rebellious who are unfit for good works (1:16). The older women need to teach what is good (2:3), just as Titus must set an example of what is good for the young men (2:7). The people should always to be ready to do good things (3:1), and in fact, they ought to be devoted to doing what is good (3:8) in order that they may live productive lives (3:14). The theme pops up over and over in Titus, showing us that goodness ought to be a main quality of the believer.

This brings me back to the ladder covered in paint. It was obvious to me that the ladder had often been in the presence of a painter since it was coated with a thick layer of paint. That is verse 14: Jesus “gave himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good.”

The cross is not only about saving us from our sins, but about living out the goodness of Jesus. It ought to be obvious to people that we have been with Him. The more time we spend with Jesus, the more we are splattered with his goodness, the more it is reflected in our own lives, “...eager to do what is good.”

I hope this help. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published August 17, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #230 The Difference Between Sterile And Clean

2010-08-11T19:30:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #230 The Difference Between Sterile And Clean

A friend asked me one day about the difference between sterile and clean. He sometimes sets me up with trick questions but I always learn something neat from them, so I responded. “Aren’t they the same?”

He smiled because it was indeed a trick question, and then continued. As an engineer overseeing the maintenance of electronic equipment in a hospital corporation, he and his staff faced the difference between sterile and clean every day. A machine could go through the appropriate procedures to make it technically sterile, but sometimes it still contained a speck of blood or dirt that was missed in cleaning. In this way it would be sterile, but not clean.

That was a few years ago but I recalled the distinction this week as I drank some water. Just as the last mouthful hit my lips I spotted dirt in the bottom of my glass. I would much rather discover dirt in my glass before I drink the water than after. The sterilization procedures of our dishwasher probably neutralized it, but dirt is still dirt, sterile or not.

In Titus 2:1-10, Paul tells Titus what must be taught to various groups in the church, including older and younger men and women as well as servants. Paul’s key idea for these groups is in verse 1, that he teach them in accordance with “sound doctrine.”* And then he goes into a list of highly practical behaviours, including sobriety, self-control, love, soundness of faith, endurance, reverence, purity, kindness, goodness, integrity, respect and honesty.

We might wonder how Paul goes from doctrine to behaviour, but Paul does not separate the two. We demonstrate the soundness of our doctrine by the way that we live, and so the two are directly connected. It is not enough simply to have the right belief, to answer the Sunday school questions correctly, to pass the test of orthodoxy. This would be like my glass of water or a piece of medical equipment which has the appearance of being sterile, but is actually not clean. Christian maturity means that we demonstrate the sincerity of our belief by how we act.

Our station and situation in life make no difference in this since Paul gives instructions for the old and the young as well as for those in slavery. All of us are called to live with respect and integrity so that it is clear we may be trusted. As we do this, we “make the teaching about God our Saviour attractive.” Belief must always be paired with behaviour or we make God unattractive. Think dirt in the bottom of the glass.

There is no such thing as “do as I say and not as I do,” either. Titus also has his instructions, to show integrity, seriousness and soundness in his own teaching and speech. Those of us in teaching positions have extra responsibility to set a good example. Dirt is dirt, but in leadership dirt multiplies to followers, poisoning whole households (1:11).

I hope this helps to see the goal of maturity. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published August 11, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #229 Plugging Leaks and Stopping Diversions

2010-08-04T03:39:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #229 Plugging Leaks and Stopping Diversions

When we bought our house a few years ago we inherited two fish ponds. There is a lower pond in which we keep some goldfish, and a small upper pond with a fountain and waterfall. We pump the water from the lower pond to the upper pond, which then tumbles over the waterfall back to the bottom.

We were told that we would need to add water every week. No explanation was given, just that this was needed since the water level would go down. Sure enough, after a week or two the water was noticeably lower than before. After topping it up several times I checked for leaks in the plumbing and repaired several leaks which seemed to solve the problem.

A few weeks ago, however, I began to notice that we were losing water again. After checking the plumbing, I was at a loss to explain it until I noticed a wet spot beside the upper pond. I hadn’t noticed it before because splashing from the fountain in the bird bath wets the rocks anyway, but as I looked more closely I could see water trickling out in a low spot. We were losing water because it was being diverted out of the pond.

Diversion is the thought today as we continue to read Titus. From Titus 1:10-16, Paul gives us an unflattering snapshot of the group which was creating problems for the churches on Crete. “Rebellious people” who were “talkers and deceivers” taught from dishonest motives. Even their own poets agreed that they were liars, evil, and lazy. They loved controversy and rejected the truth. Far from being pure, their consciences were corrupted. All the while, they claimed to know God, but Paul reminded Titus that their actions spoke louder than their words. They were “detestable, disobedient, and unfit for doing anything good.”*

The situation was similar to the problem in our ponds. The upper one was always full, while the bottom one suffered. We continually pump water into the upper pond, which will only pour over the waterfall when it reaches the top of the dam. Consequently, the water level is always high in the upper pond, even if the water is diverted by a low spot. The lower pond where the fish are is the one which feels the effect of the water loss because it only receives back what is left over from the top.

The “rebellious” people Paul wrote about were this way, constantly diverting spiritual resources. Money, time, attention, and energy was selfishly spent and they didn’t care about how this might affect anyone else. Their pond was always full and they were oblivious to the fact that whole households were being ruined by their actions and teaching.

Not all was lost however. By appointing leaders of the highest moral and godly character (as we read last week) they could be taught to reject this way of life. The diversions would be stopped and the people would grow into godliness and good works because their leaders would set the good example.

When we act selfishly, we fill our own pond while others further down the stream are wanting. We teach by our example that if you want something you have to divert from other people to get it. Soon everyone is doing the same thing, just looking out for themselves. Paul reminds us that this is not the way of Jesus. “They claim to know God, but by their actions they deny him.” (1:16) May this never be said of us as we aim for godliness, purity, unselfishness.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published August 4, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #228 Snapshots of Character

2010-07-29T03:49:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #228 Snapshots of Character

When I was home on PEI for vacation, my mother presented me with a photo album of pictures from both sides of my family. There are pictures of my grandparents going back into the great-great’s, aunts and uncles, my parents, and lots of snapshots from when I was young. She spent months talking to relatives and assembling all these pictures, some of which I had never seen. It was a real labour of love and I understand a little more about my family and myself as I look at these pictures.

Snapshots of character are what Paul has in mind as he writes to Titus. What are the character traits of a godly leader? What is Christian discipleship? What does truth look like in the context of competing teachings? These are the kinds of things he writes to tell Titus about as he leaves him on the island of Crete to finish the work that was started (1:5).

It seems likely that Paul was released after Acts 27 and eventually visited Crete since he seems to know a lot about the situation of the churches there. In any event, there was unfinished work and Titus, Paul’s longtime travelling companion (see Gal 2:1), was the man for the job. He needed to appoint church leaders, “elders,” in every town (1:5) and teach various groups of people according to sound doctrine (2:1) in order to overcome the influence of rebellious factions (1:10). And so we have these snapshots of groups within the church and what Titus needs to teach them about leadership and Christian maturity.

The first snapshot is of the elders (1:5-9). Paul is very clear to Titus about the high, moral qualifications required of these leaders: Blameless, exemplary marriage and home life, patient, sober, peaceable, honest, hospitable, upright, self-controlled, holy, disciplined, sound in doctrine.

It is interesting that so much of what Paul tells Titus to look for in a spiritual leader is about life at home. How do we know if someone if qualified for spiritual leadership? We see it in the everyday decisions about regular life, and this begins in the home. Christian maturity is about closing the gap between belief and action. Long before Jan and the boys hear me preach at church, they watch me live at home and they know if there is a difference between what I say and what I do. No one expects perfection, but at the same time they will not respect me or follow my leadership at home if I prove to be a hypocrite. Christian leaders must be people who set a good example and so if I do not display maturity at home, I will not be a good spiritual leader in the church.

To me this boils down to two issues, corporate and personal. Corporately speaking, how do we recognize what good spiritual leadership looks like? Obviously, a person needs leadership skills, but in the church this is not enough. Godly, mature character is critical.

I happen to think that spiritual leadership, whether as clergy, board members, Sunday school teachers, or even youth and children’s leaders, requires mature, godly character. This may seem obvious, but sometimes we don’t always use this principle. The pressure to fill a board, run a program or provide a service overwhelms our judgement and we appoint people who aren’t mature enough for the position. I’ve done it, that is, I’ve asked people into leadership who weren’t spiritually qualified, and later regretted it because jagged edges of their character cut deep wounds. Sometimes we learn things the hard way.

As I look at this snapshot of a leader, I also think I need to read this personally, as a call to examine every area of my life. Can I honestly say there is no gap of maturity? We need constantly to be growing so that others around us can see a living snapshot of what Christian maturity looks like. The goal is not to be recognized as a leader, but to be spiritually mature.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published July 29, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at http://www.onfireletter.com/ Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #227 Hinges of Hope

2010-07-20T17:12:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #227 Hinges of Hope

We live in a house which is approximately 70 years old and, while it is generally in good shape, there are some things around the place which show their age. For instance, when we moved in many of wooden doors didn’t close well because they had either warped or the hinges had worked lose. As a result, I have had to adjust or fix almost all of them.

I was able to tighten most of the hinges by using larger screws or by inserting a wooden match into the hole along with the screw. These are traditional methods which I have used in the past, but last night I ran into a stubborn hinge in which these solutions did not work. What to do?

I remembered a tip a friend gave me. It seemed radical and posed a small amount of risk if it did not work since it involved drilling out the hole in order to glue in a piece of wooden dowel. If it did not work, it would mean an even larger hole and then what would I do?

I decided to try one hole. I cut a piece of dowel, drilled a small pilot hole in it, and then drilled a hole the same size as the dowel in the doorpost where the screw used to be. Filling the hole with glue, I inserted the dowel and waited about an hour for it to dry. I held my breath as I twisted the screw, feeling carefully for any signs that it might slip. I’m pleased to report that my friend’s advice was good and I no longer have a door hanging by one hinge.

In Titus 1:1-3, Paul talks about his role in the spread of the message about Jesus Christ. In our last letter we reflected on the fact that he knew his purpose was to lead people to faith in Jesus Christ and teach them to grow in godliness. In verse 2 he adds this little bit of insight into the nature of faith and knowledge, that it is “resting on the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time.”*

Why did I listen to my friend’s advice? I trust him because he knows what he’s talking about and I know he would not knowingly lead me astray. It is no different with God, but while we trust our friends we often question God because it is not what we want to hear, or it seems so different from the word we get from other sources. We can take comfort, however, in the fact that “God does not lie.” We can trust him utterly and completely with our future. Sometimes Christians are accused of having blind faith, that we believe (foolishly, it is implied) without any evidence to back up our belief. Not so. Our faith is based on the goodness of God’s character. As we trust in God’s goodness all the more, our faith and godliness will grow.

Our hope for a better, eternal life hinges on the fact that God has promised it and He does not lie.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.
Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published July 20, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire 226 Lessons from the Lawnmower

2010-06-23T18:04:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

Onfire #226 Lessons From a Lawnmower

Hi Folks:

The boys have finished school. Mark won an academic award. Ian is now at Camp Wildwood, working there for the summer. And Zen, our Japanese student, attended the prom and safe-grad last night.

Starting on Monday, we’ll be on vacation on PEI for three weeks. We’re looking forward to the break and plan to build a new raft.

Blessings.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I once took apart an old lawnmower. After pulling off the covers to expose the inside, I was fascinated to watch all the parts work together as I turned the drive shaft. Every piece had a job to do in order to convert energy into work. The carburetor mixed air and gasoline. The piston propelled the drive shaft, but only when the spark plug ignited the fuel at the perfect moment. The valves controlled the intake and exhaust from the cylinder. An oiler lubricated the engine, while the seals kept oil in and dirt out.

Each part has an obvious purpose. This is something we find hard as people. We struggle with knowing our purpose, and we all want to know we have one. I contrast this with our cats, who are content to sleep approximately 16 hours a day. I don’t think they spend much time between naps pondering their place in the universe. We, one the other hand, want to know there is purpose and meaning in life. Surely our toil and effort is worth something? There has to be more than simply living and working, eating and breathing.

As we continue reading the very first verse of Titus, we find that Paul understands his place and importance in God’s work. He is a servant and apostle “for the faith of God's elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness...”* He knows that his purpose is to lead people to faith in Jesus Christ and teach them to grow in godliness.

Paul’s purpose begins with his identity. We often tie who we are to what we do, so that we are ministers or teachers, mechanics, electricians, accountants, or some other vocation. The problem is, we become confused if we can no longer do what we did. If something affects our job - like layoff, poor working conditions, a change in health , or retirement - we lose our sense of purpose. But Paul begins with who he is and this leads him to his purpose. He is a “servant and apostle for the faith. of God’s elect...” If we put identity first, then we can change what we do without needing to change who we are.

Paul’s sense of purpose is not self-focussed. He is a not a servant and apostle for his own benefit. His mission is to strengthen the “faith of the elect” and increase their knowledge of the truth. Again, we often turn this around, looking for ways to make ourselves feel better instead of serving others but God did not fashion us for our own good. We will only ever discover our purpose as we serve others.

Paul knew the importance of what he did. He called people to faith and taught them how to be godly. This is important stuff. We often feel that what we do is not important, or, we look at someone else and conclude that our contribution is weak by comparison.

We cannot do this however. For starters, it is not realistic to compare ourselves to someone else because no matter how gifted or talented we are, it seems we will always be able to find someone who appears to be more gifted or with abilities we feel are more important. I know people who run themselves down because they are not like the Apostle Paul. We all have a role in God’s kingdom if we are willing to do our part. Just because one role puts a person in the public eye does not mean other, less public roles, are not important.

It is good to be able to complete this sentence: “What I do is important in God’s kingdom because...”

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published June 23, 2010. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #225 Temporary Amnesia

2010-06-15T04:20:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #225 Temporary Amnesia

While at a children’s program when we were young, my brother and I were playing a game with the other boys when he was hit on the head. Even though he was stunned at first, all seemed well and we continued with our game.

