The Wilderness of the Soul

Today is Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. A time when Christians reflect on the 40 days that Jesus spent in the wilderness fasting and being tested (Matthew 4:1-11) before beginning his public ministry. This draws an interesting parallel to the 40 years the Israelites spent wandering in the wilderness before entering the land God had set aside for them. I'd like to spend just a moment reflecting on the idea of wilderness if I may.

Throughout Scripture, wilderness carries with it a connotation of solitude and desolation. A place where one might feel alone, intentionally or unintentionally. I would guess that most of us, at one time or another in our faith journey, have felt as though we have been lost in the wilderness. Perhaps not sure on how we got there but certainly struggling to find our way out. Some of you may feel as though your soul is lost in the wilderness right now.

Looking back at Jesus' time in the wilderness, don't forget that sometimes God leads us into the wilderness. The wilderness proved to be a time of preparation for Jesus, maybe your time in the wilderness is preparing you for what God has planned next? Or maybe this season of Lent can be a time of allowing God to help guide your soul out of the wilderness it finds itself in? Regardless, I encourage you to spend the next 40 days as a time of being in fellowship with God and each other, waiting to see where He might lead you.

The Xmas Story Through a Social Media Lens

Thoughts? Love it? Hate it?

A New Look at Advent

ad·vent: a coming into being

Advent is a season of anticipation, excitement and wonder. A time of year when patience is truly a virtue and waiting is something to be expected. I enjoy the season of Advent because it reminds us of our need to slow down as we hope for things to come. I believe hope is one of the key aspects of this season, all of which stems from the birth of a baby a long time ago named Jesus, who changed everything.

I gained a new perspective on this season we call Advent with the birth of my son just 2 days ago. Never have I waited for so long with so much anticipation, excitement and anxiety. After 2 years of trying, 9 months of growing and 21 hours of labor, it is hard to believe he has finally arrived. Now having a better understanding of how Mary & Joseph must have felt at the coming of Jesus has provided me with a new way of looking at Advent, not only as a parent but as a world that waits for hope to come into being. Much like a little baby.

Something Different

The holidays are right around the corner and if we’re not careful we’ll find ourselves buried beneath all of the hustle and bustle before too long. If you’re anything like me, whenever this time of year rolls around you begin to wonder if this year could be something different. Between the lists, parties, traffic, bills, exchanges…we end up spending so much of our time doing things we’d really rather not do. Then our holidays become nothing more than a frenzied attempt of managing an already stressful and busy work, family and social schedule.

What happened to the whole peace, love, and joy thing? Since when did the Christmas season become a season of stress, debt and exhaustion? As I think about the Christmas story as told in the Gospels, I realize that for many of us, the holiday season needs to become something different. I’m not suggesting we throw out our family traditions or stop buy gifts altogether but perhaps one less gift or maybe think about how and where we spend our time.

So the following are just a few suggestions I’m throwing out there, take what you want and send the others right back…

1. Consider how others (and yourself) deal with change.
-Some people thrive on change, while others avoid it like the plague. Be sensitive to each when suggesting a change in your or your family’s holiday routine.
-When it comes to traditions, change can be a tricky thing so be careful.

2. Start small.
-Don’t stop buying gifts altogether but instead maybe buy/spend less.
-Take some time to think about which gifts you are going to ask for and why. Could you do with 1 (…or 2, 3, 8, 12…) less gift?
-Come up with creative ways to stay small because remember it’s not about the amount of money the gifts cost.

3. Think about the way you spend.
-This is more than just about spending $, but asking ourselves how we spend our time. Time is such a precious thing isn’t it? And it seems like we have less and less of it during the Christmas season. Is that how it should be?
-What if you spent more time with loved ones and less time in traffic? What if you spent more time with family and less $ on gifts for them?

Christmas gives us a beautiful story to tell, one that talks about things like peace, joy and hope…NOT stress, credit card bills or being exhausted. Perhaps this Christmas season could be something different. The way we “celebrate” the holidays tells a story, we just have to decide which one we’ll choose to tell.

"Lest We Forget"

This is an outline of my sermon from Memorial Day weekend's launch of our new Saturday Evening Contemporary Service. Thoughts, comments, questions are welcome.

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"Lest We Forget"

The city of Indianapolis is 2nd only to Washington DC in acreage & number of monuments dedicated to veterans. It is also the national and state headquarters of the American Legion.

