When God Whispers

Posted in Discipleship on July 7, 2010 by mikekeaton

I was reading this morning in 1 Samuel about his leadership as a prophet and judge of the Israelite’ s.  One of the details that jumped out to me, was found in 1 Sam 9:17-

“When Samuel saw Saul, the Lord said, “That’s the man I told you about! He will rule my people.”

The phrase, “the Lord said”, had some significance.  according to the study notes in my reading bible, this phrase literally meant something along the lines of “God whispered in his ear”.  In the Hebrew it has the idea of pulling back ones hair so they could hear you speak into their ear.

This really jumped out to me, because I am currently on a prayer retreat with some of the leaders from the Crossroads Church Planting Network and our Sponsoring Church, Crossroads Newnan and when I go on these retreats I really desire to “hear” the Lord.  I mean one of the reasons I go on these prayer retreats is to get away from the noise of life and ministry and get to some solitude so I can hear Him speak into my ear.

Actually, I have been away like this for about 2 weeks now, last week at another location and now this week here.  I really want God to speak.  a theme verse I have been praying and claiming is Jeremiah 33:3, “Call to me and I will show you great and mighty things, things you do not know”.

God has been revealing a lot to me.  Things about my own personal relationship with Him, holiness, growth, leadership, especially leadership!!

I love it when God whispers in my ear!  I know He does all the time, I just am often not quiet enough to hear Him.  I would like to be like Samuel in a lot of ways…he was tuned into God and in the process of his day a man crosses his path and he was atuned enough to hear, “this is the one”.

There is a need for all of us to “be still and know that I am God”, b/c if we will slow life down enough, daily, to be still, we just might be a part of what God wants to do on a much grander scale, as the rest of Psalm 46:10 says, “I will be exalted among the nations”.

Find some time today and everyday to connect to God.  Be still.  Then God will be exalted in your life and mine, and among the nations!!!  When God whispers…shhhhh

mk

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Prayer Retreat

Posted in Uncategorized on July 6, 2010 by mikekeaton

hey all, i’m out again a few days this week on a personal prayer retreat.  I’m seeking the Lord for wisdom and direction in my life and the ministry and leadership of Crossroads.

I welcome any and all prayers, Thanks!

MK

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The Fear of the Lord!!

Posted in Discipleship, Learnings on July 5, 2010 by mikekeaton

I believe something that is missing in the church today is a healthy fear of the Lord!!  It seems many can just co-habitate with sin and it not even bother them. (at least not enough to change)  This is a troubling thing but really shouldnt surprise any of us.  Jesus and many other writers wrote in the Bible about how the last days would be characterized by such heart attitudes.

this past sunday I preached about how necessary “Godly sorrow” was for true repentance.  However, if we take it back one step further then the key to experiencing Godly sorrow is found in our relationship with Jesus which is directly related/connected to our “fear of the Lord”

Defining Terms –Anxious Dread vs. Reverential Awe

when I was a kid I often heard my mom say, “you just wait until your father gets home” (it was b/c I was a little angel you know!! :), anyway, the rest of the day was a wash needless to say.  All I could do was “dread” the time my dad was to arrive!  That is a description of Anxious Dread and that is not the fear of the Lord!  Even though we ought to respect the mighty power of God and His Sovereign choice to exercise that power, we should never be “afraid” of our heavenly Father- i don’t think He desires that kind of connection with us.  Reverential Awe on the other hand is what we would feel when we are in love with Him to the point that we wouldn’t want to sin against Him or go contrary to His will.

How do we grow a Healthy Fear of the Lord?

A healthy Fear of the Lord is key to our love relationship with Him.  Here is how it works…the only way I can grow a healthy fear of the Lord is to know Him more, the more I know Him, the more I grow in my fear of Him (reverential awe), which is also based in my love for Him…so, the more I know Him, the more I love Him, the more I love Him, the more my “reverential awe” (fear) grows, and results in more obedience and holiness.  the best way to grow in “fear of the Lord” is to study God!!  Get to know Him!! Intimately!

Study for yourself!

Here is a bible study mostly through Proverbs on the topic…(go from one passage to the next noting the connections between the fear of the Lord  with “understanding”, and “knowing”, and write down all the Scripture has to say on the fear of the Lord and its results: enjoy!

