In Kary Oberbrunner’s book, The Fine Line, he describes three groups that are found in today’s churches.  Seperatists: these people try to seperate themselves from society.  Conformists: these people will justify conforming themselves to society.  And then there are Transfortmists:  these are people “learning to balance Christianity and culture, loving God and loving people.”

His book has really challenged me to look at my own life.  I know I have a little of each of these groups in me.  There are times it’s easier to separate.  There are times where I like to justify my desire to conform.  And, I would like to think, that on the rare occasion I will actually balance the two and do something that is Christ-like and be a transformist.

What about you?  Where do you see yourself?  What group do you best fit in?

May you be a transformist today!

Philip Yancey states,

The strongest argument in favor of grace is the alternative, a world of ungrace.

In the case of Peter, the disciple, this is starkly evident.  Peter was told he was going to deny Jesus three times.  Jesus told Peter that he has been praying for him that he would not fold under the pressure.  If there was ever a guy that should have been ready and should have NOT failed, it should have been Peter.

But what did Peter do?  He folded.  He failed.  He denied Jesus!

What was the response of Jesus, then.  Was it to say, “I told you so!”  Was it excommunication?  Was it to dismiss Peter from his ministerial duties?

Actually, none of the above.  Jesus’ response to Peter was to reinstate him the first chance he got.

After the resurrection we see Jesus having a meal with a few followers.  At this meal he asks Peter if he loves him… 3 times.  I believe he is giving Peter 3 chances to make up for the 3 denials.  Jesus, in essence, is saying he forgives and gives grace to him and will give him another chance.

He could have shown him ungrace.  Peter probably deserved ungrace.  But in the kingdom of God… this is a kingdom of Grace!

May we know the grace of God and the power of His forgiveness today.

At the Last Supper Jesus was correcting his disciples on their view of how they were to lead in the Kingdom. He said to them… “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them…But you are not to be like that.” (Emphasis mine)

The Kingdom of God is very different than the kingdom of the world.  So when we surrender to Jesus and follow him, we are going to lead and treat others in a different way.  Here are a couple of thoughts…

When we surrender to God we are giving up the right to think we are better than anyone else!

When we surrender to God we are giving up the right to choose whom we love and serve!

Now, think about those statements for a little bit.

Is that true of you?  Is that true of most church leaders?  Is this the kingdom attitude that most christians are portraying in the world today?

Have we surrendered? Truly?  Or are we just living in the kingdom of the world and sprinkling Kingdom of God words on top to make us feel good about ourselves?

grace and peace to you.

This Easter was a great one for the edge. We had a wonderful egg hunt / picnic on Saturday and we had 3 great services on Easter Sunday morning.

As usual I will not talk about numbers. We don’t talk about numbers here at the edge because we believe that gets us off message. We like to stay focused on doing our job, listening to God, following Christ…and it is FAR too easy to get off focus and start running the “rat race” instead of running “THE race” (as the apostle Paul talks about).

One thing that had a huge impact on us this year was Rob Bell’s short film, Resurrection. It is a great reminder of what this day is all about and why we celebrate Easter EVERY day of the year.

Hope you had a great Easter and I pray you will be changed by His resurrection – AND that you will experience His resurrection life in yourself!

Resurrection: Rob Bell from The Work of Rob Bell on Vimeo.

I found this in a book I’m reading…

Expect Pain.
Expect to be misunderstood.
Expect to be persecuted and expect it to come first from those who follow Jesus.
Expect to be maligned, attacked, and ridiculed from all sides.
Expect to grow tired and weary.
Expect to want to give up.
Expect to lose many old friends. Expect to lose all of your friends where the “church” is the central reason for your friendship. Only your deep and Christ-centered friendships will endure.
Expect to be labeled (a freak, a hippie, a cult leader, a quitter, a fraud, an idealist, a purist, a heretic, a divider, a communist, a jerk, an egomaniac, q devil worshipper). Yes, I’ve been called them all to my face.
Expect to weep…deeper and stronger than you ever have.
Expect to doubt your calling, your conversion, your convictions, your path, your faith, and your life.
Expect to be lonely.
Expect to be seen as utterly unsuccessful.
Expect to die… nothing will be left of you. You will cease to exist. The last things in you to die will be your desire to be great for God and your desire to be happy. And then, you will finally…
Live. Expect life. Expect meaning. Expect to finally understand the prophets and apostles. Expect to know Jesus and his life… for that is all you will have… and that is all you need.

This is so true.  It is VERY true as a pastor.  But, I’m sure it rings true for all of you.

May we find that life… BEFORE death.

love.love.serve.