by Wade Crews | Jun 24, 2014
This is the time of year when many of us look at the church calendar and groan. The church bulletin asks for more cookies and snacks for the kiddos during Vacation Bible School. To me that was always the biggest oxymoron on the planet. I never envision “vacation” and several hundred kids under 12 years old in the same sentence. Definitely not my idea of a holiday. My mind usually drifts to “Didn’t we just have a bake sale for the last youth mission trip?” during those announcements.
It seems we get in those circular church calendar ruts where we come right out of the youth discipleship weekend and go into the spring break mission trip and then gear up for youth choir trip and then all the various summer camps and leadership conferences and then the Glorieta trip or youth evangelism conference right before we head back to school. Then we get to buy more colored tape because the AWANA circle doesn’t stick to the carpet anymore.
It can become stale, repetitive, and sometimes boring. As I write this, I am actually about to take my 16- and 18-year-old sons to get on the bus for yet another camp. Oh I am happy for them, and I want them to have a good time and make memories, and I know the camp is amazing and does wonderful things, but do I really need another prayer bracelet?? That was my attitude until a few days ago….when God got ahold of my heart.
I was visiting with a young family recently consisting of Mom, Dad, and a young son who was about seven years old. I was with someone else who was doing most of the interaction. Consequently, I worked with the seven-year-old boy to keep him “occupied” while the parents visited with my colleague. I have years of experience in this field. He was a handful, and it seemed as if he had two double shots of espresso before they arrived at the restaurant. Finally to calm him down, I pulled out my cell phone and showed him all my videos and pictures.
As we scrolled through, I showed him “my two boys,” and there was a picture of some medals they won in high school. Then he saw a picture of a friend of mine standing behind a podium leading music at a retirement center. He was sharp little guy, because he asked “Is this the man who gave your sons the medals?” I said “No, this is my friend telling these people about Jesus. You know Jesus – right?” He said “No”…………..
That was the saddest day in my life. My mother died more than four years ago at a fairly young age of 65 from cancer. Our family is not exactly sure of her spiritual condition (She was no June Cleaver), but she knew who Jesus was. That was sad – but not nearly as sad as staring a little boy in the face who just told you he doesn’t even know who Jesus is. So I asked him “You know Christmas – right? Baby Jesus…?” He said “I know Christmas – but I don’t know Jesus”. Ouch……. Trust me….. You do not want to feel what I felt at that moment.
PLEASE ….. do not take your church calendar and the children’s work for granted. Please……. Pray for the camps, pray for the kids, pray for the workers, pray for God to do His work. I do not want anyone to feel the conviction God placed on my heart for my flippant attitude toward the spiritual condition of others. How will they know if there is no one to tell them…??? I am going to make my own prayer bracelet this year, and I am going out to buy an entire case of cookies (for real…..). Thank you to all the children, youth and college workers/ministers out there – for God has used you to keep generations of our babies out of Satan’s grasp.
by Wade Crews | Jun 4, 2014
It has taken me more than 50 years to learn so many things. Only recently have I realized by watching my sons and their friends suffer through life and its many disappointments, that I could have and should have been a better role model. I see my imperfections in them. While they are human and accountable to The Lord for their actions, I can see their emotional struggles with situations beyond their control and hurt for them in times sadness. I am sure I would much rather watch them be filled with joy and live life in exuberance.
One of the things I have learned concerns the external forces in our lives. We can’t control what happens to us, but we can control how we respond to what happens to us. It was only this year that I realized, God wants to be glorified by how we respond to adversity. Anyone can praise God when things go their way. In the midst of the blessing, God is awesome, but guess what?? He is awesome in the midst of calamity as well. Staying above the fray in the midst of the storm requires staying focused on Christ. The hymnist wrote “….the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.”
What happens when we take our eyes off of God? When we are distracted by the commotion of life and everything that rocks the boat, even if we are “on top of things”, just like Peter, we will sink like a rock (pun intended). Not only does it not honor God during adversity for us to go under, we are on display for the world to see. When we do go beneath the waves, we realize there are a bunch of other people down here too! I have plenty of company! Our spiritual challenge is: That is not where Christ would have us to be. He wants us to walk with Him above it all.
I was spiritually challenged recently when someone at the office asked me to participate in something unethical and totally un-Godly. I was not challenged in my decision matrix. That was a no-brainer. Uh….no? My challenge and my spiritual heartache came from being approached. Where did I miss the mark? Why would someone think I was an approachable candidate for this kind of behavior? Where has my living testimony been? Why do I not look different enough to this person for them to immediately cross my name off of the unethical list?
