Settled and Unsettled

Last weekend I was able to go on a Father-Son retreat with my 3 older boys.  We went to a church camp on Whidbey Island, which is a short ferry ride across from Everett and is in the middle of Puget Sound.  This camp is owned and operated by 7 local churches and they regularly hold events throughout the year for anyone who wants to attend.  This event was a welcome break for all of us.  It gave Amanda a chance to parent "just" the two little guys for the weekend, and for me it was a chance to bond with our three oldest.  The boys spent the entire weekend playing sports, shooting BB guns, learning to shoot a bow and arrow, building and firing rockets, and doing lots of other guy-things!

We ate a nutritious dinner of fried seafood as we waited in the line for the ferry.

I found that I didn't really plan very well for this trip with my own clothing and was very cold all weekend!  While Everett has warmed slightly to where our daytime highs are in the 50's or 60's, Whidbey Island is surrounded by water that is about 49 degrees!  Any wind off of the water creates a natural air-conditioning effect, and it was WINDY all weekend.  So I came home chilled to the bone and promptly got sick with a virus, which had me down for the count for the remainder of the week.

Happenings at EFC

Everett Family Church (EFC) continues to undergo a transformation.  While our numbers are still small we continue to see an influx of people into the church.  Each of them has a story and most are going through something that has deeply hurt them.  Our church is different in that we don't paste a smile on and allow everyone to remain comfortably anonymous.  Since we are small to begin with it is tough to be anonymous anyway, but when you have time to sit with someone and just talk, the doors open both ways.  It allows the person to gradually open up and share their hurts and fears, and in turn they can hear about our own hurts and fears and realize that we are no different than they are.

Our worship-time structure gives us a lot of time to connect with people and find out what is going on.  For example, after each worship and teaching time, we eat a meal together.  This provides more than an hour to talk and really get to know the person.  After that point it is much less awkward to get contact info from the person so that we can keep in touch for the week.  I have thoroughly enjoyed these times because to me it has shown what can happen when we allow ourselves to be used in the lives of other people.  This is a cruel world that has been shaped by the sin in all of our lives.  Those wounds don't heal easily or quickly, and many who come through our doors are simply seeking to be heard and are desperately seeking God because they find themselves at the end of the rope.  Fortunately our God can always be found at the end of any rope.

A view of Everett from the ferry to Whidbey Island.

In our neighborhood we continue to be amazed at how many people we have been able to connect with.  The boys have brought home numerous friends who don't have a lot of parental involvement, so we get a chance to invite them to dinner and spend time with them.  It seems as though we weekly meet someone new who either lives on our street or within a block or two.  This neighborhood is quite alive and active and we see people who do look out for each other as neighbors.  On the flip side we see many people who don't know Jesus or who have fallen away from church completely.  Many we talk to have attended various churches in the past but don't currently attend anywhere.  Still others can rattle off a list of denominations and faiths that they have participated in recently in an effort to fill the spiritual void in their life.  This neighborhood is absolutely ripe with potential and is full of seekers.  So what are we supposed to do?


Amanda and I talk about our plans a lot now, but we still don't really have a plan.  We both strongly believe we know who we are supposed to minister to in this city. We have always found a closer affinity for those who are at low points in life; those who are poor or nursing past hurts. Those who have nothing are definitely more open to the Gospel than those who have everything. And it is often the poor in resources or the poor in spirit who are neglected by our society and our churches. It is no different than it was 2,000 years ago when Jesus said this:


Luke 14
¹⁶ Jesus replied with this story: “A man prepared a great feast and sent out many invitations. ¹⁷ When the banquet was ready, he sent his servant to tell the guests, ‘Come, the banquet is ready.’ ¹⁸ But they all began making excuses. One said, ‘I have just bought a field and must inspect it. Please excuse me.’ ¹⁹ Another said, ‘I have just bought five pairs of oxen, and I want to try them out. Please excuse me.’ ²⁰ Another said, ‘I now have a wife, so I can’t come.’
²¹ “The servant returned and told his master what they had said. His master was furious and said, ‘Go quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and invite the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.’ ²² After the servant had done this, he reported, ‘There is still room for more.’ ²³ So his master said, ‘Go out into the country lanes and behind the hedges and urge anyone you find to come, so that the house will be full. ²⁴ For none of those I first invited will get even the smallest taste of my banquet.’”

Here, like in Texas, there are legions of people who need nothing and desire nothing of Jesus. Their vast finances prevent them from seeing their spiritual need, and therefore they often go about their lives “buying fields and oxen” just like the people in the parable, substituting the perishable for the imperishable. Their hearts are hard and they have turned away from the Lord as either unnecessary for their lives or something that they can attend to later. But later never comes for most of them. While we will talk to anyone about Jesus, we don’t feel called to actively pursue individuals like these and start a church for them. Instead, we will pursue the “poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame.”

We are hesitant to go charging off into the great unknown, especially since the Lord hasn't made clear that we are supposed to do that yet.  We can see that a church plant is needed here in our area, and we can see quite a variety of people that could come to know Jesus here.  But as the Word says, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few."  To this point we just don't have any other individuals who would partner with us to do this significant work.  And it is there that you see the great problem facing churches in the Northwest.  Of the ones that exist here, usually a very few people are doing all of the work.  EFC is a great example of that.  Before we came here Mike and his family were doing literally everything each Saturday.  This includes setup, lesson preparation, food preparation, worship music, lighting and sound, teaching, cleanup, and discipleship of church members.  We have now formed a great partnership with them and more of the load is being shared, but without this, and even sometimes with it, we all get tired!  It is tremendous work each and every week to engage with others from the church.  No matter what the Lord would have us do in the next few years, we know that we simply cannot do it alone.  To attempt something like that would be a recipe for ultimate burnout and disaster.


