The Well Blog

Working Not Waiting

Cambria Belleci — Wed, 30 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

I grew up in the “true love waits” generation. I read Lady in Waiting and every other book a proper young lady was supposed to. The theme constantly communicated to me was “wait.” My life was about waiting. Waiting to find the right guy. Waiting to have sex until I was married. Waiting to make plans for the future until I knew what my husband’s plans would be. There was an idea put into my head that life was on hold until I found a mate. My life was about waiting on and waiting for someone else.

“God will bring someone in the right time.”

“It happens when you least expect it.”

“You have to not want it anymore and then God will give it to you.”

The formula for finding a mate was to not expect it, not to want it, and then you’ll magically get it. Like Sleeping Beauty or Snow White. If I could just be comatose, then like magic, a man of appropriate attractiveness and incredible income would gallop on his horse into my hospital room, ignore the beeping and hipaa laws, and take me off to live in a castle with his parents.

But forest animals never flocked to me and I still can’t figure out how to thread a sewing machine. So until that perfect man came along, surprised me and swept me off my feet, what was I supposed to do in the meantime? What if he never showed up? What if I never got married? Did that mean I was meant to spend my entire life waiting? That my life could potentially end without it ever beginning?

Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, 24 knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve. Colossians 3:23-24

We weren’t designed to wait; we were designed to work. Life doesn’t begin or end when a relationship does. It begins when you put your faith in Christ. Faith in Christ is a constant pursuit. It’s work. Every relationship you have takes work. Everything you would ever want to achieve, it takes work. There are no easy ways out. There are no excuses based on gender or circumstance. God designed and desires for us to work and live whole lives now, regardless of your marital status, job, gifting, gender or whatever else. You are called to get to work and to do it now.

If you find yourself single, what exactly are you supposed to work on?

Work on your baggage. All of us carry some sort of relational or emotional baggage, and it gets in the way of us having lasting and meaningful relationships with others. Singleness is a perfect time to “unpack” your emotional baggage, sort through it and make sense of it. How can you work on it? Through support groups, practicing healthy relationships with friends and through counseling.
Find your passion and gifting. Work on you. How did God design you? How has He gifted you for ministry in His kingdom? What passion has He put deep inside of you? What must you do with your life? How can you work on/develop this? You can try different ministries. You can spend time with God experiencing Him by reading His word, worshiping Him in music, prayer, solitude, fasting and other spiritual disciplines. You can also work your way backward and figure out what you definitely aren’t gifted to do and then try all the maybes on for size.
Set goals for yourself and meet them. The one thing I always wanted to do was travel around Europe. It took two years of saving for my roommates and me to do it, but we did it, and it was one of the greatest experiences I’ve ever had. A lot could have changed during that time. I could have met my husband. I could have had financial changes and stresses that prevented me from going. God could have called me somewhere else all together, but He didn’t. Instead I made a plan, I saved for that plan, and I executed that plan (with His blessing). All on my own. All before I was married.

It turns out it was a part of God’s plan for me to get married. I’ve been married for a little over a year now and I love it, but it didn’t make me magically different. I didn’t become a princess or a pumpkin. I’m exactly the same except I live with a boy. You know what I find myself doing a lot? Working. I’m still working on my emotional baggage. I’m still pursuing and exercising my gifts and passions. I’m still setting goals and working to achieve them.

Working might be the best way to get ready for marriage. It’s also the best way to begin living your life to the fullest, regardless of the future. If you waste your life waiting now, you will always find you have another thing to wait for. Once you get married you can spend your life waiting to have kids, then you can wait for them to go off to college. You can wait for them to get married and for you to have grandkids and then the worst of the waiting: you can wait to die.

Stop waiting and start working now – in whatever season you find yourself and whatever varying level of satisfaction you find in it. No matter how long you’ve been waiting, it’s never too late to stop waiting and start living.

Thoughts from the Study - 1 Cor 11: 2-16 - The Controversy of Head Coverings

Brad Bell — Wed, 30 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

God established roles for men and women in the church and in marriage to provide order and structure for the outworking of His glory among us. These God-ordained roles of leadership and submission are not stifling, but freeing, and both men and women need to understand their respective roles to honor God in the way they live.

