The Lure of the Stage
He sits in the crowd imagining the multi-colored lights hitting the stage as the glorious stares of thousands await his voice to travel miraculously through the air and into their hearts. With the weight of performance on his mind, he labors through seminars, school, training, and conferences awaiting his moment… his promotion… his time on stage. Condemned by an ever-wandering heart, he beats at the air wondering if he will ever make it. It isn’t just those waiting in the line of American Idol tryouts, it’s men of God lined up at our seminaries, churches, and recording studios hoping their picture gets placed on the next website, the next billboard, the next top ten chart. It’s the called and anointed of God obsessed with an influx of followers on twitter rather than imitations of a holy lifestyle. It may sound harsh, but in the period of flashy marketing we have made rockstars out of pretty smiles, nice clothes, and humored messages. After all, holiness is not as marketable as well polished sermons. It is kind of scary if you think about it. Those the Bible tends to exalt did not come in the same manner. It is perhaps the greatest oxymoron of our century, and it certainly doesn’t seek to imitate our Messiah – “Christian celebrities.” All dressed up in the latest fashions, shoes, or deliberately tilted hats. This may seem like a new trend in ministry, but the same condition seemed to plague those as Jesus came. Whose disciple are you? What degree of Jewish law have you entered? Who did you study under? By what authority do you operate? Though the warnings of the past seem to be great, the operation of many today seems to be in the same direction. Where did you go to seminary? What churches have you served at? How many students do you have? Have you downloaded my latest podcast? There are many victims who have been lured to a stage in an effort to make an impact. Like a golden calf, we bow down to those who finally get their promotion, their chance, their next best seller. And over time, and often at the hands of those considered spiritual, we have crafted ourselves into elaborate bronze statues worshipped by those who call themselves spiritual. In a culture saturated with religious idols, men beat their own breast not out of repentance, but out of pride. The world of Christianity is no stranger to glorious superstars. Think of all the conferences you have attended, camps you have gone to, and conversations you have had concerning conferences. Some of the first questions asked are: Who is speaking at the conference? Who is leading the music? What book did he write? Many weigh their attendance based on the Christian celebrities in attendance. We all have men of God we follow in order to learn from, but when did discipleship turn into a morbid obsession that leads us into forming idols? The stark reality of our condition stands in sharp contrast to the life of Jesus. The Messiah time and time again would heal people immediately followed by the words “don’t tell anyone” (Matt 8:4, Matt 9:30, Matt 16:20, Mark 5:43). He didn’t post it on a social network, he didn’t tweet “the blind just received sight at FBC Jerusalem”. In fact, He did not “consider equality with God something to be grasped”. Isn’t it funny how the ones who deserve to be exalted never like being exalted? The ones who do the best with the microphone never seek to grasp it. They sure don’t self promote themselves in an effort to gain more followers. The most penetrating words ever written flow from time spent privately, not corporately. Something tells me Jesus would have burned down any billboard broadcasting his talents or abilities, and John the Baptist certainly wouldn’t have made a good poster boy. In the midst of our own environment, the lure of the stage has infected many pastors. If I had a penny for the number of pastors that had approached me telling me they were called to be an “evangelist,” I would be unbelievably rich. Unfortunately many of them do not understand what they are saying (and many, for that matter, have no idea what an evangelist is). What they didn’t say screams louder than what they did. Their true heart’s cry is, “I like the lime light, I like the stage, tell me what I have to do in order to get a microphone and stand in front of thousands of people.” They are not seeking the Father; they are seeking exaltation. Like Diotrophes, they like to be first (3 John 9-10). They ask for a seat at the right hand of Jesus in heaven. Like Simon the Sorcerer (Acts 8:9-24), they pay their money waiting for a double portion to be poured out for the sake of entertaining a crowd. I often wondered if there were any “Simons” sitting in the crowd as Peter spoke on the day of Pentecost. Someone sitting there going, “Man, I could have said the same thing. Why does Peter get to talk, I could have said that better?” In what was one of the greatest moments of my life, a brother of mine shared words that I will never forget. After preaching at a conference, I went to the back in order to pray over people as they left. While in the back of the room, people started hurling comments at me. Their forked tongues seemed to delight in tickling my ears with compliments as alluring as fruit. Sleek as the serpent, they came one after another. Suddenly my brother leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Be careful, you might just believe what they are saying.” It was a turning point in my life. That whisper, though softly spoken, has been deposited into my mind forever. It is so easy to embrace exaltation, even in ministry. Be careful that your approval comes from