We are looking for partners who will go on this journey with us.  There are no wages for the work here other than the Lord's approval and blessing, which are both significant.  There is no recognition or status associated with it as this type of work isn't valued by the world at large.  There are no opportunities for advancement, defined work hours, or special benefits.  Instead, the thing that will keep all of us going is the Lord's movement ahead of us, and being involved in His plan each and every day.  That alone has to be enough for us.  Jesus Himself must be all that we need and desire.  Apart from Him we can do absolutely nothing of consequence.

A city street of Everett looking north toward the harbor and Puget Sound.
 

Is it possible that the Lord would call you to the Northwest for His name's sake?  Could you transplant your entire family and life to come to an unknown place?  Would you be willing to lay everything in your life aside to teach others about Jesus and show them how to find Him?  The need is here, and the consequences for your response to these questions are eternal.  On the other hand, perhaps you aren't called to the Northwest.  Are you called to be somewhere else?


Be brave enough to ask the Lord what He would have you do! 

Letting the Word Speak

Sometimes I think it is important for people to just get out of the way of God's word and let it speak on its own.  It is so tempting these days to give an application of it and those aren't always wrong.  But these words written by so many inspired authors so long ago still have a message to you and I today.  Let's not forget that the same Holy Spirit that existed then exists in this world now.  And He speaks through this word!

A view of the Everett Naval Base, home of the U.S.S Nimitz.  The Olympic Mountain Range is visible to the west in the distance.
 
I came across this passage this morning, and does such a good job of capturing so many emotions that we have experienced here in the Northwest.  It does start on a very depressing note, and you may find that you have experienced the same agony that the prophet Jeremiah expresses in this text.  While you may not have been driven into exile by an angry God and had to observe the city you love being burned down, at times you may have experienced trials that felt like what he describes.  Give this passage a chance, because it will take you full circle.

Lamentations 3

Hope in the Lord’s Faithfulness

 I am the one who has seen the afflictions
    that come from the rod of the Lord’s anger.
² He has led me into darkness,
    shutting out all light.
³ He has turned his hand against me
    again and again, all day long.

⁴ He has made my skin and flesh grow old.
    He has broken my bones.
⁵ He has besieged and surrounded me
    with anguish and distress.
⁶ He has buried me in a dark place,
    like those long dead.

⁷ He has walled me in, and I cannot escape.
    He has bound me in heavy chains.
⁸ And though I cry and shout,
    he has shut out my prayers.
⁹ He has blocked my way with a high stone wall;
    he has made my road crooked.

¹⁰ He has hidden like a bear or a lion,
    waiting to attack me.
¹¹ He has dragged me off the path and torn me in pieces,
    leaving me helpless and devastated.
¹² He has drawn his bow
    and made me the target for his arrows.

¹³ He shot his arrows
    deep into my heart.
¹⁴ My own people laugh at me.
    All day long they sing their mocking songs.
¹⁵ He has filled me with bitterness
    and given me a bitter cup of sorrow to drink.

¹⁶ He has made me chew on gravel.
    He has rolled me in the dust.
¹⁷ Peace has been stripped away,
    and I have forgotten what prosperity is.
¹⁸ I cry out, “My splendor is gone!
    Everything I had hoped for from the Lord is lost!”

¹⁹ The thought of my suffering and homelessness
    is bitter beyond words.^[a]
20 I will never forget this awful time,
    as I grieve over my loss.
²¹ Yet I still dare to hope
    when I remember this:

²² The faithful love of the Lord never ends!^[b]
    His mercies never cease.
²³ Great is his faithfulness;
    his mercies begin afresh each morning.
²⁴ I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance;
    therefore, I will hope in him!”

²⁵ The Lord is good to those who depend on him,
    to those who search for him.
²⁶ So it is good to wait quietly
    for salvation from the Lord.
²⁷ And it is good for people to submit at an early age
    to the yoke of his discipline:

²⁸ Let them sit alone in silence
    beneath the Lord’s demands.
²⁹ Let them lie face down in the dust,
    for there may be hope at last.
³⁰ Let them turn the other cheek to those who strike them
    and accept the insults of their enemies.

³¹ For no one is abandoned
    by the Lord forever.
³² Though he brings grief, he also shows compassion
    because of the greatness of his unfailing love.
³³ For he does not enjoy hurting people
    or causing them sorrow.

³⁴ If people crush underfoot
    all the prisoners of the land,
³⁵ if they deprive others of their rights
    in defiance of the Most High,
³⁶ if they twist justice in the courts—
    doesn’t the Lord see all these things?

³⁷ Who can command things to happen
    without the Lord’s permission?
³⁸ Does not the Most High
    send both calamity and good?
³⁹ Then why should we, mere humans, complain
    when we are punished for our sins?

⁴⁰ Instead, let us test and examine our ways.
    Let us turn back to the Lord.
⁴¹ Let us lift our hearts and hands
    to God in heaven and say,
⁴² “We have sinned and rebelled,
    and you have not forgiven us.

⁴³ “You have engulfed us with your anger, chased us down,
    and slaughtered us without mercy.
⁴⁴ You have hidden yourself in a cloud
    so our prayers cannot reach you.
⁴⁵ You have discarded us as refuse and garbage
    among the nations.

⁴⁶ “All our enemies
    have spoken out against us.
⁴⁷ We are filled with fear,
    for we are trapped, devastated, and ruined.”
⁴⁸ Tears stream from my eyes
    because of the destruction of my people!

⁴⁹ My tears flow endlessly;
    they will not stop
⁵⁰ until the Lord looks down
    from heaven and sees.
⁵¹ My heart is breaking
    over the fate of all the women of Jerusalem.

