The horror continues to unfold in the wreck of the Casta Concordia cruise ship on the rocks of Giglio Island just off the coast of Italy.  The dream vacation of the 3-4,000 passengers cruising the Greek Islands turned into a nightmare when the ship crashed into the rocks, tearing a 120-foot hole in the side of the ship.

            Within minutes, water filled the ship and the ship flipped on its side.  In scenes reminiscent of the Titanic, tables, dishes and equipment went flying.  People leaped off the ship and attempted to swim through the icy waters to shore. There were screams in the dark amidst a mad scramble to get to the lifeboats, all of which were crowded beyond capacity.  One horrifying scene shows a human chain stretching across the upturned hull of the ship, lowering one person at a time to safety. 

            As of this morning, there are several confirmed fatalities and about 30 people still unaccounted for.

            What happened?  Almost immediately, fingers were pointed at the captain. The ship was out of the normally marked channels. Word came that the captain had sent an inquiry about his dinner order—thirty minutes after impact and with the ship already listing! Then, it became evident that the captain had abandoned ship while people were still in danger and had to be ordered back to give direction to the crew.

            But it seems that the real problem came long before the Casta Concordia ran aground.  As a favor to his head waiter, the captain changed course so the waiter could signal his family, who live on Giglio Island.  They would blow the ship’s horn and the waiter could stand on deck and wave as they passed. He moved the ship four miles off course, and came within 162 yards of the coast—when company policy mandates a ship come no closer than 547 yards.

            Because of a private and unannounced indulgence, the Casta Concordia ran aground and people lost their lives.

            But mostly the Casta Concordia wrecked because the captain forgot the point of the voyage and his primary responsibilities.  He confused the priorities of passengers and crew. He blurred the lines between charted journey and frivolous side trip. He forgot the primary goal was to get the passengers safely to the other side.

            Increasingly, we find evangelical churches and ministries in crisis and running aground.  Most churches in my tribe of Southern Baptists are plateaued or declining.  They struggle to gain any traction with a culture that has changed and with generations that are suspicious of all things “church”. People are abandoning the ship of the church like it is sinking fast, opting for other gatherings of Christ-followers built for deep community in homes or around involvement in social justice issues. Others are just plain opting out.

            Why is the church struggling? Because many have forgotten the point of the journey and its primary responsibility.  Jesus made it clear that his church was designed to glorify God (Matt. 22:37-38, Eph. 3:20-21) by spreading to all people the gospel (good news) of a life-and-family-and- community-and–injustice-and-eternity- transforming relationship with God available through repentance and faith in Jesus. (Luke 15:11-32, Luke 24:47, Rom. 1:16) This is to happen one life at a time, as the church gives its energy and resources to loving people where they are, sharing life as a radically new community, and developing a certain sort of person called a disciple of Jesus. (Matt. 22:39, Acts 2:41-47, 28:19-20)

            When a church forgets this point and loses focus on it, it can begin to drift off course.  We can confuse the privilege of serving the membership with the priority of serving those still outside the faith.  No church whose focus is primarily on the pleasure of its own crew will broadly impact others making the journey from death to life.  We can indulge our own relationships and preferences, all while drifting away from the path that will engage spiritually far-from-God people and help them move closer to a relationship with God.  It’s the spiritual equivalent of a cruise-ship wave to friends. 

            When a church loses its gospel and disciple-making North Star, it will be tempted to take trivial side trips.  The church can be heavily involved with community service, have wonderfully engaging children’s or student ministries, maintain good stewardship of its buildings and facilities, train families for financial freedom, produce powerful musical presentations, be organizationally efficient, encourage good friendships, sponsor fellowships and trips for senior adults, provide a wide range of classes and groups for Biblical training, be powerfully engaged with social justice issues or take a stand for moral values, be technologically savvy, and more.  All of those things can be proper and powerful for a church IF they are intentionally shaped in the service of spreading the gospel and making disciples who increasingly resemble Jesus. Otherwise, they are merely the trivial strivings of a religious club.

            Why does this matter? Because there’s really only one thing the church of Jesus can do: we spread the fame of Jesus by making gospel-centered disciples who trust Christ alone to save from sin, shape their life and secure their eternal destiny. If we do anything other than that, we move off-course and into the shallows where rocks lurk to tear holes in the hull of the ship of Zion.

