the rubbish of success
After a fantastic fall retreat, it was great to back at Quincy Street yesterday.
- We started our annual 4 week ‘pre-communion class’ for our 3rd-5th graders. I am so glad that every year we deliberately teach them about what is happening at the Lord’s Table. It is a place where we remember that we have been rescued.
- 40+ folks who were new to the church gathered for dinner last week. I told the story of the last 2 years and how Restoration came to be. We talked about our core values and dreamed about what a church would look like that is living these out. And I invited them to make commitments of membership to Restoration– to use their time, treasure, and talent to build God’s Kingdom through this local church. It was exciting to watch them come forward during communion yesterday and sign The Big Green Book. 🙂
- Today is All Saints Day (Nov.1) The church intentionally remembers those who have died in the past year. We give thanks for their life and memory. I’m thinking of Laurel’s Grandma Novie today. We worship the Lord who makes dead things come alive. Thank God for His resurrection power.
Reflecting on Philippians 3.1-11
“I used to think Paul was talking about ‘count as loss’ in the same way we think about entree choices on a wedding invitation– please select the chicken or salmon. You could have either [they are both good], but ‘I will count as loss’ the salmon and take the chicken. Meaning, Paul could put his confidence in the flesh, in his success, but because he is so spiritual he will actually count it as loss. (and then chalk that up as a success as well…)”
No. Paul is saying, I was wrong. My success in these ultimate things is killing my relationship with Christ. Sure I have the pedigree of success (verses 5-6), but that’s not a laudable thing that I can ‘finish off’ with a little Jesus. Christ doesn’t complete my portfolio of success— a little addition to round me out, make me a renaissance man. No no no. To find my identity and worth on my success in ultimate things is to find my identity in rubbish.
As I was writing this sermon, I realized that those 2 paragraphs capture a significant struggle for me in the past 18 years of walking with Jesus. I really struggle with ‘needing grace.’ To be honest, if I could get by on my performance or my success and NOT need grace, it would be very tempting. In my most sincere moments, I’d like to have a resume that gets me 98% of the acclaim, security, friendship, greatness, ‘life’ that I want– so I could point to myself. Then let Jesus fill in that last 2% with grace. I definitely see myself striving to not be a person who brings 2% to the table and then needs 98% for the rest.
But the reality is we all need 100% grace. Paul knew it. But there are lots of days I think, ‘maybe I can get far enough on my own this time.’ Those are bad days– lots of anxiety, worry, fear, anger, stress.
There is so much life in this little passage. So much resurrection that I need.
November 1, 2010 @ 8:55 am
This passage and David’s sermon really hit me yesterday as work has been becoming a little too “ultimate” in my life over the past couple months… I began to realize yesterday that it’s not so much success at work, but my reputation at work – how people think and talk about me that has become the ultimate. (Pretty prideful and self-centered) The drive for that has overtaken my life in some ways to the point I am too tired to do any of the things that are truly life-giving (exercise, prayer, quiet with God, etc.).
Couple examples – back in August, my boss, 5 days before he retired from my company, pretty much humiliated me in front of my peers and his peers. As I’ve processed this event, I figured it was my “words of affirmation” love language that made this so devastating to me. I’m sure in part it was. However, my new boss is excellent at giving positive feedback, it’s been like water to my soul and motivates me to do more so I can receive more of his praise. I am thankful for the awareness I am starting to have so this area can be sanctified, but I have a long way to go before I can count the praise of man rubbish.
Touching on David’s 98/2% comment above, it reminded me of a book I read last year (What’s So Amazing About Grace? maybe? can’t remember) that talked about how we perceive grace as making up for what we lack vs. being the 100% that we need. It was startling to see that I was completely in that camp of relying on my X% to get me to Christ when it was all Him to begin with.
I’m with you David, so much resurrection and *restoration* I need as well. Thanks for helping us think through these things.
November 2, 2010 @ 3:01 pm
I know, I know, I am always posting more stuff for our already-very-busy community to read or listen to, but… :-)… Dan Allender gave a fantastic sermon (on 10/10/10) that just jives so well with David’s post above.
http://marshill.org/teaching/
Allender looks at the same passage that we studied at the retreat with Gideon, actually—the one about the vineyard owner paying the same wage to those who had worked all day as well as those who’d only worked for an hour. Allender’s sermon focuses on how hard it is for many in the West to really accept this kind of gracious, abundant generosity, as David describes above. Allender speaks powerfully of an experience he had in Ethiopia where a friend showered him, a rich American, with a delicious and “enchanting” evening of prayer and food in his home, and how it ENRAGED him later to find out how much it had cost his friend. To this rage, another Ethiopian friend, who knew him well, said to him, “Stop! You are plotting how to repay him somehow, aren’t you? Well don’t you dare defame his gift!” Then he got up close to Allender’s face and said, “Suffer…the…kindness.”
And isn’t that what we need to do with God’s grace? Suffer the kindness. I know I am not good at that at all. I want to give (and get credit for…and control…) the 98%, a David says, rather than truly accepting that it does (and must) all come from Him, as Cindy so rightly says.
Lord, teach us at Restoration to suffer your kindness…