Marc Estes

An Egyptian man died and left hes seventeen camels to the divided among his three sons. One was to get one-ninth; one was to get one-half; and the other was to get one-third of the camels. but seventeen camels aren’t divisible by three or even two. The sons argued long and loud about how to divide the camels.

Finally in depseration they agreed to ask a certain wise man what to do. He was seated in front of his tent whth his won camel staked out back. After hearing the case, theis wise man took his own camel and added it to the other seventeen camels.

This confused the young men until he gave one-ninth of the either – or two camels – to the first young man. Then he gave one-half – or nine camels – to the second young man. And finally, he gave one-third or six camels – the to the third young man. Besides that, he still had his own camel left!

The brother were so engrossed in their controversy that they failed to realize that their point of reference was too small. The sum total of their fraction was one-eighteenth too small. The wise man saw this controversy from a more enlightened view. His momentary sacrifice of his own camel provided the solution for the brothers; ultimately at no cost to himself.

We need to remember that sometimes there are solutions to our problems that we just can’t see. that’s why we need others. That’s why we need the church and leaders around us to speak into our lives and be a sounding board to the challenges we face.  When we allow others and especially God to enter in with a differing point of view, it may be the view point that extricates us from our problems and conflicts!

It is evident that we are living in rapidly changing times. The effects of these changes have colossal impact on the generation in which we are attempting to reach. Acknowledging the issue of “Aloneness” cannot be minimized and we must look for solutions in which we connect people to true, Biblical, authentic, purpose-driven community. Anything short of this goal, will produce a nominal church at best. Relationships are the key.

I was taken back by a statement made in John Burke’s book, “No Perfect Persons Allowed.” This is a book on my must-read list for sure. He addresses the issue of aloneness and how we should be looking at this issue. Here it is:

“The waves of change that have swept through the generation have created a culture of  aloneness, of people longing for community, but afraid to get close – surrounded by friends, feeling ever more alone. In his book, Bowling Alone, Robert Putman notes this trends: ‘For the first two-thirds of the twentieth century,’ he writes, ‘a powerful tide bore Americans into ever deeper engagementin the life of their communities.’ But over the last three decades, ‘Without at first noticing, we have been pulled apart from one another and from our communities.’ ” (Two other books by Robert Putman, are worth picking up and reading, “Better Together: Restoring the American Community,” and “American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us.”

“Think about it, half of all families break apart, often leaving children feeling abandoned and alone trying to sort our why Dad or Mom left. The other half live in a society fragmented and torn apart by the sheer velocity of twenty-first century life. No wonder people feel so disconnected and alone. My family has lived on our street for five years now and we have become friends with the people in the ten nearest houses, all of which have put a ‘For Sale’ sign in their yard!

We live in a highly fragmented, relationally isolated society. People move, change jobs, get divorced, commute hours each day, travel around the country weekly, then spend all their free time surfing the 1700 cable channels and millions of Internet sites, and all at the cost of relationships. We have increased our financial capital, but it has cost us relational capital. Add to it the other societal trends of the past half century, and you have a generation feeling painfully alone.

This provides a tremendous opportunity for the church. According to Scripture, the church is to function like family. We are to be that support community, that extended family to one another. we have a tremendous opportunity to teach people how to live in healing, life-giving relationships with one another. No one else in society can better meet this need. I thind it awe-inspiring to watch the Lord re-parent and grow people spiritually in the safe environment of the church family. I am convinced authentic community provides the context where the majority of spiritual growth and healing can take place.”

This is our opportunity to shine! We can be the answer to aloneness issues in our world today. Don’t be too busy yourself to connect with those God places in your paths.

It has been a while since I have posted and have been heavily consumed over the past few months in some colossal challenges, which have taken most of my virtue. My personal life and immediate family are doing very well, but am surrounded by impossible situations that need the God of Miracles to intervene. It is amazing how God puts you in impossible situations to force you depend upon the “All-Things-Are-Possible-God.”

Faith isn’t faith, unless it is exercised. Miracles don’t happen unless you are first immersed in an impossible situation. God has a way of answering your prayers to be used in mighty ways; He immerses you in valleys with insurmountable mountain ranges and reminds you that if you have faith and say to the mountain be moved, it will be gone!

Last week, I had the privilege to close off our “Shaken” series at CBC. I spoke on “Being Shaken to Being a Shaking.” I would encourage you to watch the message on my Media page, as I think it will inspire you. In addition, I think you will have a better understanding of why God allows miracles to happen and how they are instrumental to moving the obstacles in our lives.

