I have a challenge to all of you ; Do you really love the unlovable? Are you really willing to go out of your comfort zone because you are willing to understand the people you are serving? I am not trying to play a guilty trip here. But with all the ministry we are doing and with what is going on around us; I really want to remind you some important points to consider.
1. Loving others is a gift . We do understand this when we know how much we are loved freely. When you say you love others, if you are talking godly love, you are saying I am willing to give your love without expecting anything back. Godly love is a love with no strings attached. Hebrew 6 tells us how God's faithfulness is so deep in loving us regardless of our response to it.

13For when God made [His] promise to Abraham, He swore by Himself, since He had no one greater by whom to swear,
14Saying, Blessing I certainly will bless you and multiplying I will multiply you.(A)
15And so it was that he [Abraham], having waited long and endured patiently, realized and obtained [in the birth of Isaac as a pledge of what was to come] what God had promised him.
16Men indeed swear by a greater [than themselves], and with them in all disputes the oath taken for confirmation is final [ending strife].
17Accordingly God also, in His desire to show more convincingly and beyond doubt to those who were to inherit the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose and plan, intervened (mediated) with an oath.
18This was so that, by two unchangeable things [His promise and His oath] in which it is impossible for God ever to prove false or deceive us, we who have fled [to Him] for refuge might have mighty indwelling strength and strong encouragement to grasp and hold fast the hope appointed for us and set before [us].
19[Now] we have this [hope] as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul [it cannot slip and it cannot [a]break down under whoever steps out upon it--a hope] that reaches [b]farther and enters into [the very certainty of the Presence] within the veil,(B)
20Where Jesus has entered in for us [in advance], a Forerunner having become a High Priest forever after the order (with [c]the rank) of Melchizedek.(C)
An ability to love unconditionally comes from understanding that we are blessed and given unconditional love by the one who knows how to give freely. Do you really have hard time to give love to others? Do you struggle accepting others as they are? Then may be you need to look at how much understanding you have to the love God has given to you.

Because I came to learn about it through many painful experiences; I believe most of the problems we see in Churches today is the outcome of the people who grow up looking but not finding an agape love that satisfies in and out. The sad thing is many people are still looking for it and somehow we fail to point to many helpless people what it really meant in words and action. Our actions and words need to be in concert to understand that many of the problems we see in Churches today is a cry for agape and we, who claim that we found it, need to be gracious enough to demonstrate it.

I think because of the context we live in this age of globalization, loving others need to start from understanding who they are and where they come from. We all have culture and background we came from. But we need to get out the nest and learn to think outside of the box we made for ourselves. Because as we agree with J.B. Philips, that our God is not a small god, He is the God who, not only makes history happen, but also changes and leads the course of history. He is the God of Genesis, more than originality making something to exist which has not existed before in any form or status. It is a recognition of this quality of God when we join him to go to the journey and joy of discovering others. We will know their pain and joy; their happiness and gladness; all who they are, and making it to heaven together. Intimacy is very scary. But if we meant to do God's will that is the best way to make things happen in God's kingdom. Are you willing to understand others? Agape is a movement that adapts and lives out every change we face:

There is no perfect storm out there that can sink the church of Jesus Christ. No matter how much or how rapidly culture changes, the church is designed to prevail. Yet with each culture shift, it is painfully obvious that the church has become an institution rather than a movement. (Mcmanus)

I think agape love is a movement to be able to say to the most distinguished sinner: I love you regardless and I want to be part of your pain and change because of what Jesus has done to me. It is truly a Stubborn love to use my title. The storm of hatred, and an organizational legalism in the church without the call of grace or agape love putting many sinners out and making many ministries a waste. We need a movement of love that embodies grace, forgiveness and true reconciliation if we mean to move with a movement of love. Loving others is invading them with grace and gift so that it will be contagious in bringing the change we have been looking for a long time.