Perhaps I am being too hard on myself. But what if I had been caught in a moment of weakness where I was bitter or felt I had been treated unfairly? It felt a lot like one of those nights when you are driving in the wee hours of the morning, perhaps on vacation trying to make it to a motel in the next town. Your head begins to nod and then you pop back up having realized you fell asleep and crossed the center line. Then you are hit with a jolt of realization about what might have just happened to you and your family. It was a real wake-up call for me spiritually.
Song of Solomon Chapter 6:1-3 speaks about people asking where our beloved is so that they may seek Him too… Do I love Jesus enough that other people want to know HOW to meet Him and have the same relationship? Some of the challenges we face as Christians (or sinners saved by grace) is we don’t look different enough from the world and the lost for them to think they need anything we have. Some of the activities we are asked to join are not as overtly evil, as my earlier example. Unfortunately we (myself included) rationalize our behavior as Satan still says “You surely will not die!” The world tells us “You deserve it – nobody got hurt”. Christ tells us “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”. If Jesus is the only way, then why do we always have to have ours? Who does that convince?
We cannot save anyone, but we should convince them there is a Savior. My conversion should be a testimony which leads to theirs. My life should be a roadmap to Christ, not a road block. The Holy Spirit can and will convict much more efficiently than I can. I need to put down all my stones and focus on my relationship with Christ. I may not be able to convert anyone, but I need to improve my ability to convince them.
by Wade Crews | May 6, 2014
One of the reasons community relations is so near and dear to my heart is I have seen firsthand how God can work through His people to impact a community, and then a state and then a nation with this kind of effort. A catch-phrase today is “missional.”
Are we being missional? Are we a missional church? We want to be a missional people. Missional is scriptural and what we have been called to be. I would suggest that nothing is more missional than a Christian Community Relations Campaign and understanding what it means and why it should be pursued.
No organization worth its salt (and we are called to be salt) is ashamed to get engaged and participate in the community. They are members of social organizations, committees and other entities which positively impact the community. We complain about no prayer in school or at athletic events, but I would ask “When was the last time we had representation at a school board meeting or took the Principal to lunch?”
I appreciate Campus Crusade for Christ’s model of evangelizing college students, because there is no doctor, lawyer, banker, teacher, judge, coach or engineer who has not earned a college degree. Campus Crusade understands the difference between an outreach ministry and making organizational in-roads. We are no longer just a beacon on a hill which is attractive to those in need. As the old saying goes, “No one will care how much we know until they know how much we care”.
An argument I often hear is “All those people in community leadership and organizations are already churched, or they don’t care because they’re playing golf on Sunday mornings.” How do we know? If we don’t engage them and let them know who we are and what we can do for them, as organizations and individuals, then someone else will – and I can assure you, THAT “someone else” cares not about their eternity. If these needs were already being met, as some suggest, then why are the number of funerals performed at funeral homes on the rise?
Rotary, Chamber of Commerce, City Councils, State Capitols, Arts Councils, Parade Committees, Country Club boards, charities…..we should be participating, infiltrating and impacting them for the kingdom. We want “trickle down” mission-omics. Some would say “It will have no affect on our church growth or even get more people through our doors.” I would counter with “Neither do the efforts in Africa or India or Poland or Tibet…..but that doesn’t prevent us from sending people in a very missional way.”
When we were kids, we used to sing “Onward Christian Soldiers”, now we sing “If I could sit with You a while….” See the difference? No longer can we expect folks to walk in our doors simply because we exist and have extra room in the pews.
My study of the scriptures reveals Christ preaching many parables about going out, engaging the community, not burying talents, bringing people in to dinners and banquets, finding harvest workers, looking for sheep and coins and celebrating the return of lost brothers as well as even engaging and confronting our enemies with grace and love.
This is much different than an outreach program where you canvass a neighborhood or apartment complex. This is relational. It also calls for us to be accountable and walk the walk as well as talk the talk. This effort may take years to bear fruit. We want to be the ones who offer the banquet prayer or are invited to the social function to represent righteousness and peace. Our salt should make our community thirsty for Living Water and our light should reveal The Well .
by Wade Crews | Apr 15, 2014
There is an old saying in “church world” – “If you want a better pastor… pray for the one you have.” The truth is, we should all want a better Pastor to the point of placing them on the alter and bathing them in daily prayer. I can assure you they want a better church too. Any Pastor worth their “salt” will pray for their church… their “flock,” if you will, every day as well.
