by Caleb Moore | Dec 15, 2015
“The emotions that good hunters need to cultivate are love and service more than courage. The sentiments of the hunt then become translated into art.” James Hunt
Several years ago this city boy took up deer hunting. I began as many do with a rifle and have since moved on to bow hunting, which has yet to yield a deer but has increased my love for hunting altogether. I also love art. I draw at least one night a week and more if possible. I love watercolor the most. It’s a delicate dance of water and pigment. Pushing the paper as far as it will go, absorbing as much water as possible, but stopping right before it begins to break down and tear.
When I am hunting, I sit quietly in a tree that has just lost all its leaves. Even if I take someone with me, I sit perched high up in a seat made for just one, and only I can pull the trigger or release the bow.
When I draw, I am the only one who can move the brush. There is no coach leaning over my shoulder telling me what passes as an authentic artistic expression. It is just a blank slate and if I am satisfied that it expresses what I wanted it to say, nobody can tell me differently.
Art, hunting, long rides on my motorcycle, these isolated hobbies are not new. When I was young I frequently went bowling or to the movies by myself. Lately I have begun to ask myself if the hobbies I enjoy the most reveal anything about the current place my soul resides. Being a pastor is unlike any job I have ever had before. It is at one time very public and vocal; you are the face of an entire congregation and sometimes an entire group of people to the rest of the world. But it is also a very withdrawn and introverted job, lots of studying, hours with your nose buried in an ancient religious document. And then there is the inner struggle, making sure you live by the values that you extol to others on a weekly basis.
When your phone rings, it’s usually someone needing something. Sometimes it’s prayers, sometimes it’s money, sometimes they want you to comfort a loved one who is dying. Often times when people come into my office, it is a place for them to dump their conflicts and pain and walk out feeling relived, while I sit there in the pile trying to figure out what exactly to do with all of these secrets and concerns freshly vomited onto my shoulders. Now I know, I’m not supposed to fix everything, I’m not meant to carry their burdens for them, and that God is the one who carries them. I know all the theological things that go along with that stuff, but it doesn’t make it any easier. The hardest part is finding friends as a pastor. I’m not sure if I am the one who makes this complicated or if it is those on the other side of the table. What I do know is that I have let very few people into the inner circle of my life; the ones who seem least likely to stay are the ones who knew me as pastor before they knew me as a friend.
People have this weird relationship with their pastor. With one breath they say they want to be held to a higher standard, and with the next, they call you judgmental for trying to hold them to a higher standard. It’s just safer for everyone involved to keep the pastor at arm’s length. Give them a version of you that is flawed, but just flawed enough that nobody needs to know and nobody is really concerned. It’s the version of ourselves many of us present on a regular basis. Not too perfect where people think we are no fun, and not too corrupt that we might need real help. That however, just defines the ones that you tend to think of as your friends. The other group of people hear you are a pastor, and they wait eagerly for some sign of a moral failure to justify the fact that they want nothing at all to do with God. You become the scapegoat for their spiritual cowardice. I’m great for those kinds of people because you don’t have to hang around me long to find flaws in my machine. So stuck between a rock and a hard place is where I tend to find myself. I’m the guy people will call when their relationship is on the fritz, but I’m not the guy you call when you’re having your buddies over because you feel bad every time you use a swear word in front of me. I didn’t know being the swear word police was part of my job but apparently I have a badge on my shirt pocket because as soon as people find out what I do for a living they apologize for all the things they said before that.
I’ve even had people introduce me as a pastor, only to console their friends with, “don’t worry he isn’t that kind of pastor.” I know what they mean by that, but I’m not sure if that’s a compliment or not. I guess it just depends on the crowd. This is the reason a pastor has to be very careful about who he lets into leadership around him. You hand people the ability to heal you or harm you. Too often I have handed people positions they were not ready for, and we both paid the price for that.
Often times, the people who are fighting to get close to you are the ones who scare you. This is because there is nothing particularly beneficial about being a pastor’s friend unless you are just power hungry and are under the false assumption that our job has lots of wonderful perks.
