Mike Edmisten Follower of Jesus. Husband of Nicki. Father of Ryan & Brock. Communicator of the Word.

Chicken Tenders & Vision

My family went to a new local restaurant after church on Sunday called Tender Towne. While the purpose of this post is not to review a restaurant, I will say that the food was pretty good. Our two boys gave it their stamp of approval. The service was fast and the people were super friendly. But don't go to this place unless you want chicken tenders, because that's all they serve.

In fact, here's what they say about themselves on their website. "While we could have added more items, we are passionate about providing the best tasting, highest quality chicken tenders in the world!"

My son, Ryan, and I actually talked about this while we were eating our chicken tenders. He said, "I guess some places want to serve a bunch of stuff, but Tender Towne just wants to make sure their chicken tenders are great."

My seven-year-old understands the concept of a simple vision. He understands that if you try to do everything, you might get it all done but you probably won't do any of it very well.

This past Sunday, we kicked off our Bring It! series by talking about our vision. The vision of ACC is Connecting, Growing, Serving. It is intentionally simple.

We don't have 100 different ministries. Our church calendar is not packed with events every night. We don't try to do everything. This means that we actually say "no" to some good things. There are a ton of good things that our church could do. But if we say yes to every good thing, then we will eventually have no time or resources to focus on a great thing.

Could we do more? Sure we could. Could we do more and do it well? For a while, yes. But eventually our focus on doing great things would be replaced by just doing things.

Our focus is connecting people with God. Facilitating their growth in God. And equipping them to serve God.

It's not a complicated menu. But as my seven-year-old can attest, we're going to focus on a few great things instead of a lot of good things.

We Owe It To Him

It has broken my heart to watch the story of Youcef Nadarkhani unfold. Youcef is a pastor in Iran and according to news reports, his execution order has been signed. Youcef has been sentenced to die because he has not accepted Islam and has dedicated his life to preaching the gospel of Christ.

News out of Iran is so sketchy and unreliable that we really don't know where things stand right now. Youcef could have been killed already. We just don't know.

But here's what I do know…we owe him something.

Persecution is at an unprecedented level today. More people were killed for their faith in the 20th century than in the previous 19 combined. And the 21st century is shaping up to be even worse.

Obviously we should be praying for Youcef and the millions of others who are under threats from extremists and totalitarian regimes. But we owe them something more than just prayer. We owe them passion.

I have a feeling that if we could talk to Youcef, he wouldn't ask us to pray for his life to be spared (even though I'm praying for exactly that). Youcef has been given the chance to recant his faith in Jesus. If he had done so, his life would have been saved. But he has refused to deny Jesus…a decision that will probably cost him his life. I really don't think Youcef would ask us to pray for him.

He would ask us to pray for his wife and children, whom he has not seen in three years. But he would also ask us to make the most of the opportunity we have to share the gospel of Christ. He would ask our churches to stop playing games…to stop arguing over crap that doesn't matter...to stop making excuses and start making disciples.

Youcef's story has fanned the flames of my passion. I'm more ready than ever to step on stage this weekend at ACC. We are kicking off a new series called Bring It! And that's just what I intend to do. I intend to BRING IT this weekend!

As always, I preach to honor Jesus above anyone else. But this Sunday, I will also preach in honor of Youcef and every other persecuted believer on this planet. And I will lead our church to go further, dig deeper, and be bolder than ever before.

We have unbelievable opportunities to freely share the gospel…opportunities that Youcef could only dream about. And we're going to make the most of them.

We owe it to him.

Zombies

"For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God." (Colossians 3:3)

Zombies are experiencing a strange amount of popularity right now. Commercials. Bumper stickers. Etc. The zombies are taking over.

When I see all this, the first place my mind goes is back to my youth ministry days and the old Audio Adrenaline song, Some Kind of Zombie. For those youth group veterans who rode many a mile in a smelly church van listening to Mark Stuart and company…you're welcome.

There is a life-altering (and actually life-ending) truth in all this zombie business. In Colossians 3, the Apostle Paul said it quite succinctly…you died. You're a goner. Pushing up daisies. Bought the farm. Kicked the bucket. You're dead.

Now, you may not FEEL dead. After all, you can walk. Talk. Ride a bike. Make a sandwich. You can do all kinds of things that dead people can't do.