But then after a few minutes he started asking weird questions like, “Where are we?” We thought he was joking, but he persisted. “Stop messing around,” we told him. His confusion continued and caught the attention of the leaders when he asked, “Who am I?” Again, we thought he was joking and told him to stop, but the leaders recognized signs of a concussion and called our mother, who took him to the hospital and had him checked out.

“Who am I?” Whether for a child with a mild head injury, or an adult trying to make way in life, identity is a huge issue. Lately we had someone travel through our area who visited our church. Her quest was to find her birth parents in order to answer that same question.

As we start Paul’s letter to Titus, we see Paul’s sense of identity and meaning in the first three verses. Often we skip over these introductory words to get into the “meat” of a book, but we’ll miss something important if we do. Only Romans contains a longer personal address, and in it we see valuable insight into what Paul believes about himself.

“Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ...” Servant and apostle are Paul’s two favourite descriptions of himself. In almost every letter he uses one or the other of these words to describe himself, but only here and in Romans does he use both together.

We tend to think of “servant” as a demeaning title, but this is not so in the Bible. Jesus is God’s holy servant (Acts 3:13, 26; 4:27, 30), doing the will of the Father as the suffering servant (Isaiah 42, 53; Matthew 12:18-20).

Paul was once “Saul,” violent persecutor of Christians, but this changed when Jesus appeared to him on the road to Damascus and appointed him “servant” and “witness.” (Acts 26:16) From this moment Paul considered it an honour to be God’s servant and a privilege to do what the Lord assigned (1 Corinthians 3:5). For Paul, servanthood is a gift of grace (Ephesians 3:7).

The idea of apostle and witness are closely tied. The main prerequisite of an apostle was to have witnessed the ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus (Acts 1:21-22). In this way apostles would be Jesus’ witnesses (Acts 1:8). Paul knew that he experienced the resurrection in a different way from the rest, but he was a witness nonetheless, and a grateful one indeed since he knew he did not deserve to be called apostle (1Corinthians 15:8-9).

Paul knows that he is “servant” and “apostle,” but there is more. He is a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ. His identity is tied to Jesus Christ. Without this connection, the rest is meaningless. There are lots of people who serve, and lots of people with a message, but only one Jesus Christ and Paul holds unswervingly to Him. It defines him more than anything else and gives him purpose and focus, as we shall see next week.

When my brother was hit in the head, he developed temporary amnesia and it was very confusing for him. Sometimes when we are feeling confused about life, it is because we have developed amnesia. We have forgotten that we are Christ-ian, that we are “in Christ,” and we need to recover this identity.

I’ve included some verses below which illustrate this sense of “in Christ.” You can find more by using your computer and doing a search on “in Christ.” You will be surprised and enlightened to discover all we are as people “in Christ.”

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

Rom 8:1; 8: 37-39; 12:4-5; 15:17; 1 Cor 1:2, 4; 1:30; 4:17; 15:22; 16:24; 2 Cor 1:21-22; 2:14; 5:17-21; Gal 3:26-29; Eph 1:1-3ff; 1:13-14; 2:6-10; 2:13; Phil 1:1; 3:8-9; 3:1; 4:7; 4:19; Col 1:28; 2:9-10; 1 Thes 5:16-18; 2 Tim 3:12; Philemon 1:6; 1 Peter 5:10-11;

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church in Moncton NB Canada. This letter published June 15, 2010. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #224 Honduras Reflections

2010-06-03T12:19:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #224 Honduras Reflections

Hi Folks:

I’m back from our short-term mission trip to Honduras. We took a team of seven to encourage the church and prepare a children’s playing field and were away 11 days. I could write a lot about the whole experience, and in fact kept a fairly detailed journal. It was quite a learning a growing experience.

Here are a few highlights. We moved 25 tonnes of rock, more than 20 tonnes of fill, several tonnes of sand, mixed 14 bags of concrete, and sanded pews. We worshipped in Spanish and jumped off a cliff into a local swimming hole. Two of us got sick (yes, that includes me) and I came back with a nasty infection on my ankle from a scratch at the beach. I almost left my finger on the back of a rock truck. We stayed with families and enjoyed wonderful hospitality and friendliness. We had some wonderful times of study, worship and prayer together. And those are just the highlights.

This OnFire is an extended one because I wanted to explore with you a question which has deeply troubled me since my time there. Some of you may have had similar experiences on mission trips and I’d love to hear your thoughts on this. There is so much I could have written about, but from this I think you will get some sense of our experience there, along with the spiritual issues I experienced.

By later tonight I will have a powerpoint on my website www.onfireletter.com so that you can see some pictures. Thanks to those who sent kind and encouraging words after I accidentally sent you some of the pics.

Finally, thanks to so many who wrote and told me they were pledging to pray for me daily. In total I had more than 20 people respond, and I am grateful. I certainly felt the power of God’s strength and protection while I was away. While you were praying for me, I was also praying for you from Honduras. Many, many thanks.

_______________________________________

My first glimpse of life in Honduras was as the plane levelled off on final approach into San Pedro Sula, the largest city in Honduras. Looking out my window, I could see hundreds of low block houses with steel roofs, surrounded by wire fences. To me it looked like a scene from one of those TV shows for sponsoring children. The rust and concrete added to my sense of pity, and I wondered how people could live there, so close to the screaming jets of the airport, and in such houses.

Over the next 11 days, the biggest lesson I would learn was to see past appearances and differences in living conditions to see the people and spiritual need. While life was difficult, it was not unbearable and my pity was not helpful. I would learn this lesson by staying with a family from the church we went down to help. In the past mission teams had stayed at a nearby mission compound, but we wanted as much as possible to live and eat as Hondurans in order to establish relationships with people from the church.

As we arrived in our village just outside the city of Siguatepeque, I was curious to see the house where I would stay. Surrounded by a fence to keep chickens in and dogs and people out, it was made from concrete block with a steel roof and concrete floor and looked a lot like the houses I saw outside the airport.

Concrete, brick and steel are typical in Honduras because they are durable and resist termites. In addition, the materials are relatively cheap, strong and quick to assemble, essential elements in a place where workers earn $7-10 US per day. Last year Honduras experienced a stronger earthquake than the one in Haiti but there were few casualties, partly because of the strength of these construction materials.

There are three bedrooms with a common sitting area and a kitchen / dining area. There is electricity; in fact most people in our village have electricity. Water comes from the city and is turned on several times a week on a schedule which the locals know, but I failed to discern. It is stored in a pila, a large open concrete holding tank. Our home has one outside for washing and flushing the toilet, and a smaller one inside for the kitchen. More prosperous homes have a plastic tank mounted on the roof to provide gravity flow into the house.

My room has a double bed with a sheet and a light blanket. I’ve been given the room belonging to Alfredo, an eleven-year-old boy. A treadle-powered sewing machine sits in one corner and night stand in another. It is bare, but comfortable; the bed has a box spring and mattress.

I can only speak a few words of Spanish, but Alfredo attends an English school and so he shows me around the house. “You like?” he asks as Spanish language Disney Channel appears on a TV I hadn’t noticed before. Leading me outside, he opens the door to what appears to be an outhouse. A low toilet sits on the floor and he demonstrates how to wrap my hand in toilet paper and then fold it so that I can deposit it into a waste paper can after use. Later I learn that the sewer pipes are small and will not handle the paper. A small basin sits on the edge of the pila for scooping water in the toilet when I’m done. I feel like a child because someone has to explain these things to me, but I’m grateful for this boy to show me the basics of living here.

Standing beside the pila, Alfredo mimes pouring water over himself with the basin. “You chower here,” he says. Our “sh” sound is difficult in Spanish and so I get the idea that this is where I will clean up. I wonder about undressing in the open since there is another house not far away. Almost reading my thoughts, he points to the toilet and indicates I could “chower” there.

On top of the pila there is a scrub board with some clothes waiting to be washed. Over time I will notice that everyone here seems clean, even the men who work with us to build a rock wall. Despite the fact that the rainy season has begun, washing clothes is a daily ritual. I’m not sure how clothing dries since it takes several days for my sweaty t-shirts to dry in my room. One day I watch Alfredo wash his white school t-shirt and put it on a half-hour later, still wet.

Pastor Mario explained that we would be eating at the church and that the menu would be typical Honduran foods. Beans, rice and bananas became our staple items and we ate them in many different ways. At least one meal per day had beans - whole, mashed, crushed, or as a paste - sometimes served on a soft tortilla flatbread. Very green bananas were boiled or deep fried like potatoes. Several nights I arrived home to see the same foods we had eaten at the church being prepared by my family. This was reassuring and helped me understand that we really were eating as regular Hondurans.

We had two goals as we left Canada - mutual encouragement (Romans 1:11-12), and to make ourselves available for service to the people of Mario’s church. As we arrived we learned we would expand a children’s outdoor play area on the side of the hill beneath the church. Over the years teams had terraced the land and built a retaining wall. Our job was to extend the concrete wall and stabilize the lower sections by placing rocks and fill. This would make it suitable for soccer and other games, particularly for their vacation Bible school in August when 500 children would attend.

In total we mixed fourteen 40kg bags of concrete and moved about 25 tonnes of rock, along with the same amount of fill. It was hard work in the heat and humidity. We had a wheelbarrow to move the fill, but we moved the rocks mainly by hand. The truck delivering these materials had no dump, and so we also helped unload everything. On a side note, I almost lost a finger on the first day of work when I jumped down from the truck after unloading rock. My wedding ring caught, but thankfully I hit the ground before much damage could be done. In twenty years this has never happened before. I walked away bleeding but intact.

We found the Hondurans to be hard-working people. We worked alongside several men over the course of the week and admired their strength and stamina. We thought we were doing OK mixing cement until they mixed a bag in about half the time it took us. That was humbling but we took the lessons from it to make our work easier.

The other job we did was to sand the pews in the church. These were really wooden benches which the church had purchased second-hand from a school. Just as in Canada, students had marked on them and put their gum underneath. We sanded them by hand for two afternoons, but could not get all the marks out. Eventually the local cabinetmaker was called in to apply his power tools. This was an exercise to watch. When the heavy sander drew too much power from the inside plugs, the men tapped into the main electrical line running into the building. This appeared to be common since the wires were already stripped at that section of cable.

The first days were a shock for all of us. The living conditions were not what we were used to and we did not want to do anything to make it harder for our hosts. What was unusual for us was normal for them, and our simple mistakes (like flushing toilet paper or leaving lights on) had the potential to cause great inconvenience or expense. They had their routines and we must have seemed out of place. I wonder how many times they shook their heads at us “Gringos” and wondered if we would survive.

Plus, there were so many contradictions in the country. We travelled to our village on a modern, well-engineered concrete highway. Along the way we passed American tractor-trailers and signs for cell phones and Coca Cola, but off the highway it was like stepping back fifty years, only with electricity and customized ring tones. Children walked cattle down the road to the pasture below the church. Roosters crowed all night and chickens clucked in back yards. And yet, on a trip into the city we passed a fancy new French restaurant and saw mansions surrounded by walls with more blocks than would be in our entire village.

After four or five days of living there, we began to settle into things. The newness of the situation wore off, and I began to see that while life was difficult and people were definitely poor, they lived with a certain amount of daily comfort. The food was simple but adequate even in hard work. Our home was dry and the beds comfortable. Reliable electricity made food storage possible for those with a refrigerator.

Don’t misunderstand me - any comfort they had was held in tension by a lot of uncertainty about the future. Food prices keep rising and the cost of living was very high in relation to their wages of only $7-10 US per day. Furthermore, unemployment and under-employment were chronic problems. One man from the church, a brick layer, had not worked in several months. I’m not sure how he managed to feed and clothe his family, but he seemed to have a peace about his situation and faith in God for the future. Another man from the church took unpaid vacation from his job to help with our construction. Work was slow and there may not have been enough work for him anyway. We take cash flow for granted (even if we feel its not enough), but life in Honduras is hand-to-mouth.

I came to see that life was difficult and uncertain, but it was bearable (at least for many in our village - we certainly saw areas of extreme poverty), and so my sense of pity upon first seeing Honduras was not needed, nor was it helpful. In fact, my pity prevented me from seeing some of the spiritual needs of the people. As I talked with Mario later in the week, I began to hear of the difficulties in leading his church. Many of his elders did not read well, making it hard to share teaching responsibility. Marriage was rare, and so it was hard to convince born-again couples to marry. Most churches could not afford a full-time pastor, and even lay-pastor training was expensive. Pastoring is hard work at the best of times; being a pastor in Honduras is all the more difficult.

As Mario explained all of these things, I also saw some other needs. American culture was all over Spanish TV and I think it contributed to a feeling of poverty among the people. Sociologists observe that we no longer try to “keep up with the Jones” next door, but the “Jones” we see on the television, and I think it also happened there. In addition, many families had relatives living in the US and so the “American” way of life was seen as the end goal. It is hard to heed Paul’s call to be content (Philippians 4:12) under such conditions.

In addition to seeing need in Honduras, I reflected a lot about life at home and began to see personal need. “Contentedness” was not only their spiritual issue, but mine. How much is “enough?” For eleven days we lived very simply and had all we needed, without a lot of the things we take for granted in Canada. It is possible to have full bellies - even full houses - but still have empty hearts. It is possible to hide spiritual poverty behind a collection of things. And in contrast, it is possible to have nothing, but be rich in the fullness of Christ. We met people who demonstrated this for us everyday.

And so I reflected on life in Honduras and at home. I’m still trying to work out what this means for me, my family, even my ministry. I can’t answer it all yet, but the question troubles me: how much is enough? Regardless of what I have, will I be content with Jesus Christ?

This is a troubling question for me, and I’m not sure it won’t be for you also. But even still, I hope it helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published June 3, 2010. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter@gmail.com. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #223 Yard Tools and Bike Tires

2010-05-04T03:14:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #223 Yard Tools and Bike Tires

Hi Folks:

Happy Mother’s Day coming up on Sunday. In our church we celebrate this in our Sunday school with some special gatherings and Jan will speaking to the women. For those in the Moncton area, this is a special invitation to come out this Sunday at 9:30 to hear her.

