The War of our Souls (Dave Csinsi)

Dave Csinsi who is a member of our church here in the Fenway wrote a challenging entry entitled "The War for our Souls."  It is usally a good thing when you have guys in your church writing about war :)  Here is an excerpt.

We are in a war, whether we like it or not, a war for our souls. 1 Peter 2:11-12 says "Dear friends, I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul. 12Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us."

Because of this it's especially helpful to know the definition of war. As stated above it's "an attempt at altering either the psychological hierarchy or the material hierarchy of domination or equality between two or more groups." In other words, it's an attempt to overthrow the dominant power. God is the dominant power. He created the universe, he sustains it, and he rules over it. Satan has come into this creation and has been slowly taking over parts of it. He focuses his energy on individuals. When he does this, when they lose, they no longer recognize God as the dominant power. He loses his rightful place. And because God is a loving God, he doesn't come and over-throw the new hierarchy by force. He comes and knocks gently on the individual's heart and wins them over internally.

The thing that is necessary to recognize, and what made me go "AHA!" is that a war is ocurring because there is...

To read the full article at his blog - click here.

The Church: Lazy or Overworked?

We will finish our series on Work where we've seen God at work, Daniel's example of work in the marketplace, and the importance of preperation this Sunday.  It will be followed by a memorial day extravagnza in the Fens by the Rose Garden.  Here's an except from Dave Csinsi's blog based on his and Jeremy's preach on work 2 weeks ago.

Read how we can avoid both these extremes at his blog:  http://blessedmorning.blogspot.com/2010/05/sundays-preach.html

LAZY CHURCH

Imagine a church where nobody works. There is no one who preaches a sermon, there’s no one who plays a song, there’s no one to set up the chairs. No one works. There’s no one who puts words on a screen with a computer and projector, because there’s no one who sets up the screen to put them on. There’s no one who goes to the printers to get communication cards, there’s no one who watches the kids, there’s no one who smiles and greets people as they come in. The only thing in this lazy church that even remotely resembles work is that everybody shows up. They all show up and what will they get? As we heard a couple weeks ago they might hear an improvised sermon from David, but what else would they get? What else would expect them to get? Nothing! Work makes things happen, obvious yes, but sometimes it’s hard to remember the purpose of work. Work is meant to create. We were made in the image of God, and he creates. We were made to create, therefore we were made to work. Whether that work creates anything tangible or not is not the point. God created the world and part of that creation involved simply separating light from darkness. Sometimes at work you may simply organize papers into categories to be placed into folders. God created the world and part of that creation was simply speaking. Sometimes your job might just be speaking, but those words create new thoughts in the minds of those who hear them. My point is, work is creation, whatever that form may be.

OVER-WORKED CHURCH

Now imagine a church where the pastor and one other person does everything. He preaches the sermon, he plays a song, he sets up the chairs, he gets all the communication cards, his friend somehow manages to simultaneously watch the kids and change the words on the projector. The pastor greets everyone that comes in, he prays for everyone before they leave, he brings in coffee, he gets donuts, he juggles not 2, not 3, but 4 cats, he sings an aria. You get the point. Thankfully, God can do anything and everything, and thankfully he understands that we can't. He can do everything and even he rested on the seventh day of his creation. So what is the balance between overwork and outright laziness? Maybe the bible can give us an idea. 

Why We Are Sending a Team to Montreal this Weekend

By Jeremy Jackson

Jesus said he came to seek and save that which was lost (Luke 19:10). We want to give our lives while we're on earth so that others might know the love of God which has given to us through the cross. Next weekend, from May 28 - May 31st, five members of Fenway Church will be driving six hours north across the Canadian border to spend a few nights in Montreal, Canada.

Currently there are very few born-again Christians in the province of Quebec where Montreal lies. Though at the top of the hill at the center of Montreal there is a cross, very few of the city's inhabitants believe in the God of the Bible. Attendance in Christian churches is lower than 0.1% of the population (although that statistic was taken some time ago, there is not much to suggest that it has changed dramatically). A trip down St. Catherine street, the main drag, and a visitor to the city is treated to a series of images of nude women on giant fluorescent signs advertising strip clubs. Further down the street...

