On Being Genuine

At this time, each year, a number of men and women in the United States Navy are going thru a transition, having been selected to the rank of Chief Petty Officer.  It is both an honor and a privilege, as well as a step into greater responsibility and even greater service. 

I was selected in 2008, while serving at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD.  I will never forget the day my Command Master Chief, Charles "Chip" Collins, called me up to his office to give me the news that I had been selected.  

"All I can say," he said, "is that someone on the list must have died."  He winked and extended his hand in congratulations.  Then he reminded me, that I had asked for this.  Thus began for me an 8 week "process" of moving from Chief "Selectee" to "Genuine Chief".

The process, as I call it, included many trials, tests and "training" elements.  The point of many was to learn the limits of your control; the truth that no one is smarter than the Mess; that a Chief must never stand alone, and will never stand alone, when he has earned his place in, and the respect of, the Chief's Mess.  In that knowledge and experience, there is great confidence to lead when others would fall back in fear. 

One of the first of my many assignments in that process was to write an essay on what it meant to me, personally, to be a "Genuine Chief".  The following is my essay...

The Genuine Chief

During the Chief’s “Season of Transition”, the term “genuine” is used to differentiate the CPO Selectee from those who have completed their Chiefs transition.  The term “genuine” is a fitting description of what it means to be a Chief Petty Officer.  For to be genuine is to be true, real, honest and to strive to be, in reality, what we all hope and aspire to.  There is no such thing as a perfect Chief.  But, many have lived up to the title of “Genuine Chief”.

A Genuine Chief is willing to be transparent and honest about their own mistakes and failures, giving their junior sailors hope and assurance that just as they were able to learn from their mistakes and build upon their failures, so too can their juniors learn, grow, and mature as much from their failures as their successes.  And the Genuine Chief will show them how.

The Genuine Chief takes the time to know their junior sailors on a deeper and more intimate level than simply their NEC and the amount of work performed.  They know the hearts and understand the fears of their juniors and work to instill in them the kind of character that overcomes hardship with faith, courage and trust as well as with skill and knowledge.  They develop in their juniors a sense of pride and satisfaction in a job well done, no matter how menial that task might be.

The Genuine Chief is also a junior sailor’s best defense.  They will never steer a junior sailor wrong for the benefit of a laugh.  They will never use their superior knowledge of Navy Regulations and traditions to degrade or humiliate a junior sailor in order to prop themselves up in someone else’s eyes.  Nor will they allow others to do such to the sailors in their charge.  Instead, they will be there with that superior knowledge to teach, to build and defend them.  Genuine Chiefs are a bulwark against any abuse or misuse of their sailors.

A Genuine Chief is a leader who is able to maximize the efforts of their people, while minimizing their hardships.  And thus, they create an atmosphere around them conducive not only to technical proficiency and success, but also, and perhaps more importantly, they develop and environment that makes for genuine joy in service.

A Genuine Chief’s care and concern also goes beyond the rails.  They are just as concerned about their junior sailor’s life on liberty and the quality of that life.  Their technical knowledge and skill are matched by their own life skills and they are as much counselor and confidante, financial advisor and spiritual leader, as they are the Leading Chief of the shop.  They are faithful spouses, loving and gentle parents, loyal friends and the brother or sister that is there in the time of need.  By their example, they have earned the trust and confidence of those around them, both at home and at work.

All who experience the company of a Genuine Chief gain a greater respect for their Navy, a deeper appreciation for the integrity and truth it takes to lead and an increased confidence in a future wherever there is a Genuine Chief in the lead.

A Chief Selectee must earn his anchors thru a crucible that teaches humility, honesty and teamwork, building confidence thru that process to "BE THE CHIEF" when the heat is on and the going gets tough.

Now, read that essay again and this time, replace "Genuine Chief" with "Genuine Christian" and "Navy" with "Church".   Do you see where I'm going with this?