            So, when the church runs aground because of selfish course adjustments, it violates the command of our King and gives a false reading of His great heart.   

            But even more, when the church runs aground, it places precious far-from-God people in eternal peril. It tosses people who desperately need Jesus out to make their own way in the chill of the world.

            Pray the church of Jesus—beginning with ours– stays on course, so that we can finish the journey with a ship full of people, all delighting in King Jesus who will be standing with open arms to welcome us Home.

           

The horror continues to unfold in the wreck of the Casta Concordia cruise ship on the rocks of Giglio Island just off the coast of Italy.  The dream vacation of the 3-4,000 passengers cruising the Greek Islands turned into a nightmare when the ship crashed into the rocks, tearing a 120-foot hole in the side of the ship.

            Within minutes, water filled the ship and the ship flipped on its side.  In scenes reminiscent of the Titanic, tables, dishes and equipment went flying.  People leaped off the ship and attempted to swim through the icy waters to shore. There were screams in the dark amidst a mad scramble to get to the lifeboats, all of which were crowded beyond capacity.  One horrifying scene shows a human chain stretching across the upturned hull of the ship, lowering one person at a time to safety. 

            As of this morning, there are several confirmed fatalities and about 30 people still unaccounted for.

            What happened?  Almost immediately, fingers were pointed at the captain. The ship was out of the normally marked channels. Word came that the captain had sent an inquiry about his dinner order—thirty minutes after impact and with the ship already listing! Then, it became evident that the captain had abandoned ship while people were still in danger and had to be ordered back to give direction to the crew.

            But it seems that the real problem came long before the Casta Concordia ran aground.  As a favor to his head waiter, the captain changed course so the waiter could signal his family, who live on Giglio Island.  They would blow the ship’s horn and the waiter could stand on deck and wave as they passed. He moved the ship four miles off course, and came within 162 yards of the coast—when company policy mandates a ship come no closer than 547 yards.

            Because of a private and unannounced indulgence, the Casta Concordia ran aground and people lost their lives.

            But mostly the Casta Concordia wrecked because the captain forgot the point of the voyage and his primary responsibilities.  He confused the priorities of passengers and crew. He blurred the lines between charted journey and frivolous side trip. He forgot the primary goal was to get the passengers safely to the other side.

            Increasingly, we find evangelical churches and ministries in crisis and running aground.  Most churches in my tribe of Southern Baptists are plateaued or declining.  They struggle to gain any traction with a culture that has changed and with generations that are suspicious of all things “church”. People are abandoning the ship of the church like it is sinking fast, opting for other gatherings of Christ-followers built for deep community in homes or around involvement in social justice issues. Others are just plain opting out.

            Why is the church struggling? Because many have forgotten the point of the journey and its primary responsibility.  Jesus made it clear that his church was designed to glorify God (Matt. 22:37-38, Eph. 3:20-21) by spreading to all people the gospel (good news) of a life-and-family-and- community-and–injustice-and-eternity- transforming relationship with God available through repentance and faith in Jesus. (Luke 15:11-32, Luke 24:47, Rom. 1:16) This is to happen one life at a time, as the church gives its energy and resources to loving people where they are, sharing life as a radically new community, and developing a certain sort of person called a disciple of Jesus. (Matt. 22:39, Acts 2:41-47, 28:19-20)

            When a church forgets this point and loses focus on it, it can begin to drift off course.  We can confuse the privilege of serving the membership with the priority of serving those still outside the faith.  No church whose focus is primarily on the pleasure of its own crew will broadly impact others making the journey from death to life.  We can indulge our own relationships and preferences, all while drifting away from the path that will engage spiritually far-from-God people and help them move closer to a relationship with God.  It’s the spiritual equivalent of a cruise-ship wave to friends. 

            When a church loses its gospel and disciple-making North Star, it will be tempted to take trivial side trips.  The church can be heavily involved with community service, have wonderfully engaging children’s or student ministries, maintain good stewardship of its buildings and facilities, train families for financial freedom, produce powerful musical presentations, be organizationally efficient, encourage good friendships, sponsor fellowships and trips for senior adults, provide a wide range of classes and groups for Biblical training, be powerfully engaged with social justice issues or take a stand for moral values, be technologically savvy, and more.  All of those things can be proper and powerful for a church IF they are intentionally shaped in the service of spreading the gospel and making disciples who increasingly resemble Jesus. Otherwise, they are merely the trivial strivings of a religious club.

