Sign of the Kingdom: Jesus Still Serves through His People

Really, if you think about it, it does not make any sense. They left their home for a week to come to Seattle when they could be celebrating the fact that they aren't in school.  Who would fault them for playing video games, sleeping in and (maybe) filling out paperwork to get into their dream university?

As many people think of high school students they are often portrayed as self absorbed and lazy, unaware and maybe unwilling to give to anyone else. So, for a group of students to come to Seattle to serve at the Ballard Food Bank- and to do it with joy- doesn't seem to make sense. (Did I mention that they paid to do it?!)

There is something "not of this world" when a group of students (and their servant hearted leaders) gets up early to go make sure that people that they have never met get to eat that day. It is a sign of God bringing his kingdom.

What is really "not of this world" is that they did all of this, not from a heart that says "Look at me and how great I am," but with an attitude of joyful, sacrificial love. Don't get me wrong, they are by no means perfect, but the heart that Jesus has given them- His heart!- overflowed in practical service to people who are not used to be treated with authentic kindness and respect.

This group was here to serve alongside Vona Church that my good friend Wil pastors. Wil has counseled all of us that the best way to wisely love the people of his neighborhood in Seattle is to serve them with the attitude of Jesus so that their hearts might be stirred to ask "Why are those crazy people doing that?" (Note: not his exact words) They may not want to hear about Jesus at first, but there is a quality of that kind of love that makes people wonder. Serving others in a world that overvalues those who "deserve" to be served is a sign of the way the world should be...a sign of the kingdom.

A mature lady came to me and asked me all sorts of questions about the students and Vona Church. She was VERY skeptical (to say the least) and asked me questions that revealed that she had been hurt in the past by those who called themselves "Christians." But, interestingly, she was asking questions. She saw something in those students that made her search her heart more than what was comfortable for her. She HAD to know what they were about. I simply told her that those students were expressing the heart of their Savior that he had given them. She scoffed as she walked away, but she also left wondering. The expression on her face showed that she encountered something she couldn't quite explain...and definitely couldn't explain away.

It is a sign of the kingdom that a group of students would joyfully sacrifice time they could be playing  to genuinely serve with the servant heart of Jesus. That sign spoke loudly to me and to at least one hurting woman who longs for something better than the life she knows. Our God often shows signs of his kingdom so quietly that we might almost miss how he is pointing us to the better world he is creating in the midst of a selfish world. He is quiet in that way, but, when we notice, the sign is too loud for us to ignore...and we wouldn't want to ignore it.

"In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven." (Matthew 5:16 ESV)

"Look For Signs of the Kingdom"

This statement seems so simple, but it was revolutionary to me at a time I needed it most. I have to share it with you.

A few weeks ago, I went to a new friend to ask for his counsel on how to handle "planting a church" in Seattle. The week prior had been discouraging and it was obvious to both my wife and me that we were missing the point. Asking questions like "why is it so hard to connect with people?" and "what are we doing wrong?", Adrienne and I both knew that our outlook was short-sighted and full of fear. 

My friend heard and empathized with my frustrations. He didn't try to wow me by being profound, but pointed me back to a simple truth: we did not move here first a foremost to "start a church," but to be a part of how the King of heaven is working to make the world "right" again by transforming people. He reminded me that faithfulness doesn't simply mean building a new religious organization, but working in the power that God provides to see people flourish because of a restored relationship with the God who gave his son Jesus to rescue us from ourselves.

Its simple. Seek God's kingdom and look for signs of that kingdom. Signs like a man who had never heard that there is a personal God who created him hearing that truth for the first time and being overwhelmed by it. A woman who grieves for restored relationship with her son seeing the Father bring him back home to her. A man who anxiously brought his family to a new city resting again in the truth that the God he trusts can (and will!) do exceedingly more than he can imagine in the lives of people around him. These are signs of the kingdom.

 Another friend recently reminded me that when God shows himself to us it is not for us alone, but to share that joy with others. So, as I recognize signs of the kingdom around me, I need to share with others.

The King of heaven is at work in the hearts of the people of Seattle. He is showing us signs of his kingdom.