Ian had a medical appointment in Halifax this week as a follow-up to his e-coli from almost two years ago. As Jan tells it, the doctor is simply amazed at how well Ian has recovered. Thank you again for your many prayers from that time.

This weekend is our Convention’s annual youth event called Spring Forth. I’ve been planning snacks and seminars for the middle school site and look forward to seeing lots of familiar faces again as people travel here from all over the Maritimes.

The countdown is on for our trip to Honduras. We will leave on May 15 for 11 days and visit a pastor in Siguatepeque who attended Crandall University last fall. We hope to be an encouragement as we take our team of seven to serve his church.

So, lots of exciting things going on here. Blessings for your week.
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It’s the season for digging out yard equipment and inflating bicycle tires. Yesterday I mowed the lawn and pulled some weeds in the back yard. A few weeks ago the boys started biking again. and so we pumped up the bikes then.

Yard tools and bike tires. Did you ever notice that yard tools never look quite right covered in rust? They look a lot better when they are shiny from use. And, also, they seem to last the same amount of time whether they are worn out from using them, or rust out from sitting in the shed.

And what about bike tires? I can go all summer without pumping them up, but let them sit all winter and they go flat. It seems to me that tire tubes stay inflated better when they are used regularly.

Here is my theory about that - when the tires are used all the time, the microscopic holes in the butyl rubber keep themselves aligned and in the proper shape to keep in the air, but when they sit they get out of shape, out of alignment, and let the air leak. If you know of something different, let me know.

In 1 Peter 4:10, we read these words: “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms.” *

I have found that when life presses in we often withdraw and close in on ourselves, thinking that we don’t have enough energy to look after ourselves, so why look out for someone else? What Peter knows is that our gifts find proper expression, not when we use them for ourselves, but for other people. We do not find peace, joy, contentment and fulfilment by withdrawing in the midst of life’s troubles, but rather when we serve others using whatever gifts and abilities God has given us.

Just as a bike tube goes flat when it is not used, so do we when we pull back and neglect using our gifts. Just as we clean the rust off the garden tools when we push them into the soil, we begin to shine when we serve others in the capacity we have.

Hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

PS - this is part of a sermon I preached this week. To listen download the mp3 file from my website - www.onfireletter.com

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published May 4, 2010. *Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at http://www.onfireletter.com/ Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #222 Unfinished Business

2010-04-26T08:22:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #222 Unfinished Business

Hi Folks:

Mark and I are back from Denver. We had a wonderful trip together. The city is beautiful and the view of the mountains never gets dull. The people are friendly, and Mark and I had some great times together visiting the Ferrari and Lamborghini dealerships, Speed Stacks, a pastry shop called Devil’s Food, and hanging around with the other stackers. It was a lot of fun and we will remember it for a lifetime.

Mark did very well. In individual events, he came home with third place finishes in the 3-3-3 and 3-6-3, and a 7 th place finish in the cycle. He was pleased with these and he may have set some new records for New Brunswick.

Team Canada went all the way to the semi-finals in the International Challenge. No Canadian team has ever gone to the “Stack of Champions” before, and Team Canada gave a good run but unfortunately lost to the Germans. Here are the final results for Mark’s team. They came first in the 14u Head to Head 3-6-3 Relay and third in the Cycle Relay. In the Timed 3-6-3 Relay they placed 9th overall, but tied for third in the International Head to Head Cycle.

Here is a video of some clips from Mark’s competitions:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZwUBRxh_LM&feature=channel

Here is a link to the article in our local newspaper:
http://timestranscript.canadaeast.com/search/article/1019453

And, last Friday, he was interviewed on a local radio station as their MVP of the week. Lots of fun.
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I hoisted the canoe to my shoulders again as I tried to finish another carry. I didn’t have much choice about going on. We were in the middle of the bush and it wasn’t like I could just quit and go home. We had paddled and hiked two days to get this far and it was a two day paddle/hike in three directions to get out. Sometimes it is easier to keep going when the options aren’t that great, so I grabbed a breath and leaned ahead to get myself moving.

That was day two of a seven day trip we did a few years ago. The whole day was like that, a struggle to keep going around the next bend, over the next rise, and through the next clearing until we saw the water that marked the end of another carry. Interestingly, it was not the physical effort that was hard. We were all strong guys, and there would be tougher carries and more paddling in the days ahead. It was the battle of the mind to convince ourselves it would all be worth it in the end that was the problem.

We have been reading in the book of Nehemiah and we can’t help but be inspired as he rallied the people to restore the wall of Jerusalem. The project took off and people got involved. Chapter 3 details 38 different groups of people who worked on various sections of the wall. More than a simple list, it is an example of what happens when hundreds of people are inspired to join in and be part of something bigger than they are. Some lists in the Bible aren’t that interesting or inspiring, but I find this one exciting. I can almost smell the dirt and feel the grit.

This is such an inspiring section we do not expect what we find in 4:6 “So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.” * Hundreds of people had poured all of their hearts into the job and it was only half done.

Half done. I’m not sure which is worse, not to start a job, or only half finish it so that it stands as a monument mocking us.

Half done. I can think of a lot of situations this might apply to in my own life. I spend more of my energy than I’d like to admit managing a certain amount of frustration that so much remains uncompleted.

As a pastor I have often taught that a frustration can be helpful because it reveals an expectation and so I find my own words coming back to teach me about myself. I thought it would be easier. I didn’t think it would take this long. I imagined I would have more time. I didn’t expect it to be so hard. I didn’t expect to pour this much of myself into it and only come up half done. I find myself having to readjust my thinking to be a little more realistic, and this helps my frustration.

There is something else here we need to see. This passage wasn’t included to show how hard it was, but to show how much progress they could make when they poured themselves into it. They were half done!! Somehow we think that our progress doesn’t mean anything until we are finished, but this is not so, especially when we are talking about life change and not walls. As we look back to see where we were and where we are now, we can see how much we have accomplished.

They were half done!! There might still be a lot of hard work ahead, but they had accomplished so much. There are times we need to remind ourselves that we are making progress so that we can be encouraged to go on and finish the job.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published April 26, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at http://www.onfireletter.com/. Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #221 How Did I Never See That Before?

2010-03-30T05:55:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #221 How Did I Never See That Before?

Hi Folks:

There are a few big things going on in our family this week. There is the lead up to Easter. Ian is playing in a school production this week. He is playing for the orchestra, Glee, and another group and is enjoying this a lot. For those in the Moncton area, there are still tickets available for MacNaughton High’s production of “Scenes from the Key of Life.”

And I'm getting ready to take Mark to Denver next week. Last Saturday he and Jan spent fundraising at a local marker and we’ll do the same this Saturday also. Next Tuesday Mark and I will fly to the world championships for Sport Stacking. This will be a great trip for the two of us and Mark is counting down the days. Jan has always taken him before but this will be a guy trip.

There will be no OnFire next week since we'll be away.

Have a good week.

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“How did I never see that before?”

I thought this lately as I read the account of the temptations in Matthew 4:3: “Tell these stones to become bread.” What I saw was the theme of bread in Jesus’ ministry.

He was born in Bethlehem, literally “House of Bread.”

He prayed “Give us our daily bread.”

He fed people with loaves and fishes.

He warned the disciples to beware the yeast of the Pharisees.

He told us that He is the Bread of Life.

During the Festival of Unleavened Bread, his betrayer dipped bread with him and he broke bread with the disciples, telling them that it was his body.

After the resurrection, the disciples recognized him when he broke bread.

In a new way I saw this theme of bread throughout Jesus’ ministry. In some ways we should not be surprised. Jesus used the common elements of daily life to illustrate his teaching and bread is a staple of life.

But there is something deeper linking all of these episodes. I’ve read somewhere that stones in that region resemble round loaves of bread. The temptation was about more than eating, it was also a temptation to gather a following by feeding everyone. How easy it would have been to turn the stones to bread.

“Man does not live by bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matt 4:4*)

One of the profound truths in this is that we can eat but still be hungry. Even though we fill our mouths, our hearts can be empty. We need more than bread, we need the Bread of Life. Jesus had the power to turn the stones to bread, but if he had done this at the beginning he would have failed at the end. He would have filled many bellies, but that’s all. By going to the cross, by breaking the bread of his body, he could fill many hearts.

As we lead up to Easter, may our hearts be full of the Bread of Life.

Hope this helps. Be on fire

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Mar 30, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter@gmail.com Blog located at http://www.onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #220 Building Blocks

2010-03-24T05:24:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #220 Building Blocks

“What were you thinking?”

My friend and I stood before his father as he inspected the carpentry job he had given us. They were renovating their house and we were supposed to put strapping on the ceiling so that his father could hang the drywall sheets.

As we started the job, we asked ourselves how far apart the pieces ought to be. We didn’t know, so we guessed and the evidence of our wrongness was nailed to the ceiling over our heads. It took quite a while to take it all down and put it up properly.

That was an easy situation to fix. It was a far different occasion one morning a few years before when our jazz band director asked us all the same question. While at a music competition, some students snuck out to go drinking. One of them slipped on the steps and cut his head open, requiring stitches. After returning from the emergency department with the student, our director called a meeting early in the morning.

I have to say that was one of the toughest meetings I have ever sat through. I was innocent, most of us were, but we all bore responsibility to look out for each other, to protect the reputation of our school and our band, and to rebuild trust with our director. Lets just say that he made it very clear that we had a lot of rebuilding to do!

I tell these two stories because they are relatively safe examples of rebuilding. I can think of lots of others I would rather not share because the ruins of sin and failure lay all around me. There was no going back, only going forward to rebuild one piece at a time.

That was the situation Nehemiah found himself in. The ruins of the city lay all around, a shameful reminder of faded glory and past sins. This much was obvious as he stood before the leaders of the city after surveying the damage: "You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire.” (2:17*)

There are times when the evidence of our sin and shame lays in ruins for all to see. Nehemiah points out the obvious, and we don’t always like to be reminded. In fact, sometimes we resent it. “That’s none of your business,” we say. But there is hope in this. As long as we deny that anything is wrong we can’t fix the problem. As long we think that things will get better on their own, nothing changes.

Nehemiah continues: “Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace." (2:17) Nehemiah gives us insight for our own mess. The way out of shame is a rebuilding of sorts. We take what is left and rebuild, one block at a time. We prove our faithfulness only by being faithful.

We do not do this alone. “I also told them about the gracious hand of my God upon me...” (2:18) We know it is hard work to rebuild out of brokenness, but we do not need to suffer through this alone. With God’s strength, we can put those stones back together. One block at a time.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Mar 24, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #219 Another New Word

2010-03-18T03:12:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #219 Another New Word

Our family news is the subject of this weeks letter, so read on to see some of the interesting things that have happened to us this week.

A reminder about my blogsite and website. To comment so that others may see, go to www.onfireletter.blogspot.com. Otherwise, feel free to use “Reply” as before. Last week’s letter about frustration struck a note with many.

Also, about my website. Its nothing fancy, but I think a good resource. On it you will find the latest letters, archived letters, and a Bible Reading Tips page. Over the years people have told me that they have used OnFire in their Bible studies, Sunday school and small group lessons, staff devotions, sermons, or with friends. www.onfireletter.com

The most popular spot on the site is the Bible Reading Tips page. On it you will find an article which covers the basics of Bible reading, as well as introductions to Joshua, Esther, Psalms, Proverbs, Acts, Romans, Galatians, and 123 John. http://www.onfireletter.com/page15.html

Blessings for your week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I've been learning new words this week. I started Spanish lessons as we prepare to take a small group on a missions trip to Honduras in May. Last fall a pastor from Seguatepeque attended nearby Crandall University and worshipped with us. Now that he has returned, we would like to visit him and his church. To get ready, our senior pastor and I have enrolled in Spanish lessons.

Honestly, it's a little embarrassing to fumble over the simple expressions I have learned so far. Practice, practice, practice. This will be a good thing, but it really is hard to go from being a teacher to a student again.

Our cat is also helping me to learn new words. He got into a scrap and injured his hind foot on Sunday. We spotted the blood on him after church in the morning and by evening he was limping badly (or limping well, depending on your perspective). So, Monday morning we pushed him into the kitty carrier and took him to the vet.

As we were waiting, I held the cage up and tried to speak reassuring words to him. At that point he turned around, lifted his tail, and sprayed on me. Yes, its true. Try not to fall off your computer chair laughing.

He cannot stand vets. In fact, as soon as we enter the building, his disposition changes and he becomes downright nasty. Our last vet told us that we would have to sedate him at home before bringing him in. After we explained all of this to our present vet, she used a word I had never heard before. She said, "We often have to use anesthesia with fractious animals."

Fractious. We understood from the context that she meant difficult, and this made sense in my mind: fractious, fraction, fracture. We looked it up when we got home and sure enough it means to be difficult, unruly, stubborn, inclined to make trouble, irritable, quarrelsome, non_compliant. In our on_line survey of the word, we found several sites which even listed cats in their examples.

The word can apply to people and animals, but it can also apply to situations and tasks which will be unpredictably difficult, likely to be troublesome, or require great effort to accomplish, comprehend or endure.

I love how life and Bible study come together. In Nehemiah 2:13-14 we see that he encountered a fractious problem. His survey of the damage revealed that the walls were broken down, the wooden gates and posts were burned, and the rubble was such a mess that there were places Nehemiah could not get past.

I'd like to know how much time passed between verses 16 and 17, between the time he examined the situation and when he began talking about the plan to rebuild. Did he wait a while to muster his courage? Did his confidence come naturally, or did it take some time to build? It must have seemed overwhelming.

There are times when we find ourselves facing what appears to be a fractious issue. I have to remind myself that not everything is as big as it first appears. I have been amazed how many times some things turned out to be less difficult than I imagined, and occasionally some problems even solved themselves. Even still, it takes a lot of effort not to do anything which makes it worse, or simply to give up and say “Too much!”

In this we have Nehemiah’s example of perseverance. Ironically, fractiousness and perseverance have a lot in common. Whereas fractious is about being stubborn and unpredictably difficult, perseverance is about being stubborn in a good sense, about being unwilling to give up. Tenacity. Resolve. Persistence. Determination. Steadfastness.