As the Chief must go thru a crucible of testing to earn his anchors, so too, must the follower of Christ be tested, trained and humbled if they are to be prepared to take the leadership roles God has waiting for them.  In the end, the follower of Christ must learn that it is in fellowship with Christ and in team work with His Church,  in an attitude of service and humility that their true strength and confidence is found.  If you're not convinced, read Paul's account in 2 Tim 2:3-6, and Rom 5:3-5.

I pray you all will accept the challenge, the process, and become that Genuine Christian God has called you to be.  If you do, you will find many great challenges, but also many greater rewards and joys in service to Jesus, the King.

Go now, under His mercy and be GENUINE!

When We Sin - Part 2: (Repercussions and Restoration)

2nd Samuel 12 is known by most Christians as the record of Nathan's confrontation with King David regarding his sin of adultery with Bathsheba, his murder of her husband, Uriah the Hittite, and David's being forgiven by God upon the confession of his sin.

What many overlook were the repercussions of sin that continued on in David's life, despite being forgiven, and would carry on for generations following:  the sword would never depart from the land as long as he was King;  David would not be permitted to build the temple as he desired (1 Chron 22:8); adversity and strife would remain in his home -- Absalom being the premier case in point; and the child borne out of the adultery with Bathsheba would die. 

In my previous blog, I emphasized grace and God's loving forgiveness which frees us from shame and guilt.  And this is true.  However, that forgiveness and grace does not always, nor even often, free us from the repercussions of our sin.

When we fall short, we are often not the only ones that suffer.  The waves we create often become tsunami that ravage the shores of others.  A husband who commits adultery, or stumbles in pornography or other such sins has not only sinned against God, but has betrayed his wife's trust....has injured his reputation...and opened a spiritual door to negative influences in his home.  Some of these, by prayer and fasting can be mitigated.  But, some, like the regaining of a wife's trust, can take much longer.

David's sins and the resulting pain and anguish he and his family endured are a stark and harsh reminder that while our sins are against God and God alone (Ps 51:4), their affects are far-reaching.

For some, the results are devastating.  But, I would offer this counsel and hope....that God, in time, can and will restore what has been brought down.  David, after an unsuccessful effort thru fasting and prayer to spare the life of his first son thru Bathsheba, was permitted by God to take Bathsheba as his wife and their second son, Solomon, became one of the wisest kings Israel knew and brought in the golden age of Israel, completing the task his father, David, had longed to...the building of the temple of the Lord.

Have you fallen?  Have you witnessed the devastation of those waves you have caused in the waters of your life?  Do not be cast down into despair.   Where you are able, make amends.  If possible, restore what you have destroyed.  Fast and pray.  Seek His counsel and walk in His grace.  And when you have done all you can to make right and make straight what has been twisted by your actions....move on!  As David said to those confused at his ability to simply move on after his sons death...

He answered, “While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, ‘Who knows? The Lord may be gracious to me and let the child live.’  But now that he is dead, why should I go on fasting? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me.”  (2 Sam 12:22-23)

Walk on in the path He has laid out before you...in grace, with humility.  Whatever repercussions remain, know that His grace is sufficient and in the end, "all things will work together for the good, to those that love God (YOU)...to those are the called (YOU), according to His purposes." Rom 8:28

Please, bear in mind, that while God's forgiveness and grace is there the instant you repent, the trust of other's that you have damaged may not be restored so quickly.  In some cases it may take weeks, months, perhaps even years of consistent effort to heal those wounds.  In some cases, you may never live to see that restoration.  But, the delay in that healing or the extension of forgiveness and grace from a brother or sister in Christ is not cause or excuse for us to become dismayed or embittered.  For many who withhold it is not out of anger, but out of fear and a need to protect themselves from the potential of more pain.