But in the truest spiritual sense, you're dead. Your life is no longer your life. When you come to Christ, you die. And your life is now hidden with Christ in God.

That's why you live to please Him. That's why you commit to honor Him. That's why you give your life to serve Him. Because your life is not your life. In fact, your life ceased to exist the moment you surrendered to Jesus.

You don't just LIVE your life to him. You GIVE your life to Him. In the eyes of God, your old life is dead. Buried. Gone.

And your new life is defined with one word…Jesus.

Sunday Night Reflections

Been away from my blog for several days. Time to fire things up again with some reflections on another amazing day.

• We wrapped up the What Jim Said series today. This series has been intense! I really had to grind through the writing process of these messages. Probably because they were so tough and intense. But God showed up each and every week. He honors us when we don't just pay attention to the parts of the Bible that make us feel good!
• Our band was en fuego today! Love worshiping with this crew! A lot of people tell me, "Our band is so good, yet they seem so humble." My answer is, "They are. And they are." When someone is truly gifted by God, they don't have to constantly remind you that they are gifted by God. They just use their gift. And, to a person, that is who our band is.
• Taming the tongue is one of the single most difficult Biblical principles to preach. I came to church today knowing it was going to be tense…and it was. But I could absolutely sense that God was chiseling away at us…turning us into people who are more like Jesus. And that's the whole point!
• Pitchers and catchers reported to Spring Training today. I realize this has nothing to do with anything that happened at ACC, but it is something that makes me happy. Very happy. Very, very happy.
• It didn't take long for me to be tested today. I left church, right after preaching on taming the tongue, and was tested not more than 30 minutes later. My family went out to lunch and there was a conversation at a nearby table that I desperately wanted to jump in! But I didn't. Pretty sure I bit my tongue so hard that I left teeth marks.
• Several pastor buddies of mine said that things were amazing in their churches today. I love this! It's not about us. It's about US. I will always reject the idea that churches compete against each other. The only one who wins in that competition is hell.
• Got an email from a couple who visited for the first time today. Loved what they said. "Everyone welcomed us with open arms and hearts. The music was great. Everything was so refreshing. We'll be back, for sure." I get emails like this all time…and it NEVER gets old!
• Next week, we're kicking off a new series called Bring It! I can't wait to get this series started! We're going to explore our vision, where God is calling us to go, who God is calling us to be, etc. It's going to be ridiculously awesome!

A Great Romance

I've decided that this is how I want my marriage to be defined.

In the past, I thought that I wanted my marriage to be defined with words like "faithful" and "happy" and "fulfilling."

But now, I've come to understand that if my marriage is a great romance, it will be all those other things, too.

I'm sure there are some silent (and maybe not-so-silent) objections. "It's Valentine's Day, so you're posting about romance. How cliché. But seriously, who has the time for it in real life?"

You do. And if you don't, you'd better make time.

But we also need to be sure we know what romance is and is not. Love songs and chick flicks have warped our romantic sensibilities. If something is not spontaneous and beautiful and passionate and perfect, it is not true romance. By that definition, pretty much every marriage is a romantic flop. That is simply an impossible standard to apply to a real-life relationship.

I'm not down on those rare…very rare….exceedingly rare moments when our lives and relationships actually do resemble the latest romance novel. But realistically, it's just not going to happen. But that does NOT mean that our marriages cannot be FILLED with romance.

What is real romance? This list is short and incomplete, but it should be enough to get your mind rolling.

1. Romance is putting your spouse's needs above your own. Romance is doing the mundane things that you don't really want to do…and doing them cheerfully. Grumbling about laundry, or cleaning, or car maintenance takes all the romance out of the equation. The job might get done…but the job of romance remains undone. Your spouse needs to know that you're in this thing together. Whether it's the kids or the chores or the car that keeps breaking down or the challenge of aging parents…the list goes on and on. What your spouse needs to know is that you're all in. Life is going to rough you up…but nothing that happens is going to drive a wedge between the two of you.