Let me encourage you with a few simple steps you should take in order to position yourself for the miracle you have been asking for:

1. Believe that Miracles are for TODAY – They are not some distant blessing for a previous dispensation, or something that we should even believe in for the future. They are for today. You need God to move TODAY! You need a miracle TODAY! You should ask God to move TODAY! Except nothing, more, nothing less and nothing else.
2. Believe that Miracles are for YOU – God is no respecter of persons and desires to use anyone that is willing to be used.
3. Have the Desire to Be Used by God – Most aren’t used by God, simply because they are unavailable. Make yourself available and be willing. Ask Him to use you.
4. Actively Pursue the Miracle – Don’t be passive, but active. Step out and pray, believe and walk out what you believe God is asking you to do. Stir up the gifts, don’t be ignorant of spiritual gifts. You are called to have faith and walk in obedience, God’s job is to show up. Step out and begin moving in miracles today.
5. Never Quit Believing – Don’t let the busyness of life to distract you. Don’t let someone not being healed discourage you. Contend for breakthrough, continue to press through every day for the the God-of-the-Impossible to move on your behalf.

I came across one of the coolest Christmas song presentations, done by North Point Ministries in Atlanta, Georgia. It is great to see a bunch of guys having a blast in church playing a Christmas Medley on their iPads.  This is definitely worth the few minutes to watch ALL three songs. The last song is worth the wait!

Where a person places their priorities say much about their value system. Is isn’t necessarily what someone says that really identifies their life-passions, but where they spend their time, talents and treasures. If you are involved in leading people, this recent survey done by LifeWay Research is worth reviewing.  People who were born between 1980 and 1991 were asked, “What is really important in your life?” The results were:

• Family                                         61%
• Friends                                       25%
• Education                                   17%
• Career/Job                                 16%
• Spouse/Partner                          13%
• Spirituality/Religion                     13%
• Finances                                     12%
• Happiness                                  12%
• Raising Kids                                11%
• Health                                         10%
• Activities                                       9%
• Well-Being                                     9%
• The Future                                   5%
• Nature                                          5%
• Time                                              4%

There are many encouraging aspects of the study, but also some that should bring concern. If we do believe that spiritual matters are a key component to our overall purpose, we must ask ourselves the question, “Why do only 13% perceive spiritual matters as an important issue in life?”

It is not my intent to try and answer the question for them or for you, but to simply state the fact that we all should be asking the question, “Why?” Is there something we should be doing to assist a generation in undetstanding the importance of God and church in someone’s life? If so, what is it and how do we pracitcally apply our findings.

I would LOVE to get your feedback on you perception of this issue and what pastors and leaders can do to reverse the trend. SHARE YOUR COMMENTS NOW!

There is a frequent comment made that I have always assumed to be true, “Christians divorce as much as non-Christians.” I don’t know who ever said it, or where it started, but was encouraged  to receive some recent statistics extracted from some lengthy studies that prove the contrary.  Michael Lindsay wrote about this issue as well in a recent magazine article in the April 2000 issue of Rev Magazine.

There are three false statements that should be addressed:

1. “Christians divorce as much as non-Christians.” – Recent studies by Brad Wright, a sociologist at the University of Connecticut show that approximately 41% of Christians do end up in a divorced situation, where as non-Christians would be close to the 50% range.  See his conclusions at brewright.bolgspot.com Although there isn’t much to be boast about in a 41% statistic, it is still considerably less that what people perceive the rate to be.
2. “Church attendance makes no difference in the divorce rate.” – The same study shows that if a Christian couple also attend church regularly that the divorce rates drops drastically to 32%.
3. “Divorce is continually increasing and things will just get worse.” -  The truth is that the divorce rate in our country peaked about 25 years agos. Some experts are projecting that the divorce rate could drop as low as 25% among church going Christians.

Don’t misunderstand me, PLEASE! Divorce is a significant issue that tears apart the very fabric of our society leaving many people scarred for life. I am not excusing or downplaying the modified statistics either. Even one divorce is a tragedy in my eyes. I happen to be the byproduct of divorced parents, and understand the pain that can come as a result of a broken home. Fortunately, I have also experienced the great healing power of God upon my life as well.

We all need to do our part to preserve the sanctity of marriage. If you are single and considering getting married take the time to get some premarital counseling. Make sure you are accountable to those you love and respect and save yourself for marriage and allow your engagement to remain pure before God. Be a part of a local church and commit yourself to making God and His church be an important part of your life and marriage.

If you are married, protect your marriage at all costs. Don’t take your spouse for granted. Marriage takes consistent work and must be given adequate time and attention. If you are facing some struggles, catch them in the embryonic stage and don’t be embarrassed to get some help. We all need it at some time in our lives. Keep it alive, fresh, romantic and real. The grass IS NOT greener on the other side!

Let’s do our part to reduce this national tragedy and prove the myths to be untrue. Marriage for a lifetime is the only way to live!

As I mentioned in my previous post, there are reasons why people don’t come to church. I am posting some statements and an intelligent response to help both those who have a roadblock and those that are attempting to help others over them regarding these sensitive issues. These are taking from the “Rediscover Church” Booklet distributed by Outreach Magazine.

