Friend: Dude, what’s up? You’re not eating?
Me: No.
Friend: Are you fasting?
Me: Yeah
Friend: Didn’t you fast this time last year… and the year before that?
Me: Um, actually… yeah. I did.
Friend: Dude! That’s awesome!
Me: No, not really. It actually kind of sucks. I freakin’ hate fasting.
Friend: Then why do you do it?
Me: Because I need it.

I’ve struggled with posting this blog for sometime now, because I don’t ever want to be guilty of being the guy that Jesus spoke of:

Matthew 6:16
“And when you fast, do not look gloomy like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces that their fasting may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward.”

I don’t want to fast in order to be recognized by people, because then according to Jesus, my fast becomes ineffective. When you fast so that others will notice you, the reward that you receive IS the recognition of others. That’s a pretty crappy reward. When I fast, I fast to move mountains, draw near to God, and see the sun stand still.

That being said, I’m posting this now because I’ve encountered more questions and queries regarding fasting than I ever have before. So let me answer some of the most common questions.

What Is Fasting?

Biblically speaking, fasting is the act of going without something (usually food) in order to focus on prayer and fellowship with God. It’s really that simple.

What Do You Do When You Fast?

Well, it’s really quite simple. You go without food (usually). I’ve heard a lot of people talk about how instead of eating you pray. When you skip meals, you simply use that time to pray. Well, that’s not completely inaccurate, but it certainly feels more wooden than what we see in Scripture. Personally, when I fast I still sit down at the table with my family for meals. Meal times are family time for us and I don’t want to skip those. Obviously, I don’t eat, but I do enjoy the time together with my family. And I don’t really pray during the meal either. I’m not saying that you shouldn’t do that. It’s probably a great thing to do. It’s just not what I do, and certainly not what you HAVE to do. I do, however, find myself praying A LOT more when I’m fasting. Why? Not because I feel like that’s what I’m supposed to do, but it happens naturally, because I find myself being more aware of my need for Jesus. When you are not taking in any kind of nutrition, you need Jesus on a whole different level then you ever have before. If you fast long enough, you will find yourself desperate for a touch from God just to keep you going (which brings me to my next point).

What’s The Point of Fasting?

One of my favorite “Jimmyisms” (coined phrases from our pastor, Jimmy Carroll) is “Desperation breeds dependency.” That is actually what fasting is all about. The more desperate I am for God, the more dependent on him I become. The more dependent on him that I am, the closer I draw to him. And closeness with God breeds all kinds of awesome rewards: I hear him speak more clearly, he tends to use me more mightily, and I find my prayers are more readily answered (because I sense his heart more clearly and pray accordingly). But it’s about so much more than the rewards. The truth is that I need Jesus. I need him every second of every day. But because I have a good life, often times I am not acutely aware of my need for him. I don’t need him more when I’m fasting, but I become much more aware of my need for him. As a Christian, have you ever noticed that it was in your most desperate times that you found yourself the closest to God? It’s because you were do dependent on him. I believe the reason that the faith of our brothers and sisters in third world and closed countries is often so much stronger than ours is because they are so acutely aware of their need for God on a daily basis. Desperation breeds dependency. Fasting is a way of fostering a sense of desperation for God. Often when I am doing an extended fast I find myself praying something like this: “Father, if you don’t sustain me, I don’t know how I’m going to make it through this day. I’m tired. I’m hungry. And I don’t feel like I can go on.”

Desperation breeds dependency.

I have a firm belief: the better your life is, the more imperative it is for you to fast. Honestly, I have  a great life. I have suffered very few trials and troubles. My life is good. Deuteronomy 7:11 warns us to “beware that in your plenty you do not forget the Lord your God.” The better your life is, the  more imperative it is for you to fast.

Who Should Fast?

Well… YOU should. No seriously. I’m talking to you. You should fast. You NEED to fast. It’s interesting that in the verse from Matthew above that Jesus started with “WHEN you fast” not “IF you fast.” Jesus started with the assumption that if you are his disciple then you are going to fast. We just don’t hear much about it in Western Christianity because it isn’t convenient for us. We don’t like fasting so we don’t teach on it. If you have dietary concerns then fast from something else that you find yourself dependent on… like coffee, or facebook, or text messaging, or TV, or any and all technology (uh oh, I might be stepping on some toes now). Keep in mind when I say “dietary concerns,” I’m talking serious concerns not “I get hunger pangs when I don’t eat.” So, who should fast? You should.

