Who is Coming With Me?

The Lord replied, "My Presence will go with you, and I will give you my rest." Then Moses said to him, "if your presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here." Exodus 33.14-15

I read these words in my devotions last week and they really spoke to my spirit. These were in the context of God calling Moses to lead his people into the Promised Land, the land flowing with milk and honey. For Moses this was a daunting task and he no doubt was experiencing a healthy dose of anxiety. He needed some assurance. He needed to know he wasn't on his own, and that God not only called him to this mission but that God would go with his people as well.

I've had similar sentiments lately. For the past few months Resolution has been gearing up for a move. We've been meeting in a movie theater for roughly a year and a half and beginning this Sunday we will meet in a church building which we are leasing in the neighboring community of Oswego. We have put a lot of time, effort, prayer, and resources into this move and are anticipating that God is going to do some great things!

And yet, there still remains a lot of uncertainty. While we ANTICIPATE great things, we don't KNOW what will happen. It's a risk, a calculated and well processed one, but a risk nonetheless. So while we have our people on board, funds raised, and a plan to reach this community I find myself coming back to a holy desperation for a holy God. Above all else we need the assurance of God and his Presence as we embark upon this new horizon.

My prayer is that of Moses, "if your presence doesn't go with us then don't send us. I don't want to make this move if you're not coming with us." And yet when I read these words last week I had a sense of peace that God in fact was promising me and our church that he's coming with us, that his Presence has gone before us and his paving the way in the hearts and lives of people in this community.

It's a risky move, but sometimes playing it safe is the riskiest move of all. God's Presence goes with us and therefore we must move as the people of God with courage and boldness!

Diary of a Wimpy Pastor

Our family went on a much needed brief vacation a couple of weeks ago. In the middle of a relaxing day during said vacation I had a rather convicting experience.

We were headed down Hwy 12 in the Wisconsin Dells area looking for a state park. We were following the GPS to this park and realized that the GPS was leading us nowhere. As we drove past what was supposed to be our destination we passed a young man on the side of the road, hand extended hoping to hitch a ride. I turned the car around to head back down the road to the entrance of the state park that the GPS failed to locate (Thanks Garmin), and passed this guy again. As I pulled into the state park and got out of the car with Bekki and the boys to have a picnic I couldn't get the image of this guy out of my head.

He looked miserable, dejected, and helpless and I knew I was supposed to help him. I shared with Bekki that I thought Jesus was prompting me to help him, and she agreed.

I got back into the car and drove down the road to find this guy and offer help. I soon found him, pulled over, rolled down the window and asked where he was going. Turns out his car had broke down, his ride never showed up to pick him up from work, and he needed to be back home in the next town before his daughter returned from school. I invited him in the car (safety pin in my hand as it was the only defense weapon I had...i'm serious) and we headed for his house.

We made small talk on our seven-minute journey and all the while I was praying that I might have an opportunity to talk to him about Jesus. We pulled up to his house, he said thanks and I wished him well. I had a plan. I was going to tell him WHY I gave him a ride, because I was a follower of Jesus and I believed that Jesus was calling me to help him, and that Jesus wanted to rescue him from far more than just being stranded at work. Something like that anyways.

But I didn't say any of that. I drove away upset with and embarrassed by myself. I felt like a WIMP! Here I am a pastor with good news to tell, and I blew it. Some may read this and think, "You're being way too hard on yourself. You did share the love of Jesus with him by offering help to someone in need." Perhaps, but I think too often we let ourselves off the evangelistic hook by simply equating all good deeds with the good news of Jesus. I'm all for servant evangelism (I did afterall give the guy a ride), but there are times where I think we're supposed to open our mouths and talk about Jesus as well. In my spirit, I knew this was one of those moments and I missed it.

So I made a little promise to God (one I'm sure to break but I hope not) that whenever presented with an opportunity to open my mouth and share some good news that I would do it. I promised that I would marry my acts of service with words about Jesus, because evangelism at its best involves both proclamation through both word and deed. If you feel the same way then I invite you to pray a little prayer with me:

"Dear Jesus, help me to not be such a wimp. Amen."