There is one more aspect to consider in this. God’s call upon our lives does not depend on our confidence. He is the one who empowers and strengthens. Understanding this is part of what “faith” means - that we must trust God to provide what we do not feel we have. God’s call upon us will always feel beyond our capability, but as we are faithful and as we trust Him, we will overcome.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Mar 18, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter@gmail.com Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #218 Frustrated Efforts

2010-03-18T02:41:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #218 Frustrated Efforts

Hi Folks - this is actually last week's letter - I've fallen behind on the blogsite, and so this week members of the blog will receive two letters as I catch up.

Troy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Occasionally I have weeks which test my patience on a computer, and this is one of them. As I type this on my web browser from my office computer, I'm having a trojan removed from my laptop. It has takenhours of my week, and as my boys will tell you, I hate working on computer problems. Eventually this will be solved with patience, prayer, and a good removal tool.

It means, however, that my regular routine has been interrupted, OnFire is not ready, and I can't update my website because the software is on that machine.

How ironic that the next bit of Nehemiah reads like this: "When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites." (Nehemiah 2:10)*

This is the first mention of Sanballat and Tobiah in the book, and it provides foreshadowing for the rest of the account. Time and again they will try to frustrate Nehemiah. Nehemiah tells us about 4 different occasions when they intentionally stood in the way through ridicule, letter writing, and intimidation. We can be sure that there were other times and that these were simply representative events.

I've been surprisingly calm through this episode of computer troubles. I think I'm learning that eventually we will see it through, or we'll give up and pay someone to do it. I've given myself a kind of deadline so that it doesn't consume more of my time than is reasonable.

It is amazing how, when our children are watching, we can restrain ourselves. Just after Christmas, we had difficulty installing some new video editing software. It took many hours of tracking through pages of online help screens and asking friends, but eventually we got it solved and working. As we started, Mark made a comment which really made me aware of how much they watch. "I can tell you're going to be really mad as you do this..." That really made me think about my reaction to this stuff, and I intentionally worked on having a better perspective on it. I don't want him to think that way about me and I want to be a good role model.

So here in Nehemiah we first meet Sanballat and Tobiah. Later we will also meet Gesham and a few unnamed others who will also test Nehemiah's resolve.

We can be sure that we will meet people and situations which will test us, try our patience, tempt us to quit, or try to make a fool of us. As we continue to read in Nehemiah, we will see that he is determined.

His strong faith in God and his cause allows him to keep on going and even to thwart the plans of his enemies. As I see the names of Sanballant and Tobiah, Nehemiah gives me hope that I can get past the latest round of frustrations in my life, small or large as they may be. I'm no longer talking about the computer.

"This too will pass," as they say. Rather, I'm talking about the larger issues we face which threaten to derail us completely. Nehemiah finished the wall and carried on despite these problems. May we do the same.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Mar 11, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter@gmail.com Blog located at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #217 Talkers and Doers

2010-03-10T05:09:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter

OnFire #217 Talkers and Doers

Thank you for your responses to last week’s OnFire. There were almost as many who responded as there were people who wrote initially.

Since then I have been rolling the responses over in my mind. Some identified with the comments and wanted to share their own experiences. Others added some very helpful thoughts. Today I want to bring this back to Nehemiah.

The last time we saw Nehemiah (OnFire #215 Lenses for Life) I commented that it would be great to have “life lenses” which would bring clarity to our lives. Nehemiah had clarity about the future and knew that he wanted to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. This clarity was no accident, no divine lottery. Nehemiah knew scripture, he had a soft heart, and was patient as he waited for God to answer his prayers.

As we continue reading at Nehemiah 2:7-8, we discover a little more about Nehemiah and his clarity about the future as he asked for travel papers and timber. Letters to the governors of the provinces would provide him with security as he travelled. He would also need building materials for the gates and buildings.

This sounds simple enough, but we miss something very important if we pass over too quickly. First, Nehemiah could clearly see the future of Jerusalem, and it included repaired walls and gates. This is important because without this picture in his mind of a renewed Jerusalem, it would never happen. We often call this vision - a picture of the way things could be before they exist. Without vision, we continue as we did before and nothing changes.

Vision was highlighted to me as people responded to last week’s OnFire. The question, “What needs to change?” is tied directly to vision - - “What should the church look like in the future?”

Do we want to be people with a deep connection to God? One friend wrote, “I missed any reference to the need for revival/renewal based on intentional efforts at practice of the spiritual disciplines.... It is my firm conviction that much contemporary ministry fails to achieve biblical effectiveness, because we short cut spiritual growth in the attempt to gain numeric growth – strategy trumps spirituality! It is like going for a long journey and refusing to fill your tank (gas) up before leaving.”

A middle school Sunday school teacher wrote that she would like her students to understand service and be deeply rooted in scripture. “We haven’t taught Christian young people that to be a Christian is to serve and it starts within the church. Serve alongside the older Christians, helping people around doing physical work, serve in various areas, outside of church time.” When she asked why her students weren’t bringing their Bibles to class, they responded, “Why? We don’t use them in church.” She encourages her students to bring Bibles and provides spares for those who do not. “It’s not about what I think, it’s God’s word I want them to have in their heart.”

The vision for an authentic Christian community where life’s successes and failures, strengths and shortcomings could be shared safely was behind another comment. “Build a cell-based church where pastoral care is done primarily at the cell level, including discussions amongst cell members about each other's obedient and joyful giving habits. All sorts of unhealthy practices flourish in an atmosphere of anonymity.”

The second thing we see in Nehemiah’s request is that there is a difference between wanting to do something and doing something. In Nehemiah’s day how many different people said that somebody needed to do something about the walls back in Jerusalem? Did they have shops in Susa where people gathered to talk while their drinks grew coldl? Wanting to do something is different from doing something.

Mark came home from school one day clearly upset. One of the other boys in his class was bragging about something that he thought he could do better than Mark. It was a little thing, nothing more than school yard posturing, but Mark needed comfort.

“Mark,” I said. “ You’re going to find people in life like that guy. They talk big, but when it comes time to perform, they don’t. There are talkers, and then there are doers. Be a doer.”

Talking and doing - now there’s an issue. I find it a lot easier to talk about something than it is to do it. It is easier to make myself look spiritual than it is to be spiritual. Easier to talk about a problem than it is do work on it, to talk about what needs to be done than to do it.

I hope Nehemiah inspires us to a deeper level of commitment and courage, that our talking leads to doing. I hope this helps. Be OnFire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. This letter published Mar 3, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #216 Church Changes

2010-02-24T04:26:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #216 Church Changes

Hi Folks:
I’ve just returned from a pastor’s prayer retreat which was wonderful. I got to see some old friends, and our leader was wonderful. We spent the better part of two days in prayer together. The formula was simple. He guided us along some topics and gave us some scripture assignments. As the time went along he challenged us to go deeper in surrendering ourselves to God.

At times I found myself "lost" in peace and God’s presence. The feeling was like being in a peaceful rest, without sleeping. At other times we got to support each other in prayer as people unloaded concerns. I came away feeling more centered on God.

Jan and Mark are recovering from cold and flu and are mainly back to normal. The boys are looking forward to March break which begins at the end of the week. Ian will volunteer at a children’s camp. Mark and I continue to work on our sport stacking. I will take him to the world championships in Denver in April.

