Living with the end in mind

I read an interesting blog by Jon Acuff where he discussed the topic of people taking church off for the summer. While I don’t think a lot of people take church off for the entire summer, many certainly attend less regularly than they do during the rest of the year.

Acuff gives many reasons for this in his blog. I guess what I want to discuss are the reasons you should not skip church when you are on vacation. With the internet, you have at your fingertips a vast amount of information to help you pick a church to attend even when you are away from home. Knowing you will only attend that church while you are on vacation, you can pick a place that is very similar to where you worship – or very different. We have attended much larger churches from very different denominational backgrounds to very small churches. It’s exciting to try something different from the ordinary.

Reasons you should attend church when you are away from home:

• It shows your family that church is a priority. When we have traveled, we always try to find a place to worship. If I believe attending church is important at home, why wouldn’t it be important when I am traveling?
• You can find some neat ideas to try at your church at home. Several times I have seen how another church does something and then sought to try the same thing in our home church. I know this is easier to do if you are one of the pastors, but bring an idea to your pastor. Tell them what you liked and why you liked it.
• You come to a realization that how your church does something may be all right. Just like bringing new ideas home, realizing that your church is doing things ok is a good take away as well. I have left for vacation somewhat frustrated with an aspect of our church. When I visit another church, I realize that perhaps how we are doing whatever it is is ok.
• You feel what it is like to be a visitor and therefore can be more visitor friendly at your home church. As I have visited churches, sometimes I am shocked at not being greeted by anyone from the time I leave my car in the parking lot until I sit down in the sanctuary. Other times I am offered a genuine smile and friendly handshake and I know that people care that I am there. It makes me wonder how friendly our church is. How do we treat visitors?
• It’s fun to worship God with a different group of believers. Worship styles may vary. Sermons may be different – sometimes better, sometimes worse. The building may not be familiar. It may be a little awkward to not know anyone. BUT when you worship with another group of Christ-followers, you are worshipping the same God! That is always awesome!

What about you, do you find a church to worship in when you are on vacation? Why or why not?

What do you want? This is a question that has been asked of me several times over the past 6-8 months.

When I initially heard this question, it kind of rubbed me the wrong way. I thought it seemed too self-centered, too me focused, when it should be more God focused. As I have dialogued with people about this, I have come to realize that God has shaped me withabilities, experiences, passions and desires and if my relationship with God is where it should be, what I want should fall in line with what God wants me to accomplish with my life.

Some questions that can help you process this stuff:

What do you love to do? How can you figure out ways to do that in your every day life?

Name three people who you admire and inspire you. What is it about them that draws you to them?

What is it that makes you angry? Oftentimes, it is the areas that make is angry that help us identify our passions.

What do you feel God is calling you to?

These are hard questions. I have spent a decent amount of time pondering them over the past few weeks. I keep coming to the conclusion that I believe God wants me to come alongside and help people live intentional lives, help people realize that their days here on this earth are numbered and to make the most of their days.

As you think about your life, what do you want?

What are you known for? Do you realize that could all change in an instant, depending how you respond to life? A couple things in the sports world have caused me to ponder this – the NBA and NHL Championships.

First, the NBA championships and more specifically LeBron James. One year ago, LeBron was a beloved figure, someone of immense talent, playing basketball in Cleveland. People widely felt he was one of the best basketball players in the NBA and seemed to be very popular. That all changed when he decided to take his talents to Miami and play basketball for the Heat. His popularity took a nose-dive, not so much because he chose to go to Miami, but the way he announced it and all that went with that. It seemed more people were happy to see Dallas win the championship because it meant LeBron losing more so than Dallas winning.

In regards to the NHL championship, I realize most Americans south of Minnesota don’t care about hockey. I can’t say that I do either. What amazes me is how overnight the reputation of Vancouver has changed for the worse. For those with your head in the sand, Vancouver lost to Boston 4-0. Following the game, riots erupted. Last night at this time, I had very positive thoughts regarding the city of Vancouver. I have never been there, but I felt it was a beautiful city, someplace I would love to visit sometime. The riots have kind of changed my impression.

These events remind me how easily things can change, how the impact of a bad decision can harm each one of us for the rest of our lives. I guess this shows me the importance of seeking to protect our witness for Christ. It also makes me thankful for forgiveness.