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A Bouncer & a Tattooed Foot (Part 4 of 4)

So, God is definitely moving.  After a couple weeks of going out where it didn't really seem like we were making much of an impact (see last couple entries, I even skipped a week because I was tired), things started picking up.  I thought the following story wouldn't be topped for a while, but God totally broke out last night totally directing us multiple times and ending in a guy getting saved on the spot and instantly being made sober even though moments before he had been in a very different state!  Check out Jeremy's note for the full story here on facebook: "God's Power in Front of Staples."  It's important to note that we had a very powerful time of prayer that morning.  I really believe that the 6AM morning prayer (Tues. - Thurs.) is the fuel for the Thursday night outreaches.  I definitely want to encourage people to come to both.

Two weeks ago, Jeremy and I headed out again, but first we met at his studio apartment in Kenmore Square to pray.  We specifically asked God to show us where to go or who to talk to.  God gave me a picture of different people out in front of their apartments on particular block.

Responding to the leading of the Holy Spirit, Jeremy and I went to the block and walked down it.  Only, one person was on the block a bouncer who was about twice my sized in front a basement bar.  Since, he was the only person out despite our intimidation and the fact that he was on the job we decided to talk to him.  We asked God what to tell him, and I felt God wanted me to tell him about his love.  It felt pretty awkward to go up to a big, strong guy whose job it is to keep kick people out and tell him God loved him!

At first, he was pretty skeptical of us but after talking for a while it became apparent that he was open to spiritual things.  I gave him a copy of the gospel of John, and he told Jeremy he would read it.

We headed down another block, and passed a college aged girl who was sitting out on her front steps.  We usually don't approach girls during the night outreaches since we are guys, but I felt the Holy Spirit prompting to go back and offer to pray for her.  We did, and she shared that today was 9 months since her 16-year old sister had died in a car wreck; she had a beautiful tattoo with her sisters name on her foot - it was a really sad story.  We talked to her awhile and found out she had hardly any experience church and hadn't heard much about who Jesus is, but she was really open to spiritual community and prayer.  As we were about to start praying for her, her friend walked up.  Surprising me, she totally welcomed her friend to join in with us.  We were able to pray with them right in front of her apartment building as people walked by, and she was totally encouraged.

As we left, I felt the Holy Spirit tell me to go back and give her my contact card.  To my surprise (I probably shouldn't have been - God can do anything right?), she emailed me two days later; and she and her friend came to visit our community group that week.  It was amazing.

God is going to keep revealing Jesus to people on the streets even setting them free immediately from the things that keep them from knowing him.  Come see for yourself some time!

Contact me: dwhill@fenwaychurch.org

Read how it all got started: "Jesus, the Streets & Mayor Menino"

His Fingers Had Frozen Off (3 of 4)

Another Thursday night.  This time Red Sox fans and ticket and merchandise hawkers crowded the streets.  People were certainly more interested in enjoying themselves and the atmosphere surrounding the game then talking about spiritual things.   We ended up prayer walking one of the sidewalks of Kenmore Square occasionally talking to passerbys running into alot of apathy and disinterest.   I started to really wishing we had prayed together before meeting out on the street.

A couple homeless guys were out in front of Seven Eleven working the doors for change.  Seemed like everyone even us was trying to get something.  It can be frustrating when your intention is to give something (the good news of Jesus, a healing, and encounter with God), but it starts feeling like you are just trying to get people's attention like any other hawker.  This is why we need the Holy Spirit to open up doors.

In the end, I started talking to one of the homeless guys telling him why we were out here.  Surprisingly, he told me that he needed to "be delivered."  Before I had time to talk to him more about it another man emerged from the store.  I greeted him asking him for his name, whoops mistake (always introduce yourself first!).  He responded rebuking me and telling me to smile.  Haha. Not the reaction I was prepared for.  Here I was trying to share Jesus, and I wasn't evening feeling any joy. 