That’s our news. Blessings for your week.
~~~~~~~~~

A few weeks ago I asked you to respond to two questions. What are the biggest changes you have seen in church in the last fifteen years? And what are the biggest changes the church needs to make in the future? I want to thank everyone who responded. Here are the results. Agree? Disagree? Have more to add? I’d love to hear what you think.

What Has Changed In the Last 15 Years?
It should not surprise us to hear about changes in worship. Many churches use fewer hymns and more newer music. Dress is less formal, with casual clothing being the norm in many churches. Most thought these were positive changes which helped to retain or draw younger members.

The changes which people wrote about reflected the situations they knew best - their own congregations. Some were hopeful about the future, especially because of the presence of children and young families.

Others, however, lamented a decline of younger generations and feared that aging buildings would eventually become too expensive to maintain. This represented a change from the days when families grew up and attended together. The church had always been there, a symbol of hope. Without the children, there were doubts about the future of the church and a loss of hope also.

I was pleased to hear about some other changes people saw. Some commented that their churches had become more ethnically diverse. This has indeed happened in our own congregation where people of a dozen or so different languages now attend.

Several commented that their churches and denominations had become more aware of the social responsibility of the gospel. "Instead of just presenting the word of God in authoritative (or perhaps authoritarian) ways it seems there is a shift to viewing our society as more of a mission field needing some basic felt needs met before lovingly presenting the gospel."

A few wrote that their churches had become less legalistic, with more emphasis on grace for sinners: "I’ve noticed more teaching about how our salvation is all about God's grace and not about following rules..."

I was surprised when one person commented positively about the public church scandals we have seen in recent years. While these sins were horrible, painful and embarrassing, the fact that they were exposed meant that God was purifying the church. This was a hopeful sign that Jesus would soon come for His "spotless lamb."

I was also surprised when one person felt that a decline in attendance was not necessarily a bad thing since it represented a move away from cultural Christianity. The people who now attend are more inclined to be committed followers, not just going through the motions.

What Needs to Change?
Not surprisingly, not all agreed over the direction of worship style. Many saw a "blended" style of worship, which uses both traditional hymns and new music, as a good thing, but there were those who lamented the lessening role of hymns in worship. I think it would be fair to say that those who wrote felt a little conflicted over this. They missed some of the familiar music but appreciated the appeal of newer music to younger members. In this way I think people wished that there was a way to do "both/and."

One person in particular understood the difficulty in bringing together multiple generations and their different approaches. In the future, she predicted, it will take more creativity to bring the traditions together.

Financial responsibility for the future was on the minds of many. Noting that 20, 30, and 40-somethings do not seem to give as much time or money to the church as older age groups, a few suggested that pastors need to teach more about this.

Again, remember that people wrote from the perspective of their own church. Some wrote from churches where it was evident that they felt joy and hope, while others wrote with great concern, pain even.

After trying unsuccessfully to persuade the congregation to change worship style or offer programs for younger families, one person stopped because it seemed there was no desire to change. Was change really necessary when a few large contributors could keep the church going? "Maybe nothing needs to change. So why do I feel like I'm watching a tsunami off shore, slowly getting closer?"

Reluctant or resistant leadership was a common theme. Fearing the "perfect storm" of aging congregations and crumbling buildings, one person suggested that "by the time these demographic factors hit us, I don't think we will be able to adapt."

Another common theme was the mission of the church. Many wrote to say that we must be more intentional in our outreach. "Ask this question: What would my community look like if the Kingdom of God was more visible?" For that person the answer was very personal: "We can’t just sit back and not get our hands dirty, and we certainly can’t expect our religious professionals (read: pastors) to do it for us. Their job is to lead us to give our lives away, not to do it on our behalf! "

Community was important to many who wrote. "The church needs to be more outwardly focussed, more missions oriented at home, and less about maintaining our comfort and security inside the building." The solution, said another, was not to try to recover the culture of Christendom, but to "embrace the reality of living more like the early church. I see the Kingdom moving forward more in grassroot ways than in institutional ways."

Finally, there was the suggestion that the church needs to find new ways of funding ministry, both here and abroad. Why not use internet giving or automatic bank withdrawal? Why not form partnerships with churches in other countries to fund their ministries? Why not sell homegrown curriculum materials like the megachurches do? Why not create small businesses to sell products or services which fund ministry?

Conclusion
I wanted to see how people felt about the state of church and their role in its future. Most OnFire readers are highly involved in their local churches. You have thought a lot about the future and I knew you would provide valuable insight. As you wrote, I saw two important themes I want to respond to.

False Opposites: Organization VS Organism
I sense growing tension between "organization" and "organism." There is an ever-increasing feeling that we do not need the organization of the church as much as we need to free people to go out into the world to serve in basic ways. In this way ministry is "organic" - growing, changing, dynamic, taking on a life of its own as we engage in hands-on ministry. For many the thought of organization implies sitting through dull and unproductive meetings, when we would rather see the joy of ministry first-hand.

I like organic ministry, and indeed it is exciting to be on the "front lines." But I also think we have to be careful not to discard something very valuable as we discover the power of organic ministry. In Acts 6, the apostles actually created organization in order to feed the poor more effectively. Some ministry is too valuable or too big to be left to a few passionate individuals and this is why God gifted some to be administrators. Let us not let the pendulum swing too far in extremes. Organization and organism are not opposites.

Change or Die
Change is a reality all of our churches must face, but lots of factors lead us to resist it. We have invested a lot of energy to make things the way they are. It takes more energy to change direction, and we don’t always feel up to the task. There is the risk that we may lose congregation members. Someone may disagree with us or criticize us, or we may miss the mark all together.

Change is not all bad, however. Obviously, if we get it right we will see renewal. But more than that, change is an opportunity to see God’s image in people. God is creative, and this did not stop after He made the world. When we set our minds to a problem and rely upon Him for direction and answers, we begin to see the creativity which is part of His image in us.

Those of us in church leadership, whether as pastors or as lay people, need to think carefully about our role in change. Is it true that we sometimes resist change? Do we go along with change reluctantly, or only when we see no other option? Do we sometimes lack courage? Do we sometimes block new leadership? These are tough, but important questions, and if we put them off too long it may be too late.
　
OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Feb 23, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #215 Lenses for Life

2010-02-12T03:47:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #215 Lenses for Life

Hi Folks:
Some exciting news this week. I have been published in a book. Arrow Leadership produced a Lent booklet for their supporters in which graduates were asked to contribute. They have made these available to others as a pdf file. Email if you want one of these, but be aware that they are large files (7 mb, 84 pages). I am not able to make this available on my website.

I spent the first part of the week away at a conference with my senior pastor. It was a quick trip, but I saw some good friends and had the chance to slow down and reflect. I don’t often have these times and they are golden. Refreshment in the middle of life’s regular hectic pace.

I have been asking what changes people have seen in church and what still needs to change. Next week I’ll have these answers put together.

Have a good weekend and week ahead.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At about the age of eleven, people started to ask me if I had trouble seeing things. I didn’t think I had a problem because if I squinted my eyes hard enough, I could see. Plus, I didn’t know what I couldn’t see because I couldn’t see it to know I couldn’t see it.

Finally a teacher suggested to my mother that I should have my eyes tested. On the appointed day the doctor revealed a whole new world to me as he dialled and turned the little lenses of his machine. Ever since then I have worn glasses and am glad for them.

Wouldn’t it be nice if life were as easy, that when the future became cloudy or uncertain all we had to do was go to the life doctor to have the prescription for the outlook of our future changed. All would become clear and we could live with perfect clarity and certainty.

There have been times of my life when direction was strong and clear, like the time when I conducted four funerals in eight days. Life was about bringing comfort and aid for that 10 day period and while it was draining, it was exciting to live with that kind of clarity. I feel this way about writing and about being involved in ministry, even if some days I don’t know what it ought to mean practically.

But there are also times when life is not so clear, when direction is vague and hazy, the same way the highway looks when I take off my glasses to clean them while I drive. I can keep on going for a little while if I know the road is straight, if I don’t need to make any turns, and if I have a wide median to keep me on my side of the road.

Nehemiah was absolutely clear as he spoke to the emperor: "If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it." (Nehemiah 2:4-5)

This clarity was no accident. We sometimes think that clarity is only for those random gifted individuals whom God touches, but there are some signs that it was no divine lottery draw.
In verse 4 we see that he wept over the news of Jerusalem’s broken state. He allowed himself to be moved. He cared and was passionate about something. He did not ignore or shove aside these feelings. They moved him to do something.

In verse 6 we see him confess sin. He took sin personally, not as a concept, not as something other people do, but as something personal. Confession softens our hearts and makes us more receptive to God’s voice. We can’t have stiff necks and soft hearts.

In verse 8 we see him quote scripture, which tells us that he had made it such a part of his life that it came back to him naturally and frequently.

Nehemiah was patient. At least three months passed between chapter 1 and 2. We often get in trouble because we want the answer right now and we think that doing something is better than doing nothing. The problem is, we’re wrong. We are not doing nothing, because we are waiting. We are waiting on God, for His decision, His direction, His timing. (Of course, we do need to make sure we are not doing nothing) Sometimes God guides quickly. Sometimes we wait a lot longer.

We can take a lot of cues from Nehemiah. I just came back from some lectures at our seminary. They were OK, good reminders about some important things. But it was more valuable to have the time away to think, pray, read the Bible, centre on God, talk with my senior pastor.
Time away is good, and it is good to plan time away. I’m going on a prayer retreat in a few weeks which I’m really looking forward to. But there are simple things which help me every day. Life always feels out of focus when I neglect a daily routine of prayer and Bible reading. And I can pray specifically for clarity and direction. I know it sounds funny, but when I pray about these things, God answers. And I find writing out my prayers in a journal helps also.

Nehemiah’s clarity was no accident, and we can have clarity also if we are willing to follow his example. I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Feb 12, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com

OnFire #213 Organizational Genetics

2010-02-03T01:06:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #213 Organizational Genetics

Our new Japanese student has arrived. His name is Zen and we served pizza as his first meal with us in Canada. He is settling in and we are showing him around. His parents sent us beautiful gifts including pens and stationary. Because it is exam week for high school, he will not start until next week. This will allow him to dip his toes before diving in.

We’ll look at Nehemiah for a little while. He is an inspiration because of his faith and leadership. We’ve been studying him this fall in my college-aged Sunday school class and he is too good to pass by.

I’m starting a new round of questions. I haven’t done this since the Million Dollar Question (OnFire #44-45). They’ll make more sense after reading today’s letter. Hit reply to respond.

**What have been the biggest changes you’ve seen in church in the last 15 years? **
**And what do you think are the biggest changes the church needs to make in the future?**
~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father's house, have committed against you." (Nehemiah 1:6*)

I look at myself and see the traits of both sides of my family. When I was young, I had my mother’s thick curly black hair. Now I have her family’s male pattern baldness, which resembles a road in a snow storm - bare down the centreline. I have my father’s height and my mother’s eyes. People tell me I stand and walk like her father, my grandfather.

These traits are not only physical. Like my father, I seem to have the ability to speak with anyone, on almost any topic. And like my mother, I seem to be able to remain calm in a storm. Like my mother’s side, I’m usually fairly quiet, but like my father I sometimes enjoy being the centre of attention. Music comes from both sides. When it comes to making big decisions I like to take my time, something I get from my mother.

It is interesting to see this influence in my body and character. Of course, there is still lots of room to change, learn and transform, and I can point to lots of people who have helped to mold and shape me along the way. But today I’m thinking primarily about genetics.

Here is Nehemiah, cupbearer to the king (a highly trusted security officer who thwarted plots to poison the king) living in exile in Babylon in the 440's BC. His people had been there at least 140 years and in that time two groups had returned from exile.

The latest group had gone back to Jerusalem about a dozen years before and life was very difficult. Nehemiah’s brother reported that the walls and gates of the city were still in disrepair. The temple had long since been completed, but there was still no safety or security for the Jewish inhabitants. This troubled Nehemiah for days until ultimately he prayed to confess his sins and the sins of his people.

This intrigues me. That he confesses his own sin is understandable. Confession to God ought to be a regular part of our spiritual life. But he confesses the sins of his "father’s house," an expression which means his ancestors and the people of his Jewish heritage. Why would he do this?

Nehemiah recognizes that he has the spiritual genetics of his ancestors in his heart. He knows from Scripture that the reason they went into exile was because of their rebellion and unfaithfulness. The closing words of 2 Chronicles make this very clear and Nehemiah was well versed in their history.

It would be easy for him to blame his ancestors for his current plight, but he does not. He does not consider himself an individual detached from his past. Rather, he knows that unless something changes the pattern will be repeated again and again in the future. If they have any hope of going home, then they will have to live differently from their ancestors, and it must begin with him. And so he confesses his sins and the sins of his fathers.

We can learn from Nehemiah in this. We think we stand isolated from the past, that our current situation is somehow unrelated to those who have gone before. But how do we explain churches where the same problems come up again and again, decade after decade? How do we explain families where the same issues are repeated generation after generation?

We could perhaps call it "organizational genetics." Churches, families and organizations develop and pass along traits and values which become part of the make-up of the group. We’re not even always aware of them. We sometimes call it the "culture" of the place because "that’s they way things are done here." Sometimes these traits are good, sometimes they are poison.

I’ve been pondering this for months, ever since I began the class in September, and it still bothers me. But Nehemiah teaches us that we all share responsibility for where we have arrived collectively, and for where we will go in the future together. If we want to change direction, it starts with each of us recognizing our own part of the past, and determining that we will act differently in the future than we have acted in the past.

I know, heavy thoughts. But I hope life changing for all of us, our churches, and the organizations to which we belong.

Hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Jan 26, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #212 This Week's Theme

2010-01-17T18:54:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #212 This Week’s Theme

Some weeks develop themes. This week’s theme for us seems to be saying goodbye.

On Monday we held the funeral service for Jan’s grandfather. He was a good and kind man who gave his heart to Jesus in his later years, so we have hope in the resurrection. As Paul reminds us, we do not grieve like those who have no hope. (1 Thessalonians 4:13). Jan sang and did the euology. The boys read scripture and were pallbearers. It was somehow strange and yet right to see our boys dressed in their suits as young men.

At the funeral I also spoke and used some of the tools he had given me when he downsized. He was a carpenter and gave me a level, hand saw, and some clamps. I used these as reminders of our faith. Just as the bubble on the level ensures that walls and floors are true and level, we will never be quite right until the bubble of our lives is centred on Jesus. The Bible is able to penetrate deeply into our hearts and lives just as the handsaw cuts sharply and quickly through wood. And finally, we need to remain clamped to Jesus during times of trouble and trials.

Today, Thursday, also fits the theme of saying goodbyes, although thankfully a funeral is not involved. We just came back from the airport where we said goodbye to our Japanese student. He has lived as part of our family for the last 51 weeks. In that time we have eaten many meals, laughed and argued, travelled and loafed together, and so it is not surprising that the water level behind our eyes was a little high as we waved from opposite ends of the security area. We pray for him and hope he will do well in life and keep in contact with us.

Tonight we’ll take it easy and get used to being on our own again. We have a week before our next student arrives and we’ll enjoy this time together.

A few days ago I came across this passage while I read through 1 Samuel again and it seems to fit. "Saul's son Jonathan went to David at Horesh and helped him find strength in God. (1Samuel 23:16*)

