Courage is...

When we think of courage, we tend to think about people throwing themselves on top of an exploding hand grenade or battling a terrible illness or taking great risks to aid disaster victims. But courage comes in all shapes and sizes.

Sometimes it takes a surprising degree of courage just to get out of bed in the morning.

And while we may not be called to fight off wild dingos in order to save a newborn or jump onto a moving train in order to rescue the President, many of the things we ARE called to may require almost as much courage.

In fact, sometimes it requires enormous amounts of courage just to continue doing what you've been doing. 

We've been talking on Sundays about the value of waiting. We've been discussing how waiting on God is all about trust, but how sometimes it's really hard, because we don't see results. 

But here's the thing:

Sometimes the value is not in the receiving but in the trusting. Sometimes it's not about input/output or give/receive or cost/benefit. Sometimes it's all about persevering. 

This is why Paul tells us that "suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." (Romans 5:4-5) These things are listed in succession on purpose. Sometimes we must suffer to build strength and integrity, and only then can we experience hope. 

But notice that nowhere in that list do we find "quitting" as an option. It doesn't say, "suffering produces misery; misery, complaining; complaining, quitting." Whatever mission we're called to, there is intrinsic value in seeing it through to completion.

And this progression is absolutely critical if we expect to stay on mission. Perseverance is pleasing to God. He loves it when we respond to his call and hang on for dear life. This is why Jesus tells us that the one who takes risks and stays on mission will be considered faithful and will ultimately reap the rewards of their perseverance, which includes high praise and increased responsibility. 

"Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!" (Matthew 25:21&23).

If we play it safe, if we avoid risk, or worse yet, if we quit, the rest of that parable doesn't favor us. 

We know the passage that says, "If God is for us, who can be against us?" but shouldn't that lead to the logical conclusion that, if we know we're on mission, if we know God has called us to something, what could be better than that? Even if we aren't seeing the outcomes that we'd like or expect, why would we want to be anywhere else?

Most of the time, being bold and courageous is just about hanging on. It's about waiting well. It's about trusting God. 

Be bold and courageous. 

Introducing ONRAMP

So, last Sunday, we let everyone know that we were changing the way we do midweek grouplife at Quest.

Instead of various types of meetings and whatnot, we're going to try an intentional disciplemaking approach called ONRAMP.

You can find details about upcoming ONRAMP gatherings and RSVP HERE.

But here's a brief description of how it will work…

Our lives are busy and chaotic, and it's hard to find time to slow down, take a deep breath, and consider big ideas. Our lives are so complex that we barely have time to think big - especially when it comes to God stuff. But the big ideas matter; God stuff matters. 

If you're like us, you've tried and tried to find a way to think more deeply about God stuff - blogs, Bible studies, small groups, Sunday school, online discussions - but it's a little like trying to parachute into the middle of a speeding interstate highway…

Enter ONRAMP.

ONRAMP is a safe way to exit your daily chaos and merge into the deeper streams of God.

You don't need to be a Bible scholar or a career theologian to understand this stuff. You just need to slow down and enter into conversation with others who are looking for the same things. It's not rocket science. That's why Jesus said, "My yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Join us at ONRAMP. Slow down. Have a drink. Think deep. Explore.

- - - - -

Without being a slave to structure, our ONRAMP gatherings will reflect the following values and hold to the following format:

VALUES

Dialog | Dependence | Discovery | Discipline

We'll value dialog.

No one person, not even the ONRAMP facilitator, will be allowed to dominate the conversation. This will be a discussion, not a lecture. And it'll be a safe place to share and self-discover.

We'll value dependence.

While this is a Christian-led exploration of Bible texts, we'll depend on the Spirit to "lead us into all truth." So we'll be less worried about correcting people than about encouraging the free exchange of ideas.

We'll value discovery.
We believe the writer of Hebrews, when he says, "The Word of God is alive and active." When we open the Bible and wrestle with its contents, truth will continually rise to the surface. And that's what we're looking for.

We'll value discipline.
We think following the Way of Jesus is an intrinsic good. And in order to do that in our busy lives, we need to develop habits and practices that help us follow him. We hope ONRAMP will be one of those practices.

- - - - -

FORMAT
At each gathering, we'll spend a few minutes breaking the ice and getting to know each other.