⁵² My enemies, whom I have never harmed,
    hunted me down like a bird.
⁵³ They threw me into a pit
    and dropped stones on me.
⁵⁴ The water rose over my head,
    and I cried out, “This is the end!”

⁵⁵ But I called on your name, Lord,
    from deep within the pit.
⁵⁶ You heard me when I cried, “Listen to my pleading!
    Hear my cry for help!”
⁵⁷ Yes, you came when I called;
    you told me, “Do not fear.”

⁵⁸ Lord, you are my lawyer! Plead my case!
    For you have redeemed my life.
⁵⁹ You have seen the wrong they have done to me, Lord.
    Be my judge, and prove me right.
⁶⁰ You have seen the vengeful plots
    my enemies have laid against me.

⁶¹ Lord, you have heard the vile names they call me.
    You know all about the plans they have made.
⁶² My enemies whisper and mutter
    as they plot against me all day long.
⁶³ Look at them! Whether they sit or stand,
    I am the object of their mocking songs.

⁶⁴ Pay them back, Lord,
    for all the evil they have done.
⁶⁵ Give them hard and stubborn hearts,
    and then let your curse fall on them!
⁶⁶ Chase them down in your anger,
    destroying them beneath the Lord’s heavens.

Submission of Everything

Whoever heard of the Hero dying for the villain?   - Trip Lee

Our intense training continues.  God continues to turn upside down everything we believed about how to live our lives.  And it is great!

The weather has been outstanding over the last week here in Washington, and many people have come outside to enjoy it while it lasts.  Our prayer has been that the Lord would lead us to people that need Him, and in turn that people would, for whatever reason, come to us as well.  That has been happening in a really big way in our neighborhood and through Everett Family Church.

Yesterday alone we got to meet 2 of our neighbors, one who is completely unchurched and another who is looking for a place of discipleship due to being in the spotlight of community leadership.  We also have managed to deepen relationships with two other families who are unchurched and are not committed to Jesus, and are getting to spend regular time with families from our church who are either on the fence or are mixed, meaning some are believers in Jesus and some are not.  This takes me back to what I started the post with.  Training.  Our training.

Years ago when I looked into joining the ministry, I would have told you that the most important thing is powerful preaching and teaching within the church.  Pastors and leaders needed to be available and positively magnetic, and these individuals needed to be able to attract many nonbelievers by sheer force of will, personal magnetism, and excellent and foolproof teaching.  While I still believe it is important that church planters and pastors love people, that love has to come from the Lord.  If church leaders don't feel that way about people, they simply must submit that area of their life to the Lord and let him work through it.

2 Corinthians 12:
⁸ Three different times I begged the Lord to take it away. ⁹ Each time he said, “My grace is all you need. My power works best in weakness.” So now I am glad to boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ can work through me. ¹⁰ That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

And no matter what, every single thing we do must be committed first to the Lord.  This is a very serious thing that we can't just pay lip-service to.  We have to believe it and do it in every aspect of our lives.

Psalm 127:1-2
Unless the Lord builds a house,
    the work of the builders is wasted.
Unless the Lord protects a city,
    guarding it with sentries will do no good.
² It is useless for you to work so hard
    from early morning until late at night,
anxiously working for food to eat;
    for God gives rest to his loved ones.

When you come down to it, our job here in Everett is fantastically simple.  To have an impact on this society, to draw people in, to bring them to the feet of Jesus, we must stop doing.  Yes, you read that right.  We have to stop and we have to get on our knees to the Lord and ask Him to do these things.  Only then do things happen that we didn't expect.  Only then do we see the Holy Spirit move in and around us.  

To lead His way, we have to follow.  To take action His way, we have to get on our knees.  To produce fruit, we must take in from The Vine.  To do is to pray first.

 2 Samuel 5
²³ And again David asked the Lord what to do. “Do not attack them straight on,” the Lord replied. “Instead, circle around behind and attack them near the poplar^[a] trees. ²⁴ When you hear a sound like marching feet in the tops of the poplar trees, be on the alert! That will be the signal that the Lord is moving ahead of you to strike down the Philistine army.” ²⁵ So David did what the Lord commanded, and he struck down the Philistines all the way from Gibeon^[b] to Gezer.

Prayer
You might have noticed the prayer tab to the right of the blog.  If you haven't done so already, please consider signing up for our prayer texts.  I send these periodically when there is a very specific prayer request that needs immediate prayer.  Our Lord exists here in Everett and simultaneously in every place of the world.  Please consider joining us in prayer for the many needs that are present here.  God is moving and we see the results of YOUR prayers each and every day.

God's Economy

This week's pace was admittedly slower than last week's, which was a good thing for our family.  As many of you know, moving is hard on everyone and leaves you tired and drained.  We were grateful for the rest, and I'm happy to say that we have almost unpacked all of our boxes!  We only had a couple of minor things break in their cross-country trek, which is a real testament to Amanda and those who helped her get our house packed up.

Probably the most intense rainbow I have seen in my life happened this week in Everett.

Genesis 9:13-16

I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth. When I send clouds over the earth, the rainbow will appear in the clouds, and I will remember my covenant with you and with all living creatures. Never again will the floodwaters destroy all life. When I see the rainbow in the clouds, I will remember the eternal covenant between God and every living creature on earth.”

Our neighborhood has turned out to be a great one for kids.  Everytime the boys go outside, other kids just seem to show up out of nowhere.  If you've ever watched birds on a telephone pole you have an adequate vision of what happens.  One lands on the wire first, then within minutes you see one more appear, then three more, then four more on top of that.  Their time with new friends has also provided a bit of respite for me and Amanda.