David’s situation was dire. Afraid for his life, he hid in the dessert with a faithful band of men around him. But it was a good friend who came alongside to give him that extra encouragement he needed. We would like to think that we are strong, independent, capable, able to stand alone. But the reality is that we need the help of others at our side to find strength, comfort and encouragement, not only in ourselves, but in God also. Our faith in God is closely tied to our relationship with others. We need each other.

It was good to spend time with Jan and her family. We are family together, and prop each other up when needed. And it will be good to stay close tonight. This is good, and the way God intended, to give strength to each other and bolster our faith.

I write these things because it helps me to write. But also, I’m one of those people who likes to stand tall on my own. I like being independent and able. Somewhere along the way, however, I have understood that it is good to let people come alongside for strength and support. In fact, I need it. I would hate to see someone miss out on the blessing of strength and comfort by holding others at arms length.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Jan 14, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/ 　

OnFire #211 Voices of Faith

2010-01-04T07:41:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #211 Voices of Faith

Happy New Year!!!

We enjoyed Christmas very much. We didn’t go anywhere since we are usually wiped by the time Christmas arrives. That, plus Christmas was on Friday, making it hard to be back for Sunday. Taka, our Japanese student, seemed to enjoy Christmas. It was interesting for us to hear of the differences between cultures. We hope that he understands something about our faith in Jesus.

What did we do over the holiday? We worshipped, talked with relatives, ate, slept, watched old episodes of CHIPS, and ate some more. As I write, Jan and the boys are painting upstairs. Jan started this project a while ago and thought it would be good for them to help. They are doing a good job under Jan’s instruction. For part of a day, Ian and I went hunting and he finally got to fire the 12-guage shotgun. Fun stuff!

Finally, I have a new Introduction to Romans on my website. Check it out, along with other intros and an article on Basic Bible Reading Tips. http://onfireletter.com/page15.html

Blessings for your new year.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jan and I were engaged while I was in seminary. One day while we were hanging out in the student lounge, a classmate commented that her husband would soon be home from his 28-day shift at sea with the Coast Guard.

"28 days at sea. 28 days home. Yup, it’ll take me half of that to make him fit to live with."

There was something about the way that she said it that depressed us. We were happily engaged and she made marriage sound as if it was a bother and a big disappointment. Was this what we were getting into?

We called up a set of friends who, while married a dozen years, were so obviously in love with each other that it made us feel good to be around them. "We’re feeling kind of depressed. Can we come over?" They were great for us to be around.

This memory came to mind this week as I recalled the Nephilim in Numbers 13:33 (see also OnFire #47). Having returned from spying out the promised land, the 12 tribe leaders gave their reports. All agreed the land was good and they even had a cluster of grapes so large it took two men to carry as proof.

The problem was that they saw descendants of Anak there. Anak himself was a descendant of another group of legendary people, the Nephilim. We don’t know a lot about them, but they were large and fierce. 10 of the spies spread a report that they could not go into the land because of the Nephilim.

Two of the spies, however, saw things differently. Joshua and Caleb knew that God would provide the victory and so they saw no reason to fear the Nephilim.

As I pondered these things this week, some new insights jumped out from Numbers 13 & 14.
First, we can’t go and stay. We often want things both ways. We want to change, but we want to stay the same. We want the new without changing the old. I call this "Wishing for the Divine 649." We have a national lottery in Canada called 649, which often runs into the tens of millions of dollars. Wouldn’t it be great to have a pile of money dumped into our laps without having to work, scrimp, or save? Change without change. The truth, however, is that sooner or later we have to face the "Nephilim" in our lives if we want to change.

Next, if we do not go, we stay. This is not as obvious as it sounds because we think that our good intentions let us hover between going and staying. "Someday I’ll get around to it." We think that if we say it this way, we are not deciding to stay, but we’re just fooling ourselves. If we don’t decide to go, we stay. If we want change to happen, we need to change. This means, of course, facing the Nephilim in our lives.

We need to find voices of faith and encouragement. Joshua and Caleb correctly believed God would give the victory. "If the LORD is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land, a land flowing with milk and honey, and will give it to us. Only do not rebel against the LORD." (Numbers 14:8-9*) Unfortunately, the people did not listen and eventually died without going into the promised land.

Our problem is similar to the one in Joshua’s day. There were more who believed the Nephilim could not be defeated than those who believed God is bigger than our problems. We need to seek out the Joshua and Calebs so that we will be encouraged to trust God more.

As we stand just inside the borders of this new year land, may we encourage and strengthen each other so that our faith becomes stronger everyday. I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Jan 4, 2010. Scripture references taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/ 　

OnFire #210 The Search for the Perfect Gift

2009-12-21T11:11:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #210 The Search for the Perfect Gift

Last week I heard an interesting statistic. 40% of all Christmas gifts will be bought in the week before Christmas. The pressure is on to find the right gift for those we love at Christmas.

I always find it hard to shop for Jan because I never seem to know the right thing. Some years I have hit it right on the mark, and others were, well, a little off centre. I think my instincts are getting better. For instance, the other night Jan was folding clothes and pointed to our ancient cracked and worn baskets. "I could really use some new clothes baskets," she said.

"Are you trying to get me hurt?" I replied. "If you tell our friends that I got you clothes baskets for Christmas, I’ll never hear the end of it. And then the women at the church will hear, and I’ll get it from them, too." We both laughed because we knew it was true. "Maybe not for Christmas, then."

You may have seen the commercial on TV lately, where a couple stands in the window of their suburban home, watching the neighbours running and laughing in their yard. It is Christmas day and she is holding a food processor, while the neighbour’s wife is dancing for joy because of the new car she got for Christmas. The message is simple: buy her something she really wants. I have the feeling I’m not alone in my quest, but Jan and I have a commitment not to blow the budget at Christmas, so things like cars are definitely out.

Jan, on the other hand, has great instincts. She’ll shop all year long, seeing things on sale that she knows will really be appreciated. Tools always work for me. I love gadgets and things for the shop, such as it is. I’ve figured out the difference here between men and women. When Jan gave me a cordless drill last year, she was suggesting, "This is fun, so go along and play." If I get an appliance for Jan, like a vacuum cleaner, I’m saying, "Here is something so you can work a little harder." Like I said, I think my instincts are getting better, even if I still struggle.

We may struggle to find the perfect gift, but as we reflect on Christmas, let’s not forget that the perfect gift is not the one we give, but the one we get through Jesus Christ.

"The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23*)

Sometimes the best gifts are the ones we get before we even realize we’re going to need them, like the boots we get just before the old ones fall apart. That’s the way it was with Jesus. Long before we even knew we needed a saviour, God sent Jesus.

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8).

The wise men of the Christmas account got it right. Their search for the perfect gift ended with Jesus.

We’ll continue to do our shopping and wrapping and all that goes with Christmas, but sometime this season, we need to take time and thank God for His gift to us of Jesus Christ. It’s too easy to put it off or say, "Yeah, I know," and then do nothing about it. Let’s not forget to thank the One who gave us the best gift of all.

Blessings and merry Christmas from all of us here. Be on fire.
Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Dec 21, 2009. *Scripture taken from New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/ 　

2009-12-14T08:51:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #209 Treasuring and Pondering

Hi Folks:

What a mixed-up kind of week. It started as the week of apologies, as I apologized for several issues I had created. I didn’t mean to, but I did, and felt really very bad. I apologized in each case and hoped I had undone at least some of the damage I caused. Apologizing is hard work, and I felt drained as I replayed the footage of those various events over and over again, trying to figure out where I went wrong and what I would do differently next time. That was the beginning of the week.

In the middle of the week we started the musical, White Christmas, at Ian’s high school. I got involved after the musical director discovered I play trumpet and she asked me to help out. The musical opened Wednesday with a matinee and an evening show. I played in 5 of the 6 shows. What a whirlwind of activity! Home to eat quickly and then back out until 10 at night. Staging a play or musical is an exercise in stamina. My arms still ache from holding the trumpet for 13 hours this week.

A highpoint of the week happened on Saturday. While in my office at the church in the morning, I looked up to see my mother and step-father outside the door. They had arrived as a surprise to attend the musical that night. That meant so much to me, that they would want to see the show. I really liked looking out to see my family enjoying the production.

And then there were all the normal parts of my week, like planning, organizing, meeting, speaking, teaching, writing, worshipping, praying, reading, talking, listening, and helping friends.

So that was my week. I don’t often think this much about all that goes on, but this was such a different week that I couldn’t help ponder it. At different levels I was processing pain, success, fear, failure and joy, all at the same time. We are complex critters, aren’t we, living in all these different kinds of worlds at the same time?

Simple sounds good, right about now. Take away some of the complexity to make life a little easier to fit together.

"Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.*" These are simple words which cover a lot of jumble and complexity. A mysterious pregnancy before marriage in a deeply religious community. Uncertainty and travel in the last days before birth. The mixed blessing of finding shelter in a stable. And then, as if wasn’t complicated enough for the poor young couple, Jesus was born, bringing shepherds, Magi, and angels in dreams pointing the way to Egypt. What to think of all this? Joy, confusion, fear.

Two ideas from these words bring me comfort. First, it somehow brings me comfort to know that the first Christmas wasn’t so simple, that Jesus was born into a world of complexity. It seems hard to identify with simple.

And then, second, it brings me comfort to know there are things to treasure in the midst of everything else. There are some things which will make us ponder, but other things which we will treasure.

These things help me as I process last week. I don’t understand everything about it, and so I will ponder. But I will also treasure some things, like my mother’s visit to see me play, and some other neat stories from people about how God is providing for their needs.

I hope this helps,

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on authentic faith and character written by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Dec 14, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/ *Luke 2:19 New International Version. See also Matthew 2 for more of the Christmas accounts.

2009-12-07T18:27:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #208 Jan’s Christmas OnFire

Hi Folks:

Inspired by something she has read, Jan spoke this past weekend at a women’s group and offered up her thoughts as an OnFire letter. So, this week’s letter is her gift to me, and I pass it along to you.

Blessings,
Troy
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jan writes:

My favourite part of Christmas decorating is digging out the ornaments. They’re like old friends because each time I open the boxes I am flooded with memories. I have quite an eclectic mix of ornaments that we’ve collected over the years, and they bring back memories of people, places and events.

While living in Wolfville, just after Troy and I were married, I started collecting pewter ornaments. Eventually I had to slow down on the pewter since they are heavy and the tree can only hold so many!! But I still look for ornaments on trips to add to my "places I have been" collection.

I see some parallels between ornaments and our lives. Ornaments have been made for a specific purpose. Like ornaments, we have been created for a specific purpose. But what type of ornament are we?

Are we like a glittery golden bell without its clapper? It looks great on the outside but there is a problem. It’s not able to do what it was created for because something is missing. Our lives are empty without Jesus Christ. We cannot fulfill our true purpose without Him.

Are we a little tarnished? We started out pretty but have come into contact with things that have discoloured our spirit. We still function but fall short of our true potential until we let Jesus polish us.

Are we like those pretty golden ornaments which look so good from a distance, but upon closer inspection reveal that they are not real. The inside is filler. If it were solid gold it’s value would be much greater. No matter how beautiful the outside, it’s what’s on the inside that counts and increases worth. God is concerned more with the inside.

In 1 Peter 3:4-5 we read, "But let it be the hidden man of the heart,... the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price." The outward decoration is okay but God places greater value on the inner beauty of a humble and quiet spirit.

Sometimes we feel like ornaments that are ugly, broken or discarded. Ugly, because there is sin discolouring our lives, souring our attitudes. Broken, due to the weight of worry and problems. Cracking, trying to hold it all together. Discarded, that we are no longer useful. When we feel like this way it easy to drift away from fellowship with Christ and other. Ironically, we avoid reaching out for Christ, when that is what we really need to do.

I have a very pretty crystal snowflake ornament. It’s transparent, letting God’s light shine through for others to see. This snowflake had to undergo adversity in order to attain maximum potential. It was shaped and cut several times to create the most light. We can either let hard times, discouragement, trials and devastation turn us into ornaments that aren’t so pretty or allow God to turn adversity into something beautiful that radiates His light.

Ian’s favourite ornament is a little pewter lobster we bought for him on Grand Manan. Mark’s is a snowman with a pull string that makes the arms and legs move which he received at a school ornament exchange. They are treasured. They’re not my favourite ornaments, not ones that I would pick for myself but because they are special to the boys they are special to me. God sees all of us as His favourite ornaments no matter the size, shape, colour, whether we’re fancy, plain, antique, modern, tarnished, or broken. We are valuable because God sees us that way and we need to value others because God sees them as his treasures.

Jan

We hope this helps. Be on fire.

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character normally written by Troy Dennis. This letter published Dec 7, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives located at www.onfireletter.com. Blog at www.onfireletter.blogspot.com
　

OnFire #207 Is That It?

2009-11-30T10:03:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #207 Is That It?

Like so many others this past week in New Brunswick, our family watched the Olympic torch relay as it passed through the area. This flame started in Athens, Greece, and it will wind its way across Canada to light the flame for the 2010 winter Olympics in Vancouver, BC.

We thought it would be good for the boys to see this historic occasion, so we got them up early one morning and lined up along the side of the road. Representatives from major sponsors handed out pennants and pins while we waited.

The flashing lights of police cars announced the arrival of the flame. The crowd cheered as flame touched flame and the torch whooshed into life. Then the torch bearer jogged up the hill and it was over. “Is that it?” I wondered.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m glad I went. If the torch is passing through your area, I encourage you to go. It is inspirational to think that this flame will pass through more than 1000 communities on the way to Vancouver. Whose heart could not stir? The torch logo proclaims, “With glowing hearts,” a play on words with the Canadian national anthem.

But even as we walked back to the car the crowds were thinning. It another 10 minutes it would be hard to know anything extraordinary had happened that morning.

We could be tempted to think the same about Christmas. We make a lot of fuss and then its over. But that’s only if we make it about the wrong things. If we make it about the gifts, glitz, and glamour, we come to the end and think, “Is that it?”

But here is the good news. Jesus said, “I am the light of the world.” By this he meant spiritual illumination. “No one who believes in me should stay in darkness.” (Jn 12:46)*

Christmas comes and goes, but Jesus continues to provide light all year long. If we take this approach, then Christmas becomes more than hustle and bustle. It really does become a celebration of Jesus’ arrival to show us the way.

Here are some ways to help us take this perspective:
• Follow an Advent Bible reading plan with your family this Christmas. There is one on my website, www.onfireletter.com
• Read the Christmas story from Luke 2:1-20 with your family on Christmas day
• Simplify Christmas to take the emphasis off “things.”
• Set an example of following Jesus everyday.
• Decide to follow Jesus if you haven’t.
• Attend worship at Christmas and throughout the year

Hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. This letter published Nov 23, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/ *Scripture taken from the New International Version.

OnFire #206 Going Back to School

2009-11-23T06:27:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #206 Going Back to School

Hi Folks:
What a great day we had yesterday. I baptized one of our young people and that is always exciting.

Deer hunting season is over. I’ve had Ian out a few times and it was nice to spend that time together. Some of you will be pleased to hear that the deer are still safe.

I hope you have a good week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My high school music teacher stood behind me beating out the rhythm of a piece of music on my head. I’d like to say this was unusual, but we were thick and we didn’t always get it. Plus, being a trumpet player himself, he pushed us a little harder than some of the other sections.

My favourite times were when he grabbed his "horn" and sat beside us to work through difficult parts. It felt so good to play along with him. His presence inspired us to try harder and gave us confidence to play better. Plus, his example showed us how things were supposed to sound.
I’ve been thinking about this as I’ve gone back to high school this week.

No no. I’ve not gone back for classes. I’m helping the trumpets at Ian’s school as the orchestra prepares for their Christmas musical, "White Christmas." It all started at parent-teacher night when the music teacher found out I play trumpet. I’ve gone to a couple of practices so far.