Then we'll use a predictable method to explore a particular passage from the Bible.

We'll read the passage aloud and then ask the following five questions:

• What does this tell us about God? 
• What does this tell us about people? 
• What else did we learn? 
• If we believe this is true, what might we do differently? 
• If we put this into practice, what would be the challenges/benefits? 

You’ll be amazed at how these five questions open up the text and draw insight from it.

Join us at ONRAMP!

Come as you are

Come as you are. This is Jesus' invitation.

The invitation was given by Jesus in the words recorded by his disciple Matthew:

“Then Jesus said, 'Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.'” Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)

The invitation is also repeated in a song Quest frequently sings:

Come out of sadness from wherever you've been
Come broken-hearted, let rescue begin
Come find your mercy, O sinner, come kneel
Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't heal

Hear the invitation of Jesus in the words of the song:

There's hope for the hopeless
And all those who've strayed
Come sit at the table; come taste the grace
There's rest for the weary
Rest that endures
Earth has no sorrow that Heaven can't cure

Of course Jesus' invitation is not to come as we are with all our problems, issues, and burdens, and just remain that way -- weary and heavy laden. No, the invitation is to lay down our burdens:

Lay down your burdens
Lay down your shame
All who are broken, lift up your face
O wanderer, come home; You're not too far
So lay down your hurt; lay down your heart
Come as you are

In the words of this passage (Jesus' words), you will find rest for your souls.

This is the way of Jesus: Come as you are but don't stay that way.

- Brian McMillan

Prayer Challenge

Something happens when we pray. 

If you’ve been praying awhile, you know that your prayers often fall infuriatingly flat. 

In fact, I have a relative who prays diligently, day-and-night, and she recently told me that she must be cursed because whatever she prays for, the opposite always seems to happen.

But just because we don’t get what we pray for, doesn’t mean that nothing happens.

If we pray with purpose and on purpose - especially when we pray for others, like our family, friends, neighbors, co-workers and classmates - we will experience something. Stuff happens.

- Our interest piques (people become more interesting)

- Our investment grows (people get more of our time)

- Our influence increases (people begin to listen to us)

- Our attitude improves (we enjoy people more)

- Our assumptions change (we judge people less)

- Our apathy disintegrates (we lean into people’s lives)

We become the kind of people that are on mission with God; the kind of folks that God enlists to lead people onto the Way of Jesus. We develop empathy and compassion and intentionality in our relationships with others.

And this is why we’re called to pray for others.

So here’s your challenge for this week:

Pray behind three people’s backs.

Take your noticing skills to the next level. Notice three people (can be the same ones from last week, or totally different folks) and secretly pray for them. Don’t ask. Don’t pray out loud. Instead, before or after you encounter them, silently pray for them, perhaps in reference to something you’ve noticed. 

For example, let’s say you notice a mother at the store, and her kids are acting up. Pray that her kids will behave, that she will have patience and peace, and that people will not call her out for just trying to do her best as a mother.

Or perhaps you notice someone who is working hard, maybe on a road crew, and they look exhausted. Pray that they will be safe and have the strength to make it through the day. Then pray that they get good treatment on the job, and good rest and support from home.

See how this works?

Notice three and bless them. Go!

The race

GUEST POST:

Pastor Ed has pointed out that "to sin" in its original meaning is to miss the mark or fall short of the goal. If I have a Fitbit goal of 10,000 steps per day, am I sinning when I only walk 9,990 steps?

It matters who sets the mark. Our standards are not God's standards. Our goals are not God's goals. This is certainly true at the starting line. 

It is an interesting sort of race, discipleship. We start with only our own vague notions of the length, direction, and finish line. We learn a little more about where we are going as we run. More importantly, we learn about how to run as we run. Most importantly, we learn about who we are running with, none less than Lord Jesus Christ.

There will be obstacles in the road and people who will try to discourage us, even try to stop us. But, do not stop! Stay on the way! When the people of Israel faced opposition, Moses said, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you." *

Let us aim to follow Paul's example, to run a good race. Believing that he was near the end of his earthly life, he wrote to Timothy, "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." **

Doug Picirillo

* Deuteronomy 31:6
** 2 Timothy 4:7