“I GOT TIRED OF THE CHURCH ALWAYS ASKING FOR MONEY.”

We spend half our lives putting down cash or swiping our pieces of plastic for absolutely everything we consume. Yet, somehow we have this notion that church should be a place where we can get entertained, cared for, taught the Word of God, and served when we have trouble – but it should all come free. True, some churches, do a lousy job of the “ask,” or rather, the “check-out line.”  But if a church is wise, it will point out that giving a part of what you have back to God (who gave it to you anyway) is actually a way to thank Him for His provision.

Many churches also state that giving an offering (a monetary contribution you give when the basket gets passed) or actively tithing (committing ten percent of your income to the church) is an act of worship for those who call that particular church, “home.” As a visitor, you are not expected to participate at all unless you’d like to . That should remove some of the pressure, right? Churches sometimes do discuss monetary or budget issues during a service, mostly because it’s the one time everyone is there! (Kind of like calling a family meeting.) If you are not a member of the church, you’re actually welcome to tune out that portion of the service.

Once you become an active apart of a church, giving will become more natural to you as you feel the desire to give a part of what has been given to you back to the church. At any rate, you should give joyfully, never out of obligation. God loves a cheerful giver. He talks about money ALOT in the Bible, reminding us constantly that everything we have is provided by Him. Once we truly recognize this, we gladly share our resources. We also learn that taking money from the “worldly”  realm and investing it into God’s realm multiplies it in our own lives and in the Kingdom in ways that far exceed any investment bankers calculations! Remember the stories in the BIble  you heard years ago? You know, when Jesus took the loaves of bread and a few fish and fed thousands? That could not have happened if someone didn’t first offer to share what was in his lunchbox!

Jesus said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treaures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where theives do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart wil be also.”

A church can’t continue to thrive and carry out its mission without funding. Like any company or even non-profit, it needs resources to sustain it. The church is also unusual – it’s the only organization that exists for the benefit of those who are not yet members! Think of that. So if the church is to take God’s message to a hurting world and reach out to thousands who need Christ, the members – the family- have to help make it happen. They do this by sharing what God provides to them as individuals, so that the money can be used for God’s work of building the Kingdom.

Hopefully, these thoughts have helped everyone reading about the right people have to give to their church and for the church to ask for it!

This Fall, our church put together a promotion called, “Rediscover Church.” Our goal was to help those that had become disconnected with the local church get reacquainted with the idea that church matters. There are a variety of reasons why people no longer attend church. Many of their reasons are legitimate, but upon further reflection may need some reconsideration.

Outreach Magazine produced a campaign called, “Back to Church.” In their materials they developed a booklet that deals with the top ten reasons why people no longer attend church. I thought I would share a few with you over the next few posts.  Here is one of the main reasons why people no longer attend:

“I DON’T BELIEVE IN ORGANIZED RELIGION”

Popular culture is full of loose terms. Many people throw out “organized religion” without much thought. What exactly is “organized religion?” Perhaps it means that a governing body of sorts – a group of leaders or rulers – unilaterally determines what is and isn’t right for people. Or, maybe your understanding of the term is related to previous experience of denominational culture, the different way, “things are done” by Methodists, Presbyterians, Catholics, Baptists, and many more.

Let’s dig a little deeper into the term “organized religion” itself. The trouble is, church by its very nature has to be organized. “Religion” is the real issue. In fact, Jesus spent more time rebuking the Pharisees on this topic than anything else. The Pharisees were the “organized religion” of that time, and they had made it all about rules and do’s and dont’s at the expense of a realistic understanding of the love of God. (Yeah, I bet you still know some of them, right?)

The church of today still has its share of Pharisees. It’s sad, but true. Just like in government, you will always have somebody in every church that is too conservative, too rigid, and resistant to change. You’ve probably even worked with people who have a “my way or the highway” mindset, and of course, you are always on their wrong side, because you don’t measure up to their definition of what  you’re supposed to say, do, or be!

“Organized” religion is not really what it’s about; discovering God and meeting Him in the person of Jesus is what it’s about. sometimes this means rising above a few Pharisees you meet along the way.

So, what would dis-organized religion look like anyway? “Anything goes!” “Hey, buddy, if it feels right, it much be OK, right?” “Any way you choose is OK, as long as it make you feel good.” While these paradigms can seem freeing and easy to embrace at first, you’ve probably discovered that they deliver a pretty empty, unfocused life. You quickly find out why these attitudes are not what God desires for us.

Church are places where people, and their issues, gather. God purposely designed people to fine Him through an organized, imperfect group called the church. Otherwise, we can’t authentically share the truth of God, experience His love, connect with others who feel the same, and implement His way of living in an imperfect world. Yes, organized religion may be a faulty term, but organized churches really are essential to helping you find God again.