The Dreaded "E" Word

Andrew Feil — Sun, 27 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

Evangelism… the dreaded "E" word. Evangelism is a word that is heavy and often guilt-ridden. What picture comes to your mind when you think of 'evangelism'? Do you picture a street preacher? A Sunday School class that you have taken? Do you picture sharing your faith with the person sitting next to you on the airplane? There is a lot of baggage with the word evangelism in church circles, but I want to share a concept that Jesus taught that has really helped me in understanding and sharing the gospel with others. The idea is called, "People of Peace."

After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to go. And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no moneybag, no knapsack, no sandals, and greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you. And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages. Do not go from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you. Heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’ But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you. Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ (Luke 10:1-11)

As Jesus sends out the 72 disciples, He gives them a command to find the 'son of peace' and to stay and invest with those people. Jesus says that a 'Person of Peace' is someone that welcomes you into their life, they receive you, they serve you, they listen to you and they respond to you. Jesus also tells the disciples they will find people who are NOT People of Peace and to move on and not worry about investing with those people. The Person of Peace is someone who, for whatever reason, gives you access to your life and invests in your life. God is challenging His disciples to invest in these People of Peace.

A comforting truth and reality is that God is working in the lives of people before we ever enter the scene. God has been speaking and wooing their hearts towards him. Think about the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:1–9, 18-23). Certain soil is fertile and ready to hear the word, while other soil is hard or full of weeds or rocky. God is working in the lives of the people in our work, neighborhood or social spaces. As we enter life, God is calling us to invest in those He has given us inroads with and those with whom He has been tilling the soil of their hearts (1 Corinthians 3:5–9).

Investing with these People of Peace is also how the gospel spreads. The People of Peace are the gatekeepers to their community. As they become disciples of Christ, this will allow the good news of Jesus to become real to their communities. Remember Acts 10 when Cornelius the Centurion invited Peter into his home and not only he, but his whole household came to know the Jesus? The People of Peace in your life are the gatekeepers to others that do not know the Lord.

So what does this mean for "Evangelism"? The Person of Peace concept moves evangelism and mission from being something we cram into our lives, to something we live out where we are. So when you shop, play sports, pick up kids, go to work, meet neighbors you can invest with your Person of Peace. This strategy and viewpoint starts and ends with relationship. Connect and invest with those who welcome you into their life, receive you, serve you, listen to you and respond to you.

Here are some points to consider as you try to figure out who your People of Peace are and how you can invest with them:

Pray. We must be listening to the Holy Spirit and be aware of how God is trying to get ahold of us.
Our presence in peoples lives gives us credibility to act and speak... so be present.
We must proclaim Christ through words and deeds.
Some relationships are passing and some are permanent. Passing relationships are like a sprint and permanent relationships are like a marathon. Pray, wait and watch... God is never in a hurry, and He is never late.You may not lead the person to a relationship with Christ in a passing relationship, but you may move them closer to Christ.

Next Steps
Pray that God would give you clarity about 3 People of Peace in your life. Pray and watch for opprotunities to invest with your People of Peace. Share what God is doing to those in your community and encourage each other as ambassadors of the good news of Jesus.

Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work. Do you not say, ‘There are yet four months, then comes the harvest’? Look, I tell you, lift up your eyes, and see that the fields are white for harvest. Already the one who reaps is receiving wages and gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.” (John 4:34–38)

Fresno Christian Schools - A Christ-centered option to the educational decision

Chris Schultz & Brad Bell — Fri, 25 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

Many people don’t know that Fresno has an excellent resource for a different kind of education that has been serving the Valley for 30+ years. Fresno Christian Schools is a K-12 institution that provides Christ-centered learning that takes place within a community of faith. FCS has been in operation since 1977 and its mission is to equip young people for life and service for Jesus Christ through biblical foundations, Christ-like character development, and academic preparation in partnership with the home and local church.

The student body at Fresno Christian consists of children from over 100 different churches in the Valley. Students attend from the greater Fresno area and also represent communities such as Kerman, Kingsburg, Sanger, and Madera. FCS has been recognized nationally as an example of Christians who come from different denominations who have cooperated to provide a quality Christian school for the whole community.