Instead becoming frustrated at what seems like a slow process of forgiveness on the part of others, let it be a reminder of the cost of our sins.  Let it keep us humbled and ever ready to bend the knee to Christ and seek His wisdom, counsel, strength to overcome in future battles against sin.  But, never, EVER, let it become a root of bitterness in your heart against those that hold back forgiveness and grace.  Love them, serve them, all the more and ONLY as far as they permit you.  This is often difficult and hard....but, the honor you show them, by patient humility and deference to their needs, will, in the end, win their respect anew.  If not, it will have its way in working in you a greater patience and a depth of character that reflects God's own patience with us.

In David's case, the end of 2nd Sam 12 was a victory over the city of  Rabbah.  So you, also, when you humbly submit to God, can achieve victory over those cities that have stood against you....but, only when you submit, humbly and walk in His ways thru repentance and restitution.

God bless you all as you seek His grace and mercy.

When We Sin - Part 1 (The Vision & Attitude of Zechariah)

In Zechariah 3 we read...

Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him.  The Lord said to Satan, “The Lord rebuke you, Satan! The Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?”
 Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes as he stood before the angel.  The angel said to those who were standing before him, “Take off his filthy clothes.”
Then he said to Joshua, “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put fine garments on you.”
 Then I said, “Put a clean turban on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him, while the angel of the Lord stood by.
 The angel of the Lord gave this charge to Joshua:  “This is what the Lord Almighty says: ‘If you will walk in obedience to me and keep my requirements, then you will govern my house and have charge of my courts, and I will give you a place among these standing here.
 “‘Listen, High Priest Joshua, you and your associates seated before you, who are men symbolic of things to come: I am going to bring my servant, the Branch.  See, the stone I have set in front of Joshua! There are seven eyes on that one stone, and I will engrave an inscription on it,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and I will remove the sin of this land in a single day.
 “‘In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit under your vine and fig tree,’ declares the Lord Almighty.”

This is the word of the Lord...Amen.

What do you do, what can you do, when you stumble and fall?  Do you give up?  Do you throw in the towel and come to the conclusion that this Christian Way is not something you can live up to?  Do you wallow in guilt and shame?  Are you paralyzed by the judgmental tone in other peoples voices...or that same judgmental voice in your mind that tells you you're unworthy?

If you've ever felt this way, or been made to feel this way, read Zech 3 again.

God's grace is unmerited favor...

God's
Riches
At
Christ's
Expense. 

He does not measure you up to see if you're worthy of His love, deserving of His gifts, or, meriting His call.  He simply loves you, and calls you, perpetually and despite your flaws. 

And when you stumble and fall, God is not shocked nor does He feel betrayed.  He fully expects that to happen and His death on the cross covered it before it even took place.  He is not there brow-beating you and shaming you (that's coming from another source).  He is there holding out His hand, to lift you up out of the dust.  And He isn't satisfied with simply brushing off the dirt and miry clay that has attached itself to you.  Instead, He gives you  new clothes, reminds you (and the devil) that you are plucked from the fire, chosen, and that He will PERPETUALLY CHOOSE YOU.  Then, He reminds you of the challenge before you....to strive to live in obedience to His call.  It is in the striving to live in that obedience (not in the achieving of it) that we find grace, healing and ministry.

God said to Zechariah, that "...I will remove the sin of this land in a single day.
^10 'In that day each of you will invite your neighbor to sit under your vine and fig tree,’.

If God can remove the sins of a nation in a single day, and enable a stubborn, adulterous nation to minister to it's neighbors and share in its prosperity....can He not do the same for us as individuals?

I have always been taken by the fact that Zechariah, in his excitement and passion in witnessing the grace of God, steps into his own vision and declares, “Put a clean turban on his head.” and the angels do so.  Is this not an example for us as believers, as to how we ought to react when fellow believers are caught up in sin? 

Let us not be found, as Satan is, sitting in the seat of scoffers, clicking our tongues and wagging our fingers in judgment and accusation.  When we point fingers we only invite God's rebuke, not His blessing.   Instead, let us be as Zechariah and be cheerleaders and enablers of God's grace.  Let us be like the angels, cleaning, clothing and encouraging our fallen one's.  That they might find His grace and be, as He intended them to be, ministers of His blessings and sharing His goodness with their neighbors.

