Your First Calling

Posted on May 18, 2016May 15, 2016 by Matthew Laker

Series: Walking with Peter and Jesus

What is your calling in life?

Followers of Jesus sometimes spend so much time trying to figure out our calling. Some followers of Jesus never ask the question of how best do I serve God’s Kingdom. Both of these positions have the potential of being self-centered.

Notice that Peter was first called to Jesus before he was called to the work he was given. Here in Luke 6:12-15, Jesus is calling them to a new level of work (to be apostles), but it comes after the call to follow him.

As followers of Jesus, we can get so hung up on “what am I to do” or we covet the roles others have. In both situations, we forget about Jesus. Thus, we fail to fully enter, engage and experience the life we were created for.

Sometimes we think that if we figure out what God has called us to do, then we have found wholeness. At times from our work or ministry, we form our identity and think we are secure. We wrongly come to believe that it is then that we feel we have reached the life Jesus calls us to.

However, Jesus first called Peter and you to himself. He did not call you to do this or that. He called you to himself.

In our lives, there is a general calling and this needs to be our first priority. This calling is about knowing, experiencing, and surrendering to Jesus. This calling is about letting Jesus change us and when we do that we experience wholeness.

Today we have let ourselves be defined by our titles and things we do. Yes, to an extent what we do is an extension of who we are. However, as followers of Jesus, our starting point of identity is Jesus.

First, we are called to Jesus, second to our work. Too often we only know Jesus based on the identity we find in our work. Remove our work and we are no one.

Peter would not have got this right away. I still struggle with it in my own life and I bet it is a struggle in your life.

Instead of spending so much time trying to figure out your calling or the special focus you should or should not have, consider just getting to know Jesus and let him transform you right where you are at.

Peter, in our passage today, would discover a deeper secondary calling. It is in this moment Jesus calls Peter to a deeper commitment. This secondary calling is strongly interconnected to the first and so you cannot have the second without the first.

It is as we understand who Jesus is and what he has done that we understand who we are and what we are to do. Peter’s calling to leadership is built off of the first calling to know Jesus.

Os Guinnes in his book “The Call” shares:

“Do you want to know the secret of the mystery of your very being and rise to become what you were born to be? Listen to Jesus of Nazareth.”

We are not Peter but the principle still applies. First, get to know Jesus, second, let him do the calling.

The Apostle Peter’s identity being challenged

Posted on October 30, 2015October 26, 2015 by Matthew Laker

Jesus declares, I will define who we are. “I will make you….” (Matthew 4:18-22).

When we watch the life of the Apostle Peter the more he understands who God is, the more he understands who he is.

Knowing God and knowing self are therefore interdependent” (The Gift of Being Yourself: The Sacred Call to Self-Discovery By David Benner.)

For Peter to find salvation and wholeness, he will have to walk away from the nets. However doing so is not an easy task as the nets are what have defined Peter for so long. Peter seems to have been a faithful Jew, a hard worker, and a family man. He most likely did not have an easy life, but things were average for him. His identity as a business man was as secure as it could be. Then Jesus challenges him to drop that old identity, his net, and follow him.

As we follow Jesus he is going to lead us to see our spiritual nakedness (Gen3), our true selves and our need for him.

In Luke 5:1-11, Peter’s response to Jesus is to recognize his need for Jesus and then challenges Peter’s identity. It was after raising the fish-filled nets up out of the water, that Peter runs to Jesus and shares that he is a sinner. He understands this about himself. However, as Jesus reveals more of himself to Peter, Peter moves from knowledge to experience. God wants us to be aware of our need for divine help. He wants to replace the fig leaves we grab to cover our nakedness (Gen.3:21) and give us real wholeness in our life. To do that we must see ourselves as Jesus see us.

When Jesus says to Peter, “I will make you….” (Matthew 4:18-22), Jesus declares to Peter, I will define who you are.

For us today the question becomes: will we cling to the old nets? Like Peter, will we let Jesus define us or will we let the things we do, or do not do, with our hands define us?

At times we place our self-value in what we have, what we can do and what others think of us. Yet Jesus calls us to walk away from that and drop the nets. Let him define us.

Jesus calls us to an identity that is grounded in our relationship to God the Father. Jesus came to restore our relationship with God the Father. It is as we understand who God is and what Jesus has done that we understand who we are and what we can do.