I sit between two trumpet players. One has played for three years and plays decently well, but has no power. The other has only played a year and struggles to produce good tone. Their teacher tells me that sitting with them gives them confidence. Cool.

Here’s the neat thing. Its not my ability to play the music perfectly that gives them confidence. Far from it, the music is challenging and I’m playing it for the first time. Plus, I sometimes get the "count" wrong and come in at the wrong place. But even though I don’t do it perfectly, I give them confidence. I’m further down the road and it helps them.

This week I met with a pastor friend. Once in a while we get together to chat about how things are going in life and ministry. He’s a little older and more experienced, a little further down the road. I love to listen to his "war stories" and sometimes I ask him questions. It helps me and gives me confidence.

The two stories are not so different. In the first, I was helping, and in the second, someone was helping me. Both are important and I mention them for two reasons.

First, we need the help and wisdom of people who have "been there and done that." At present this is helping me with a dry spell. I need a little help to stay spiritually fresh. But, here’s where I find my problem. There are times my pride makes me think that I can do it on my own. Or, I worry about imposing upon someone. But my options really are limited - stay the way I am, or get help - so I set myself aside and call to ask for time to chat.

Here’s the other reason. We can help others coming down the road behind us. Sometimes we wonder what benefit we could possibly be to someone else. After all, we know our own weaknesses and failures. Here’s the thing - we don’t have to be perfect, just a little further down the road. And, believe it or not, our presence actually helps the people coming behind us to feel more confident.

Paul provides the example: "Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." (1 Corinthians 11:1*). We all look to Christ, but we also need the example of those ahead of us, and the people behind us need our example, too.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Nov 23, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/ * Scripture taken from the New International Version.　

OnFire #205 Roll Away the Stone

2009-11-13T04:03:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #205 Roll Away the Stone

Hi Folks:

Last week’s vacation felt good. I did a little hunting. Ian saw as many deer in two days as I did in several years before, so that was good. I did a few things around the house, and when Jan went to her pastors’ wives retreat, I took the boys to visit my family on PEI. A good week off.

The boys had their parent teacher interviews this week and are doing very well. At church we’re getting ready to host the Three Colors of Spirituality seminar on Monday with Christian Schwartz and we’re looking forward to that. I am told there is room for a few walk-ins.

Blessings for your week.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What are you doing?" Miss Dover was our grade six teacher and she asked me this question one day in class.

"Nothing," I replied.

"Exactly. Get to work!!"

To my 11-year-old mind this was brilliant. Get me to answer in a way where she can use my words against me. Very clever.

Questions are powerful motivators. Who? What? Where? Why? These are not just the fundamentals of a news article, but may prompt us to think more deeply about our priorities and purpose.

I sat in a meeting this week with a church consultant talking about the results of our latest Natural Church Development survey.* His questions were penetrating. We answered some, but there are others that we will need to ponder because we do not have the answers. We hope in the end to lead our church to better spiritual health and vitality, and so we willingly submit ourselves to this (sometimes uncomfortable) probing process.

This week, also, a number of us from the church fasted and prayed over John 11:39-40. To those not familiar with the story, Jesus was called to the village of Bethany where his good friend Lazarus had recently died. Martha and Mary accompanied him to the tomb where he wept and then startled the women with these words.

"Take away the stone," he said.

This was a strange and troubling request. "But, Lord,...by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days."**

In their mind (and ours if we had been there) there was no reason to roll away the stone. Lazarus was dead and there was nothing Jesus could do now, was there? Furthermore, the rotting stench of decomposing flesh would drive them out. Why not leave well-enough alone? But this was not the right question...

"Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?"

There was only one proper answer to this question. Hidden between the words was a challenge. "If you really believe, roll away the stone."

So they did, and they saw the glory of God in a very powerful way when Jesus called Lazarus into life again. There is a lesson for us. There are times when we have to act against what our reason tells us because faith doesn’t always follow common sense. If we want to see the glory of God, we have to act in faith.

This leads us back to a powerful question. What are the stones we are afraid to roll away? This question is sticking in my mind and so I share it with you today. What is the step of faith we need to take in order to see the glory of God?

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Nov 13, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/ * http://www.ncd_international.org/ ** Scripture taken from the New International Version.

OnFire #204 Running to Keep Up

2009-11-04T15:29:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire # 204 Running to Keep Up

Hi Folks - I realized I forgot to upload my last letter, so two today...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It has happened again.

But before we get into that, let me say that OnFire has always been about my suspicion that, if I have trouble with these things even though I have years of training and I’m a “professional spiritual guy,” then others probably do also. So, here goes.

Its been a crazy fall season which isn’t done yet, and I’m feeling more than a little drained. I feel like I’ve been running just to keep up, and the pack is moving on ahead. It reminds me of those times when I rode in a mountain biking club. Here I was, a novice rider in decent shape, trying to keep up with the Elite athletes with their sponsored clothing and bikes. They stopped once in a while to let us catch up, and as soon as the last rider came along (sometimes me), they would take off again.

Now, here’s the funny thing - I have felt this way before when I was discouraged, but I am not discouraged. It has really and truthfully been a good fall. Programs are going well, attendance is good, there seems to be a good feeling in the church. I feel positive about the church work and about life. The boys and Jan are well. But I’m tired, and my connection with God is starting to feel distant. I’m not feeling spiritually fresh. My creativity is sagging. I’m not paying as much attention to things as I should. I’m feeling a little dry and parched.

Its a good thing I’m on vacation this week. This was well-timed, a God-provided opportunity which He made available a few months ago. It feels good not to set an alarm and to get some things done that I have been neglecting around home. Jan and I have watched a few movies. I’ve taken some naps. And Ian and I will do a little hunting. How quickly the time will go...

But there is another thing which I will be careful to do. I pulled out my journal and blew the dust off. It seems that’s the first thing that gets put aside. And I am setting aside some time to read larger blocks of scripture and to pray.

One of our Arrow Leadership trainers, Bob Biehl, gave us a quotation which has been dropping into my mind a lot lately. “Fatigue, fog, flirtation.” Being tired and drained is a spiritually vulnerable spot, especially when things are going well. We don’t think as clearly as we should or fight temptation as we ought. It is time to be careful, to rest, and to reconnect.

Rest. There are times when the most spiritual thing I do is give my body a rest.

Exercise. Yeeesh. How easy this one goes out the window...

Eat properly. Balanced eating is always the best way.

Take Stock. What is the most important thing I need to do? What can I hand off to others? What do I need to plan for now to avoid pain in the future? What am I going to do? Just as important - What am I not going to do?

Reconnect with God. Its OK to let some things slide to make sure this one stays strong.

In Romans 1, Paul wrote that he longed to see them in order to “impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.” (Romans 1:11-12)

Why am I writing this week? Its about this feeling that I’m not alone in this. If I feel like I’m getting dry, even though we are in a good season, then I wonder who else is? Can I encourage someone that they are not alone in this? Can I call someone back to the basics of connecting with God by sharing my own need?

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Nov 4, 2009. Scripture is from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #203 Blood Sweat and Tears

2009-11-04T15:27:00.000-08:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #203 Blood Sweat and Tears
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I gave blood recently for the first time in about 10 years. For most of that time, we lived in areas where blood clinics were infrequent. Now that we're back in an area where clinics happen often, I see it as a responsibility to give, especially since I think I probably have good blood to give, and it doesn't cost me more than a little fuel and time.

My donation at the blood bank didn't cost me much, but there are times when blood is the symbol of a deep and long lasting investment. "Blood, sweat and tears" is the expression we sometimes use to say that we have put a lot of ourselves into a matter. Because the cost to us cannot be measured on a cash register, we treasure it all the more.

I think that's why the words, "I'm sorry" are so hard. We invest so much of ourselves that we find it hard to turn around. I once took a group of children on a hike at night. I thought the map showed a point where the path would join another one to form a loop back to our camp, but it didn't. By the time we realized we were wrong, we had gone so far down the path it was easier to keep walking and hope the other end was closer.

Our conflicts can be like that. We think we have gone too far to turn around. Solomon was right when he included this Proverb: "An offended brother is more unyielding than a fortified city, and disputes are like the barred gates of a citadel." (Proverbs 18:19*)

We all know people who won't back down. Call it stubbornness or pride or something else, but it seems they wouldn't get past the offense even if someone bled. We may not live in walled cities, but we have seen barred gates.

It is easy to point the finger at other people, but let's be careful because this verse, like all of scripture, is not there to help us identify the faults of others. This verse may actually be for us. Who is the unyielding one? Who has put up the barriers?

"Pride only breeds quarrels, but wisdom is found in those who take advice." (Proverbs 13:10) Pride prevents us from seeing truth, and closes our ears to things which might change our minds. Its the principle of the thing that counts to us, and we're not going to back down.

The theological term for what we are talking about is repentance. We often hear about this word in the context of salvation, but repentance also has a role in everyday life. Repentance means, literally, to change directions. I have been going one way, but I change direction and go the other way. Pride keeps us from repenting - from changing direction. We have invested too much and gone too far to change things now....

As I think about my blood filling those tubes yesterday, a weird thought runs through my mind. If they didn't stop, I would bleed to death. If they didn't pinch off the tube, or pull out the needle, my blood would continue to pour out until my life went with it.

I know, weird thoughts, but true, and not so far from our topic today. When we hold onto our pride and refuse to let offenses go, when we refuse to take advice because it might make us change our minds, our effort is wasted. "Blood, sweat and tears" are good for some things, but not when it gets in the way of changing directions in conflict.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 22, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #202 Those Skywalkers Have Always Been Trouble

2009-10-15T05:30:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #202 Those Skywalkers Have Always Been Trouble

A leopard can’t change his spots.
An old dog can’t learn new tricks.

These two little expressions both mean the same thing. It is hard, and perhaps impossible, for a person to change the way he does things. We don’t want to say it, so we create expressions to say it for us.

He will never change.

I heard a comedian on the radio a few weeks ago making jokes about my homeland, PEI. He was an Islander, so it was OK. He joked that if Star Wars had happened there, it would not have taken three episodes and six hours to figure out Darth Vader was Luke’s father. “Oh - Skywalker, huh? Aren’t there Skywalkers down there in Naboo? . . . I think he’s Vader’s son. Those Skywalkers - always were hot tempered, you know!”

Small communities are not the only places where it is hard to escape a reputation. I used to think it was a small town thing, but I have realized it is a relationship thing which happens regardless of the size of the place. We tend to mark people by the stupid things they have done in the past. It doesn’t seem to matter that time has gone by and real change has taken place. We remember the stupid things and it makes it hard for us to get past them.

Now, I’m not saying we should be naive about these things. Sometimes Christians are accused of being too trusting, or of being duped by people who might talk us into believing they have changed. Rather, I’m talking about real change, but in the back of our minds we still think it is only a matter of time before they do those stupid things again.

In Acts 15:36-41, Paul and Barnabas argued over whether they should take a young man named John Mark on their proposed missionary journey. Always the encourager, Barnabas wanted to take his cousin with them, but Paul felt they could not trust him to complete the trip because he had deserted them before. They had such a strong disagreement that Paul and Barnabas parted company over the matter. Paul took Silas and went one way, and Barnabas left in another direction with John Mark.

We read about the troubled time in Acts 13:13, where it doesn’t sound so bad. John Mark returned to Jerusalem while the others travelled on. Whatever happened, Paul thought the young man should not travel with them. Once trouble, always trouble.

This is not the end of the story, however. About twelve or thirteen years later (60AD), Paul sent greetings from Mark to the Colossian believers (Colossians 4:10). At about the same time, he also wrote to Philemon from prison and again passed along Mark’s greetings (Philemon 23-24). Both times he suggested that Mark may also have been a prisoner with him. A few years after that (63-64AD), Paul was still a prisoner and wrote to Timothy, asking that Mark be sent to him because he was so helpful (2 Timothy 4:11).

Whatever happened in the intervening years, Paul no longer held the young man’s actions against him and came to love and trust him, finding him helpful and encouraging.

Maybe, just maybe... we sometimes fuel conflict because we don’t let go of someone’s reputation. Paul is an example for us in letting go of the past. Again, I don’t want us to be naive. But at the same time, maybe we can recognize real change and repentance.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 15, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #201 Who Cut My Hose?

2009-10-08T04:50:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #201 Who Cut the Hose?

Hi Folks:

I don’t have a lot of news this week other than Ian is now taking his gun and hunter safety courses. He is really excited about this. A man from our church is letting me use his camp and this will be our base, so this is very neat, also. I’m always amazed at people’s generosity, and grateful.

We're getting ready for a parenting course at our church in Moncton next week. The Family Life Legacy course is for everyone interested in parenting and will happen on Oct 17 from 9-4. We'll learn things like how to avoid the most common mistakes parents make, how our roles change as the children grow, and how to instill confidence and character in our children. Cost is $15/person or $25/couple and includes a workbook. Please email me if you want to pre-register or want more information.

Hope your week is going well,

Troy
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When I was a student, I worked for three summers in Cavendish, PEI. I had a job at a commercial campground in the resort area and lived in an old tent trailer in the staff compound. It was a fun place to work and live, but it was not without its tensions as twenty or so different people of varying maturity tried to live and get along.

I came back to the trailer one day to find my water hose cut off. My hatchet was stuck in the ground beside it, and half was missing. It was no big deal, just a cheap hose from the hardware store, but that day I saw red. One of the maintenance staff was working on the water system nearby and I jumped to conclusions. He had obviously cut my hose and stolen it. I stomped over to where he was working, and he had the missing half.

“Why did you cut my hose?” I demanded.

“What do you mean, cut your hose?” He was not one to back down easily.

“My hose,...” I pointed to the piece on the ground beside him.” “Why did you cut it off?”

“This hose was here when I came up to work. If I had wanted your hose, I would have asked you.” And then he quoted something I had heard him say many times. “Don’t ever steal anything from me. Ask me, and I’ll probably give it to you.”

With that, he handed me my hose and the argument was over. I knew he would have asked to borrow it if he needed, and certainly would not have cut it. I never did find out who did, and truthfully, I was too embarrassed by my behaviour to look any further. I still have the hose in my shed and have thought about that experience many times since.

In this series on conflict, I turned to Proverbs to see what this book of wisdom has to say. It is a favourite of mine and I found all sorts of gems, including this one which took me back to the day of the hose.

Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down. As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife.* Proverbs 26:20-21

I was kindling strife that day. Listening to the gossip of my own mind, I accused him without thinking. And because he was there, I charged in to call him to account, but I was wrong. “A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control.” (Proverbs 29:11)

Just as I have kindled strife, I have likewise been scorched by others. “Where did that come from?” is usually my first thought. Sometimes I can make sense of it, and sometimes I cannot, but I know this: It is no fun to be torched and scorched.

Another proverb comes to mind: “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” (Proverbs 15:1) It is hard not to react defensively when the sparks fly, but I have often also found that when I answer kindly the situation more quickly diffuses. There is a lot to learn from these and other proverbs for handling conflict.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 8, 2009. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #200 The Irony of Internal Conflict

2009-10-01T16:18:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #200 The Irony of Internal Conflict

Hi Folks:
I spent a few days this week on a retreat with other youth and associate pastors in St. Andrews NB. I surprised Jan by sending her a card. I knew I would arrive home before it did, but Jan’s only mail is usually bills, and we all know bills are not real mail. She liked that. I’m not usually that romantic, but once in a while a good thought hits me.

Our Japanese student, Taka, turned 17 yesterday. We celebrated with pizza and cheese cake (his request) and some friends dropped in. He seemed very pleased, especially with the Jackie Chan movie set we gave him. He was especially pleased to receive a package from home.

This is OnFire #200. Its hard to believe that I have written 200 letters. Thanks for being kind and sending comments and thoughts. A lot of the time I write them and forget about them, moving on to the other things I do. So it is always a surprise, and truly humbling, to find out how God uses them. God is cool - He allows me to be part of something bigger He is doing in your lives.