Between my wife & I, we have: 5 uncles, 4 grandpas and her dad who were willing to serve in the military. It is important on this weekend that we remember those who were willing to serve and the sacrifice that they, as well as their families, paid for the price of our freedom. The thought of memorials got me thinking about what they might look like in relationship to God...

Memorials as reminders of God’s presence and faithfulness.
• We see this over and over again throughout Scripture: Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jacob, etc.
• Luke 9:28-36
• They were open to seeing God move.
• They expected God to show up in some way.
• They were aware of God’s presence.
• They made themselves available.

Memorials can serve as windows into the past.
• Help remind us where we’ve been (Ephesians 2:11-13)

Memorials can serve as mirrors.
• Help remind us who we are (James 1:22-25)

In what ways are you remembering God throughout your week?
• Are you aware of God’s presence?
• Are you open to seeing God move?
• Are you looking for and expecting God to show up throughout your week?

Crucified Faith

Over the past three days the world has remembered the most significant events to take place in the history of mankind. The crucifixion, death, burial and resurrection of a man named Jesus, who was called the Christ. And of these four events, the Resurrection is far and away the most important and significant. Without it, Jesus was nothing more than a madman martyred for a moral cause. Paul even says in 1 Corinthians that if we only have hope in Christ for this life, we are to be pitied more than anyone else (1 Cor. 15:19). But you see, this is not the case. The Resurrection of Jesus brings power to faith.

I wonder how many of us have left our faith hanging on the cross? Life has thrown us some sort of obstacle or struggle that has caused us to forget about our faith. We have suffered a hurt or loss that has shaken us to the core, leaving us feeling as though we have experienced our own personal crucifixion. We walk around feeling abandoned and defeated with a faith that has been battered and bruised, as though it were nailed to a tree.

Christ took our struggles, our hurt, our loss, our sense of abandonment and defeat and had them nailed to the cross that day in His flesh. This was done so that those things might die and faith might live, because the One who has saved us is alive and well. The power of the Resurrection is a result of the Cross but Christ is not hanging there any more. Your faith does not have to either.

"Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; He has risen!"
~Luke 24:5-6

Don't Miss Out

If you are a Christian, in exactly 34 days you will have an opportunity that you really don't want to miss out on. It's as if every year the calendar lays in our laps the chance to tell someone about the Easter story. I know for many of us sharing our faith is not something that comes easily but I mean...at what other point in the year is the story laid out so simply for us to share with others? Don't get me wrong, Christmas is important (and certainly one of my favorite times of year) but we have to fight with credit cards, presents and consumerism to share our part of the story. Not as much with Easter.

My challenge for you is to begin preparing now in order to take advantage of the opportunity that will present itself in just a few short weeks. Ask God for opportunities to share the Easter Story and not to miss them when they come. If you've been looking for an "excuse" to invite someone to church, Easter just might be it.

The Wisdom of the Wise Men

The second chapter of Matthew's gospel tells us the story of the visit of the Magi (Wise Men) from the east to see the child Jesus (Matthew 2:1-12). Taking a closer look at the story shows us how wise the Wise Men really were and gives us some things we should be thinking about in the year 2010...

1. They were paying attention.
a. The Magi had clearly been watching the sky because they not only noticed the star but knew there was something special about it.
b. The first thing they did when they arrived in Jerusalem was to start asking questions, not just any questions but being aware of what was happening, they were able to ask the right questions.
c. They stayed focused on what mattered, recognizing that Jesus was worthy of being worshiped. Is Jesus your center?

2. They remained persistent.
a. King Herod was a well known tyrant and murderer but any fear the Magi might have felt when he asked to meet with them privately did not deter them from seeking and finding Jesus.
b. They continued to trust the star of Christ as their guide and were not swayed by the wisdom of the world. Are you allowing Christ to guide and direct your steps?

3. They worshiped with joy.
a. They allowed themselves to experience the joy that comes from worshiping Christ.
b. These men of great stature and prominence approached Jesus, as a baby, with humility and awe. How often do we do that today?
c. They did not leave their encounter with God incarnate unchanged. The fear of King Herod's wrath did not have a hold on them, they were overjoyed by this experience and nothing could take that from them. When we encounter the Spirit of Christ, do we come expecting to leave different? How often do you allow the joy that is yours through Christ be taken away by the cares of this world?