            Why does this matter? Because there’s really only one thing the church of Jesus can do: we spread the fame of Jesus by making gospel-centered disciples who trust Christ alone to save from sin, shape their life and secure their eternal destiny. If we do anything other than that, we move off-course and into the shallows where rocks lurk to tear holes in the hull of the ship of Zion.

            So, when the church runs aground because of selfish course adjustments, it violates the command of our King and gives a false reading of His great heart.   

            But even more, when the church runs aground, it places precious far-from-God people in eternal peril. It tosses people who desperately need Jesus out to make their own way in the chill of the world.

            Pray the church of Jesus—beginning with ours– stays on course, so that we can finish the journey with a ship full of people, all delighting in King Jesus who will be standing with open arms to welcome us Home.

           

The horror continues to unfold in the wreck of the Casta Concordia cruise ship on the rocks of Giglio Island just off the coast of Italy.  The dream vacation of the 3-4,000 passengers cruising the Greek Islands turned into a nightmare when the ship crashed into the rocks, tearing a 120-foot hole in the side of the ship.

            Within minutes, water filled the ship and the ship flipped on its side.  In scenes reminiscent of the Titanic, tables, dishes and equipment went flying.  People leaped off the ship and attempted to swim through the icy waters to shore. There were screams in the dark amidst a mad scramble to get to the lifeboats, all of which were crowded beyond capacity.  One horrifying scene shows a human chain stretching across the upturned hull of the ship, lowering one person at a time to safety. 

            As of this morning, there are several confirmed fatalities and about 30 people still unaccounted for.

            What happened?  Almost immediately, fingers were pointed at the captain. The ship was out of the normally marked channels. Word came that the captain had sent an inquiry about his dinner order—thirty minutes after impact and with the ship already listing! Then, it became evident that the captain had abandoned ship while people were still in danger and had to be ordered back to give direction to the crew.

            But it seems that the real problem came long before the Casta Concordia ran aground.  As a favor to his head waiter, the captain changed course so the waiter could signal his family, who live on Giglio Island.  They would blow the ship’s horn and the waiter could stand on deck and wave as they passed. He moved the ship four miles off course, and came within 162 yards of the coast—when company policy mandates a ship come no closer than 547 yards.

            Because of a private and unannounced indulgence, the Casta Concordia ran aground and people lost their lives.

            But mostly the Casta Concordia wrecked because the captain forgot the point of the voyage and his primary responsibilities.  He confused the priorities of passengers and crew. He blurred the lines between charted journey and frivolous side trip. He forgot the primary goal was to get the passengers safely to the other side.

            Increasingly, we find evangelical churches and ministries in crisis and running aground.  Most churches in my tribe of Southern Baptists are plateaued or declining.  They struggle to gain any traction with a culture that has changed and with generations that are suspicious of all things “church”. People are abandoning the ship of the church like it is sinking fast, opting for other gatherings of Christ-followers built for deep community in homes or around involvement in social justice issues. Others are just plain opting out.

            Why is the church struggling? Because many have forgotten the point of the journey and its primary responsibility.  Jesus made it clear that his church was designed to glorify God (Matt. 22:37-38, Eph. 3:20-21) by spreading to all people the gospel (good news) of a life-and-family-and- community-and–injustice-and-eternity- transforming relationship with God available through repentance and faith in Jesus. (Luke 15:11-32, Luke 24:47, Rom. 1:16) This is to happen one life at a time, as the church gives its energy and resources to loving people where they are, sharing life as a radically new community, and developing a certain sort of person called a disciple of Jesus. (Matt. 22:39, Acts 2:41-47, 28:19-20)

            When a church forgets this point and loses focus on it, it can begin to drift off course.  We can confuse the privilege of serving the membership with the priority of serving those still outside the faith.  No church whose focus is primarily on the pleasure of its own crew will broadly impact others making the journey from death to life.  We can indulge our own relationships and preferences, all while drifting away from the path that will engage spiritually far-from-God people and help them move closer to a relationship with God.  It’s the spiritual equivalent of a cruise-ship wave to friends. 