Whenever a young man tells me he wants to be a pastor, I assume either he is a glutton for God’s often-painful way of growing us or their ego tells them they should be in charge. I have fluctuated between both of those roles, and at least with God, the scars tells a greater story than any ego could imagine. The solitude of my hobbies does say a lot about me. They are not some cry for help or coping mechanism for the stress. They don’t mean that I need people to reach out and invite me out for fun. I simply think it is Gods way of balancing me and preparing me.
With some of the people that God puts into my path, we will paint something meaningful together. Much like watercolor, the Gospel will push them to their limits, but right before they break, the pigments spread out to the waters borders, mixing and swirling seemingly full of chaos when suddenly something beautiful takes place and an image is born. Other relationships are like hunting. Sometimes the Gospel is a trigger; it cuts them to their core. The deer kicks up the dirt, leaves a trail to follow, and when you arrive, the vulnerable truths about nature that cannot be escaped stare blindly back at you from the stained grass. My hope for those who call me pastor is that we will paint something beautiful together. But I am fully aware that sometimes the sinful nature of man will be as dangerous and unpredictable as nature itself. And in those cases when the Gospel is a bullet, I weep for their loss, while at the same time still enjoying the hunt. You see, the Gospel doesn’t really cause anyone to be wounded. The Gospel just shows people a wound that is already there. The true Christian finds that the blood on his shirt belongs to Christ, who took their wounds for them. They take that deep red pigment and paint with it. The others, they find that their wound is self-inflicted, and run back into the woods where there is not hope at all. Thank you to all who allow me to be me, who allow me to pastor, to call you my friend and allow me to do the few things I know how to do. I love people, and I love solitude. This is the dynamic that suits my calling. If you ever feel like your personality is not fitting to the Christian life because you are too awkward or too withdrawn, I would encourage you to realize that you are that way for a reason, and we must learn to rejoice and be glad in it. The world needs more weirdos.
by Caleb Moore | Nov 11, 2015
Many of you may know a Mormon. You might work with them or have members of that church in your family. Some recent news have brought the Mormon church back into the spotlight, and it makes for a great time to ask some simple questions to your Mormon friends, especially if you have never known how or where to begin.
The Mormon Church has a living prophet who they believe speaks for God on all relevant matters. The ideas of the prophet and other leaders are distributed to local wards through many publications including their leadership manual. One of the recent additions to this manual included instructions on how to deal with children of same-sex couples.
Although we may hold similar views about the moral rightness of same-sex couples, they have taken that view to an unthinkable point. The new church manual instructs that any child who has parents who are of the same sex can no longer be baptized into the church. The ramifications of such a view are huge. This means that even if a convert loves Jesus and obeys His teachings, he is in essence punished for the choices of his parents and can not be saved. Yes, Mormonism requires baptism into the church in order to be truly saved.
Although the Mormon idea of Heaven has several levels, they all aspire to reach exaltation. That is where they get to live with Heavenly Father. It has some major differences from our understanding of Heaven, but we don’t have room to talk about that here. Essentially, a young Mormon boy or girl, cannot receive any of the main benefits that come with their faith until they turn 18 and move out of their parents home.
Can you imagine someone coming to your church who has repented and turned to Christ only to be told “sorry, you have to wait five years and disown your family before God can accept you.” My Mormon friends are struggling with this new teaching. They are aware of the verse in Matthew that says, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children.”
We know, as well, that Jesus taught, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.” Can you imagine, after saying that, He included, “as long as your parents are not gay.” These types of teachings come with the approval of their prophet, the man they believe speaks for God. They call their church the “one true church,” but what do you do when that church says things that contradict the teachings of Jesus.
This is not the first time the Mormon Church has placed such restrictions. For a very long time, African Americans could not receive the priesthood, another believed to be essential to reach exaltation. This ban was reversed in 1978 when their prophet received a revelation reversing previous revelations, as is often the case in man-made religions.
The best thing to do in these situations is to ask questions. Ask about how this makes them feel. Ask about how they understand this in light of what Scripture teaches about salvation being open to anyone who seeks it.
Most importantly, be gracious and kind but never be afraid to point out that, perhaps, the prophet and the leaders of the church are not as close to God as they say they are. Let them know that there is a Gospel that does not require you to pass through a temple built by man or be punished for the sins of your parents.
