The Redemption Blog

Your Life Is Not Your Own

Through out the new testament we read instructions to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice (Rom 12:1), deny ourselves (Mat 16:24), lose our lives (Mark 8:35), and hate our life (John 12:25). It is clear that when God saves us and we begin to live Jesus' mission, our lives become the property of God (who gave us our life to begin with).

However, it is very easy to forget this here in America and especially in the suburbs. The call of comfort, safety, and convenience is quite strong and it is very counter cultural to not pursue those things. But since our lives are not our own, we must.

I was reminded of this the other day. My wife and I stumbled across a television show called "Teen Cribs". It is a spin off of another show called "Cribs" where the rich and famous walk around their mansions and show off all of their stuff.

The same thing happens in "Teen Cribs". These kids walk around a massive home filled with all the finest things and they show off their room, their basketball court, their Porsche (that they are too you to drive), their swimming pool, and their game rooms. All the while bragging about how great their home is. The only problem is nothing in the home nor the home itself is theirs.

All of these kids have wealthy parents who have purchased the home, filled the home with stuff, and pay to maintain the home. The home is not theirs.

We do the same thing with our lives. We live where we want to live, speak to who we want to speak to, and spend our money on what we want. However, your life is not your own. It is God's and he has saved you and called you to live as a missionary in this world.

This means every decision from where you live to who you hang out with needs to made with the mission in mind. Our mission is to make disciples of Jesus and lead them to maturity (Mat 28:19) and I encourage you to do this remembering that your life is not your own.

For further reading on this topic check out "Don't Waste Your Life" by John Piper.

Posted By Scott Holthaus
Director Of Worship Arts

An incredible team...Part 2

As  mentioned in Part 1  of "An incredible team"  I will be spending the next several weeks walk through the Strengthsfinder results of our core leadership team here at Redemption.  I have been amazed at how God has been refining this team to make us the perfect group to launch Redemption.

Let me introduce you to Scott.  He is the Director of Worship Arts here at Redemption and regular contributor to this blog.  His Strengthsfinder profile is as follows (in the order of most predominant strength first):

Empathy
People who are especially talented in the Empathy theme can sense the feelings of other people by imagining themselves in others' lives or others' situations. He frequently amuses people with stories, examples, or playful capers. His style of delivery often distracts individuals from the sometimes mundane and numbing routines of their lives. He  follows his intuition and feelings when making major choices in life. By nature, he is a gifted raconteur -- that is, a fine storyteller. He notices his audience's mood the moment he walks into the room. This ability allows him to accurately interpret the feelings of your story's characters.  He spontaneously tunes in to whatever another human being is thinking, feeling, or needing. Because of his strengths, he is keenly aware of others' moods. His insights can be especially valuable when he is helping someone develop strength by acquiring a skill, gaining knowledge, or using a talent.

Restorative
People who are especially talented in the Restorative theme are adept at dealing with problems. They are good at figuring out what is wrong and resolving it. He seeks to understand things that most people do not comprehend. He wants to make things better tomorrow than they were today. He usually gets more done when he has goals.  By nature, he gravitates toward people who speak truthfully when he asks for constructive criticism and honest feedback. He especially seeks information about areas where he needs to perform better, eliminate deficiencies, or make upgrades. Driven by his talents, he considers safe ways to reveal personal information without compromising his need for privacy.

Positivity
People who are especially talented in the Positivity theme have an enthusiasm that is contagious. They are upbeat and can get others excited about what they are going to do. Instinctively, he is a happy-go-lucky individual who can find the good in just about anyone or anything.  He might see the good in individuals and choose to overlook their flaws or mistakes. The fondness he shows toward others endears him to many of them. He often is candid and forthright with others about his challenges, happy moments, and sad events. He freely gives individuals his time, energy, and expertise. His open nature and willingness to share distinguishes him from most people.  He instinctively understand how to make others feel good. He is known as a giver, not a taker.  Driven by his talents, he accept individuals just as they are.  This is one reason why he seems to get along with more people than others can.

Developer
People who are especially talented in the Developer theme recognize and cultivate the potential in others. They spot the signs of each small improvement and derive satisfaction from these improvements. Because of his strengths, he realizes numerous individuals need his attention to feel valued or appreciated. He can sense when someone's spirit needs to be lifted or his/her contributions need to be acknowledged. He knows what to say and how to say it so your compliments or words of recognition sound truthful, genuine, and sincere.  By nature, he has a special gift for helping people realize that he truly values them and holds them in high regard. Instinctively, he typically wants to capture first place and be the champion.