            When a church loses its gospel and disciple-making North Star, it will be tempted to take trivial side trips.  The church can be heavily involved with community service, have wonderfully engaging children’s or student ministries, maintain good stewardship of its buildings and facilities, train families for financial freedom, produce powerful musical presentations, be organizationally efficient, encourage good friendships, sponsor fellowships and trips for senior adults, provide a wide range of classes and groups for Biblical training, be powerfully engaged with social justice issues or take a stand for moral values, be technologically savvy, and more.  All of those things can be proper and powerful for a church IF they are intentionally shaped in the service of spreading the gospel and making disciples who increasingly resemble Jesus. Otherwise, they are merely the trivial strivings of a religious club.

            Why does this matter? Because there’s really only one thing the church of Jesus can do: we spread the fame of Jesus by making gospel-centered disciples who trust Christ alone to save from sin, shape their life and secure their eternal destiny. If we do anything other than that, we move off-course and into the shallows where rocks lurk to tear holes in the hull of the ship of Zion.

            So, when the church runs aground because of selfish course adjustments, it violates the command of our King and gives a false reading of His great heart.   

            But even more, when the church runs aground, it places precious far-from-God people in eternal peril. It tosses people who desperately need Jesus out to make their own way in the chill of the world.

            Pray the church of Jesus—beginning with ours– stays on course, so that we can finish the journey with a ship full of people, all delighting in King Jesus who will be standing with open arms to welcome us Home.

           

My son Drew gave me a wonderful gift for Christmas—a trip with he and a friend to the Passion 2012 conference in Atlanta.  (We may have been the smallest group there, but we got in at the last minute to the sold-out event.)

            Passion, a ministry founded by Louie Giglio about 15 years ago, exists to mobilize a generation of young adults (age 18-25) around the glory of God, the gospel of Jesus and the global purposes of God.  The ministry is rooted in Isaiah 26:8: “Yes, Lord, walking in the way of Your truth, we wait eagerly for You, for Your name and renown are the desire of our souls.”  While the power of Passion emerges from the national conference and the worship music of Chris Tomlin and others, it is clearly more. This is a movement built on the Word and energized by the Spirit for a unique impact in this generation.

            Passion 2012 was held Jan. 2-5 in the Georgia Dome, the stadium where the Atlanta Falcons play football.  The schedule included times of worship and preaching, community groups for a more personal interaction, and a major emphasis on global social justice. It’s almost impossible to describe the experiences of these days in detail, so, let me just share the snapshots that come to mind:

            + 42,000+ young adults is a lot of young adults in one place!  But that also meant a lot of diversity (from all 50 states and 42 foreign countries and who knows how many college campuses) and a lot of wonderful energy.  They filled half the Georgia Dome, three tiers high.  There were also over 2000 older people, who wanted to invest in this generation, and were there to simply serve the students.  The next time I find myself without a group, I’m going as a volunteer.

            + genuine patience, consideration and even joy demonstrated while standing in line…in the cold…over and over again.  Moving from one session to another, from the stadium sessions to meal times resulted in bottlenecks of thousands trying to get up single escalators or stairs.  Not one word of complaint or even a snap of irritation was evidenced.

                   My favorite moment?  Noticing one guy in an office overlooking the crowds, students by the dozens began to wave. No response. More waving. No response. More wavers.  He walks away. Groans. Then returns to the window.  Even more waving. Finally the man lifted a hand to the crowd. Cheers!

            + spiritual intensity of the worship. The Spirit’s presence was palpable in every gathering.  Sometimes, it was in music, singing and shouts that roared louder than any game I have attended. The sound surrounded you like a blanket. All around were students going all out in declaring God’s glory, with voices and hands both raised. There were moments of “David before the ark” dancing for sheer joy and surrender.  Other times, it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop—not an “I’m uncomfortable” cough was heard.  There was a clear focus on and expectation of meeting with God in that place.