To go there we must step out of the boat and let go of things we have grabbed a hold of to define us and be honest with ourselves.

What nets do you hold on to that secure you in a false self?

Peter not only understands and comes to know God deeper but he begins to understand himself better, his true self. True self is only found in seeking and accepting God. There, Jesus declares, wholeness is found.

Four tips for dealing with Change in 2015

Posted on July 3, 2015June 29, 2015 by Matthew Laker

In a leadership class I took years ago, I had to read Spencer Johnson’s book called, “Who Moved My Cheese?” (Who Moved My Cheese?: An A-Mazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life) It is one of those books that stays with you for a long time. The quick summary is there are two mice who have always gotten the cheese in the same spot every day. One day they wake up and the cheese is gone. They are faced with a decision, do they go out and look for the cheese or stay put. The book unfolds sharing the experience of these two mice who take different roads and lessons learned on the Journey. You really should pick up a copy.

Change in life is like someone coming along every day and moving the cheese in the mouse-maze we call life. Change is part of the journey of life. In my life, having children is the fastest way I have understand this. You just get used to one season and start to figure it out, and then the kids grow and the cheese is moved. As changes comes, we can either be pushed along, or influence where we will go.

Change comes in either small or big steps, but change is part of life. In some change all you can do is put up your sails and ride it. You cannot control the wind, but using the sail and rudder you can steward the direction you go in.

I understand that not all change is good, but know the cheese will be moved. So you will either adapt or die. . Adapting does not mean core values have to change, but it does mean we get to continue to produce fruit.

Here are four tips for dealing with change:

1. Be aware of your identity struggle. When change happens, questions will come up about your identity. . So much of our identity can get wrapped up in what we do, or the circumstances we are in. However, the God who created us, calls us to him, and wants us to know who we are. Who we are is not based upon what we do or our changing circumstances, but upon Jesus.

“Basil Pennington suggests that the core of the false self is the belief that my value depends on what I have, what I can do and what others think of me.” (Benner, David G. (2009-08-20). The Gift of Being Yourself: The Sacred Call to Self-Discovery (p. 81). InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition.)

2. Change can be emotional. We need to recognize the emotions we are feeling. We need wise counsel to help us understand it and what it is pointing to or saying about ourselves. We need that counsels help in guarding our hearts, so we do not become deceived and stuck seeing only one way. We need to watch our attitudes toward others and ourselves. Check our expectations.

3. We need to listen before we speak.

4. There are always options. Sometimes we can think this is the end, that there is no way out. Perhaps there are moments like that where a season is over, but in Christ the season has simply changed. What option would allow you to be your best and be who you were created to be?

Change is part of life, and as you well know takes its twists and turns. Don’t let that stop you from becoming and living out who God has created you to be.

What have you found helpful in getting through change?

Identity Lesson from Moses

Posted on April 27, 2015April 26, 2015 by Matthew Laker

The question of who we are and how we view ourselves affects everything from our day to day tasks, to stepping out in life. Understanding the question to who I am is often a life journey. How we see ourselves can stop us from moving forward.

Understanding who God is and what he has done, will reveal who we are and what we need to do.

When God calls Moses to go back to Egypt and lead his people out of slavery,, he shares that he has heard the cry of his people. And, he gives a promise to Moses of where he is going to take his people. We read in Exodus 3:11 how Moses responds to God by saying, “Who am I that I should go.”

Have you ever had that view of yourself? Stopping you from stepping out in faith and/or life? Or, had your view of yourself stopped you from living out God’s mission in your life? We think, ‘I am not good enough’, or ‘I do not have all the right skills.’ We say, ‘I do not have all my ducks lined up yet.’ Our failures are like looking in a mirror, staring us back in the face.

Instead of God saying, “Well here is all your good strengths and the skills you have that will help for this job,” God speaks about himself. We know that Moses did have a good skill set for leading people because of His years growing up in Egypt in the Pharaohs’ home, and the education he received. He also got some of his education from his experience living in the dessert. These are all good reason why perhaps God calls Moses.

However, this is not what God refers to. He speaks about how he (God) will be with him. He talks about the signs that will follow him, revealing God’s power and authority.