Competition
People who are especially talented in the Competition theme measure their progress against the performance of others. They strive to win first place and revel in contests. He works diligently to produce good outcomes.  He consistently aims to turn in the prize winning performance.  He works industriously on particular kinds of projects. Sometimes he devotes unusually long hours or expend tremendous amounts of energy on his job or studies.

For those of you who haven't gotten to know Scott well yet, you would be well served to do so as you will surely be blessed by this amazing guy.  As you can clearly see, God has been refining Scott to be a crucial member of this incredible team!

Posted by Tyler Drewitz
Ministry Development & Administration

I'm Just Not A Reader

Do you love to read? Some people can read with great ease. My wife is like this. She can read a fiction book like it's going out of style. And yet other people find nothing more painful than sitting down to a book.

God opened my eyes recently to something in the closing sentences of 2 Timothy that you probably would have missed if you didn't know it was there. In the final paragraph of 2 Timothy Paul is asking Timothy to greet certain people for him, avoid certain people, bring him some things, and warning him of people. In verse 13 he says,

            "¹³When you come, bring the cloak that I left with Carpus at Troas, also the books, and above all the parchments.

Did you see it? He asks Timothy to bring him books. The man who God used to write most of the New Testament needed his books! He needed to study!

This should cause us great relief that we are in good company in our need to read and study.

Now I know some will say, "I just can't read books, especially non-fiction books." And to you, I have a few things to say in love.

First, yes you can. There are certain things we can't do (outside of God's miraculous intervention) such as fly, hold our breath for 1 hour, swim in lava. But reading, we can do. Now we may not like it or want to do it, but we certainly can.

Second, no one says you always have to read a book. You can listen to a book. Audio books are a great resource especially if you have a long commute.

Third, God chose to give us his inspired word in a book. This means that we must get over our "inability" to read so that we can read the very words of God that he has graciously given to us.

So I would encourage all of you to read books. Read theological books that grow your understanding of God and your love for him. Read old books (I am coming to find that most new books are actual old books that someone else read and then rewrote in their own words). And read THE book, the very words of our sovereign and loving God.

Here are some resources to find good books:

Desiring God - Books by John Piper

The Resurgence Recommended Books

Best Commentaries

Westminster Book Store - A good place to find books for cheap

Posted by Scott Holthaus

Director of Worship Arts

Links...

Here's some links to fill your week

• Some good news about the Hobbit movie for all my fellow geeks

• All the audio from the Gospel Coalition 2009 National Conference here...

• Sovereign Grace Pastors conference audio for download here...

• Piper's personal journey from the Thursday night follow up to the Gospel Coalition here...

• Keller's notes from the GCNC here...

• Driscoll's notes from the GCNC here...

• Mark Dever's interview with John Piper: Part 1 and Part 2

The Gospel Coalition Resources

This past Tuesday through Thursday Pastor Ryan and I were privileged to attend the Gospel Coalition's national conference. We were able to hear some great pastors and scholars preach on 2 Timothy as well as meet some fellow church planters and pastors.

I wanted to point you to a couple different resources from the conference that are free and worth your time.

The first is a collection of the main sessions and a couple of breakout sessions. Among the main sessions, you would be wise to listen to John Piper's and Mark Driscoll's. You can find a full list of them here

Also, Tim Keller (an author and pastor out of Manhattan) preached an excellent sermon on confronting idols and preaching the gospel. As we continue to share the gospel and grow Redemption, we will have to continue to confront not only other people's idols, but our own. You can find his sermon here

Posted by Scott Holthaus
Director of Worship Arts

An incredible team...Part 1

One of the things I love the most about being in a position of leadership is being able to build my team.  I love nothing more that to put complimentary strengths together to take something good into something great. As mentioned in previous posts I am a Strengths Finder fan and regularly use this tool to assist in building a great team.

StrengthsFinder is a Web-based assessment of normal personality from the perspective of Positive Psychology. It is the first assessment instrument of this type developed expressly for the Internet. Over a secure connection, StrengthsFinder presents 180 items to the participant. Each item consists of a pair of potential self-descriptors, such as "I read instructions carefully" versus "I like to jump right into things." The descriptors are placed as if anchoring polar ends of a continuum. The participant is then asked to choose from the pair the statement that best describes him or her, and also to what extent that chosen option is descriptive. The respondent is given 20 seconds to respond to a given pair of descriptors before the system moves on to the next pair. The program introduces 34 dominant "themes" with thousands of possible combinations, and reveals how they can best be translated into personal and career success.