So, when we sin....what is our reaction to be? 

Will we side with the prosecution (satan) and stand in accusation, in shock, in judgment? 

Or, will we be found as Zechariah was, in the cheering section, enabling God's grace and mercy and rescue our fallen ones from the miry clay? 

The choice is ours.

One final word of caution...

Many are those who will stand in the crowds with the Chief Prosecutor (satan) and they will not understand how one caught in sin can, in the next moment, be standing clean before God and able to serve Him.  They cannot fathom His grace and unmerited favor.  It is NOT your task to convince them.  Simply continue on in obedience, in grace, in humility and service and let God deal with them.   This is not easy when that judgment and finger pointing comes from those we love and live with, from those closest to us.  It is difficult not to get defensive, even angry when they demand a form of shame and despair from you in keeping with how they would deal with guilt and shame.  In those moments, it is best to simply say that you are sorry for your faults, to make amends where necessary and if possible, then carry on and let the Holy Spirit work to bring them the understanding of grace.

God go with you all.

Why "A Pastor Of One"?

After much "encouragement" from my wife to start a blog...here goes...

Why title my blog "A Pastor Of One"?

It goes many years back, to my time at Trinity Western University, when I was taking classes while awaiting a "call to ministry".  I had completed my Pastoral Theology degree from then Western Pentecostal Bible College, now Summit Pacific College in Clayburn, B.C., near the city of Abbotsford.  A good friend of mine, Christina Battermann and I were chatting in the TWU coffee shop and I was sharing my frustration with not having received a call to ministry.  Christina said, "Well, maybe you're called to be a pastor of one."  I asked her what she meant by that.  She shared the idea that maybe I wasn't meant for pulpit ministry...that perhaps God had called me to a more intimate, one-on-one ministry with whomever He brought my way.  That conversation with Christina had a tremendous impact on my idea of the calling of God in my life and had a lot to do with my return to the ministry, after many years of wandering in the wilderness.

When you read through the Gospel accounts of Christ's encounters with others it is striking how many involve intimate moments with individuals.  Quiet moments of one-on-one encouragement or challenge with words pinpointing personal issues and pointing the way out of human failing to the victory in God's Way.  And when you think about it, while Jesus did have opportunities in front of the crowds (the Sermon on the Mount) I read a narrative that shows a man that sought out individuals from amongst the crowds and preferred quieter settings for more personal and intimate ministry.

I have never had a pulpit or a church and I have not yet received "credentials" from a formal ministry (although that will soon change, thanks to the encouragement of a pastor-friend, Mary Potter).  As I look back on the years immediately following my graduation from Summit Pacific, I am thankful to God I didn't get a pulpit.  It was His grace that kept me from being called into a church ministry before I was ready.

As I stated earlier, over the course of the next twenty-five years or more since my days in bible college, I had been in a figurative wilderness.  In that time, God showed me much about my character (good and bad) and revealed to me the truth that His gifts and calling are without repentance.  Whatever my state, whatever my condition, He would not hold back His gifts and calling in my life...and He would hold me accountable for those gifts and His call at the Judgment Seat.

Now, at fifty-five years young, I can see the hand of God directing me, even in that wilderness time, into personal and intimate encounters with others who needed an encouraging word, a challenging word, a word to help them see their hope in Christ.  I have been "ministering" all along...to individuals He brought my way...my "congregations of one".  Sometimes I worked in powerful cooperation with the Holy Spirit; sometimes it was despite my own stubborn, selfish, willfulness in the moment.

As I prepare to receive my credentials and the "laying on of hands" with the ECC of N.Amer, I believe that I am better prepared now than I ever was to serve my Savior's Church.  Not that I have "arrived"...but, I have learned one of the most valuable lessons a pastor can learn: that what matters is not the size of the congregation before you...all that matters is the heart of the one in front of you right now.