FCS organizes itself around the schools of Faith, Academics, Athletics, and Arts. The school offers an outstanding education that graduates 98% of its seniors into colleges. Its athletic department offers multiple sports that have achieved valley recognition for its success. A student can participate in award winning vocational and industrial art programs that are available. Each school uses the Word of God as its basis for teaching, training, and equipping.

The Well Community is proud to be a part of the school board at Fresno Christian Schools. The school is now enrolling students for the next school year and as a partnering church; children from The Well Community Church have priority. To complete an online application, visit fresnochristian.com, or call Kerry at 299-1695 ext.103, for more information or questions.

Thoughts from the Study - 1 Cor 10:23-11:1 - Becoming More Morally Discerning

PJ Lewis — Wed, 23 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

How do we navigate our way through the grey areas in life - the areas the Bible doesn't clearly address? Paul shows how we can apply some foundational principles in the various situations we face so we can bring glory to God as we encounter them.

Thoughts from the Study - 1Cor 10:1-22 - Behavior, Affections and Idolatry

Brad Bell — Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

Behaviors, Affections, and the Heart. This weeks message walks us through the progression of idolatry and the implications on our life.

Including Others in Your Community

Valentine Kovtun — Wed, 16 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

During this Serve Dei season, we are continuing to explore what it looks like to be a disciple of Jesus on mission, and we have now come to the area of Inclusive Community. So far, we had talked about being an Intentional Blessing, which involves finding ways in which we can give of our time, talent and treasures. We have also explored what it means to be Culturally Engaged.

Inclusive Community is about inviting and including other people in our lives, specifically those who do not know the Lord yet. It involves being open and vulnerable and takes intentionality to develop these relationships.

In this past season, I have had the chance to wrestle with what it means to live in Inclusive Community.

John, a disciple of Jesus has helped me to understand the idea of Inclusive Community more clearly:

“But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” - John 1:12

This passage helped me to see that on the Cross, God didn’t just forgive me. He invited me in and includes me in His own family. Realizing that I have been included in God’s community, I now have the passion and motivation to invite others into my life to have Inclusive Community.

This idea hit home as I debated for the Fresno State team. During the season, I had developed a relationship with my coach and his family. On Valentine’s Day, his son was making Valentine’s cards at school. Everyone was having a great time, but he was especially excited. He went around telling everyone, “I know who we are making cards for! I know the real Valentine for who the holiday was made. He goes to Fresno State!” Every time my coach shares that story, we get lots of laughs out of it because of my name.

But it has also helped me to realize something important. Inclusive Community can happen in ordinary ways when we open our lives to others. As we invest in "The One" - one moment, one conversation, one relationship - we can begin to discover the power of Inclusive Community.

Christ has welcomed us into His life. Now we get the opprotunity to welcome others into our life so they can see, hear and experience the love of God through us.

Thoughts from the Study - 1 Cor 9:19-27 - All Things to All Men

Jerrod Rumley — Wed, 09 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

What does it mean to surrender our rights and become "all things to all men"? Paul brings clarity to our rights and freedoms in how we interact with a lost world, and he pushes believers to remember the race we are in and why we run in it the first place. This life is not about us and we need to set our sights on things of eternal value instead of focusing on things that will not last.

Should Christians Isolate from or Imitate Culture?

Valentine Kovtun — Tue, 08 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

The Well currently in a season of highlighting the idea of what does it mean to not serve on a day, but to serve God every day. We call this "Serve Dei." To learn more about Serve Dei visit the Serve Dei Website.

As we become disciples of Jesus Christ, an important question arises in our journey. How am I to interact with the world around me? It is a question the Israelites also had to wrestle with while they were exiled in Babylon. They had to figure out how to live out their faith in a foreign context.

The Israelite false prophets presented one answer. They promised that God would destroy Babylon (Jeremiah 28) and told the Israelites to completely isolate themselves from the culture around them - to live outside of the city and stay within their own little “holy huddle.”

The Babylonians also had an answer. They wanted the Israelites to imitate them - to embrace their beliefs and values. We see this play out in the book of Daniel. The Babylonians changed Daniel’s name and wanted him to become “one of them” (Daniel 1).

God had a different vision for Israel. God told them to be Culturally Engaged...