Prov. 1:7

Prov. 9:10

Prov. 15:33

Prov. 2:1-5

Ps. 111:10

Deut. 6:2

Deut. 10:12-13

Eccl. 12:13

Prov. 30:3

Job 28:12-20

Prov. 3:7, 6:6

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on mission in Romania!!

Posted in Uncategorized on June 13, 2010 by mikekeaton

don’t forget to check our teams blog site for daily updates!!

Mike

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Experts for nothing!!

Posted in Discipleship on June 7, 2010 by mikekeaton

But the Pharisees and experts in religious law rejected God’s plan for them, for they had refused John’s baptism. -Luke 7:30-NLT

This verse really jumped out to me in a quiet time recently.  I don’t think it is a secret that the Pharisees (really pious and legalistic self-righteous religious types) of the New Testament, were thought very highly of by Jesus.  They were as the verse says “experts in religious law”, actually the Mosaic Law.  In other words they “knew” a lot about the Scriptures.

But isn’t it ironic that they “knew” a lot, but it didn’t do them any good?  I’m thinking they didn’t “know” as much as they thought they did!!

Unfortunately, many times, we, you, me, are guilty of the same thing!  I heard someone say once, “we are educated beyond our obedience”.  It’s true.  Most of us “know” more than we apply!  Here’s an example:  would you say you should exercise more and eat less?  Well, do you?  The majority of us would have to admit that we don’t exercise like we should and that we eat way too much!! (hopefully that is not true of you-right now I am thankful I exercised this morning and have eaten pretty good today – whew!), anyway, the point is, what good is that knowledge doing you?

I asked someone once, “what difference is Jesus making in your life today?”  I was a little surprised to see the individual struggle with an answer…in fact the answer that was given was…”well, I’m thankful He saved me”.  Now, don’t get me wrong b/c the doctrine of Salvation is awesome!!  and incredibly important to our whole life and each day!!  But I asked, “Did you get saved recently?”  They replied, “oh no, I have been a Christian ever since 6 years of age”.  Again, don’t get me wrong…the fact that this person was still glad and thankful for salvation is huuuuggggeee!

Unfortunately, many of us “know” of salvation, or forgiveness, or our identity in Christ, or that the Bible is God’s word, or that God’s wants us to give financially, or that doing life with others is essential for a Christ follower, or that the Gospel is to be shared, or that porn will ruin relationships, or…or….or….!!!!  But, we, like the Pharisees, “reject God’s purposes for us” b/c we don’t follow-through with application.

Makes us wonder what we actually believe-huh?  sometimes, I think we, myself included, are like practical atheists or agnostics!!

Do you know Jesus?  what difference is He making in your life today?  You have to have both, knowledge and the working out of that knowledge, which is what the Bible calls–WISDOM!!

Lord make us wise!!

-MK

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Take Possession of the Land!!

Posted in Leadership, Learnings on June 1, 2010 by mikekeaton

Our church is reading through the bible together this year and I have really enjoyed it.  As many times as I have read through the the OT books of Israels history I still get moved by many of the stories of faith and boldness for God.

One thing that stuck out to me recently really hits home with me regarding my own leadership and the leadership community of Crossroads.  Over and over God tells His people that He is going to give them a land of their own.  A land flowing with milk and honey, He calls it.  This was one of the covenant aspects between God and Abraham that was continually promised to his descendants.  Not until the days of Joshua was that covenant promised ultimately realized.  God’s sovereignty is seen in that He said over and over, “I will give you the Land”, “I will drive out it’s inhabitants”, and “I will deliver them into your hand”.  God did give them the land.  He did in many supernatural ways (Jericho, Aia) deliver much more powerful nations into the hands of the Israelite’s.

But do you know what stuck out to me?  The Israelite’s had to take possession of the land!  They had to go fight!  They had to wield the sword!  They had to kill people!  They had to “take possession”.  This was their responsibility!

I find that in my life leadership is the same way. (not killing people-ha) I am realizing that I need to focus on leadership development in my own life and even more so in the life of our leaders at Crossroads!  Because of that I am taking some intentional time to focus on that and how to do it over the summer.  One book I just started is “Shepherding Horses” by Kent Humphreys which was given to me (somewhat prophetically) by a church builder I met for the very first time in my office a few weeks ago.  In this book, I highlighted the following quote…

“you, pastor, have been called to shepherd these leaders [stubborn horses].  Only the Living God can equip you to this task.  He is able and ready, and He will accomplish it through you…if you so choose”

God has called me, equipped me, able to equip me more, develop me, and use me to lead other leaders!! (He will give me the land), but I must choose to train them, lead them, influence them, show them, challenge them. (I must take possession of the land)!  What a powerful learning this is in my life right now!!