We decided to go ahead and move the kids to the elementary school that is 4 blocks away as opposed to keeping them in the same place through the end of the semester.  At first we wanted to keep them from having to experience more change, but finally we came to the realization that it was too hard on Amanda to deliver them 2 and from school each day with a trip length of 30 minutes each way.  Plus, the kids now will have an opportunity to make friends in the neighborhood prior to summer.

God's Work on Us

God continues to move in our lives in ways that are surprising, relentless, and sometimes painful.  I quickly forget that I am a rock in a river, constantly being weathered away by the relentless surge of living water.  He has an end in mind with me that I probably have no conception of, but I don't need to have a conception of the end.  Only the Maker does.  I am often reminded of what Mike said to me weeks ago regarding our relocation to Everett.  "Paul, God bringing you here had nothing to do with what you were going to do here.  It is about you and Him."

Isaiah 64:8

And yet, O  Lord, you are our Father.

We are the clay, and you are the potter.

We all are formed by your hand.

As I pulled my last boxes out of storage this week and closed down our last U-Haul account, I began opening the last of my own possessions.  I opened a couple of boxes of decorations from my former office at Summer Creek, including letters written by some faculty members prior to my departure that were a major encouragement to me.  In opening the boxes, though, I had an array of mixed emotions.  Many of the things made me smile and remember times on campus, particularly with individuals that I spent a lot of time with.  But then the coin seemed to flip to the other side, exposing sadness at leaving that place and our former life.  As I always do, I began to compare life now to life then, glossing over many things from the past and making them seem better than they were.  Those moments are very personal and often very painful to me.

The Lord has taught me in these moments to go to Him in prayer and pour my heart out, and that I did.  I don't do it in anger and shake my fist at Him.  It usually involves me just telling Him how much it hurts and how distraught I am.  And He listens.  

One of my favorite book series of all time is The Chronicles of Narnia, an account of a magical land created by a lion.  This land is complete with talking animals and a few humans.  In the first book the land has been overcome by an evil witch who has declared herself Queen of the World.  One quickly learns that she isn't queen and has only declared herself as leader of the land.  The lion is the real ruler and creator of the world, and for a while he left this place, but eventually he returns to save his people and defeat evil forever.  Does the story sound at all familiar?

Sunset over Puget Sound at the Sculpture Park in downtown Seattle.

In moments of prayer like these, I sometimes imagine the Lion of Judah sitting and listening to me pour my heart out.  He says nothing during those times, but His gaze is on me and I feel His love and compassion for me.  He doesn't growl like an angry lion, and He doesn't reach out with his sharp claws and rip me to shreds.  But as the book says, "he isn't exactly a tame lion."  The place He has me in right now isn't the final destination.  It is a spot on the map leading to the eventual destination.

I believe what God is doing in me right now is a significant work of humbling me.  I had no idea of how prideful I had become until He revealed it to me through the pain of leaving everything and everyone I knew.  My world and work consisted of building my own kingdom, expanding it, and planning for the future...of me.  It isn't that I lacked belief in God back then or that I wasn't following His leadership the way I should.  I was just blind to a significant aspect of myself that had begun to separate me from the Lord like an idol or beloved posession that fills up all of your field of vision because you hold to it so closely.

Gollum and the Ring, from The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien.

In previous posts I have spoken some on God's economy but feel that I need to expand on that idea some more since this is what He is teaching me now.  Here are notable contrasts between the way of the world and the way of God:

- In the world, the only way you get ahead is by asserting yourself.  In the Kingdom, you let go of yourself completely.  (Mark 9:33-35)

- In the world, achievement, status, college degrees, and size of bank account matter.  In God's kingdom, they are trash. (John 12:24-25)

- In the world, the leaders are the ones who work hard, achieve, and push themselves into positions ahead of others.  In God's kingdom, the leaders are the ones at the back of the line.  (Matthew 20:25-28)

-In the world, people strive to publically do good things so that they receive praise for them.  Lesser tasks are ignored or passed to someone else.  In God's kingdom, good works done publically often receive no recognition at all from Him until you meet him in His kingdom.  They certainly receive no recognition in this world.  (Matthew 6:1-4)

-In the world, people strive to work in areas of strength.  In God's kingdom, areas of weakness often are the things utilized to expand the kingdom. (2 Corinthians 12:7-10)

-In the world, our lives are ours to spend as we wish.  In God's kingdom, our lives are his.  (John 12:24-25)

- In the world, everything is about self, accumulating more, comfort, pleasure, and rising above insulting words.  In God's kingdom, self and selfishness are excluded.  (Mark 11:25)

An entire book could be written on the ideas listed above, but I want you to notice a theme by answering a question.  Which of those things relating to God's kingdom do not involve death to self, humility, and surrender?

That in a nutshell is my struggle from this week.  Pride has no place in God's kingdom.  The most useful to him are those who can offer nothing but a heart for Him and complete surrender.  That is the place that He is taking me to, and it is a painful road for those with the disease of Self.

1 Peter 5:5b- “God opposes the proud but favors the humble.”

I'll complete the thought with this.  When you examine that list again and look at the things that are of this world, consider the following:  on your last day here on Earth prior to your death, which of those things will matter?  May we all view these things as God does, and may He give us eyes to see things as they really are in our lives.

Seattle at night.

Now for some surprising work of the Holy Spirit.  I have a friend in Houston who was going through a major family emergency this week.  The details of that emergency are not important for this blog, but in hearing about them I was moved suddenly to pray for him and send him a text about it.  His response came much later but he commented that my "timing was absolutely perfect" due to what they were dealing with right at that moment the text came through.