Something To Look Forward To

Not only have we started a new year but I happen to be turning 31 tomorrow. Now, I've been hearing lots of excitement and expectation about 2010 and while I can't explain it, I am finding myself feeling the same way.

A couple things I am looking forward to in this new year:

*I am looking forward to getting that much closer to finishing up my studies at Asbury Theological Seminary in pursuit of my Master of Divinity. It is a 96 credit hour graduate degree that I'm estimating after this new year I will have completed 83 of the 96 required. The light at the end of the academic tunnel is getting brighter and brighter.

*I am looking forward to another year of ministry as a pastor in the UMC. I believe that this year holds a lot of potential for the local congregation I serve, the Indiana Conference, the UMC as a denomination and the Church as a whole. I believe this year could serve as a point of reference. If we fail to step up to the challenges that face us and do not look for new ways of addressing these issues we will remember this new year as the year we missed it. The time is ripe for change, and not simply change for change sake but change that will bring about renewal, rejuvenation, and revival. We, as leaders in the Church, must recognize the need for new approaches, ideas, and styles in our ministries as well as our leadership. I'm looking forward to being a part of this exciting time of growth and change...or not?

*I am looking forward to meeting and connecting with you and others through my blog and different forms of social media. Connect with me on my Twitter account so I can follow your tweets. On Facebook? Shoot me a friend request. Riding the Google Wave? Hit me up at matt.lipan@googlewave.com. I am also working on putting together a live online streaming Bible study and discussion group called "Outside the Walls". I would love to have you join in on the study and discussion. I'm really hoping to get into a regular blogging routine because I think 2010 will be all about making connections.

Of course there are other things I am looking forward to in the year 2010 as a 31yr old but these were a couple that came to mind. What about you? What are you looking forward to in this new year?

"Unwrapped"

Here is the text from my sermon entitled "Unwrapped" which I gave on 12/27 at our Castleton campus. Feel free to share any thoughts, comments or questions.

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Well, here we are, a few days after another Advent season and Christmas day. Many of you had the chance to spend some time with family and friends, I hope you found it to be meaningful and enjoyable. Tai and I had a chance to make it up to Holland, MI to visit with my family and over to New Lisbon, IN to visit hers. We had a good time and were reminded of how blessed we truly are. Now, two days after Christmas, here we sit and if you’re anything like me, you begin to take inventory now that everything has been opened and unwrapped. I can usually break down my Christmas gifts into three categories: things on my list that I asked for and actually got (which sometimes end up not being as cool as I thought they would be); things I asked for but didn’t receive; and the third category of “thanks?!?”.

Now, I don’t know about your family but both of ours are notorious for using boxes from one thing to put another thing in, so you're not quite sure what you’re getting until you get it unwrapped and out of the box. The classic story of this from my family is when we were all at my grandparent’s house and all the aunts and uncles were opening their gifts from grandma and grandpa and my dad starts opening his…at the time, for whatever reason, my dad was really into bowling…so unwrapping his present he reveals a shoebox with a picture of what appears to be a very nice pair of bowling shoes on the front. My dad gets excited and says, “Whoa alright, new bowling shoes”…opens the box and says, “No, I got these...” as he lifts up the work light that I’m not sure he has ever actually used.

This kind of thing happens to us all the time doesn’t it, whether it’s Christmas or not? We picture something in a certain way, it's wrapped in shiny paper with a nice bow, then we get it out of the box and realize it’s not what we thought it would be.

Perhaps it’s a job or title or degree we think will make all the difference but once we get it unwrapped we find it falling short of our expectations. Or maybe your perfectly wrapped gift is to have a family that looks a certain way, but then your kids do something stupid, your parents do something hurtful, you or your spouse do something to hurt each other or maybe you’re not able to have a family at all. The list can go on and on of things we think will make everything perfect but once we get it unwrapped we find it isn’t what we had in mind.

And then we read of this gift...
Isaiah 7:14
Isaiah 9:2-7

When we begin to unwrap the gift of God’s Son lying in a manger we see this is a gift that will not disappoint, not only this but we notice a couple things about this special gift…

It is a gift of His presence (Isaiah 43:1-3a)
-God promises to be present with us in the midst of the storms, trials and fires of life.

It is a gift of family (Galatians 3:23-4:7)
-God gives us the right to be called His children (John 1:12).
-You and I are connected as the family of God through the community of the Church.

