What I Am Most Thankful For
Grace (Eph 2:8-9; Tit 2:11). Love (Jer 31:3; Gal 2:20; 1 Jn 4:19). Election, i.e., being chosen (Jn 15:16) before the creation of the world (Eph 1:4), and saved and called before the beginning of time (2 Tim 1:9). If this is not predominant and preeminent in my thoughts and emotions, then everything else that I am thankful for feels far less great, or may not mean as much as it should.
My dear wife who has put up with me for 32 years and counting. The fact that she still loves me in spite of me is a daily living reminder of the gospel to me. This story of a husband who was going to divorce his wife is touching and meaningful; it expresses just how much he hurt his wife of 10 years because he now loved another woman. Continue reading →
Yoked for life?
A personal, life-long shepherd. Do you want one? In 1987 I happened by chance to meet ubf shepherds on my campus during my third week of college. I was 18 years old. That chance meeting was seen by these shepherds as God’s divine intervention into my life and God’s sign that I needed to be yoked permanently to a ubf shepherd. This was based on bible verses such as Matthew 11:29 and Philippians 4:3. I had no idea I was entering into a permanent relationship, a relationship that would soon supersede all other relationships.
My Journey of Recovery
Ever feel like you are carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders? Ever feel crushed and suffocated by the weight of your burdens? As a member of ubf, I felt crushed every single day for 24 years. No matter what I did, the burden was still there. The burden would not go away. Even when I left the intense daily scrutiny of a personal shepherd in order to pioneer a new ubf chapter, I could not escape the ever-present burden. I felt like the weight of the world was on my back. Yet I toiled onward, thinking I was a holy soldier for Jesus. I thought I was being a blessing to the world and pleasing to God. As I continue my journey of recovery from decades of ubf lifestyle, I am compelled to share some realizations I’ve come across so far.
The Upside Down Kingdom
One of the points in Chris Brown‘s sermon at the 2013 WCA Global Leadership Summit was about Jesus turning leadership upside down. Here is a different sermon from a wealth of sermons by a fellow pastor at North Coast Church. This sermon expands well on the upside-down gospel Jesus preached.
Continue reading →
What I Experienced at the 2013 WCA GLS
Each year since 1995, Willow Creek Association in Chicago has hosted a two day leadership conference called the Global Leadership Summit. In 2013, that summit has grown to reach 98 countries and to have participation from 14,000 churches represented by over 90 denominations. The GLS is truly a global movement. This year 75,000 church leaders in America attended and over 95,000 more are signed up to attend as each host country presents the summit talks around the world in the next several months. Here is what I saw at this yearly summit (yes yearly, not every four years or every other year).
What would the other guy say?
This week I heard a fantastic logic puzzler called “The Two Doors Puzzle”. After hearing the answer to the puzzle, I immediately recognized the principle behind it. The puzzle is not realistic, because real life is not so black and white. However, the answer to this puzzle explains how I saw through the facade of the ubf heritage and discovered reality.
UBF Doctrine – Behavioral Slogans
How then shall we live? I heard that famous question many times in ubf. In fact, the first 7 ideological points of the ubf heritage were often quickly taught or skipped in order to jump into the last 5 points: the ubf lifestyle. In ubf I was judged by what I did. And then I was judged by how much control I could exert to get others to behave according to these last 5 slogans. How I felt or what I thought was generally dismissed or ignored. What mattered, I was taught, was how I behaved. The last 5 slogans tell you just that.
12 Things UBF Taught Me (5)
“A spirit of giving” – This means to support youself. Be independent. Don’t look to other people for help. Don’t have a beggar mentality. Give, even when you are poor. Be a “tent-maker” like Apostle Paul. This heritage point is derived mostly from verses in the bible such as “You give them something to eat.” (Matthew 14:16) and “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” (Acts 20:35).
12 Things UBF Taught Me (4)
“Manger spirit” – The manger is perhaps the most recognizable Christian symbol, next to the cross. ubf taught me “manger spirit” and gave a whole new meaning to this symbol. Sometimes this was expressed as “manger ministry”. And the teaching is about the manger, literally. This teaching was not about Jesus directly, but about imitating what Jesus did. Jesus was born in a manger and became the Savoir of the world. Likewise, I was taught that I too could become a “savoir” and “be a blessing” only when I imitate the manger.
How My Life Changed Forever
Often times when someone has something important, someone close to them they are pushed to let go. We learn that it is our Isaac. This is a point that is drilled into your consciousness from the moment you take your walk in UBF. Many times we are told to look at the world and look at ourselves so we can find our Isaac. When we find it we must simply give it up and let go without looking back. Is it really a correct interpretation of the passage that contains one of Abraham’s greatest examples of faith?
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