Then there's me.  In the throes of my depression last week I received an email and a text within minutes of each other, both of which indicated that I was being prayed for. 

How incredible is that?  Is my timing and sensitivity that good?  No!!!  For whatever reason, the Holy Spirit used me to encourage another brother in Christ.  And others for whatever reason were moved to pray for me right in the moment I needed it.  It still amazes me that this God is both present and engaged in places separated by many thousands of miles.  What an amazing God!  These things continue to happen regularly to us, and I am always appreciative and my heart is warmed knowing that this God actually cares about me.  Sometimes I don't know why he bothers with me.  Maybe you can relate.

Church Planter Dinner

We were priviledged to attend a dinner for church planters in Seattle put on by the North American Mission Board and Seattle Church Planting.  This was an opportunity for Amanda and I to rest and fellowship with others without the kids (a vacation).  We got reconnected with Bobby and Kelly Higginbotham from Tacoma, the missionaries we worked with when we visited Tacoma last July.  We also spent some time with Jared and Corrie Burwell who live in Skyway.  They have continued to be a real and tangible encouragement to us, and they represent yet another connection that the Lord orchestrated for us.  

The dinner was a good time to talk about what is going on in ministry and to realize that what you experience isn't crazy or abnormal.  I can only describe us all as ships out on a vast ocean sailing at night.  Sometimes we pass each other, sometimes we simply see flashing lights on the horizon from another ship in the same Navy.  We know other ships are out there, but many church planters will tell you that it can sometimes be a lonely life.  It is always good for us to get together like this!

It also is a reminder as to the amount of help that is needed in the Pacific Northwest.  I have come to realize that we don't need 1,000 pastors to show up here and build new churches, although that wouldn't hurt.  We need families that are committed to Jesus and love Him, who are willing to uproot their families and get a job here, working a normal job and living a "regular" life while discipling others on the side in their communities.  We need Christians living in their communities who are committed to being Jesus to their neighbors.  These seemingly "lesser" actions (compared to preaching and leading a church) will lead to great changes in this area long-term.  Preaching and church leadership are important, but they are only the beginning and scratch the surface.  As I have said before, if we rely on people to show up to church buildings, we will accomplish very little here.

Upcoming Mission Trip

I was overjoyed a week ago to talk to one of the pastors back at Humble Area's First Baptist Church and hear that they are organizing a mission trip to Everett to work with us in July!  What a tremendous honor and blessing.  Here, as the Word says, the harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.  Mike and I have been planning since that conversation and brainstorming on things that can and should be done while the group is here.  We know the Spirit will lead us on this.  Our main goal, in alignment with HAFBC's, is to do something that will impact the community long-term and will draw more people to Christ.  One-time events may make everyone feel good, but what I am finding is that the only thing that matters here is long-term relationship and discipleship of people.  Please join us in prayer regarding the specific actions we will take with this mission team.  Then let us all wait and see what the Lord does!

Forward Motion

I will not gloss over the truth about last week for our family.  It was not been good at all.  We have experienced pressure on several levels:  self-inflicted, normal pressure associated with a major move, and spiritual.  Plenty of good has happened during the week as well, which I will get to later in this post.  But I bring the bad to you not to complain about it, but because we need help from you.

Our self-inflicted pressure is controllable and is based upon decisions that Amanda and I have made.  We both are wired to be people who do, who jump in and get the job done.  It is difficult for us when we see an opportunity to shy away from it and do something else.  The good and the bad of that is that there are so many good things that can be done here in Everett.  There are lost people literally everywhere whose lives are trainwrecks.  These people are looking for a lifeline, and when someone comes along to live life with them they cling to it with all they have, as we would if we were in the same situation.  The Lord works in situations like that to draw more people to Himself.

On another level, this has been a very difficult move for us.  While getting into a house has been great, there has been a lot of work that needed to be done to make it livable and comfortable.  We have had tons of help in doing those things, but over a period of days and weeks it tends to tire the body out.

Perhaps the spiritual level of pressure we have experienced lately is the hardest to deal with.  Last weekend I went to the store with the boys and came back in the evening to find this painted on our fence.

Some of you may see this and think that it was just a kid passing by who decided to tag a wall that is visible from a distance, and you'd probably be right.  But this week has shown me that we are definitely on enemy territory.  This city and many cities like it has been claimed by evil, and those forces are not going to be pushed out without causing some trouble on the way.  I do believe this was a message to us, although it is unlikely the writer knew what they were doing or who they were doing it for.  Fortunately I found our power washer the next day and was able to take this down quickly.

America has been lulled into a spiritual sleep, and I believe that is one of the schemes the enemy uses in this country.  Distract people with money and things to induce spiritual numbness and they won't recognize that their territory is being overrun.  Convince people that they need to go to church to "be fed" instead of allowing the Lord to work in their lives to help other people out of the chains that bind them.  They won't pick up their armor and their one weapon, the Word of God, and get into the fight.  We make it so easy for those who wish to spiritually conquer our territory, and their work is apparent but is masked by our own distractedness.

I could list all of the things that happened to discourage us this week, but I won't.  It isn't necessary.  However, I also was reminded this week of how God moves His people.  In one of my lowest moments this week I received a text from someone back home who said they were praying for me.  I don't know why that person was moved to pray for me at that time, but I have experienced this when praying for other people.  They will tell me that at that moment they needed help the most, and for my part I just felt the need to pray for them.  That's the work of the Holy Spirit.

So this convinced me to move on an idea that I've had for a while now.  We desperately need regular prayer and prayer partners.  You and I have no idea sometimes what happens in the spiritual realm when we pray, but there is real power in it because there is real power in Jesus.  There are countless stories out there about how Christians were moved to pray for a specific person across the globe at a specific moment, and there were tangible results in the person's life.  We have experienced that, and need more of that for as long as we are called to be in this place.