A Pastor is an under-shepherd to The Great Shepherd – our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He (and he must be a man) has a huge responsibility and is accountable to God for how he leads, what he says and how he treats people. As a congregation, we are subordinate to our pastor’s leadership, but he is obligated to us and our spiritual betterment.
It is an interesting irony that we demand pastors be incredibly faithful men in all areas of their lives, yet they rely on the faithfulness of their flock for their living. Pastors are not perfect. They come in all shapes, sizes, colors and ages with different gifts, abilities and talents.
We expect them to like everybody and to be fair in their treatment of all their church members. Make those hospital visits, and don’t ignore anyone on Sunday. We want a leader with vision who serves without complaint and suffers in silence. Pastor – you better be available 24/7, ready to counsel through any crisis and help the poor soul who appears on the church’s doorstep.
Stay on top of those committees, have that sermon ready and study your Bible with a passion. Then be ready for that unexpected death, divorce, or pregnancy.
While it is true, no one held a gun to their heads, pastors who have truly responded to God’s call of full time vocational ministry, gave up not only an opportunity to pursue any number of professions, they also gave up any public right to the excuse-making we seem to embrace so easily. “I drink to unwind from the stress at work” one person says. “It was just an affair, no one got hurt” another person says. “We grew apart” they said. “Everyone has two sets of books…” they say. What if a Pastor said those things?
What about the flock? Are we good sheep or do we have too many blemishes? What about the rams? Are we willing to help fight off the wolf and bear and lion? Does the pastor even know he has any rams or do we all look like ewes to him? Do we let the shepherd lead or just wander all over the pasture seeing if we can hook up with more attractive flocks?
Jesus said “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me” (Luke 9:23). You can’t follow anyone you don’t allow to lead. Pray your pastors are following Christ, and then it will be much easier to follow your pastor. Hopefully our pastors understand there is a huge difference between wanting a better one and wanting a different one.
by Wade Crews | Mar 13, 2014
Recently, Beyoncé, Condoleezza Rice and others have produced a Public Service Announcement to ban the word “Bossy”. Am I the only one who watched with disbelief as some of the most powerful women on the planet declared calling someone (especially a girl) “Bossy” is now a pejorative and disparaging term? Really? Now we want to ban words and phrases because they are perceived as mocking and belittling? Some words are supposed to sting a tad and act as boundaries so we don’t venture too far from that which is good and wholesome. Let’s ban “blonde”, because after all, one person’s hair color is really another person’s joke.
Before we charge headlong into the hypocrisy of the PSA, I would like to suggest America has devolved from our wonderful melting pot into a hearty stew where the celery is offended by how firm the carrot still is and no one likes the gravy because it gets all over everything. Why do we have such a segmented society where by declaration each group can decide what the others mean with their words and behavior?
There were times growing up when my mother was “Bossy”. She had to be, or some things would never have happened (like me getting out of bed every morning). My wife is often “Bossy”, but in a good way, with love. You see, besides being a first grade teacher, she is the mother of two teenage boys. She HAS to be bossy sometimes, or children don’t learn how to read, or high school homework never gets turned in.
The PSA speaks to female leadership and the way girls shouldn’t allow others to define them in a negative way. I was always taught you never let others define you – “sticks and stones” etc. Besides the total disregard for the first amendment right to freedom of speech, the word police are also being very hypocritical in their deciding for everyone that being identified as “Bossy” is bad. That in itself is “Bossy”. I know Ms. Rice was bossy when she protected our country from countless terrorist attacks during her career. You can’t tell me Beyoncé isn’t “Bossy’ with her rock star demands. The word “Bossy” is not bad. Being bad is bad.
This brings us to the heart of the debate from a scriptural worldview. What happens to you is less important than how you respond to what happens to you. Is our self worth derived from what others think about us, or what God thinks? He thought enough of us to send His Son to die for us. God can be very “Bossy” and convicting sometimes. He has the right. He is sovereign. Many of the Saints in the Bible would be considered “Bossy”. From Moses to Paul, many men AND women often had to take the bull by the horns to get things done.
I would suggest for Christians today, we should “not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our minds so we may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” And “Whatever we do in word or deed do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus giving thanks through Him to God the Father”, then “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”
When we can live like this, we will no longer have to worry about what words people use toward us and their intentions, and no one will have to worry about what we mean when we speak. Stop labeling and defining one another based on your preferences. That is actually counterproductive to the community we claim we want. Was that too “Bossy”?