Loving others is not something that will be decided by majority. Loving others or extending agape is a personal decision to extend grace only, and only by the influence of the gospel. You do not give agape because others support you to do it or not, you do give agape because you understand how deeply bad sin is, and the only way out of it is the love of Jesus Christ our Lord.

That is why Scripture tells us. When Jesus saw Zeccheus or that woman who washed his feet with her tears he loved, he gave agape against the odds. It is a sad time when we see that the Church puts its work aside from giving grace to others. Giving grace is the Church's main work regardless of the sad situation of the sinful world we live in. We want to be loved because the sinful world deprived us of that love.
That is obvious through our upbringing and through our day today relationship. If we understand that the sinful world is in deep trouble because of the lack of love I think it will make it easier to give love to others regardless of the situation we are in. Today: Education, Position, Money, Status, etc... are replaced loving others. God is committed to make sure to glorify himself by bringing agape in his church. This is not our church, this is God's church and he is going to bring agape whether we like it or not. His seriousness to bring love can be seen in the Book of Jeremiah 1,

5Before I formed you in the womb I knew [and] approved of you [as My chosen instrument], and before you were born I separated and set you apart, consecrating you; [and] I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.(B)

The word �knew� here is the same word used when Adam new Eve. God knew or loved Jeremiah even when he does not know who he is. And decided to treat Jeremiah as great regardless of his failure. You can see this theme coming up in the whole book of Jeremiah. His love also is seen in the fact that he was willing to give Jesus Christ for all of us. Many significant changes happened in my life when I know I am loved and how beautiful it is to God making me that change. Lord Please make me an agent of your agape that will bring eternal change in the lives of many!!!

The only way the Church of Jesus Christ stands out is in its unconditional love. Jn.13:34-35. Romans 13:10 etc... Long time ago back home I have seen Christianity is different from a religion. The power of the Gospel makes a difference in a person's life because it pleasures in giving unconditionally. If you see any other aspect of the church it is similar to other religions around. Including spirituality. Many religions have a similar or sometimes better expressions of spirituality than Christianity as a religion.

And then the Buddhist moved in across the street. He was different than the Atheist. He has a value for spirituality and mysticisms that surpassed the religious fervor of many church attendees. Spirituality was sometimes more central to his life than ours, and we wanted to explain to him how believing in Jesus was right. The global religious banquet created a buffet-line approach toward faith. People suddenly have greater options and choices of religious expression, and the blank dismissal of other cultural values and faiths seemed to only validate how wrong fundamental Christian thinking had been. These new people was not suppose to be nice people, it wasn�t suppose to be so easy to like them�the spiritual expression such as Zen, yoga, meditation and discipline appear to be superior to the average experience of the American church goer. (53).

The only way, that distinguishes biblical Christianity from other ways of religion is the practice and concept of agape. Otherwise, we can be caught off guard because other religions are the same or better than us the rules we are proud of to know and practice. We are winners becaue our love needs to be known in accepting the worst of humanity and bring change in his life. Most of the rules we are trying to apply in the churches are found in many forms in other religions. That name or rule can not distinguish us from other forms of faith, only the grace or the agape of Jesus Christ. I hope you understand that I am not trying to overlook rules and other forms of religious practice. But sadly I have seen many people taken by them at the expense of many people who can be redeemed otherwise.

It worries me sometime that church leaders can play lovers without loving so that they can improve their resumes at the expense of the oppressed. Leaders who earned their leadership through giving and loving can be put aside by leaders who are aiming to the hierarchy at the expense of the community. Oh how many times the African grass gets hurt? I just wrote a very deep letter with tears to one of my friends to help me to pray as I go to share this love to friends who are ministers and who are considering to be ministers.

Let me suggest some ways how to be more agape centered :

If you want to give agape to people who have been oppressed please be incarnational. Many people think becoming incarnational is mainly geographical. You can be sure you can locate with people in the same area or neighborhood but they would possibly never understand what the world you are made of or what in the world you are talking about. Is your ministry comes from you or from your relationship to the people?