How can you help?  It might be as simple as committing to pray for us every day, whether it be in the morning or evening.  My wife, myself, and my boys all need it.  You also may want to consider being a front-line prayer partner for us.  I have figured out an easy way for you to do this if you choose to, and it doesn't cost anything.  When I was at Summer Creek, we discovered a great tool called Remind 101.  If you have a cell phone, you can easily sign up to receive a text message directly from me when something is going on.  It goes directly to you and isn't a group message.  I can type in a specific prayer request, whether it is for our family or for a specific person and need that we are currently dealing with, and you'll get it instantly.  It is at that moment that we will need you to pray.  The coolest thing about this isn't the technology, but the fact that you can pray from anywhere and the Spirit of the Lord hears and moves from any distance that separates us.  That still boggles my mind.

Here's how you can sign up:

Good Stuff
The Lord is doing a lot in our lives right now, which might explain why things have been difficult lately for us.  I always will need to be very careful on this blog about giving many specifics about the people we are discipling.  It is not our intent to shame anyone or put a spotlight on them, so I will attempt to keep things sufficiently general to protect them.

Men's Bible Study- We kicked off a Men's Bible Study over the last few weeks and have had a lot of enthusiasm with it.  Our goal over time will be to draw more and more men in from the apartment complex and not only teach God's word, but disciple them on the side.  We have met twice now and at the last meeting the dam broke for some of the guys.  They talked about how excited they were about our time together, about their past mistakes, past hurts, and what's going on in their lives now.  We have men who have some significant struggles right now, but they were willing to share those so we can pray for them.

Women's Bible Study- This study has really exploded over the last month.  There are women coming to this who are at the end of their rope, but they keep coming back for more.  This study has allowed Amanda to spend a lot of quality time with several women who are in desperate need of discipleship.  They come from backgrounds that are similar to what our 3 adopted boys came out of, so you get a clue as to what kinds of issues are currently being dealt with.

Everett Family Church- Mike and I are now on an every other week rotation for preaching and teaching.  This has allowed us to support each other and utilize both of our strengths.  We are seeing new families continue to come to the church, and growth seems to be pretty steady at this point.  The relationships among the congregation are deepening as we spend more time together.

Overall, we are seeing doors open to discipling both men and women on an ongoing basis.  What a blessing that is, and a continuous job as well.  We are finding that we must be in prayer about these individuals daily.

Fog clears over Puget Sound in the harbor of Everett.  This seems to be somewhat symbolic of what is happening to our family right now. 

Home

Up until this point, our experience in coming to the Greater Seattle area for the Lord can be likened to taking a long trip on an airplane.  If you have ever planned a long trip and flown to your destination, I think you will know what I'm talking about.  One could argue that we have had the complete experience including baggage delays, delayed landing, other frustrations.  Let me attempt to paint the picture for you using this metaphor.

We packed our bags diligently and loaded up.  Everything was checked many times, plans were made.  What items would we need access to in the short term?  What items would we need in the long term? How long would the journey take, and what kind of clothes would we need, and how many?  We scheduled the trip thinking that we had accounted for everything.  We had our boarding passes, our provisions, and a takeoff and landing time.  We made it through security, got on the airplane on time, and felt that we knew when we'd arrive at our arrival airport and gate.  We felt good about things because everything fit within nice, neat parameters.  As you now know, the Lord had other plans and chose to change us via this journey.

I'd like to stretch this airplane metaphor a bit further so you have a clear idea of what this experience has been like for us.  

We took off in our jumbo jet (our family is large, after all) and navigated to Seattle from Houston.  The flight time was pretty much guaranteed because we had good weather ahead.  No bumps or turbulence was expected, and in fact we arrived uneventfully into Washington airspace.  At this point, it is normal protocol for the pilot to call into the control tower to receive further instructions prior to landing.

"Tower this is Edwards flight.  Requesting permission to land."

Tower:  "Edwards flight, maintain altitude and heading."

Me:  That's funny.  Something must be going on.  "Copy tower, will maintain altitude and heading."

(An hour later)  Me:  "Uh, tower, this is Edwards flight.  Requesting permission to land."

Tower:  "Edwards flight, this is tower.  Maintain altitude and heading."

Me:  "Tower, requesting estimated time until landing."

Tower:  "Edwards flight, please maintain altitude and heading until further notice."

Me:  I don't understand this.  We had a scheduled landing time and we've already exceeded that.

(one hour later)  Me:  (impatient)  Tower, this is Edwards flight.  Requesting permission to land.

Tower:  "Edwards flight, maintain altitude and heading."

Me:  "Tower, we have been circling for quite a while now and should have landed.  Our passengers are tired and restless.  We need to land soon."

Tower:  "Edwards flight, your passengers will be fine.  Maintain altitude and heading."

(one hour later)

Me:  (still impatient)  "Tower, this is Edwards flight.  We are running low on fuel.  Requesting immediate clearance to land."

Tower:  "Edwards flight, you are not low on fuel.  Maintain altitude and heading until further notice."

On a whim, I check the gauges.  Yes, the tower unfortunately was correct.  We had plenty of fuel.  How could that be?  We've been flying forever!

So the Edwards flight circled and circled, and I alternated between great encouragement and great discouragement.  Day after day passed with no indicators on when we might be able to land. 

Then one day as we continued to circle and after I had resigned to the fact that we'd be circling the airport for an indefinite time, we got an unexpected radio call.

Tower:  "Edwards flight, you are cleared to land on runway 3-7."