Relationships are central to our existence. We were created to have a relationship with God. We were born into a family to have relationships with our parents and siblings. We are immersed in a world where relationships are essential to functioning in society. Intrinsic to our nature is the need for vibrant, healthy relationships. We thrive when they exist and spiral when they are absent. Whether we like it or not, the need to develop productive relationships is a primary role of our lives.

When we value relationships for the wrong reasons, or when there is no advantage to be gained, people quickly become disposable. But relationships must not be reduced to a commodity and must not be disposable, because they are God’s highest value and intersect the essence of what it means to be a human. The way we choose to relate to one another defined the quality ofour human experience and reveal what we value most.

The other day, I picked up a book called, “Relational Intelligence,” written by Steve Saccone. I don’t know if this was a good move, because it has forced me to assess my relational skills and make some adjustments in how I relate to others. I do think I am fairly good at relating to people, but the more I read, the more I realized that some ‘tweeking’ was in order.  Relational Intelligence is defined as “the ability to learn, understand, and comprehend knowledge as it relates to interpersonal dynamics.  The big idea of the book is help the reader in enhancing the quality of their relationships and expand their influence; a MUST read for all!

There is a great online assessment tool called, “Relational Assessment Test,”  that you can use for free. It takes about 7-10 minutes and will assess how you relate to others.  You will answer a series of questions and it will give you your strengths and weaknesses in the  following seven relational areas:

• The Compelling Relator
• The Likeable Hero
• The Conversational Futurist
• The Story Collector
• The Self-Awareness Person
• The Energy Carrier
• The Disproportionate Investor.

At the end of the assessment, you will immediately get a read out of your results along with a link to download some thoughts on how  you might better strengthen your relational skills in your weak areas. It is a fascinating study. For the record, I scored highest as a Conversational Futurist and a Compelling Relator. I was weakest in the Likeable Hero and Story Collector categories… I have some work to do in those areas.

The book does a great job of defining each of these area and why they are important for you to develop as a person.

If you are serious about strengthening your relationships and having great influence, take the risk, get the book and choose to upgrade your relational world. You won’t be disappointed!

It is evident that there has been a colossal shift in the morals of the world as we know it today. What used to be considered outlandish has become the accepted norm. As Christians, we look to the rapid decline of morals and may never consider that the decline may be partially our fault. Before you click off this post, give me a few seconds. I am not saying that you personally have bad morals, but maybe the absence of your convictions being lived out and intentionally communicated in society could contribute to the reality our current disastrous situation. Edmun Burke, the Irish Political Philosopher, said centuries ago and his words still remain true, “All the it needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.”

Here is an interesting statement made by John Stott where he deals with decisive issues facing us Christians today. He states, “Our Christian habit is to bewail the world’s deteriorating standards with an air of rather self-righteous dismay. We criticize its violence, dishonesty, immorality, disregard for human life and materialistic greed. ‘The world is going down the drain,’ we say with a shrug. But whose fault is it really? Who is to blame? Let me put it like this. If the house is dark when night fall comes, there is no sense in blaming the house, for that is what happens when the sun goes down. The question is to ask is, ‘Where is the light?’ If the meat goes bad and becomes inedible, there is no sense in blaming the meat, for that is what happens when bacteria are left alone to breed. The question to ask is, ‘Where is the salt?’ Just so, if society deteriorates and its standards decline, until it becomes like a dark night or stinking fish, there is no sense in blaming society, for that is what happens when fallen men and women are left to themselves, and human selfishness is unchecked. The question to ask is, ‘Where is the church? Why are the salt and light of Jesus Christ not permeating and changing our society?’ It is sheer hypocrisy on our part to raise our eyebrows, shrug our shoulders or wring our hands. The Lord Jesus told us to be the world’s salt and light. If therefore darkness and rottenness abound, it is our fault and we must accept the blame.”

I do believe that we must begin to align our behaviors with our beliefs and truly become a positive influence and role model to those around us. People need to see the Christian faith lived out in everyday living, in our relationships, in our marriages, in our parenting, in our finances, in our social behaviors and yes, our confessions.  2 Chronicles 7:14 says it best, “if MYpeople,  MYGod-define people, respond by humbling themselves, praying, seeking my presence, and turning their backs on their wicked lives, I’ll be there ready for you: I’ll listen from heaven, forgive their sins and restore their land to health.” (MSG, emphasis mine).  Note that it is what WE do that restores the land, not what the world does.  Jesus labeled us as salt and light, as well as challenged us that if we don’t fulfill the intent of our lives, we are ‘good for nothing.’ Pretty tough words, but maybe they are worth considering and applying to our lives?

Let’s make it our aim to challenge and inspire anyone that comes within our range to start a “Living out our Faith” revolution. You never know, we just might turn nations around!