Good News and Better News … April 18th, 2016

 Jonathots Daily Blog

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Yesterday it was my joy to share my heart with dear souls in Antioch, Tennessee.

In the Book of Acts, it informs us that Antioch was the first city where the new believers in Jesus were referred to as “Christians.” It was meant to be a derogatory term, thrown at this new movement by the arrogant Greeks, who were trying to connote that the people who believed in the Nazarene were just a bunch of “little Jesuses.”

In other words, they had no mind of their own.

I didn’t talk about this to the people yesterday because I figured that over the years they have probably grown weary of the reference. But it did help me realize that the term “Christian” has become synonymous with going to church, or being religious, instead of being like Jesus.

Jesus frustrated religious people. After a while they got tired of being frustrated, so they decided to murder him.

Even though your average church-going people will admit that attendance is dwindling and that people seem to be “leaving the steeple,” they still insist that there’s basically nothing errant with what’s going on behind the stained glass windows.

Here is something I have learned:

If it’s not working, it’s probably not going to get better just because you keep doing it. And if it’s not working, the first step is to admit it’s broken, and then commit to getting it fixed.

The problem in the church is simple–it is a body of believers working under a false premise. The false premise is that we please God by gathering to worship Him.

Jesus made it clear that we please God by being the salt of the Earth and the light of the world.

Can you see the difference?

So as I leave Antioch, having had a tremendous morning of fellowship with these dear friends, I can offer them a simple suggestion:

Do one thing.

Yes–just start pursuing one thing that’s different from what you’re doing now. And make sure it doesn’t resemble anything like the present menu offered in church.

Maybe you could adopt one family in the community every week, take $150 and buy them groceries and shoes for the kids. Put a committee in charge of this endeavor.

Then on Sunday morning you can share, having something for prayer time other than weddings, funerals, births and sicknesses.

How about challenging twenty people from your congregation to volunteer just one hour a week in area nursing homes, food banks or homeless shelters–and then have them testify of their encounters.

Maybe the pastor could do the same thing–or take a small part-time job to increase his or her humanity in the community. Play guitar? Start a cover band and play at the local bar on Saturday nights prior to the Sunday services.

Take something that is non-church but filled with Jesus and act it out in your community every week, and see if something doesn’t bloom.

It’s not complicated. I could probably sit here for another twenty minutes and pop off more ideas.

But the notions have to come from the congregation and be a source of excitement to them to make it work.

If we don’t develop a sense of mission about bringing the heart of Jesus to our community, we will gradually implode from over-reverence or bickering from the choir about which anthem should be used for the Introit.

Jesus was simple:

Find a way to be loving, and then go act it out.

So as I leave Antioch, filled with a spirit of joy from encountering these delightful “little Jesuses,” I tell you that your good news is that all you need is one thing to do that is not religious, and that will bring real people into your presence.

The better news is that you’re not responsible for the fruit.

Just the seed.

The producers of jonathots would humbly request a yearly subscription donation of $10 for this wonderful, inspirational opportunity

 

Ask Jonathots … February 11th, 2016

 Jonathots Daily Blog

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I have always been a pretty calm person–at least I thought so–but of late I find myself feeling angry by the end of almost every day. It just seems that things I used to ignore, like getting dissed at work, being cut off in traffic, having people in the grocery store deliberately block the aisle–now get on my nerves, to the point that when I get home to my husband and kids, I’m “pre-snappy.” It just seems like there’s no reprieve. What could be causing this? I literally can’t think of the last time I just had fun or felt pure joy. Should I get help? What do you think?

I think the simplest way to understand this experience we call human life is to realize that we are a bank–actually, better phrased, a personal bank account.

As you well know, having an account at a financial institution demands that you give and take. But it also requires that you refrain from getting dangerously low on funds, inviting fear of failure into your consciousness.

As a person of intelligence and integrity, you need deposits.

I think you understand the withdrawals. They come with trial, tribulation, unexpected difficulty, or as you put it, being “dissed” by others for no particular good reason. If the deposits are not in your soul, the withdrawals of inconvenience will lead to worrying and becoming aggressive to others because you don’t feel a sense of emotional solvency.