How Long Should I fast?

Assuming that we’re still talking about food, you should take it slow if you’ve never fasted before. This week, fast from one meal (if you don’t normally eat breakfast that doesn’t count, fast from a REAL meal that you normally eat). Then maybe next month fast from one meal everyday for a week. Then sometime later try fasting for an entire day. Then sometime later try fasting one day out of every week for a month. My dad used to fast every Saturday out of every single week in preparation for Sunday. Or maybe it’s time for you to try an extended fast. You can try fasting for three days, and then later a week or longer. I think it’s less about how or how long you do it, and more about actually doing what Jesus assumed you would be doing.

This weekend marks the beginning of a new series in 3:12 called “Collide.”

Ask anyone who’s ever run into a sliding glass door that was closed, or went for the same baseball as a teammate, or experienced a fender bender at a stoplight-a collision changes things. Whether it’s a bump on the head or a cracked bumper, something is not the same as it was before. The same thing happens when we collide with God or His truth or even other people. We’re changed. But unless we put ourselves in a position to collide, everything will stay the same. So are you ready to change, are you ready to collide?

Don’t miss this special week. Micah Brown will be leading us in worship and Aaron Bauer will be bringing the Word. Bring a friend, and we’ll see you there: Sunday night, 6-8pm in the Studio.

If you go to Journey, for many of you this has been the elephant in the room. Actually, that’s not entirely accurate. The elephant in the room is the thing that everybody knows about but doesn’t talk about. Reports keep getting back to me on people who “have issues” with my tattoos. This, of course, means they ARE talking about it, they just aren’t coming to me about it. I’ll ignore for the moment they are violating the biblical principle of going directly to your brother if you have an issue with him. So let’s settle this here once-and-for-all. And if in the future anyone says anything to you about my tattoos, I would strongly urge you to kindly send them this link.

Do I have tattoos: Yes, I do.
Do I think tattoos are bad: Obviously not, or else I wouldn’t have gotten them.
Do I plan on getting more tattoos? Yes, as a matter fact, I do.
What does the Bible say about tattoos? I’m glad you asked…

Are Tattoos Sinful?

Well, to be honest, the issue is pretty simple and straightforward. There is one verse in Scripture that is often used to support the idea that it is sinful to tattoo your body. Here it is.

Leviticus 19:28 
You shall not make any cuts on your body for the dead or tattoo yourselves: I am the LORD.

So it’s pretty straightforward right? It’s wrong to tattoo yourself. Well, not exactly. Before all you anti-tattoo types get too excited. You have to understand to whom this verse was written. Found in the book of Leviticus, these instructions are written to the Levites, the priestly tribe of Israel and those who are of the lineage of Aaron who would serve the Lord in his tabernacle. This specific command was given so that they might not identify themselves with a neighboring pagan religion who’s priests did cut themselves and tattoo their bodies. So, if that’s you (meaning: you’re a direct descendant of Aaron from the tribe of Levi and are serving the Lord in the tabernacle), then this verse probably applies to you. Everyone else, have at it.

If that’s still not convincing enough for you. If you think that specific command still applies to all people for all times… First, I question whether you really understand the book of Leviticus. Second, I would just ask that you apply your logic consistently. In fact, I would have you start by applying the verse just before the one in question:

Leviticus 19:27
Do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard. 

Well, there you have it. If you think I shouldn’t have tattoos, I’ll be willing to listen to your argument as soon you stop cutting your sideburns and trimming your beard. (Random note: a few years ago, I quit cutting my sideburns just for the fun of it for a few months. It wasn’t a pretty sight.)