The same is true for you, leader!  God has called you and is able to do it.  But you and I must “take possession of the land!”  We must step up and lead.  We must make the appointment.  We must engage with the ones we are leading.  We cannot lead from a distance and hope that “they read my email!” (Have you noticed email is not working like it once did?)  We must wield the sword, we must actively pursue influencing others.  God will do it and He is more than able, but for whatever reason, He WANTS  to use us, just like He did with those bold men and women of faith in the bible.

I encourage you and challenge you and myself, to take possession of the land….LEAD!

MK

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Post Script

Posted in Uncategorized on May 24, 2010 by mikekeaton

Yesterday was a powerful day at Crossroads Church!!  God is doing so much and its so exciting to see Him work in so many lives and in so many ways!!  Our Family Pastor, Jono, started the day off with recognizing our grads!!  they were awesome and we are all so proud of them!  It was very encouraging to hear their stories and what God had been teaching them over the past year.  The video was GREAT!!  The Baptisms were awesome too!  I love Baptism and hearing the testimonies.  Its’ always an exciting experience!!  Worship was great, Ephesians 6:17-18 was great, Holy Spirit was working powerfully.  With the exception of the air conditioning, or I guess I should say, the lack of A/C, the day was great!!

We had one of our elders and a couple of his children over for lunch b/c his wife and other children are in Russia finalizing an adoption.  We had a huge lunch, my wife is an awesome cook and it was great and topped off with strawberry shortcake for dessert!!  YUM!

Our Daughter showed up at worship and surprised us (came in from College) and we enjoyed hanging out with her and one of her friends during the afternoon.  It was great!!

The evening rolled around and we checked out one of our community groups semester end party/cookout and enjoyed hanging out with them…it was great.  Love That Girl!!

Like I said, yesterday was great!!  A very encouraging day.  I am so grateful for God’s working in our lives.  He is so Good!!

Be blessed today!!  -MK

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Stewardship of Self

Posted in Leadership, Learnings on May 20, 2010 by mikekeaton

I watched and listened in on Leadership Networks SAGE live event some yesterday.  It was a great experience listening to different leaders from all over the country talk about their learnings.  I gathered that to be a SAGE you had to have over 25 years experience in ministry/leadership.   So, from these men and women they gave their top 3-5 learnings of what they could have or what they wished they had done differently.

I thought it was great!  Unfortunately, I dont have 25 years of ministry experience (mine is about 16 yrs or so).  But, even with limited experience (compared to the SAGES), I could resonate with what they were saying.  I have to say that of all the speakers (about 25-30), there was a common learning.  Stewardship of Self!

The basic idea is this…take time for yourself!

I must admit this is counter-intuitive to me.  Of all the passages in the Bible, most that deal with self are not positive.  The Bible teaches self denial.  So, my first thought is that taking time for yourself, is too much focus on self, in other words selfish and prideful, the focus is…me!  This works against my theology.

However, I also know how I feel.  To be honest, I feel tired.  I find it hard to focus.  Decisions are harder to make.  Joy seems distant like a vacation spot that you dream about knowing that it will never come because you could never afford to go there.  Doesn’t sound like Stewardship of Self!

Truth is, we all must know our limits.  One of the SAGES yesterday said he had to come to realize, “one man (human) could not save the world”, speaking of himself.  Even Jesus took time to get away from the crowds and even those closest to Him and He was the one God-Man who could and did save the world!!  Maybe the epitomy of pride and self focus is to put oneself above Christ!!

So, feeling tired?  Overwhelmed?  Decisions hard to make?  Too much drain not enough fill?  Maybe a little bit, or lotta bit of Stewardship of Self is needed!!  I will be honest, it’s true for me.  I don’t know about you, but I would like to be around 25-30+ years serving and living for the Kingdom of God.  Without heading the wisdom of the sage’s, and Steward Self, we might not make it for the long haul.