Did my ears deceive me?  Did I really hear that?  Is it really happening??

Suddenly, you feel the plane bank to the right and hear a whine as the flaps come out.  The landing gear also comes down with a shudder of the aircraft.

"Gear is down.  Flaps engaged."

And then it hits me.  I didn't bank the plane to align it with the runway.  And I didn't extend the flaps.  It also was not I who called out that the landing gear is down.  I look around me, expecting to see either the pilot or copilot seat and all of the instruments, but instead I'm looking at the back of the seat in front of me.  I'm not in the cockpit.  In fact, I'm not even near the cockpit.  I have a window seat and am just a passenger.

I'm not the pilot.  I'm not even the copilot or the navigator.  Someone much better is in the cockpit.

I look out the window to see the ground rising to meet us as we gently land on the runway.  We are really here!  We have arrived!  How did this happen?  

It may seem silly to relate our experience to that of flying on an airplane, but I have seen so many similarities over the last few days that have made it very real to me.  Years ago there was a very silly bumper sticker I used to see on many cars that said something to the effect of "God is my copilot."  How false.  If you are living the way He wants you to live, you aren't even controlling the airplane.  We are all passengers, sometimes hostile in that we want to bang on the cockpit door and demand that the airplane change its course.  Some of us even push the pilot and copilot out, thinking that we are better pilots.  And He will allow us to make this mistake, but He also will come back to take over if we will just loosen our grip of the wheel and step out of the seat.

Finally at Home

On Thursday afternoon of last week while I was at work, I received a call from our real estate agent that was quite unexpected.  He asked me if we might want to close on the house early, as in on Friday.  I remember my pulse quickening, but the answer was very easy to give.  YES!!!!!  This was a week earlier than expected.

I quickly was able to make arrangements to get utilities turned on, get a drop off of 5 of our U-boxes, and rent a truck to carry our stuff from the apartment to the house.  Mysteriously, it all worked out.

On Saturday, we had many friends from our church show up to help us move.  They got us out of the apartment within about an hour and a half, and we were at the house by about 10AM to begin unloading.  By about 2PM, we had unloaded everything we could unload.  Exhausted but ecstatic, we were home.

So this is our new home.  It was formerly a bed and breakfast, and was built in 1910.  It has been completely renovated inside and out, and has more bedrooms and bathrooms than we could even have imagined to have.  It is a mere 2 blocks from downtown and everything in Everett is within easy walking distance from it, including my workplace.

View from the kitchen window

So what was it that the Lord taught us in the 2 months of "circling the airport?"  Plenty.

• Our stuff isn't ours and we shouldn't hold on to it as though it is.
• Timing is the Lord's, not ours.  Just because things don't fit into our timetable doesn't mean He isn't involved.  
• Solitude is a great teacher.
• The Lord is all we need.

What will the Lord do with this house?  I have no idea.  But I have to take notice when it contains more space than we need and is PERFECTLY placed in the community to impact people from all walks of life.  A walk out our front door is all that is needed to see what the Lord is doing here.

And so it begins...

Psalm 91
Those who live in the shelter of the Most High
    will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
² This I declare about the Lord:
He alone is my refuge, my place of safety;
    he is my God, and I trust him.
³ For he will rescue you from every trap
    and protect you from deadly disease.
⁴ He will cover you with his feathers.
    He will shelter you with his wings.
    His faithful promises are your armor and protection.
⁵ Do not be afraid of the terrors of the night,
    nor the arrow that flies in the day.
⁶ Do not dread the disease that stalks in darkness,
    nor the disaster that strikes at midday.
⁷ Though a thousand fall at your side,
    though ten thousand are dying around you,
    these evils will not touch you.
⁸ Just open your eyes,
    and see how the wicked are punished.

⁹ If you make the Lord your refuge,
    if you make the Most High your shelter,
¹⁰ no evil will conquer you;
    no plague will come near your home.
¹¹ For he will order his angels
    to protect you wherever you go.
¹² They will hold you up with their hands
    so you won’t even hurt your foot on a stone.
¹³ You will trample upon lions and cobras;
    you will crush fierce lions and serpents under your feet!

¹⁴ The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me.
    I will protect those who trust in my name.
¹⁵ When they call on me, I will answer;
    I will be with them in trouble.
    I will rescue and honor them.
¹⁶ I will reward them with a long life
    and give them my salvation.”

Vision

Amanda and I have been praying for the last month that the Lord would give us His vision for our ministry in Everett.  We are starting to sense His movement in very specific ways and as a result we are now actively pursuing some partnerships in the Everett community, and are continuing to pray.  We would greatly value your prayer for us as we seek what the Lord would have us do.

John 4:13-14
¹³ Jesus replied, “Anyone who drinks this water will soon become thirsty again. ¹⁴ But those who drink the water I give will never be thirsty again. It becomes a fresh, bubbling spring within them, giving them eternal life.”

Our family lives in a culture that is overall very suspicious of organized religion.  There are people that have been hurt by past experiences with bad churches or wayward Christians.  There are others who have seen the stories in the media about infighting in churches, abuse, and power grabbing, and they perceive it as a construct of man for the purpose of gaining money and power.  Still others attend churches that don't truly teach that Jesus is the only way, while many others go to churches who close the doors to nonbelievers, the community, and the poor.  These churches only serve themselves.

While these experiences and feelings don't paint an accurate picture of the Christian church as a whole, we do have to acknowledge that some in the community feel this way and may have had bad experiences with the church or other supposed Christians.  My suspicion is that many people won't mind Jesus once they gain a concept of who He is, once they experience His love and compassion for them.  But if they won't walk into a church building to meet Him, what will we do?  If they don't believe Christianity offers them anything that they don't already have, what happens?  So Christians have a choice:  we can turn our backs on society and isolate ourselves from it, or we can engage it knowing that people need the Lord that we know.  But to do this requires us to be Jesus to everyone around us all day long, not just on Sunday or Wednesday.  This dying world needs that kind of love from followers of Jesus, because the implications for not doing so are dramatic and have eternal consequences.