Jesus Will Have Tattoos

On a side note. If you don’t like tattoos, you might be in for a surprise when Jesus returns. Check out these verses in Revelation:

Revelation 19:11,12,16
I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and wages war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself… On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

Many scholars believe that these words written on him will literally be engraved or tattooed onto his body. (Honestly, I only added this little tidbit to stir the pot a little)

A Word to Teenagers and Others Still Living At Home

If your parents are still paying your bills and/or you live under their roof, guess what: you have to abide by their rules. Your parents may not like tattoos, piercings, etc. That’s a different thing entirely from saying that they are morally wrong. So teenagers: please stop using me as ammunition against your parents when you’re trying to convince them to let you do all the things that they dislike. Obey your parents. More than that, honor them. Honor them by quitting your incessant bickering and complaining every time they make a rule that you think us unfair. You want to know what’s unfair? The fact that your parents provide for your every need and what they get in return is your ungrateful ungodly attitude.

That’s the goal. Now with the goal clearly in focus, we’ve been strategizing about how to get there. The proverbial “bump” in the road that I’ve continued to run into over and over again is that all of the so-called “tools” of evangelism feel so wooden, stale, and inauthentic in the hands of my teenagers. Recently, a girl confided in me that she has friends that don’t know Jesus, and she doesn’t share Jesus with them. She said “if I were to say, ‘If you were to die tonight do you know for sure you would go to heaven,’ they would look at me like I’m stupid because nobody actually talks like that.”

So what is a realistic expectation? Should I actually expect students to share their faith with others when most adults don’t even do that? Is it enough to just expect them to invite their friends to church? As I’ve wrestled with this questions, I have decided that I should absolutely expect them to share their faith because Jesus expects them to do this. So then, how do we get there? It has to be more than teaching them the Romans Road, Steps to Peace with God, The Four Spiritual Laws, The ABC’s of salvation, or giving them a handful of tracts and turning them loose.

It’s not that these tools aren’t useful, but they will always seem wooden, inauthentic, and unnatural if you aren’t already talking about Jesus. So before I turn students loose to win their friends to Jesus, we need to begin with just teaching them how to talk about Jesus in public. But of course, they’re not talking about Jesus because they don’t already spend time with him. He’s not a presence in their lives. They don’t talk about him because it’s not a natural overflow. So what’s the solution?

Beginning in January 2012, we are enacting a process that is a part of a larger strategy. It’s called Re:Train. There are three steps: Reachout, Reproduce, Release. Each step is a 6 week class that will be offered once a year. Step one (Reachout) will train students how to begin reaching outside of themselves and how to make Jesus a part of normal everyday conversation. It will answer the question, how do I share Jesus with my friends? Step two (Reproduce) will train students how to actually make disciples. It will answer the question, how do I lead someone to Jesus? In step three (Release) we will actually begin releasing students to go and be a part of the mission.

Of course, this strategy will only work if students are already spending time Jesus on a daily basis so that everything they learn in Re:Train is just channeling the natural overflow of their life. Therefore, before Re:Train begins, there has to be some kind of prerequisite that helps students learn what it looks like to spend time with Jesus on a daily basis and teaches them the discipline that enables them to do it. This part is still a mystery, and we’re not exactly sure what the whole process looks like yet. But I am very excited about where this is headed and I’ll keep you posted about our progress.

Not only is the design new, but several other things are new as well. The comments are now fully integrated with Facebook and Twitter so that you can log in using one of those accounts, and you can share your comments through those sites as well. All of the feeds have changed, so if you would like to follow me, please resubscribe using one of the links on this page. I hope you enjoy the new sight!

In
an effort to rid himself of a shadowy tag along, Matt makes a serious
mistake.

Lately, God has been doing something in my heart, and I don't know exactly what it is. What I do know is that continually find myself asking these questions: "Am I radical enough?" "Have I missed the point of all of this?" "Is God pleased with the life that I am living in his name?"

Here are the verses that God used to grip my heart this morning: 1 John 3:17-19

But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth. By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him. (ESV)

Just read those verses as they stand. Set aside your presuppositions and your preconceived ideas about what what God requires of us and JUST READ. 

Being honest, I know that I predominately love in word and talk and rarely (if ever) in deed and truth when it comes to those in need. But John says that the way I can know that I am of the truth and reassure my heart before God is if I love in deed and truth.

I want to be done with trying to explain away the hard teachings of Scripture. When we find ourselves saying things like "what it REALLY means is…" maybe it's not Scripture that needs explaining. Maybe it's our lives that need explaining before a Holy God.