• Do I love those who throw stones at me?
• Am I building a bridge to those who are trying to harm me?
• Am I the one throwing stones?

I am done with classes for the summer, but I am not taking a break from reading.  I am focusing on issues surrounding race and ethnicity, coaching, spiritual direction, church history, and theology.  Here’s my summer reading list:

Sacred Companions: The Gift of Spiritual Friendship and Direction by David G. Benner

Holy Listening: The Art of Spiritual Direction by Margaret Guenther

Classic Christianity by Thomas Oden

Outline in Dogmatics by Karl Barth

The Humanity of God by Karl Barth

A New Kind of Christianity by Brian McLaren

The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith by Mark A. Noll

Co-Active Coaching: New Skills for Coaching People toward Success in Work and Life by Laura Whitworth et al.

Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion, and Truth in the Immigration Debate by Matthew Soerens and Jenny Hwang

The Cornel West Reader by Cornel West

Ancient-Future Worship by Robert E. Webber

Paul: In Fresh Perspective by N. T. Wright

Justification: God’s Plan and Paul’s Vision by N. T. Wright

The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind by Mark A. Noll

Divided by Faith: Evangelical Religion and the Problem of Race in America by Michael O. Emerson and Christian Smith

Making It All Work: Winning at the Game of Work and the Business of Life by David Allen

Ford County by John Grisham

The Associate by John Grisham

And maybe a few other Grisham novels…but we’ll see how the summer goes!

What are you reading this summer?

This morning at church I shared about the most important thing…loving God fully.  We reflected on how this is the most important thing that a person can do in life.  That is true for us as individuals following Christ, but it is also true for those around us.  It is not enough for us to consider whether we are loving God fully; we must also consider how we can help those around us to love God fully.

Jesus said,

Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men.

It is time for the Church of Jesus Christ to start fishing again.  We have to become more intentional about following Christ and helping others do the same.  Let’s reignite our passion and commitment to reach the world for Christ!

We are reminded in a lot of different way that we should stay focused on the most important thing.  People encourage us to know our mission, personally and organizationally, and to filter all of our actions through that understanding.  Stephen Covey instructed us to put “first things first.”  And at some point, we’ve heard someone tout the importance of “keeping the main thing the main thing.”  All of this begs the question:

What is the most important thing?

Fortunately, Jesus did not leave us to figure this out for ourselves.  He gave us a clear explanation as to what is and should be the most important thing in our lives.  In Matthew 22:37-38 Jesus says,

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment.

God is at work in my heart!  I have sensed his stirrings in me over the last six months in new and fresh ways.  I am learning more about him, my self, my family, and our world.  New ideas and desires, fresh dreams and focused passions seem to be exploding within me.  It is an exciting time.  It is also a confusing time.  Since I am only one person, I cannot move in the direction of every passion or new idea at the same time.  I need to know what to focus on.  And I need to know what God wants me to do and when he wants me to do it.

Direction in Desolate Places

A story from Jesus life that has been significant for me in my faith journey is found in Mark 1:29-39.  Jesus is busy doing ministry and it is beginning to really take off.  New people are coming, crowds are gathering…they want to be touched by Jesus.  When it seems as if the movement is really taking off, the passage says of Jesus, “And rising early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.”  What is significant about this story is that when the disciples come looking for Jesus because the people are waiting, Jesus has new focus and clarity.  He leaves the crowds behind and moves on to the next place for ministry.  He knows what God wants him to do and he knows it is time to do it.

The Lesson

The lesson here for me…for all of us…is that when we find ourselves in moments where we lack clarity or aren’t sure what to focus on, the answer is to pull away to a solitary place.  There we can get away from the noise of the life so we can hear the voice of God.  His voice will direct us, if we are willing to get alone so we can be attentive to it.

So What?

If you find yourself needing direction or clarity, schedule some extended times to be alone with God over the next few weeks.  I am blocking out a several mornings over the summer months for extended times of prayer and journaling, so I can focus in on hearing God’s voice.  Maybe you’d like to do the same thing.