In 1Cor.13:1-3 it is saying your speech without an action of love is meaningless. Because love gives meaning , quality and depth to what we say. Knowledge/ shepherding without love is also meaningless because if you know and you are a teacher you need to know how to love. If you can not bear the smell of the sheep you can not be a Shepherd. It is actually a message that can also be found in 1Peter 5. Where Peter commands the Shepherds of the congregation to be example in love and humility not in demanding authority. It is very easy for the church to be an organization without being an organism. The people who made history in salvation are people who are willing to go further at cost of their advantage. Or people who are willing to give up so that God can be glorified and others can get the advantage. In Matthew Jesus shows his disciples that the best way to show others the value of the Kingdom is taking really risks of love. Loving without knowing the result and the return. That is very difficult to take for our trained minds. Because we imagine results in our minds as we work. When you love you may not know what will happen but anyways you love. Love is a walk of risky faith. Jesus loved but he was rejected. He gave love but he never got it back. That is sad. Love is a giving away of our lives knowing and trusting the God can and will make the best use of it; Not in a way we expect but in a way he chose.
It is like Jesus going to a solitary place with his disciples but the people came, instead of saying, I am tired. He has a compassion on them. What a LOVE !! Loving others is having the ability to sort between our feelings and God's command and a heroic move to choose the later regardless of our feelings.

If all the people we love have responded perfectly to our love I bet you that your love is more of a seasonal love than a tested love. Because agape love is a love that is tested and able to see beyond the failure of a friend say to him, "I love you." I love because I know how much I am loved not because there is that response from the people whom we gave love.

I have given many things to many people freely. Including my time my advantage and my money. Some people have been so good and responded to my gifts. Some never. But I am asking God to help me everyday to find my joy in loving not in the result I got from loving or giving. Do you love the people you preach? !. Then your preaching should come from your relationship with them. The true preacher decides the most illiterate person in his church would understand what he preaches and he prepares his massage based on that.
Your glory as a leader also is important. What it means to you that God called you to this ministry? It means you possibly be different. You will have weaknesses but as a leader you are really an empowering force that will help the church to become an organism in its walk with the Lord.
What breaks my heart in any church is when I miss the things I became a Christian for. Grace and Reconciliation. I have seen you can affect a person's behavior more in Love and applying rules in love than being dogmatic about your self made rules.

Do you have that love which stays and wins? God needs to give you and me that Love. Reconciliation needs to be understood from the Context of love. We Africans have been leveled in and outside of the church with many names. Some of it is we deserve. But when we come to the church it is possible there are many people who want to remind us that feature of us than really take that incarnational way of approaching us and doing the ministry of reconciliation.
In my next blog entry I will talk about grace and reconciliation separately.
But my question to you is are you ready to be stubborn lover? I hope you do.
Amen Jesus!

| By kishawork2 | 8:13 PM | Comments (0)

I wish my Fridge would be full like yours!

Sky is a 12 year old Liberian Boy. Sky comes to our building almost every day. We were together at the building the other day when Sky shocked me saying, "Worku I wish our fridge is as full as yours. I can tell you that there was not a lot of stuff in the fridge. All the people who are serving God in our building can attest to that. I was wondering whether Sky is expressing "the grass on the other side of the fence is always greener." way of thinking or if he really is hurting at home. But I want you to know what God is sending me to my way these days is making me to be thankful for what I have than to be complainning about what I do not have.

You know life can be enjoyed when you are not willing to define by the public. But when you define with what God made you to be and when you are willing to open those blind eyes to see how much God has really blessed you. You know I understand you need to be a steward in a community and also represent God in the community. But being part of a community is to see how much you are blessed and do not see your haves and not have's but the standard out there.

May be I am saying this a lot because I am coming from a poor part of the world and have seen not only "Relative Poverty," but also "Absolute poverty."
But when I see people in this culture it, sometimes, shocks me how much God has blessed and they take it for granted. There are many Sky's who would love to have what you have and would jump up and down with joy for being alive to see this day.