Build houses and live in them; plant gardens and eat their produce. Take wives and have sons and daughters... But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.

God wanted the Israelites to live amongst the Babylonians and seek the well being of the city, not isolate themselves from it. However, God wanted them to still retain their distinct identity as the “people of God” and not imitate the Babylonians. That is why He told them to “pray to the Lord.”

We see a similar idea in Jesus’ prayer in John 17. Jesus prays for His disciples, who are in the world but “not of the world” (John 17:15-16).

How can we, as believers, not isolate ourselves from culture or imitate it, but instead engage culture?

On a practical level, there are different factors that influence and create culture. Here are the seven dominant ones, also known as the “7 Pillars of Culture.”

Government
Social Sector
Media
Arts and Entertainment
Business
Church
Education

These sectors influence our society and build our culture. And every one of us is involved in some of these sectors.

Questions

Which pillars of culture are you involved in?
What would it look like for you to engage culture in that sector?
Who can you link arms with to engage that aspect of culture?

Will we isolate ourselves from the culture by forming a “holy huddle?” Will we imitate culture by embracing the same beliefs, hopes and values? Or will we become culturally engaged by “seeking the welfare of the city,” in which God has placed us?

Serving as a Lifestyle, Not an Event

PJ Lewis — Thu, 03 May 2012 00:00:00 PST

My wife Sheri and I moved here the fall of last year, so this is my first experience with Serve Dei at the Well. As a Campus Pastor, I was able to see the Serve Dei packet a few days before they went out at services at North AM. Before I went and told someone they misspelled "Serve Day" on the cover, I read it through and found it wasn't a misspelling at all. The Well had made a change in the spelling (and meaning) a couple years ago as a way to challenge people to move from a serving event or activity, to a way of life. Serve Day had the tendency to give the impression that we do "mission" for a day, and then wait another year to do our next "mission project" or Serve Day. We felt that changing it to Serve Dei, Serve God, communicated our vision that people would see this as a catalyst to make a change in their lifestyle, to move from doing a mission, to being on mission... all the time! What a fantastic concept!

As we "launched" Serve Dei just a couple of weeks ago, I couldn't help but wonder how much of this vision is catching on. If you’re like me, I am an “achiever” who has the tendency to measure success and/or check off my boxes on a list of to-dos. I realized I don’t want my natural tendency of accomplishing a task in a certain amount of time to effect how I do Serve Dei as a lifestyle. I don't want to just look forward to next year, when we get our next one or five dollars, or whatever it is that the church will motivate us with, to use for the next "project." Have you experinced this? I have been challenged this year because I have been so used to “doing” mission, that being on mission is quite a change in my thinking. I was wondering how many others might default to the same kind of thinking. And then I experienced one of those great moments...

Sheri and I go to Starbucks just about every Monday from 8am to noon with an open invitation to folks from the North AM services to come by and say "hi". On this particular Monday morning, the day after everyone was challenged in the services to be an intentional blessing, a man in his 40's just about ran into the coffee shop at 7:58am. He told me he was a podiatrist who was on his way to the office, but said he had to come by and show me something. In his hand was a plastic bag full of 4-5 random items. He said he and his family collectively received $5 at the service, and took some time on Sunday afternoon to process what they could do as a family with it. He took his two kids to the Dollar Store, and they said they wanted to pick out five items that a homeless person might need. They ended up with some toothpaste, a toothbrush, a couple of other hygiene products, and a small Bible. He said the family plans on giving this bag to the person God brings across their path, using it as an intentional blessing for someone. I thought the idea was great, but to be honest, I was also thinking it might still be about doing something missional instead of being missional. But then his face lit up and he said, "PJ, we were thinking about the challenge of making this a lifestyle and not a one time thing, so we as a family plan to have a bag in our glove box all the time." We are going to give this bag away, and then spend another $5 to make another bag, and then another..." Wow! I was so encouraged. Here is a family that will now look at people around them in a whole new way; a family that will always be looking for an opportunity to be an intentional blessing, and maybe more, to certain people they come in contact with.

My hope is that we would all be like this family and think of creative ways to make the move from Serve Day to Serve Dei, from an event to a lifestyle.