            + the songs of Chris Tomlin, Hillsong, Matt Redman, Kristian Stanfill and David Crowder are anointed of God for the worship of this generation.   The global version of ‘How Great is Our God” with worship leaders from Ukraine, Brazil, Mexico, Japan, China and  a children’s choir from Uganda was an astonishing glimpse of the Kingdom and of the promise of heaven that left most of us in tears. But the new songs introduced grabbed the hearts and minds of the students quickly, so that they sang with a personal investment in songs like “I raise my white flag; I surrender all to You, all for You…I’m not ashamed of the One who saved my soul”. Tomlin and the others are writing songs that are the hymns of this generation: rich in doctrine (God-glorifying and Christ-centered), meaningful lyrical content (not trite or sappy), captivating melody and emotional connection. 

                But don’t miss this: they sang with equal gusto the old hymns that have been around for decades or centuries like Amazing Grace, Leaning on the Everlasting Arms and Because He Lives, and leaned into reworked versions of songs like I Have Decided to Follow Jesus.

            + The Word of God was given a central place to everything.  Every single student had a copy of the Bible and most had journals that they opened and took notes when God’s Word was taught with depth and excellence by Louis Giglio, Beth More, Francis Chan and John Piper.  But even more…the opening session was scheduled to start at 7pm.  Scripture readers began reading Scripture aloud at 6:40pm. The first note of music was sung at 7:30pm!  That’s fifty minutes under the Word—plus a message. In a later session, one of the message times was given over to reading the entire book of Ephesians aloud, without commentary, allowing for quiet space between chapters to listen for what the Spirit was saying. Remarkable.

            + global social justice: human trafficking – One of the key components of the Passion movement has been to leverage the lives and resources of students into the deepest human needs on our planet. In previous years, through the Do Something Now campaign, under its banner “Together, we are a force for good”, students have among other things, given money to drill wells for villages without clean water, provide micro-finance loans for people in impoverished countries, fund translations of the Scriptures for peoples without the Bible in their language, and every year, provided hundreds of thousands of towels and socks for the homeless in the Atlanta area. 

                This year, in addition to more towels and socks, the focus was on one issue:    human trafficking. There are 27 million people in slavery worldwide today, more than any time in human history. Much has to do with the sex trade, but there are still those forced to work in deplorable conditions of production for heartless  taskmasters.  People on every continent and in every country are enslaved – including the United States.  Globally, two children are sold into slavery every single minute.

                        The students were made aware of this through a gripping film that told the stories of three specific slaves, interviews with Christian groups laboring on the front lines of human trafficking, the filming of an anti-slavery music video to be released in Europe and Asia, and an action center where they could learn more. They were challenged to give $1million to combat human trafficking. They stood in lines with thousands of people for hours for the privilege of giving their money away. 

                        After each student gave they were given a pass to a reserved area in an    outdoor plaza where, when we arrived, there was little more than a bare scaffolding raised amid some flimsy flags. Turns out there were 27,000 flags, each representing 1000 people enslaved worldwide. And the scaffolding was an art project that the students themselves made by wiring prayers and Bible verses on items that are largely made by slave labor: jeans, soccer balls, Christmas decorations, etc.

                        When the art project was complete, it was an uplifted hand of…worship…or pleading for help…or identification…or volunteering to do   something.  It was lit at midnight, surrounded by 42,000 candle-holding students, standing as a silent witness to the horror and their commitment to do something about it in the name of Christ.

                                   CNN Report on Do Something Now

                        Oh, the students gave $2.6 million.

            + impact on the arena workers – There were the volunteers, and then there were also the workers at the Georgia Dome: security people, gatekeepers, back-pack searchers, the workers at the Starbucks and Papa Johns kiosks (which were very popular in the morning and in the evening, respectively).  The first day or so, they mostly looked overwhelmed at the sheer numbers with which they were dealing.  But then, something changed.  The guys with the bullhorns began being more playful.  The bag searchers relaxed and joked. 

                        On the last day, one of the arena workers, a single mom, stopped a             volunteer and asked her, “What is going on here?”. The predictable answer came back, “It’s Passion, a Christian conference for 18-25 year-olds, and….” Interrupting, the worker said, ”No, I mean, what is this that grabs and pounds inside my chest every time I come to work this week?  What is going on here?” And the volunteer smiled and said, “Oh, that.  That’s the power of God.  Do you know Him?” And within minutes, a single mother working just another event  at the Georgia Dome heard the gospel, trusted Christ and passed from death to life.

                        When relating that story, Louie said, “When the power of God shows up,   there are no limits to what can happen.”     