So, in order to be around for the long haul, follow what I say and not what I do, b/c to be honest, I need to apply these recommendations just as much, if not more…consider the following 5 suggestions for self stewarship:

1.  Stop violating the Sabbath!!  (its’ a sin) -take a full day off for REST! -(so hard for me to do)

2.  Discover the top 5 things that ‘fills’ your tank and pursue them with a passion!

3.  Identify the top 5 things that ‘drains’ your tank and avoid them like the plague!

4.  Laugh more! -(start with laughing at yourself)

5.  Exercise hard and consistent!  (sweating and breathing hard 3-5x a week–go hard or go home)

I am going to give it a try!  I will let you know in about 3 mos how it’s going…

MK

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Christ was not even a Christian

Posted in Learnings, Uncategorized on May 10, 2010 by mikekeaton

how does that title catch you?  does it bother you?  is it hard to say?  what feelings does it bring up in you?

if you are like me when I first heard it, you don’t like it.  Of course you don’t have the benefit of “context” that I did.  I read that statement in a book our staff just finished reading by Dave Gibbons, “The Monkey and the Fish” .

The book is a great read!  I really recommend it.  Just click on the book image and you can order your own copy.  It really talks a lot about what the church is going to need to be in order to be effective in the future.  It resonates with me and helps me deal with a lot of what has been churning within me for some time now.

so, back to the title…Christ was not even a Christian…to that I say, thank God!  I like the word Christian because it’s biblical.  the followers of Jesus were first called Christian at Antioch because they resembled Christ and those who knew of Jesus, followed Him and remembered how He lived saw these people and said they look like….Christ-ian!

Our culture has skewed what it means to be a Christian so much that someone who goes to church can say they are a Christian.  to that I say, ….well, I can’t say that, many wouldn’t like it.

To many, being Christian is cultural.  People will take on a certain church’s philosophy, dress standards, separation issues, entertainment standards and then call themselves a good Christian.  Basically, I call these things religio-sity, church-ianity, and far from the Revolution Jesus came to start.

Jesus was about love and grace.  He was about those 2 things so much that He transformed those around Him and they were about love and grace so much that others looked at their actions and attitudes and said, that looks like…Christian!

I want this so bad for the church today, especially the church I lead, Crossroads.  I saw it happen yesterday in our whole worship team just before we went out to lead our church in worship.  I was privileged to experience “christianity” in a powerful way with them and then what God did was amazing in our worship service, God’s spirit descended and He was moving in people’s lives.

It was Kingdom of God.  I don’t ever want to be “Christian” if it is not about love and grace, not about Christ.  He wasn’t, why would I or anyone ever waste time, just coming to church?

MK

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Why do people “bail” on serving in the church?

Posted in Serving on May 3, 2010 by mikekeaton

Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. -1 Peter 4:10 -NIV

I think there are a lot of reasons why!  But probably one of the biggest is because they just don’t understand why they serve.  In other words, there is a disconnect between getting up early on a Sunday or whatever day and to their life’s focus and purpose!

I honestly believe that most people want to make a difference with their life.  So, it’s easy to get them serving on a ministry team.  But after a while, the thing I notice is that “fall-out” begins to occur and people start “bailing” on serving in the greatest environment that has ever existed known to man…the spiritual life of a church.

For me, and for our leaders at Crossroads, we have to constantly remind people “why” they serve.  Let’s face it, human nature is to be self-centered and selfish and because of that we easily fall into the thinking that we don’t want to “have to go…direct cars in the parking lot, pass out programs, be an usher, watch kids, run the sound, set up or take down ministry environments, etc, etc”.  If we are all honest we have thought these kinds of things.

Leaders have to “lead” others into the understanding that they are not “just” doing any of the above or something else I did not mention, but that they are using a ‘gift they received to administer grace’ to someone in the name of Jesus!!

when someone comes on a Sunday morning and are greeted by a friendly smile and a warm handshake or hug, handed a program, helped to a seat, treated with love and kindness, they are not just filling a spot on a serving rotation, they are using the gift they received to administer grace to someone who may or may not have seen or felt kindness or love all week long!!  When that happens, the church shines and really looks like Jesus and a life is touched and an eternal difference is made!!

More importantly, the person serving, becomes a minister, and not just a volunteer!  And even more important than that, God is glorified!!

I honestly believe that if more leaders would connect these dots to those who serve on the ministry teams they lead, less people would “bail” on serving in the church!!

just sayin…MK

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