There is a Gospel that has no age limit and welcomes anyone and everyone who would confess with an honest heart that Jesus is Lord. The teachings and requirements of the Christian faith have never changed because Jesus is the only prophet we need. Whenever you try to put a man on God’s throne chaos ensues.
by Caleb Moore | Oct 14, 2015
Have you ever run into a Christian who believes they have superpowers? I’m a huge fan of all things comic book related, and my office has more toys than any grown man should ever have.
I’m not talking about flying or super strength but what you might call “Christian” super powers. Occasionally I get asked to speak at events that bring together several different denominations. At one recent event the leaders asked if they could pray with me before I spoke. I need all the prayer I can get, so I was thankful that they would lift me up in prayer. As they prayed, everything seemed fairly normal, but right afterwards there were two comments that caught me by surprise. The first comment was from one of the main leaders who told me that he had recently learned how to focus his prayer by stretching out his hand and concentrating on the person he was praying for. I had noticed him do this very dramatically right before we prayed, but I hadn’t thought much of it.
His remark immediately brought to my mind scenes from the Star Wars movies where Luke Skywalker could make things move by stretching out his hand and focusing his mind. He then told me he felt power leave his body and go into mine, and he was curious if I had felt it. Since I didn’t feel anything and I did not want to be rude, I just smiled awkwardly and tried to find an exit. The second comment was from a young lady; after we had prayed she let me know that during our prayer time, God had told her that I was being healed. I wasn’t sick, nor do I have any physical disabilities other than being short with a receding hairline, so I was not sure what healing would have taken place. This very kind young lady stood there waiting for me to be excited about this healing that she was certain I had received. I was still a little stunned by the previous comment, so I found myself just staring wide eyed back at her. I finally reminded myself to blink and smile politely.
I am a big believer in the supernatural, but I am afraid of what the charismatic movement has done and continues to do to the church. Though the traditional conservative Baptist church might not have tongues or people flopping around in the aisle during a church service, some of the same thinking is creeping in. I call it the Christian Superhero Syndrome.
Let me make a few points as to why I rejected their claims at something supernatural taking place. Firstly, there is no evidence in scripture of someone being able to focus or make prayer more effective by reaching out their hand and concentrating on Jesus. It’s just not biblical. The only way to make prayer more effective is to be a righteous person who consistently prays things in line with the will of God. Secondly, when Jesus healed someone, they knew it immediately. Neither Jesus nor the disciples healed someone and then made them guess at how and where they were healed. The ambiguous language of the young woman would have two effects on a naive believer: it would make them admire the woman’s ability and power to hear from God and to deliver healings, and also encourage that person to strive to have that power in the future only to be disappointed when they never heard from God in that manner.
If God heals you, you are going to know about it, and He is going to make sure He gets the glory for it. If these had been my friends I would kindly ask for a chapter and verse from scripture to validate their claims at the supernatural. Having been caught off guard and considering that they were strangers, I simply let it slide.
My friends, do not encourage these kinds of practices because they are, in fact, destructive and a hindrance to the real work the Holy Spirit wants to do, which is to conform each person into the likeness of Jesus Christ.
by Caleb Moore | Sep 29, 2015
How do we grow as Christians? As a pastor, this is something I think about all the time. There are countless books, and Sunday school lessons, and weekend seminars designed to help people grow in their faith.
I have tried programs and strategies to help my congregation grow in maturity, just like any other pastor. If we were to define what a mature believer looked like, we don’t have to look any further than the person of Jesus Christ. Of course we know that the method He used for growing His disciples is what we would call discipleship. But the art of discipleship has been lost to many of us since we no longer live in an apprentice/teacher environment. Instead, our education has been delegated to others. Parents often make it the job of the youth pastor and school teachers to teach their kids, instead of taking on the role of primary teacher themselves.
However, I think there is one word that sums up the path to Christian maturity. It is a word I have fought against many times in many different ways. That word is “obedience.”
Growing up anytime I asked my dad how to grow in my faith, he repeated the same words, “obedience is key.” But that was always difficult for me to understand. I tend to have a rebellious streak that can either work for me or against me.