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Yesterday I spent about two hours sweeping back and forth over my lawn with a specially designed powerful magnet on wheels. We did our roof almost two weeks ago, but I just got around to picking up the nails. I was amazed at how many there were, especially close to the house. We picked up a lot on the day we reshingled, but there were more lurking in the grass waiting to puncture a tire or pierce a foot. How ironic it would be to have a safe day climbing ladders and walking on the roof, only to face blood poisoning from a dirty old nail on the ground.

This is the kind of irony we see as we turn to Acts 6:1-7. The church was surviving external persecution only to find itself threatened by internal conflict. In Acts 4 and 5, the apostles were arrested and beaten for preaching about Jesus. This did not stop them, however, and they even rejoiced that they were worthy to suffer in the same way as Jesus.

So it was strange that conflict threatened them in the opening verses of chapter 6. As the church grew, a ministry of feeding widows developed. One way or another, some were overlooked, creating offense and tension. As the problem unfolded, it developed racial overtones as the Greek Jews complained against the Hebrew Jews. It is not hard to imagine how much damage could have been done to the early church if this problem got of out of hand.

Thankfully the story has a happy ending. The apostles needed to keep on teaching and praying because they were they only eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Jesus. They therefore proposed to appoint seven men who were "full of the Spirit and wisdom" to oversee the ministry. This proposal, Luke tells us, pleased the group. The crisis was averted and the church continued to add great numbers to the fold daily.

The solution they came up with gives us some principles for handling conflict. First of all, we see how holiness and integrity created an atmosphere of trust. There was no doubt about the character of the seven men, and this quickly reduced the tension and suspicion. We need to be people of honesty and integrity. If people know they can trust us absolutely, we will experience less conflict.

They were full of the Holy Spirit. Last Sunday I preached on this passage and used a glass of water to illustrate what this means. While it appeared empty, it was actually full of air. A vacuum might remove the air, but to get every molecule would probably implode the sides. Instead, we could displace the air by pouring water in.

Its the same with us. As we allow God to fill us by the Holy Spirit, the bad parts of our character, like selfishness and ungodly character and behaviour, are displaced. As we allow God to fill us, we will experience less conflict. True, we can’t control what other people do or say to fuel problems, but we can do something about our own character so that, at least, we do not do anything to make it worse.

They were full of wisdom. In the Bible, to be wise is to prove it with our actions. Too often, we want to be people who know for the sake of knowing. We love to study the Bible and we love to give advice. Bible knowledge is good, but only if we actually apply the lessons we learn. It is easier to preach and teach than it is to live it out. But biblical wisdom, true wisdom, is about living out what we know.

The lesson here ought to be obvious. We see the results of people who were filled with the Spirit and lived godly lives. They had the respect of the people and the ability to administer the food distribution wisely. These traits headed off the conflict and the church, it says, increased rapidly.
The lawn magnet I rented had a handle on top. When I pulled the handle, all the stuff stuck on the bottom dropped off. I didn’t discover this handy feature until it was too late. I could have saved myself some work. We can be a magnet for problems, attracting conflict because of the way we handle ourselves, or we can let the Holy Spirit do a work in our character so that conflict does not have to stick to us.

I hope this helps. Be On Fire.
Troy
　
OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Oct 1, 2009. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #199 Fallen Fruit from the Family Tree

2009-09-23T12:03:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #199 Fallen Fruit from the Family Tree

Hi Folks:

This is a good news and sad news kind of week. Good news - Jan is feeling a little better and thinks the medication for her stomach is helping. Good news - men from our church reshingled our house this weekend.. This was a spiritual experience for me. I couldn’t go on the roof, and as I watched them do for me what I could not do for myself, I became aware of God’s grace for me in a new and very powerful way.

Sad news - we said goodbye to a dear friend this week. Our friend Dwayne passed away quietly with a brain tumour. His funeral was a real celebration of the hope we have in Jesus, but let’s just say that the water level behind the eyes was running high.... Please keep his family in your prayers.

Let’s sandwich the sad news with some more good - my mother has a birthday this week. Happy Birthday, Mom!!! She is a faithful reader, and prints off the letters each week to put in a kind of scrapbook. She is indeed a proud Mom.

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I am constantly amazed by my boys. The two of them are so different, but I can see myself in both of them. Mark’s body type and temperament are like mine, while Ian has picked up my liking for the outdoors and anything that is shiny, sharp, creates fire, makes a loud noise, or does all of the above at the same time.

"The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree." That’s an expression we use to describe children who strongly exhibit the traits of one of their parents. I’ve been told that I remind people of my grandfather on my mother’s side, down to the way I talk and walk. I consider that a high compliment. He was a godly and wise man whom I try to emulate.

I can see myself in both boys, for better, and for worse. Mark has the same type of slow-burn temper that I have. He can be very patient, but he’ll only go so long and then he’ll blow. It has taken me a lot of years to learn to release pressure in smaller, safer amounts.

I wonder sometimes what bad habits I’m passing along to my boys. I’m going to take Ian hunting with me this year and in the process I’ll teach him a few things. I’ll want to get this right since bad habits in the woods can be deadly.

Bad hunting habits are one thing but bad character traits are an even more serious matter. What sorts of bad character traits are they learning through me? I’m not sure I know, since we have a hard time seeing our own shortcomings. I hope and pray I am leading them well and wisely.
"And they lived in hostility toward all their brothers." (Genesis 25:18*) This simple statement about Ishamel’s offspring is all about character traits passed along to children. They reflect the first words we read about the man. Even before he was born, it was said that he would be "a wild donkey of a man" who would live in "hostility toward all his brothers." (Genesis 16:12)

To be sure, Ishmael had his positive traits. In fact, God blessed him to become the "father of twelve rulers," and a "great nation." (Genesis 17:20) Even still, Ishmael is remembered for his hostility and for passing it along to his sons.

This is helpful for us as we examine the sources of conflict. If we live in conflict and hostility, we are at risk of passing it along to our children. "Like father like son" can be good if we are cultivating good character habits, or bad if we allow conflict and hostility constantly to be part of our lives.

Paul reminds us in Romans, "Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone." (12:17-18) It takes two to fight, but we don’t have to keep it going. When we do, we not only disturb the peace, but we teach those coming behind us to do the same.

I hope someday that people will point to my boys and say, "Like father, like son," and that will indeed be a good thing. I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Sept 23, 2009. *Scripture taken from the New International Version. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #198 Lessons from Painting and Roofing

2009-09-17T05:18:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #198 Lessons from Painting and Roofing

Hi Folks:

We had an interesting weekend. Jan had some chest pain so we took her to the emergency department. The ekg looked good, but they decided it was better to be cautious and wait for the cardiologist. So she spent the weekend in the hospital. Good news, her stress test was fine, so no heart issues. Now they will begin to track down what the issue may be.

We’re getting ready to put a new roof on the house. If you are in the area and want to help, we’ll start about 7:15 on Saturday morning.

Blessings as you finish the week.
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We’ve been doing a few things to fix up the house. I’ve painted the wooden surfaces outside and we’re getting ready to put on a new roof.

Roofing and painting are interesting things. Neither one is very complicated and both have easy but important steps which are repeated over and over again until the job is done. Dip the brush and spread the paint. Dip the brush and spread the paint. Of course, the surfaces must be prepared properly and there are little tips and tricks which make the job easier, but mainly it involves faithfulness to the task. Little things over and over again.

Roofing is the same. Shingle by shingle the roof is nailed into place. Again, there are tips and tricks and essentials to be done properly, like flashing the chimney and capping the roof. But mainly there is a lot of faithfulness to the task.

Another thing about roofing or painting - it soon becomes obvious if we didn’t do the job well. I once painted a pine window ledge but didn’t bother to seal the knots. It looked fine for about a month, and then they began to show through the paint. I thought I could get away with it...

Like water dripping through the ceiling, the truth came out for Isaac and Rebekah in Genesis 26. It seems that when Isaac and his wife Rebekah moved into the area, they told people she was his sister so that no one would kill him. Rebekah was very beautiful and they were afraid that someone might murder him in order to take Rebekah. As a result, Isaac finds himself in conflict with Abimilech, king of the Phillistines.

Didn’t we read this somewhere else? Yes, two other times. Abraham and Sarah tried this scheme in Genesis 12 and then they tried it again with this same king Genesis 20. Abimilech must have shaken his head when he discovered that Isaac and Rebekah were married - "Here we go again!"

The source of this conflict was a simple little lie. We all know, of course, that lying is a bad thing. But even still, how many times are we tempted to cover things over with a little paint? The instinct is the same for us as it was for Abraham and Isaac. We want to protect ourselves. The words can slip out very quickly, especially if we are used to using them.

Just as Isaac was the source of his conflict, we can become the source of our own conflict. When we ignore some of the basic fundamentals of character and faithfulness, like honesty and integrity, we should not be surprised to find ourselves in disagreement or conflict. "I thought you said you were going to do that!" I think we’ve all heard that one before. What about this one: "But that’s not what you said."

A businessman lamented to me about how difficult it is to find good people. "How hard can it be," he asked, "to find someone to show up on time and do what they said they would do?" Harder than it should be.

There is good news here. We can reduce our level of conflict by being truthful. Not whitewash or cover it. Not blame someone else. Just like in paint and roofing, the truth is going to come out eventually, anyway. Faithfulness means doing little things, like telling the truth, over and over again.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Sept 17, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/
　

OnFire #197 When Any Idea Seems Right

2009-09-08T18:24:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #197 When Any Idea Seems Right

Hi Folks:
School is back in. Mark went to school Tuesday, and as I write Ian and Taka are getting ready to go back.

We’re finishing some yard and outdoor work. I painted our front door overhang and touched up some areas on our carport. In a few weeks we hope to re-shingle our roof with the help of some men from the church.

I forgot to mention last week that my mother and Ivan brought my grandmother for a visit from PEI. At 91, she is not always able to travel, but she has been feeling well and made the trip. We had a wonderful time together.

Finally, I tried fly fishing for the first time last week. I went salmon fishing with a man from our church on several branches of the world-famous Miramichi River. We only caught a few chub, but we had a great time. Talk about beautiful spots. Not much wonder people love salmon fishing so much. The scenery alone is worth it, and to catch one of those incredible fish would be a real thrill.

Blessings for your week.
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The next conflict we see in scripture happens between Sarai, Abram’s wife, and her maid, Hagar, in Genesis 16.

The story is a little bizarre, really, not something we think might be included in scripture, but that’s one of the things I like about reading the Bible. Bizarre stuff happens in real life, and scripture reflects real life problems and solutions.

Abram and Sarai (who will later become Abraham and Sarah) were getting along in years but could not have children. Earlier God promised children to Abraham, but in Genesis 16 we see that they were getting tired of waiting. Sarai, trying to be helpful I’m sure, suggested that Abram have a child with Hagar. This would preserve his lineage, if not hers. That’s when the trouble began. After Hagar became pregnant, jealousy and anger erupted between the two women. Soon Hagar left because Sarai treated her so poorly.

To me this seems right up there in the "what were they thinking?" category. How could they not see trouble coming? It reminds me of the pictures we find on the internet of people doing things like running power cords through swimming pools or using one forklift to lift another forklift. (I have an album on my Facebook profile called, When You Just Can’t Reach - check it out for some funny pictures)

We’re funny like that, however. If we don’t have the right tool in the box, we’ll use something else even if it doesn’t really fit, just because we don’t want to wait to get the right one. If we run out of something, we’ll substitute another, again, because we don’t want to wait.

As children we wanted to glue strips of paper together, but had no glue. So, we mixed up some flour and water and tried to make glue. We thought we were being clever, but in truth we just made a big mess all over the kitchen which our mother insisted we clean up that night. She wasn’t very happy about it, I recall, and our paste didn’t work, either.

I laugh as I look back on that, but in regular life the consequences are not so funny. In the case of Sarai and Hagar, conflict erupted because Abram and Sarai got tired of waiting. In the absence of what God had promised, they settled for something else.

When we’re desperate and impatient it seems to us that any idea is better than no idea. Never mind that it may compromise what we believe. Never mind that it may cause more problems later. Never mind that it may cost us more in the long term. We want to do something NOW because we’re tired of waiting.

We know patience and wisdom help in relationships but they also keep us from doing something just for the sake of doing something. This is a good thing because, sooner or later, sin and compromise lead to damaged relationships and conflict. When we settle for some idea just because it is the only idea at the moment, how can we not expect trouble?

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Sept 9, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/

OnFire #196 Thorns Under the Skin

2009-09-02T17:23:00.000-07:00

OnFire Encouragement Letter
OnFire #196 Thorns Under the Skin

We continue on our series of people in conflict in the Bible. This week we see how Abram handles a delicate situation with his nephew, Lot, in Genesis 13.
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One of Jan’s projects this week was to prune the rosebush near our back door. When she couldn’t get a few of the woody branches she asked me to help, so I reached down and promptly got pricked. Bleeding, I picked out the thorns and completed the job. After picking out a dozen more tiny darts, I still have some left. I can’t see them, but I can feel them.

Thorns aren’t the only things that can get under our skin. People have been known to irritate us and this is what happened when Abram (later Abraham) and his nephew Lot found themselves too close together to support both of their vast sheep herding enterprises. In Genesis 13:7 we read that Abram’s and Lot’s herdsmen began quarrelling.

We can hear it and understand it. There is only so much good pasture land, and only just so much water, but who will get it? And then what happens when a few sheep go missing? Who gets blamed for that, even if natural causes or wildlife are responsible? Finally, add tempers into the mix, and the situation becomes volatile. We can read all of this into verse 7. There was more at stake than a few words. The situation threatened to blow up by involving the heads of the families.

That’s where Abram and Lot came into things, but there were no explosions. Rather, Abram diffused the situation with calm and grace. In verse 8 we read, "Let's not have any quarreling between you and me.” Just because their shepherds were fighting did not mean that they needed to quarrel also. It is tempting to walk into other people’s fights. Someone told a friend when he moved to a close-knit community that if you cut one, they all bleed. Loyalty is good, but it can sometimes lead us blindly. Abram did not let this happen.

And yet something needed to change. The situation couldn’t remain the same because they had too many animals for the land to support. Someone had to move, and again, we see Abram’s grace. In verses 8 and 9, Abram says, essentially, “Hey look, Lot - there’s plenty of land for the two of us. You go one direction - you choose - and I’ll go the other.”

When our boys were younger we taught them how to divide fairly. One would cut, and the other would choose between the two pieces. This is what Abram did on a far grander scale. Lot took the land he could see in front of him which was, according to verse 10, like the garden of Eden. This meant that Abram would have to move, even though he had the right as an elder family member - Lot’s uncle even - to tell Lot to move on. Instead, he left for Hebron.

A little bit of grace goes a long way in a dispute, and there are many ways to extend this mercy. “I’m sorry.” “What can I do to make it better?” “Is there anything I can do to help?”

Even refusing to be offended is an act of grace. Last week we talked about how we can see offense where none was intended. Well, sometimes offense IS intended, but we don’t have to take it that way. Fighting words don’t have to be. I’ve done sound several times for musicians who, to put it mildly, acted like spoiled brats. I wanted to walk off, to leave them singing into the air. That’s just one example that comes to my mind, but there are many more. Sometimes I did the right thing by extending grace, sometimes I did not.

But - here’s the point - we are expected to extend more grace than others are often willing to grant.

It doesn’t feel right sometimes. We want the other person to extend grace to us. We want them to move, to give in. Its the principle of the thing, isn’t it?

But Abram shows us that grace can diffuse a tense situation. He would not be goaded by his shepherds or prodded by others who might insist he stand up for his rights. Rather, he offered up a solution even though it meant more inconvenience to him that Lot. That’s grace in action.

I hope this helps. Be on fire.

Troy

OnFire is a weekly letter on faith and character by Troy Dennis. Troy is the Pastor of Family Ministries at Highfield Baptist Church, Moncton NB Canada. This letter published Aug 26, 2009. To subscribe or reply, email onfireletter@gmail.com. Archives are located at www.onfireletter.com Blog located at http://onfireletter.blogspot.com/