            + Kingdom potential–  That’s what kept coming to my mind as I would scan the crowd or look at the two students next to me.  What could happen through these lives for the advance of God’s Kingdom borders, the pushing back of the power of darkness, the reaching of unreached peoples, the inrushing of heaven-scented justice, the spread of God’s glory and the renown of Jesus? 

                        It is staggering and wonderful to consider. I hope the Lord lets me be a       part of it—and that my generation will join them.  We could then be “generations united for the renown of Jesus’ name.”

             

Watch carefully, listen deeply, pray gratitude for the wonder that is the Christmas gift of Jesus.

There is an essential “Englishness” to many of the best carols.  These songs are built around sturdy, singable melodies; rich harmonies; and thoughtful, theological lyrics.

One of the best known English carols is ”Once in Royal David’s City”.  It has been used for years as the opening song of the Service of Lessons and Carols at Westmiunster Cathedral.  The carol was written Cecil Frances Humphreys Alexander, the Irish-born wife of an Anglican priest. It was originally published as a children’s song.

The text:

1. Once in royal David’s city

stood a lowly cattle shed,

where a mother laid her baby

 in a manger for his bed:

Mary was that mother mild,

 Jesus Christ her little child.

2. He came down to earth from heaven,

who is God and Lord of all,

and his shelter was a stable,

and his cradle was a stall;

with the poor, the scorned, the lowly,

 lived on earth our Savior holy.

 3. And our eyes at last shall see him,

through his own redeeming love;

for that Child who seemed so helpless

 is our Lord in heaven above;

and he leads his children on

to the place where he is gone.

 4. Not in that poor lowly stable,

 with the oxen standing by,

we shall see him; but in heaven,

 set at God’s right hand on high;

when like stars his children crowned,

all in white shall wait around.

Listen to this version – with the congregation singing, too — from Westminster.

 

            Cycling the country roads near our home leads through the farms and fields. Most lie fallow now, holding still with memories of late summer sweet corn and the tobacco harvest, or with moldering remains of a massive pumpkin patch.

            Even though it’s December and the wind whistles chill, there’s still color in the fields.

            Some have been tilled and lie dark with brown loam, waiting spring seeds. Others wave with sallow grasses that sprout untended in the aftermath of harvest.

            But an occasional field stretches wide and… green.  

            December green is different than the newborn green of April, or midsummer’s bright green growing under steady sun, or even the gracious greens of fall that slowly step aside for yellows and browns. 

            December green is soft and receptive, gladly reflecting whatever light the paling rays of winter sun will give.  It is deep with a certain steadiness, as if full knowing it will need a stubborn, tenacious heart to remain underneath the snow and ice that are sure to come. But mostly, it is simply alive, with both a memory of what was and a promise of what will be in that place.

            The Christ-child comes to our place, to our world– fading and spinning harsh, often angry and violent, soul-less and inhumane, cynical and caustic—fields left often barren by the pursuit of other harvests. And yet…there remain hints of beauty beyond imagining, of stunning courage or sacrificial love that show humanity rare, of mercy-moments that flicker memories of another life, from another place.

            He comes to our place; the all-creating Word become flesh. The prophet says “He grew up before God as a tender shoot, like a young plant” (Is. 53:3) But it was a young plant with ancient roots, sunk deep in eternity. He was first embraced in his mother’s arms, and then across years, he engaged the messy fullness of life on our broken planet, without ever giving into soul-killing winter. 

            He came to our place, to die in our place.  He came to live again so we could finally and forever, know the longings of our hearts satisfied and the shadows of our hearts lightened.

            The Christ-child came to our place, alive with a memory of what once was for we poor humans.  He was there in Eden’s Garden, saw people like us alive with God’s life: free, joyful, contented, intimate with God and transparently real with one another. He remembers what was in the heart of our Creator for our life in the beginning.

            The Christ-child came to our place, holding fast a certain promise of what can be.  He came to absorb hell’s deep cold and burning fury for us, so sin’s winter might not kill us. He then gave us His undying life, so that we could live beyond our soul’s winter into the beauty of spring forever with our Creator and King.

            The Christ-child came, simply alive with memory and promise.

            In other words, Jesus, the Christ-child in the manger, is our December green.