2. Romance is scheduling time for sex. I know…that sounds incredibly UNromantic. But when you have kids in school, jobs to hold down, and all the other insanity of life…spontaneity needs to take a backseat to scheduling. But it's all in the presentation. Instead of just putting it on the calendar as a "chore," you both get to look forward to it. Maybe you even email or text each other about it throughout the day. Anticipation builds, and all of a sudden, scheduling becomes sexy. Busyness is the mortal enemy of romance and intimacy. It's one big reason why the divorce rate is skyrocketing among empty-nesters. Life revolved around the kids for years, but now the kids are gone…and so is the marriage. Scheduling time for romance and intimacy and sex lets your spouse know that they are still #1. It lets them know that they are immeasurably important. It communicates to them that the fires of romance have not gone out. In fact, romance is so important to you that you are creating time for it.

3. Romance is blocking out time to date your spouse. If you have kids, especially young kids, this can be difficult. But that's exactly when it's the most essential. Can I tell you a secret? Your kid is not the first kid that's ever been born. And he/she won't be the last. Seriously. I know that sounds harsh, but it's true. When you treat your child like they are your whole world, your spouse will notice…and eventually they will be hurt. Your child can spend some time with a babysitter. They can spend the night somewhere other than your house. They'll make it a night without you. Really, it will be ok. Your child will survive a night in the home of a family member or a friend…but if you don't make that time, your marriage might not. I'm convinced that one of the healthiest things Nicki and I can do is tell our boys, "We're going out on a date." Our oldest son, Ryan, rolls his eyes. He thinks it's gross. But he and Brock will also never grow up wondering if their parents' marriage is going to make it. I can't protect them from everything, but I can protect them from that. And I will.

4. Finally, romance is taking the time to really understand and appreciate how your spouse is wired. That's the topic of our small group right now…and it's reminding me that men and women really are different. There's a movement in our culture to essentially remove all the differences between masculinity and femininity. That must be monumentally insulting to God, who engineered those differences in the first place. It's not always easy for us to navigate the differences, but the more we understand how our spouse is wired, the more we can meet their needs as only a husband/wife can. There's nothing more romantic than being known. I think that's why the Bible says that "Adam knew his wife Eve…" (Genesis 4:1a, NKJV) That's more than God's euphemism for sex. It describes what marriage is supposed to be. It is the one human relationship where we can be totally, completely known. We are physically, emotionally, and spiritually known. It is safe. It is reassuring. It is loving. It is altogether romantic.

If your marriage doesn't feel like a sappy Hollywood love story, that's ok. That stuff is fake, anyway. Every marriage has the potential to be a great romance.

The Grinding Process

Every so often, a rather mundane task sparks a pastoral thought in my mind. Actually, it's more than "every so often." It's pretty much everyday.

For example, I had a couple of keys made today. How's that for exciting? But it sparked a thought.

I went into a local small business that repairs shoes and makes keys. Not sure what one has to do with the other, but this little shop does them both. Anyway…

I gave the guy my key. He put it in the machine and started grinding away to make two new keys for me. Is there any more pleasant sound than that machine making a new key? It's like fingernails…on a chalkboard…on steroids.

But when he was finished, I had two brand new keys. I tested them and they both worked perfectly. But that would not have been the case had it not been for the grinding process.

This guy had a few hundred generic keys hanging on the rack, waiting for someone to purchase them. But every one of those keys is useless until the key maker grinds them.

Similarly, we go through a grinding process at the hands of the Key Maker. That's what tough times are. That's what trials and tests are. That's what uncertain, difficult, hard seasons are. They are the grinding process.

In James 2, the Bible says, "Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." (James 2:2-4)

In the toughest, loneliest, hardest times…remember that you're in the grinding process…which means that God can use you for much greater things when the grinding is complete.

Post-Super Bowl Monday Reflections

I didn't get to write anything last night because I was too busy watching the Giants beat the Patriots. To quote my buddy, Wade Allen, "I am happy that a Manning won at least one game in Lucas Oil Stadium this season!"

But I can't let this weekend escape without celebrating it.