They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom and tell of your power, to make known to the children of man your mighty deeds, and the glorious splendor of your kingdom. (Psalm 145:11-12 ESV)

Culture Shock: I Have to Laugh Because I Can't Cry Today

I Get It

This afternoon we will get to talk to some friends who have moved their life to a different country, a different lifestyle and a different language. They are just a little bit crazy, but I love that about them.  Their adjustment has been hard and we haven't talked to them as much as I wish we could have. Even through their emails, we can hear the alienation they feel being a minority after being in the majority all of their lives.

Culture shock is not medical diagnosis, but it is a real experience. I know, because our family is feeling it...and we didn't have to cross national borders. (Frankly, I feel guilty even admitting it because I still have access to a Chipotle and Dr. Pepper.)

I did some research on the sometimes unnoticed effects of crossing cultures and found some common responses:

• Feelings of anger over minor inconveniences
• Extreme homesickness
• Withdrawal from people who are different from you
• A new and intense feeling of loyalty to your own culture
• An increase or loss of appetite
• Sleep difficulties (both too much and not enough)
• Headaches
• Feeling sick much of the time
• Loss of ability to work effectively; difficulty concentrating
• Unexplainable fits of crying 
• Marital stress
• Exaggerated cleanliness and an excessive desire to control surroundings
• Depression

I think this scientific graph tells it all:

[Seriously, here is a really good article if you are interested in reading more: http://www.worldwide.edu/travel_planner/culture_shock.html ]

Everyday, I am making an effort to be where the people of my neighborhood are working, playing, and being together. In the conversations we have had and the eavesdropping cultural exploration I do, we have noticed something: we are not in Texas anymore. We have a Seattle address, but "y'all" comes out more than I expect and my desire for my own space is constantly squelched by how everything seems pushed together...too close. People are everywhere!

Actual Picture from Our Street

Being in Seattle is not just obedience, but it is a joyful desire. That doesn't mean that I don't say "what in the world are we doing" 2-3 times a day. That doesn't mean that we are comfortable. We have a deep sense of a thirsty homesickness that wouldn't be quenched by going back to Texas.

I have felt this culture shock for over two years. It wasn't until we started waking up to the sights and sounds that Seattlities wake up to that I realized that we have been becoming Seattleites for a long time. Looking back, I am grateful for the Spirit leading us that way. If he hadn't, my wife wouldn't be able to stand me right now.

Then, there is an even more profound "culture shock" that every believer lives everyday. Those who are Jesus' are not the majority culture. We never have been. We most likely never will be. We have a different "heart language." We have different cultural values. Even though we may, at times, love money or love the "broad way" (Matt 7:13) our identity is transformed. We have been transformed to be aliens and strangers in a world bent away from God and we have been made delight in this kingdom that the Father is bringing.

The tension comes from the truth that we have a place to live, but it isn't our heart's true home.

Until we are home, we will never be at ease. If our hearts have been made alive to long for our real home, doesn't it follow that we will live with culture shock until the day Jesus comes again and takes us to himself?

Read that list of effects of culture shock above again.

To wrap this up, three quotes come to mind that help me with both the shock of being a stranger in Seattle and being an alien in this world:

1. "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also." (John 14: 3) [Jesus wants us to dwell with him...he is working at it right now!]

2. "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father or mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we are comforted by God. " (2 Cor. 1:3-4)

3. "Creatures are not born with desires unless satisfaction for those desires exists. A baby feels hunger: well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim: well, there is such a thing as water…If I find in myself a desire, which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world." C.S. Lewis

Upside Down in the Kingdom

This is wordy, but it is worth digging into:

"...the immanent world [the only thing that matters is what we can see] is the world of the practical. With a religious vision off of the agenda, the worlds of finance, education, and work come to the fore. There is no hope in the eternal, the kingdom of God will not break out on earth, so we better  get to work creating an immanent version while we can, one that does not require God's hand. Instead the secular version of shalom will be delivered by good organization, effective government, sound economic policy, and effective medicine and scientific advancement.. the citizen of an immanent culture must play their part by doing their duties. They must punch a clock, be a good worker. They must not indulge in the antisocial behavior which could threaten the secular well-being of the collective. [emphasis mine]"

Mark Sayers, The Road Trip that Changed the World, pages 119-120

In other words, if a person believes that all that there is in the world is what we can see (God isn't there or isn't involved, then we gotsta get on with creating a good society that survives without God. Anyone who doesn't get along with the program to help humanity anti-social at best, and most likely, a threat.

If a society believes they can create a just and equitable world without God's justice and equality, then asking for God's kingdom to come (and acting if it will) is getting in the way.