So since you understand the withdrawals much better, let me explain the areas of deposits, so that the withdrawals that come will not make you feel that you’re going to “go bust.” Here are some ways to build up your deposits:

1. Take the time to monitor your life.

Don’t let occasions of blessing, innovation and ingenious ideas escape you and slide away without acknowledging where you were able to use your talent and intuition to salvage a situation. Often we become despaired because we forget how we’ve encountered these scenarios before and succeeded in conquering them. Monitor your affairs and give yourself credit for being inspired.

2. Believe it or not, you learn to make deposits in yourself by giving deposits to others.

When you see people do extraordinary things or make effort, point it out. You will be pleasantly surprised at how appreciative they are–and also how they will often give you dividends based upon their assessment of your growth.

3. Don’t be afraid to ask.

If you’re going to wait around for people to compliment you or express their gratitude, you may fall victim to the human foible of forgetfulness.

Ask people if you are being helpful to them.

Ask how you can help more.

It not only expresses humility, but lets them know that you’re on a mission to be willing. This will make you worthy of their investment of time and praise.

4. And finally, nothing is a fluke.

We don’t “luck out.” Just as every accident can be traced back to some incompetence, every successful project has its roots in inspired effort.

Appreciate the small stuff and the big stuff starts working out for itself.

You will continue to be frustrated as long as you feel over-drafted, without sensing daily deposits in your heart and soul.

There’s nothing wrong with you that a good, emotional bank error in your favor won’t take care of.

 

The producers of Jonathots would humbly request a yearly subscription donation of $10 for this wonderful, inspirational opportunity

 

G-Poppers … September 18th, 2015

 Jonathots Daily Blog

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She came into the room angry and frustrated. G-Pop asked her what was troubling her so.

She explained that she was really pissed off about how the Syrian refugees were being treated by the Europeans. G-Pop sat quietly listening, allowing her to vent for a few minutes until she ran out of steam.

When a few seconds of stillness had settled into the room, he said, “Let’s say you had just finished your dinner and you were sitting down in your chair getting ready to watch some television. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. You rise to your feet, open your door and discover a stranger standing in front of you, obviously distressed. You ask what you can do to help him, and he explains that his home has just burned to the ground and he has no place to go and needs some assistance. The first thing that crosses your mind is that you’ve never met this person before. Is the story true? How would you be able to find out? So you cautiously invite him inside the door while you consider your options. Before you can gather all your thoughts, he explains that he just needs someplace to stay until he can get on his feet and find out what he really wants to accomplish. You ask him if he has family in the area who could assist and he explains in vivid detail that he is from far away and doesn’t know anybody. So while you’re trying to figure out what you want to do, he informs you that he also has a wife and two children.

So now there are four people involved. He goes on to share that as frightened and taken aback as he is, they are completely devastated. Then in passing he mentions that his wife is also pregnant.  You have to make a decision. Trying to be wise, you inquire if he has checked with the local shelters and food banks for possible emergency intervention. He looks at you with a blank stare, not aware of how to go about such a maneuver, and still wishing that you would do something to help. So you agree to invite the family in to sit down while you make some sort of plan to help out. As the wife and two children enter the door, the man goes on to say that his cousin had been staying with them and also has a wife and one child, and is equally as abandoned by the disaster.

“Now you have seven people to deal with. What started as a quiet evening in your home, watching television, has now become an invasion of needy people who seem to be growing in numbers every minute. What should you do?”

She looked at G-Pop, wanting to object, even to suggest that the scenario was not the same, but then realized that they were identical.

G-Pop continued. “We are really foolish when we think other people should do what we would not do ourselves. Honestly, there’s not much that I can do about the people who have run away from Syria. Any money sent in that direction would be a drop in the bucket and would take months to reach its destination. So my only recourse is to go into my own community and find the refugees–people without homes, seemingly unwanted humans, rejected souls and struggling families–and before their world utterly falls apart, forcing them to my doorstep, I will seek them out and do what I can.”

G-Pop finished the story and she seemed to understand.

You see, Jesus was absolutely right: the poor will always be with us.

The only thing we can do is share from our bounty before they end up on our porch–and we feel compelled to turn them away.

The producers of jonathots would humbly request a yearly subscription donation of $10 for this wonderful, inspirational opportunity

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