Recently Ryan, Scott, & I took this test and it really caused me to be in awe of how amazingly God works.  You see, the things that are your natural strengths are  pre-developed between the years of 1-4 and solidified between years 13-15.  These are the times when our brains are developing the most and the talents, preferences, and even tastes for what foods we like and don't like set into who we will be. 

Some people look at these processes and reference accidental evolution as the source.  I see these things as God "working in me to will and to act according to his good purpose" Philipians 2:13.  As we sat for several hours one day and worked through our test results I was left in awe of God and how he has been building His team for Redemption since before the foundations of the world.  Long before any of us had ever met, God was developing our ability to grow into an amazing team of diverse strengths.  We aren't just 3 friends starting a church but 3 men that God has chosen and has been preparing "For His Glory and the Good of the City."

Over the next few weeks I will be giving you a synopsis of each of our StrengthsFinder results and discussing the core team (recently referred to the 3 musketeers) that God has built and put together.

I obviously highly recommend everyone taking the Strength Finders test.  In order to do so purchase "StrengthsFinder 2.0" and within the book you will get an on-line code to take the test.

Until next week.

Posted by Tyler Drewitz

Ministry Development & Administration

Espeacially When It's Hard

My wife and I had a lovely time of reminiscing the other day while we went through some of my clothing and school work from my junior high and high school days. Amidst the rummaging through of the embarrassing fashion choices and poorly done chalk sketches from art class, we conversed with my parents about my time spent in school. It ranged from the classes I took to the work that I did and during that conversation my mom made an interesting observation. She said, "you never did anything that was hard."

While this was a bit of a shock at first, I realized she was right. From the time I was a young child until just a few years ago, I would either avoid or quit anything that was hard. Whether it was a diet and exercise plan, a sport, or a relationship, if the going got tough, I got going.

By his grace God is changing this within me and I am seeing that if we are to live our lives as Christians and especially if we are to embark on this journey of planting a church, we need to prepare for things to be hard.

This past Saturday Pastor Ryan preached about the opposition we are facing and we will face as we move forward. We need to remember that "we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places." (Ephesians 6:12). That opposition with be tough, but we are in Jesus who conquered sin, Satan, and demons through his death and resurrection.

So what do we do? There are plenty of self help strategies that preach positive thinking and mantra like statements of "I think I can, I think I can". But this is not helpful to us and will lead us to worshiping ourselves as ultimate instead of Jesus.

In order to endure we need to devote ourselves to daily reading and memorization of scripture, daily prayer, and community with other Christians. This will not only grow our affections for Jesus and our love and worship of him, it will also prepare us to endure, especially when it's hard.

I leave you with Paul's words to Timothy from 2 Timothy 4:7-8

^"7I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. ⁸Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing."

Posted By Scott Holthaus
Director of Worship Arts

Links...

Here's a few links to fill your time and mind this week! Enjoy...

• John Piper interview with Matt Chandler: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

• Wayne Grudem teaching his entire Systematic Theology class here...

• Scott Thomas on how Mark Driscoll leads here...

• Here's where I'll be all this week... and you can watch it here...

• If you're interested in being a part of the Gospel Coalition online network click here...

• Great counsel from Piper about maintaining unity in the midst of difference...

Posted by Ryan Huguley
Lead Pastor for Preaching and Vision

Wayne Grudem on Why Theology is Important

I would argue that most people in the church today do not think theology is of any practical importance. Because of this we see more and more compromise in our churches. I do not think most people set out to fall victim to poor theology, but because most people do not see any significance in theology as a practical spiritual discipline it is very easy for them to be swept up in unorthodox theological ideas.

May we experience a renewal in our desire to understand the Scriptures in the way God would have us. May we begin to realize again that theology is not simply for our heads, but our hearts. May our theology begin to stir our affection for Jesus again...

Dr. Wayne Grudem Addresses the Advance 09 Crowd from The Resurgence on Vimeo.

Worship Resources

I love learning more about what it means to worship God. What we quickly is that it involves much more than singing songs together on a Sunday. Here are some resources that will help you in learning more about worship.

Tim Smith is the worship pastor at Mars Hill Church in Seattle. He does a great job of combining good music and good theology. He blogs at the Resurgence.

Tim Smith on Missional Worship

Bob Kauflin works with Sovereign Grace ministries and he has written a few books and countless songs. You can buy his book here.

Bob Kauflin on Healthy Tensions in Corporate Worship

John Piper is a pastor and one of the great theologians of our time. You can find a plethora of resources from Dr. Piper here .

A Seminar on Worship by John Piper

Hope these resources serve you well!

Posted by Scott Holthaus
Worship Arts