Cut the Shirt Tail
Cut the Shirt Tail I grew up in the deep woods of East Texas, and deer hunting is just a natural thing for my family. When my husband and I first met, he was not familiar with this sport, but quickly became interested. When the first deer season came around, he was eager to get on a stand as often as he could. One day he came in and was so excited. He began to tell my dad about this awesome buck he had seen and tried to take as a trophy. Finally my dad asked, “Well, where is he?” Mikey explained how he had strategically fired a shot and just knew the deer would be lying right in the woods nearby. After hours of searching, there was still no deer. He had obviously missed. My dad made the comment, “we’re gonna have to cut your shirt tail”. I had always heard the expression used when someone attempts a shot but misses, but I remember thinking why on earth would you cut someone’s shirt tail? Aside from tradition, what’s the point? While I still see no point in cutting a shirt tail because of deer hunting, I am convinced there is another area where it might be appropriate. I know as a minister’s wife I get bombarded with the everyday routine of life. Early up in the morning, off to work, pick up the kid(s) at daycare, go to the store, come home and cook, go to baseball practice, wash the clothes, clean the messes created around the house, do homework, bath time, and then put the kids to bed. Total exhaustion. After I am done with all the daily chores, I just want to crash! Then, Sunday or Wednesday comes and we have our church activities. My husband has volunteered me to be on the Vacation Bible School committee, take a meal to a family who has had surgery, work in the nursery, and of course plan the back to school youth rally. BUSY, BUSY, BUSY! Every one of these things are great and to be commended. However, I often find myself caught up in the busy work of the ministry and neglect the intimate quiet aspect of the relationship with the Father. Yes, I will worship and hear from God during services among other believers, but maturity is not developed on that level. It seems that all is going well because I appear to be an excellent servant. Yet, when it comes to hearing from the Lord or spending time growing in the Word, I am “riding along on my husband’s shirt tail”. Because he is the labeled minister, Mikey usually has a chance to spend time alone at the office with the Lord. He is able to discover fresh things in the scriptures and sit until he hears from Holy Spirit. If I sit and listen very long at home, I usually hear “MOM!! I need to go potty!” or “I just spilled my Kool-Aid!” Soon these daily routines and events become weekly, and then monthly, and then so much time has gone by without me actually seeking the Lord until I am just a surface servant instead of faithful companion. Therefore, I often claim my husband’s relationship as my own. I feel if he is really growing in his walk, then WE are growing in our spiritual lives. I excuse myself from finding time because of other obligations and assume that Mikey’s walk will cover us both. After all, I can easily fool people into believing I am the most mature Christian because I am the minister’s wife and so involved in the work (or even programs) of the church…..right? This situation is comparable to kids who grow up relying on their parents’ faith and think they have it all together. The reality is we can and must have our own relationship with the Creator. This summer I was blessed to be able to visit with a friend of mine who is also a pastor’s wife. She expressed the same struggles of being a wife, a mother, and part of the ministry. It was refreshing to hear that I am not the only one who deals with this! Despite abundant involvement in the programs of the church, at times she too feels like instead of walking she is hanging on to her husband and letting him carry her. We began to discuss ways to overcome the pitfall of substituting service for solitude. I shared how I had recently been reminded of God’s desire for “firstfruits”. Proverbs 3:9 says “Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops.” In Deuteronomy 18:4 the people were instructed “to give them the firstfruits of your grain, new wine and oil, and the first wool from the shearing of your sheep.” Romans 11:16 states “If the part of the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, the whole batch is holy”. Christ himself is even referred to in 1 Corinthians as the firstfruits of the dead. As I studied firstfruits, I was convicted in my own personal life that if God wanted the first of my money and possessions, why wouldn’t He want the firstfruits of my time? I realized that in order to spend quality time with the Lord, I needed to start my day with Him. This may involve the sacrifice of a little sleep by waking up early, but it will not be without reaping abundant blessings. Mark 1:35 tells us that even Jesus arose very early in the morning while it was still dark and withdrew to a solitary place to pray. I don’t claim that the Scripture commands us to engage in our quiet times in the morning, but for me it was a personal conviction regarding my firstfruits of time. The morning is a time that I can always count on without the kid, chores, or exhaustion distracting me. Another step for overcoming is requesting accountability. I had to