As I was running one morning, I saw this on the ground.  I see irony on many levels represented here.

While we still don't know if the Lord would have us plant our own church or simply continue to work through Everett Family Church to impact the community, Amanda and I have come to some conclusions about what we will do regardless of our circumstances.  We believe these things are from the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  While these statements aren't as clear as they probably will be within a year, these frame our thinking.

1. We see a church that is a set of reproducible small groups within the community.  The group will worship and serve together, along with weekly fellowship.  Gatherings will not be bound to a church building. 
2. Starting with one group meeting together, the group will raise and train at least one leader couple who will be charged with shepherding their own community in the future.  This group will consist of disciples who make disciples.  
3. Each group will be the hands and feet of Jesus in the surrounding community, particularly focusing on the poor, widows, and orphans. We will teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ to these individuals with a major focus on discipleship.
4. Money collected will be redistributed to the poor and the needy as the Lord directs.  No money will go to our family other than what is necessary to provide meeting space, food, or other material needs to keep the regular operations going.  Excess money will be given to missionaries around the world, or to train up and send missionaries from among our own.

As you can see, much of these ideas can be concretely implemented through our home.  Our sincere hope is that we can draw in neighbors and bring them to Jesus through what are arguably informal gatherings.  As we wait to move into our wonderful new house, our prayer is that it would become the Lord's very presence in downtown Everett.

The Lord had this to say to us as we prayed about His vision for Everett.

Isaiah 58:6-14
“No, this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
    lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
    and remove the chains that bind people.
⁷ Share your food with the hungry,
    and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
    and do not hide from relatives who need your help.

⁸ “Then your salvation will come like the dawn,
    and your wounds will quickly heal.
Your godliness will lead you forward,
    and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.
⁹ Then when you call, the Lord will answer.
    ‘Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply.

“Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.
    Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!
¹⁰ Feed the hungry,
    and help those in trouble.
Then your light will shine out from the darkness,
    and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.
¹¹ The Lord will guide you continually,
    giving you water when you are dry
    and restoring your strength.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
    like an ever-flowing spring.
¹² Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities.
    Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls
    and a restorer of homes.

¹³ “Keep the Sabbath day holy.
    Don’t pursue your own interests on that day,
but enjoy the Sabbath
    and speak of it with delight as the Lord’s holy day.
Honor the Sabbath in everything you do on that day,
    and don’t follow your own desires or talk idly.
¹⁴ Then the Lord will be your delight.
    I will give you great honor
and satisfy you with the inheritance I promised to your ancestor Jacob.
    I, the Lord, have spoken!”

I probably need to clarify some thoughts on money since it is a sensitive subject.  We as a family have been richly blessed and our needs are met in abundance.  I have a good job that provides time and financial assistance to allow us to do many other things outside of the workplace.  I have met few church planters who are in this circumstance, as many of them have to take financial assistance from mission organizations or churches just to keep their families afloat.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with that either!  If someone has dedicated their very life to the Lord and doing his work, why can't they provide for their family with funds raised from it?

Here's what the Apostle Paul said about it.

1 Corinthians 9
⁷ What soldier has to pay his own expenses? What farmer plants a vineyard and doesn’t have the right to eat some of its fruit? What shepherd cares for a flock of sheep and isn’t allowed to drink some of the milk? ⁸ Am I expressing merely a human opinion, or does the law say the same thing? ⁹ For the law of Moses says, “You must not muzzle an ox to keep it from eating as it treads out the grain.”^[c] Was God thinking only about oxen when he said this? ¹⁰ Wasn’t he actually speaking to us? Yes, it was written for us, so that the one who plows and the one who threshes the grain might both expect a share of the harvest.
¹¹ Since we have planted spiritual seed among you, aren’t we entitled to a harvest of physical food and drink? ¹² If you support others who preach to you, shouldn’t we have an even greater right to be supported?

As for us, we have made a conscious choice to not take funding for the purpose of directly supporting our family.  I have no idea what the future holds, but for now, we as a family are well provided for.  I believe this puts us in a unique position with the community because, regardless of how you feel about Jesus, you won't be able to say that we are it for the money, or that this is our "job."  Instead, we intend to use the resources that we have along with whatever others choose to contribute to be used to bring the message of Jesus to this place.  We will continue to make you aware as specific needs arise, in case you want to participate.
 
The Apostle Paul also spoke passionately on this subject.

1 Corinthians 9:13-18
 But we have never used this right. We would rather put up with anything than be an obstacle to the Good News about Christ.
¹³ Don’t you realize that those who work in the temple get their meals from the offerings brought to the temple? And those who serve at the altar get a share of the sacrificial offerings. ¹⁴ In the same way, the Lord ordered that those who preach the Good News should be supported by those who benefit from it. ¹⁵ Yet I have never used any of these rights. And I am not writing this to suggest that I want to start now. In fact, I would rather die than lose my right to boast about preaching without charge. ¹⁶ Yet preaching the Good News is not something I can boast about. I am compelled by God to do it. How terrible for me if I didn’t preach the Good News!
¹⁷ If I were doing this on my own initiative, I would deserve payment. But I have no choice, for God has given me this sacred trust. ¹⁸ What then is my pay? It is the opportunity to preach the Good News without charging anyone. That’s why I never demand my rights when I preach the Good News.

Truly I couldn't have said it better than Paul.