Then if you skip over to Exodus 4:10-14, Moses speaks of his weakness again, and why he cannot do this task. God’s response is about what he (God) has done and what he (God) can do.

Moses still struggles, but what I find interesting is how God sees who Moses is. Moses see all his weaknesses, and they are real.

But, God shares, ‘This is who I am, and who you shall be because of who I am. You may be weak in speaking, but I will give you what you need and you will not be.’

God answers Moses’ questions about who he is by answering who he (God) is.

As we get to understand who God is, we can understand who we are. Understanding who we are finds fulfillment in the one who created us and is restoring us, Jesus Christ.

The gospel shares that through Jesus’ death and resurrection, there is a redefining of who we are. When we follow Jesus our identity changes, and becomes anchored in Jesus. As we understand who God is and what he has done, we can understand who we are and what we are to do.

What if we listened to who God says we are? As you read the scripture over the coming months, ask God this question. “Who are you and who do you say I am?”

John 3:1a “See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are!” (NLT)

Review of Bo’s Cafe

Posted on October 22, 2014September 23, 2016 by Matthew Laker

A Resource for the Battle in Your In Mind: Bo’s Café Book Review

Feeling life is coming apart, and full of anger. Not sure how to handle the frustration building in his life. If only others would change, things would be fine. Everyone around can see something is going on, but they keep their distance. Distance seems to be a new friend. He knows it’s not right, but one must stay in control. But he still feels as if he is just bumping around in the dark. This is where Steve, the main character, of Bo’s Cafe finds himself as he encounters Andy. In this encounter, hope is offered, but can Steve see the flicker of light in the darkness?

“Bo’s Cafe” by Bill Thrall, Bruce Mcnico and John S. Lync, was recommended to me from a conversation around mental illness, and the challenge of how to walk with others, who are struggling.

Bo’s Cafe is a story which reminds us that we are all broken. We all need a safe community of relationships. “Not just a place to just let everybody hear ones’ garbage. Who needs that? I can get that in my own head. Safe is where I can tell you my garbage so you can enter in and stand with me in the solution of it. That’s safe, man.(p.120)” It is a story that reminds us of our struggle with identity.

Reading the book made me reflect on myself, and how I interact in my own relationships and within community.

In my opinion, here are the top three important points.

1. A Conversation around identity.

We all struggle with identity and the lies we believe that define who we are in life. Many followers of Jesus struggle with truly trusting what God says about us. At times we listen to shame and what it says of who we are. We must remember that Jesus took that shame away, and we no longer have to listen to that voice.

As said in the book, it is hard to replace the lies we tell ourselves with real identity God’s way (p.152). Embracing the new story of life that Jesus offers is not easy. We are afraid and so act out, and try to take control. The character in the story uses anger to try and stay in control. The book challenges the reader to embrace real identity God’s way; they are going to need to admit they can do nothing and really need God’s help.

“Repentance isn’t doing something about your failure. It’s not just agreeing you’ve done something wrong; it’s admitting you can’t do what needs to be done to make it right. God waits and yearns for that moment with everything in him. (p.. 164)”

We have to admit that what we are doing is destructive for ourselves and to those around us. We run around trying to fix everything, steering the wheel, and we simply cannot hear God’s voice.

2. What lies have I bought into in my life?

– This was a question I asked myself after reading the book.

What lies do I allow myself to believe? Lies that effect how I relate to my wife, and even in return effect how she embraces God’s call. Lies that affect my kids, and those I oversee as a pastor. Lies that hold me back from walking in the calling of God in my life.

3. A Reminder about community.

“Even a guy as screwed up as me can give a friend a safe place. Even a man as flawed as I am can help a friend rewrite his story with the real story, the true story – of Christ coming through me.” (p.152)

Wrapped up in that is being able to open up, to truly let someone in. The book is a good reminder that God has given us the body of Christ, other followers of Jesus to help guide us through this life. We need a pit crew or one who serves as a protector to help us through life.

The story is a reminder that there are no together people, just those with whiter teeth (p.213).

There is a place for community and honest relationships, and somehow through that, freedom can be found. The community will need to embrace grace and lay down defenses.

I think it may be a book that I will go back to from time to time. For those looking for “the four steps”, unfortunately you will not find that. What you do find is a lesson in the role of a grace-filled community in life.