• Sunday was off-the-chart awesomeness! The atmosphere at church was electric! There is something inexplicable that happens when God's people really worship together. It's unifying. It's encouraging. It's healing. It's motivating. It's just flat out awesome!
• I did something a little different before the service on Sunday. I spoke for a minute to all our children's ministry volunteers. Just wanted to tell them how much they mean to me. If you are part of our children's ministry in any way, THANK YOU! I know there are days when it doesn't feel like it, but you are making an ETERNAL difference!
• Did I mention that the Patriots lost? The Super Bowl? In Indy? And they lost to a Manning? Ok, it's not exactly the Manning I had in mind…but it's still pretty sweet!
• Our student ministry Super Bowl party was a blast! I hung out at the party through halftime, and it was so much fun. I haven't done anything like that since my days in youth ministry. I love our kids…but man, I'm getting OLD!
• Our band killed it on Sunday! Love their passion, hard work, and dedication. You guys could play on any stage anywhere, but you choose to play on ours. Thank you!
• The message was as tense and intense as anything I have preached in a long time. The book of James is not for wimps. This series is rocking my world…and it's impacting our church in a big, big way.
• Every year, the day of the Super Bowl is referred to as "Super Sunday." At ACC, we simply refer to it as "Sunday." Same as we refer to every other Sunday of the year. The "Super" is always understood and expected! I love my church!

Three Must-Read Posts

Here are three must-read posts from other bloggers.

An Endless Series of Difficult but Achievable Hills – Seth Godin (every leader needs to read this)

God's Most Foolish Idea – Adam Jones (feel like God isn't coming through in time? read this.)

Just Enough of Jesus to be Bored – Mark Batterson (stopped me in my tracks!)

Announcement from Sunday

In But Not Of

I went into a Christian bookstore over the weekend. First time in a long time. Honestly, I was frustrated by the experience.

I was frustrated by the amount of cheesy material that I saw. There was some good stuff interspersed, to be sure. I don't want to be a total Debbie Downer here. But along with the good stuff, there was a lot of goofy stuff.

But more to the point, I kept thinking, "Is this it? Is this what it's all about? I'm in a Christian bookstore, filled with Christian music, Christian books, Christian t-shirts, Christian coffee mugs, Christian videos, Christian candy, etc. Is this what it's all about?"

In John 17:16, Jesus reminds us that His followers are not "of the world." People who are following Jesus should be different from the world.

There is a disturbing trend in the church today. There is a trend of telling people, "We're just like you. We're absolutely no different from you."

Question: If I'm not a Christian and you're just like me…why do I need to become a Christian?

We are not of the world, which means that we are different from the world. Very different.

But here's where I'm struggling. Does that mean that we need to create an entire Christian subculture? Because that is exactly what has happened. Christians do have their own bookstores, replete with Christian merchandise. Not only that, but there are Christian TV channels, Christian radio stations, Christian dating sites, etc.

All this is an attempt to obey Jesus when He said we are not of the world. I get that.

But in the preceding verse, John 17:15, Jesus also made it clear that He was not removing His followers from the world.

To summarize Jesus' prayer, we are called to be in the world but not of the world.

Are we "in the world" with all this Christian subculture stuff? The point could be made that, with all this stuff, we are not "of the world." My question is, are we also "in it?"

I don't pretend to have an answer here. But here's what I do know…my unbelieving friends don't read Max Lucado. They don't listen to Casting Crowns. And they didn't go see Courageous.

I'm not knocking these things per se. For example, I love Lucado. Phenomenal author.

But the question that I keep wrestling with is how can we be in the world but not of the world?

It seems like many believers fall to one extreme or the other.

A lot of Christians live as isolationists. They immerse themselves in the Christian subculture, therefore isolating themselves from the world. They are definitely not of the world. But they are also not in it. Many of them not only isolate themselves from anything non-Christian…they also isolate themselves from anyone non-Christian. They are not of, but they are also not in.

On the flip side, a lot of believers completely immerse themselves in the culture. The music on their iPod is trash. The books they read and movies they watch are garbage. But they believe it's ok, because a missionary has to know the culture if they are going to reach the culture. Good point…but at what cost? Many of these believers are in the world. But are they also of it? Probably more than they would like to admit. And their witness for Christ is really watered down because they really are like a lot of non-Christians. There is no discernible difference. They are in. They are also of.

To bring this long and rambling post to an end…I don't know. I just don't know. I don't believe either extreme is what Jesus prayed for. I really don't. I also admit that I have spent portions of my life on both sides of the issue. I have been a religious isolationist. And I have immersed myself in worldly things under the guise of evangelism and mission. I've been in both places.

Currently, I'm not in either place. I'm in limbo. I'm still in the process of learning what it means to be in the world but not of the world. And maybe the process is where I will become more like Jesus.

I can only hope.