I’ve eventually found great value in using that rebellious streak for the Kingdom of God because I see Jesus as the greatest “rebel” that ever lived. Rebelling is about saying no to one system while conforming to another system you believe is more truthful. Jesus said no to the world, but He was totally obedient to the Will of God. In fact one of the few people Jesus ever compliments is a soldier because he understood absolute obedience.
I want to just encourage you on this matter because I believe it is extremely important. The key to understanding obedience has to do with how we were designed to live.
When we obey God, we often think of it with this sacrificial mentality, we say things like, “I know I need to give these things up to be more obedient…” But I do not think it is as sacrificial as we often think.
If we were designed to be in fellowship with God then it is our sin, our rebellion against God that is not natural. We have just been living unnaturally for so long that it often feels like home, but nothing could be further from the truth.
I use my iPhone for lots of things, but can you imagine me trying to use it as a hammer to drive a nail? It might work once, perhaps even twice, but that is not the proper use of it and would destroy the phone. Our lives, though they may seem to work in many ways when we are outside of Gods will, are damaging ourselves and others. Discipleship is simply showing others how to be obedient by being obedient ourselves.
So I want to encourage you today, to learn obedience. Everything else in the universe obeys God, from the laws of science to the birds in the sky, everything except for mankind who has been given the choice to look up to the heavens and tell God “NO!” The more I learn to obey, especially in areas where I am afraid to, I find the path of God is more beautiful than any path I could chart myself. I recall the old hymn, “Trust and Obey, for there is no other way…”
Very truly I tell you, the Son can do nothing by himself; He can do only what he sees his Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does (John 5:19).
by Caleb Moore | Aug 18, 2015
I recently returned from a mission trip to Utah where our church did outreach to those of the Mormon faith. I had to the chance to meet up with a Mormon apologist (someone who defends their faith) for lunch and a former Mormon lawyer who converted to Christianity a few years ago.
I was looking forward to a really sharp and interesting exchange, but in a matter of minutes they were yelling and calling each other names like children. All rational discussion had come to a screeching stop.
Shortly after the lawyer left, I began to converse with the Mormon apologist. I didn’t have the experience or education of the former Mormon, but I have studied the Mormon faith for years. I calmly made my case as to why their founder Joseph Smith was not a prophet of God. We talked for a good hour and whenever he would take a drink I could see his hands visibly shaking while attempting to respond. He would get confused and back pedal, and somehow I remained unusually calm, not attacking at the first sight of blood.
I truly felt as though the Lord had brought to the front of my mind all the things about Mormonism I had ever studied. Although I have studied their faith for years, this conversation was beyond my skill, and I have nothing to boast about. The Spirit was truly at work.
That day, I got a great example of the different ways a conversation can go. The lawyer used the Bible like a shotgun and fired all at once with every bit of info he could think of while throwing in personal attacks as well. Religion is something people take very seriously; it is an extremely personal discussion and has to be treated with care. You must use a scalpel not a shotgun because these conversations are surgery, removing the cancer of false teachings without pushing the person away from God altogether.
The conversation between the Mormon apologist and I was a civil duel, and we both knew that. We sat down at the table to weigh our truth claims. Like gentlemen in the past, we removed our gloves and drew our swords, knowing that certain things are worth fighting for, but that does not mean we have to fight poorly.
This is a very healthy thing to do, but unfortunately we live in a society that has become so politically correct that the friendly civil duel rarely exist. The problem with this is that once you get rid of the gentleman’s duel, all that is left is full on war. That is why everyone gets along on the surface until they turn into mortal enemies.
It seems like almost every topic today is a “hot” topic. The media promotes only two views, conform or be quiet. However, there is a third view that the Church should be at the forefront of modeling. That view is the art of the civil duel.
We must lead by example when it comes to engaging in serious discussion. We must lead with the Spirit, our heads, and then our hearts, and never reverse that order, for then we are in danger of basing our arguments upon emotion not truth.
This must begin within the Church, and yes that means even when a committee is formed to vote on a new color of carpet. A civil discussion is required no matter how passionate a person may be about purple shag.
“A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Prov. 15:1).