I think the first step to bless others is to know how much we have been blessed. And the second step is, to accept what we do not have as a part of the expression of the love of God. As it says in Hebrew 12 God disciplines his children and be patient or gentle to be disciplned by God. Meaning, act like Children. God disciplnes his children not because of the mistake they have done but because he wants to see growth in them. The Hebrew 12 Passage ask us to accept discipline by God as a part of being in the family of God. Perhaps God is not giving us everything we wish because he sees much better things for us, again as it indicates in Hebrew 12.
As a person stand between two worlds I am thankful to see that the God I worship is a God of blessing even in the midst of painful circumstances. I hope this message finds you and open your eyes to see the amazing God who loves to bless in your life!

| By kishawork2 | 7:32 PM | Comments (1)

May 9, 2008

Help Wanted!

Dear Friends,
I am continually surprised by the God who calls people who are broken so that they will be lifted up and be a reason for others to be lifted up. I am learning my God is a God who takes a dirty rug and brings beauty out of it. This is hard to accept for a reasonable and sane, but may be the ability of God who brings beauty out of mess makes him one and only. It is a privilege to serve him.
There are many people, specially from this country who could do much better job than what I do and God chose me as I am continuing to live on the edge. The love I get from friends and God, everyday making me so thankful and filled with gratitude because I know none of what I get do I deserve . The weaker I am the more I am recognizing that I do not deserve what I am doing and how much thankful I should be for what God is doing in the people who are in my life.
Paul calls himself a Chief of sinners in 1 Timothy 1, as Dan Allender, pointed out clearly. But the amazing thing is Paul talks about a lot of sinful people who do not deserve to go to heaven and then moves to show how sinful he is,
8We know that the law is good if one uses it properly. 9We also know that law[a] is made not for the righteous but for lawbreakers and rebels, the ungodly and sinful, the unholy and irreligious; for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers, 10for adulterers and perverts, for slave traders and liars and perjurers—and for whatever else is contrary to the sound doctrine 11that conforms to the glorious gospel of the blessed God, which he entrusted to me.
The Lord's Grace to Paul
12I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength, that he considered me faithful, appointing me to his service. 13Even though I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. 14The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus
15Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. 16But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life. 17Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory for ever and ever. Amen.






And Paul continues to call himself a "chief of sinners" Paul is saying I am really one of the worst of those people he described in verses 8-11. He even continues to call himself blasphemer, persecutor and a violent man. Then, he says I still am the worst of the sinners. But because of the grace of God I am saved and even I am a leader. Many leaders think they are the best of all. I think the best biblical description for all leaders who are called by God is the "worst of all" or as Allender describes it "The Chief of Sinners." The more I see my sin the more it brings me to the bible. Some times in Bible studies and fellowship, people try to explain away the failure of God's leaders; or somehow they try to make it holy. The only difference I see from the saints of salvation history and the worst sinners are the gospel. Many leaders want to give a good appearance to the outside world by hiding their brokenness hoping no one will discover it. Good luck with that! Paul, and other leaders, however, did not ashame to embrace the deep sinfulness in their leadership. The only thing, according to Paul, that makes a Christian leader great is the fact that Jesus fell in love with the worst of all.
Culturally, it makes me cry when I see broken famous leaders try to cover up their brokenness at the cost of the joy that comes from embracing weakness.
Because I have been misunderstood culturally it is very easy for people to level me as if I do not know anything or as one church leader, years ago, put it in talking to me on leadership, "we are studying your status in our church to see what you deserve." Thankfully, people who hurt me without knowing, helped me to see myself in a more realistic way and to look at the bible and read more on leadership. Therefore, I thank the people who intentionally or unintentionally hurt me. Because God used that to help me see and embrace my weakness and boast about it. They made me look into the Bible if the CEO leadership style which puts one person above others really is biblical. Look what Dan Allender says about leaders in the bible:
I can hardly name a leader in the bible who didn't fail radically enough to warrant being removed from leadership...it seemed God loves to use troubled,odd, unpredictable people to not only lead others but also to make the gospel known.
I think that is very similar to what Paul is saying above. God really chose people through out salvation history who are very reluctant, afraid to lead, and who really know and embrace their brokenness and not afraid to admit it. When God chose a poor sinner who gets in trouble a lot because of his brokenness creates a story that gives glory to his name. As Allender, again points out clearly, " Leaders are primarily story tellers and story makers; and troubled people are called to be leaders because they create and tell compelling stories. Sane, reasonable, play-it-safe people are not sufficiently engaged in life to generate great stories. instead they sit back and wait a leader-storyteller to come along and get them caught up in a life worth living.