It is a gift of hope (Hebrews 10:23-24)
-The gift of Jesus gives us hope in a world that can often seem hopeless.
-This is a gift we can and must share with others as we undoubtedly know people who abandoned, hopeless and alone.

Closing Prayer comes from 1 Thessalonians 5:23-24:

"May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who calls you is faithful and he will do it."

The Trappings of Tradition

I bet your family has some crazy traditions that have either already happened or are about to during this time of year. Care to share any of those? Only a couple came to mind for me and my family...

...my family always goes to church on Christmas Eve and then orders Chinese takeout. We eat that with sparkling grape juice in fancy glasses.

...my wife's family all gets the exact same pair of pajamas on Christmas Eve, wears them to bed and wakes up Christmas morning to her mom making crepes. They proceed to wear matching pajamas throughout the majority of the day.

Thinking about this over the past couple weeks has made me wonder if traditions have actually trapped the real meaning of Christmas. I don't think traditions are a bad thing, but I do think they need to point us to something bigger than the tradition itself. Is it possible that we have made Christmas more about traditions and less about God's gift to mankind? If Christmas is simply about traditions, we should call it "Traditiomas", dress-up like elves and give ourselves another excuse to go door-to-door asking for candy.

The Perfect Spot

We're in full holiday season swing which, if you attend a church, can mean two things (of course many more but I just want to highlight these two to make a point):

1. More than likely your church will see an increase in the number of first-time visitors on Sunday mornings. The Christmas season, like no other time during the year (minus Easter maybe) turns peoples' attention toward spiritual things. A lot of these people have no idea exactly what they mean when they think "spiritual" but if they haven't been misled by Oprah they might actually end-up at your church, so be ready!

2. Part of being ready for first-time visitors is NOT taking the BEST and CLOSEST parking spots in the church parking lot. What a simple and yet profound way to show your visitors hospitality. If you are physically able to park "far" away, you should seriously consider doing so during the Christmas season. What better time of year to do a simple thing that can make a HUGE difference for that single mom visiting your church for the first time who is trying to keep track of her kids. To think that her worry of them getting hit in the church parking lot could be that much less because she is that much closer to the door. HUGE! Do not underestimate the message this can send to your local community and guests that not only do you have a spot for them in the parking lot but in the church family as well. I know winter is cold but so is a church that doesn't have a place for visitors.

Giving Thankfully

I hope that you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and a chance to spend it with family and friends. If you're Thanksgiving festivities have been anything like mine they involved a generous amount of turkey, starches in various forms (mashed or perhaps candied with marshmallows), some things we call "salads" that few people would find in or put on an actual salad, hanging out with family that you don't get to see often enough and watching awful Detroit Lions football. Oh yeah, while being reminded to be thankful.

What if we were thankful for more than just today and instead it became an attitude we carried with us through the entire holiday season? Just taking a look at the word itself we see that it is about giving thanks, which of course makes sense because we have a ridiculous amount to be thankful for. The more I thought about this today the more I started to wonder if Thanksgiving might be a way to challenge us to give thankfully? Think about what a huge difference this could make on your perspective and mine during this time of year.

There are countless reasons why you and I can be thankful; the biggest reason is God's willingness, in his grace, to send Jesus on our behalf. Out of this deep sense of gratitude we become willing to "cheerfully" (2 Corinthians 9:7) give of ourselves because God has given so graciously to us. This is not simply about money but time, talents, service, prayer, relationships...our very selves...things that you and I can thankfully give as acts of giving thanks. Might be something to try this season and see what happens.

Independence Day

Happy 4th of July! I hope you have the chance to celebrate with family and friends all of the various freedoms that you and I experience on a daily basis and probably take for granted every once in a while. I find it interesting that we say we live in the "Land of the Free" and yet so many of us don't really feel free at all. Sure, no one is telling us how to live our lives but we still can't seem to get free from anxiety caused by things like finances, relationships, jobs, health...and maybe even...guilt, shame or regret.

Tomorrow morning I'm going to be preaching on the freedom that is found in and through Christ. It is a freedom unlike any other you or I might experience. The cages of worry, doubt and fear have been broken by the One who said, "Take heart! I have overcome the world." (John 16:33) This is the kind of freedom that makes us free to fully love, fully hope and fully live. Gives a whole new meaning to "Independence Day".