Convicted I continued to talk to the man when I suddenly realized I had met him before when he was homeless in Copley Square.  I remembered his story of how his hand and 4 fingers were so badly frost bitten one night as he slept in a stupor on the roof of a building that they had to be removed.  This man had a lot of anger towards God, and in a way he had a reason to be.  We struggled to communicate God's love for him.  Finally, a breakthrough came when God gave me a scripture verse for him and told me to offer him some money.  As I did, he suddenly opened up.  He told me how he wanted my help in helping him be reconciled to his 80 year old dad.  I promised to meet him next Tuesday for lunch.

I went away thinking about the pain and the anger that exists on the streets.  On Tuesday, I spent over an hour looking for Sonny; I couldn't find him.  But, God knows his story better than me.  As I prayed for Sonny, it really moved me - those who sow in tears will reap in joy...  Why don't you pray for Sonny too?

Tomorrow: "A Bouncer & A Tatooed Foot"

A Night on Lansdowne Street (2 of 4)

It started in the Fenway Panera Bread talking, praying, asking God to lead us to spiritually hungry and thirsty people.

Jeremy and I headed out around 9pm stopping to talk to a guy who had just gotten off work; we talked for a few moments about Jesus before his bus arrived. He told us to stop by again tomorrow he'd be at the same stop, same time.

I couldn't shake a desire to go to Lansdowne Street across from Fenway Park which is filled with night clubs, bars, and the House of Blues. We walked down the street slowly asking God to move there. We stopped to talk to a couple people, but they weren't interested in talking. As we headed back up the street, we passed a group professionals who we had early seen chatting loudly in front of the House of Blues. Jeremy wanted to go talk to them. I really didn't want to; they seem pretty engaged in their conversation and at least one of them seemed pretty drunk. I doubted they would want to talk. Jeremy headed over, and I tried to remind myself that Jesus was accused of being a drunkard because he hung out with some many of them!

Much to my surprise, Jeremy was able to get into a conversation with them by simply asking if they were willing to talk about spirituality. I got into a conversation with the drunk guy who had grown up in Catholic church but had a real problem with how it was responding to various crisis's it was facing. He even gave me his business card.

They headed back into their fund raising party, and we headed to Kenmore Square asking God that one day crowds would gather there to hear Jesus being proclaimed.

I called the man's number on the business card a couple days later; he had given me his friend's card :) I laughed. I stopped by the bus stop a few days later; the man wasn't there but a teenager who didn't know much about the story of Jesus was. Talked to him for a few minutes, encouraged him to read the gospels, and prayed with him that he would get into college.

You never know what people are thinking on the street. They could be messing with you like that drunk guy, they could be seriously searching, they could just need to be awakened to a fresh reality. We sow seeds. God causes them to grow...

Tomorrow: "His Fingers Froze Off (Sowing in Tears)"

Jesus, the Streets, & Mayor Menino (1 of 4)

Whenever I read the accounts of Jesus life, I am struck by the fact that the settings for many of these stories are the streets and roads of Palestine.  Today, when most of us think of a religious teachers we imagine them ministering in a mosque, a church building, or a synagogue.  We don't picture the dusty by-ways between rural towns or busy city intersections.  Yet, that is exactly where we find Jesus so often.  He's meeting people who are out on the streets of the towns and cities he stayed in. The funny thing is Mayor Menino knows where we should find religious leaders (see "Mayor Calls for Help after Teen Slain" from the Boston Globe).  Menino told the ministers he called to his office: “Get out of the churches and get on the street and help us out. Help us out.’’

As a Boston minister, I want to take Mayor Menino's plea to heart.  I've felt for a long time that we will truly know God is moving when we start experiencing on the streets of our city stories like the ones we read Jesus and his followers experiencing in the gospels and the book of Acts.

This feeling and a love for the people of my city has motivated me since I was a teenager to take the message of who Jesus is to the streets to the people that you won't find in church on Sunday mornings.  That's why for the last month my friend Jeremy and I have been spending our Thursday nights meeting people on the streets of the Fenway where our church gathers.  Over the next three days, I will be sharing stories from our more recent experiences from drunken business associates to bar bouncers will see how the love of Jesus can make a difference...

Tomorrow: A Night on Landsdowne