This does not mean leaders are out there looking for trouble. The world is broken enough around a true leader to give him enough ways to give him enough pain and trouble. I really love what I do. Most days end up with things I can not do because I was not able. I feel bad because I was not able to bless one more family today for the lack of volunteers or my weakness. But the same time I embrace and enjoy my limitedness for the God who cares for the poor is more than me to touch lives and provide needs. The families we are trying to help come from a broken world that remind me of mine and others sin around me. Thankfully, in the last four years I never had a problem to be reminded how imperfect and sinful I am. Some people tried to accuse me of my imperfection to hurt me, others did it because they truly love me. When I look back why God put a reluctant person like me in leadership because he wanted me to tell a story of his deep continuing forgiveness to the fool. I love you Jesus!

I am here because I am loved by Jesus. As I go forward, the only single hope I have and the strength and passion that gives me going is the fact that Jesus chose a person like me to go tell to the people I serve who are ashamed of their sin, ashamed of their country, ashamed of their family and tribe, that Jesus truly forgives those who do not deserve to be forgiven. He forgave me and continues to forgive me. Not only that, he chose me to lead and allow me to fail to constantly show how vast his love is. OH! I pray that many leaders in this country see the mission field that God brought from all over the world is the reflection of the weakness we have and as we are willing to be vulnerable we can cross and touch others. Because the church aggressively applied the CEO model of world leadership, to many people, who come from another countries the leaders are so unreachable. Therefore, many people think that the church is lead by so perfect and so high people. What a lie! I am praying that many people who know and serve Jesus, in this country would become vulnerable enough so that others will see the power of grace that calls the worst of sinners to do the best of all works. When leaders are able to do that Revival happens!

God's leadership model "chooses fools to live foolishly in order to reveal the economy of heaven, which reverses and inverts the wisdom of this world. He calls us to brokenness not performance; to relationship not commotion; to grace not success"

Paul, in his letter to Timothy, is saying that any leader can not be any righteous. Because any one in the kingdom who really chose to lead is a fool and a person who is living on the edge. Many leaders "know they are a mess. But they hope against hope that no one else would notice."
Help wanted! God wants to hire quality people. Fortunately, their quality is people who know they are the worst of all sinners! So that is why I am part ot it. Therefore, there is a place to a sinner and a weak person like me. That is why I love heaven! I am loved and ushered by the king of Kings! There is an opening for people who know that they will have the ability to accept the order of the true boss and the true leader.
What does this mean for cross cultural ministry? I think this is a powerful uniter. We all are broken. We all are "Limping" as Allender describes it. Therefore, we all need grace that God brings to us through each other. We embrace and enjoy our weakness, as leaders, in a cross-cultural world while God make us very thankful for choosing us to cross to each others world and love each other. That means no one is better or less than the other. All leaders, new and settled Americans, are working in the kingdom because they are loved and chosen while they are the worst of all and continue to be.
AMEN! WE ALL NEED TO BE PART OF THIS EXCITING GRACE FILLED JOURNEY WITHOUT TAKING OURSELVES SO SERIOUSLY! WE ARE NEEDED BECAUSE WE ALL ARE FOOLISH! WE ARE NEEDED WE ALL ARE THE WORST OF ALL!

LOVED BY JESUS!!!!

| By kishawork2 | 5:10 PM | Comments (1)