I have a little devotional book on my desk that I refer to often entitled Note to Self: the Discipline
of Preaching to Yourself. Joe Thorn shares scripture and meditations that inspire me. Like this one:

Jesus is Enough
Dear Self,
Are you satisfied? It is pretty obvious that the answer is often no. I am not saying it is wrong to
want things in this life, but why do you find yourself so frustrated with the absence of those things? The
problem is not that you want evil things. The things you want are generally good, or at least harmless in
themselves. But more than wanting, you become frustrated by not having. You become jealous, envious, and discontented with your life. It is true; you need what you lack, but what you lack is satisfaction in Jesus.

When you find your deepest satisfaction in Jesus, you are protected from bitterness in times of want and pride in times of abundance. The world and all good gifts within it are temporal blessings. For you, Christian, their presence should remind you of the Giver, and their absence should remind you of that which never fades nor can be taken away.

Paul models this well for you. He knows the secret of being content whether he has an abundance or nothing at all, for he has  found his ultimate satisfaction in Jesus. Jesus is enough. Do you believe that? Can you say, with the author of Hebrews, that you can be content with whatever you have because God said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). This is a promise made to us in Jesus. Jesus is enough, but that kind of satisfaction is only experienced when we understand our greatest needs to be redemption and restoration. God in Christ has reconciled us to Himself, is renewing our minds, and promises to raise us from the dead, and we will dwell in righteousness and peace forever. If you have this, what more do you need?

These words encouraged me to draw near to Jesus. They also struck me in light of our recent discoveries in the REVEAL study about our getting stuck as we grow in our faith. I am not satisfied with my own stuckness, but want to keep growing, to know Jesus more so that I can experience him more fully.

That sounds very satisfying,

Kent Landuis
Pastor of Teaching & Leadership

Ever feel stuck in a rut? I have. When I get distracted, worn out, and weighted down God feels distant. I’m stuck. Guess what? Stuck happens. So relax, but also respond so you don’t stay stuck? Five suggestions to get unstuck:

1. Be honest about it.
Psalm 40:1-2 says, “I waited patiently for the Lord; he inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog.” Even King David got stuck. Let’s be honest about what we feel toward God— our distracted thoughts, our tired feet, our hurt feelings, our deadened passions, our disappointed expectations. Getting unstuck starts with honesty.

2. Complain out loud to God.
Now, speak your honesty. Psalm 6:6 says, “I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping.” Stuck? Tell God. Prayer is having an honest conversation with God.

3. Complain out loud to others.
Revival comes in community. This is not for the purpose of justifying our whining, it is for the purpose of letting others help us expect God to show up. When we can’t imagine our way out of a hard place, let other people imagine it for you. Psalm 7:7 says, “Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you; rule over them from on high.” We grow in faith better together.

4. Get into the Word.
God’s Word is living and active. God heals and revives us by turning our attention to His truths, which are found in God’s Word. Tune into God and seek God’s path out of your spiritual stuckness. Psalm 119:105 says, “Your Word is a lamp to my
feet and a light to my path.”

5. Dwell in God’s love.
Without this, all spiritual practices fail. Always remember, God loves you! Zephaniah 3:17 says, “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing.” The beauty of God’s love is that it survives spiritual dry times. God is love and the Bible tells us that nothing can separate us from the love of God in Jesus. (See Romans 8) This can never be overstated: God loves you!

Everyone gets stuck. Don’t stay stuck.

Kent Landhuis
Pastor of Teaching & Leadership

The Consistory is the governing board that leads our congregation. We govern by writing policies to keep us on mission. We exist so that people will grow in their love for God (Love). We exist so that people will grow in their faith in Jesus Christ (Grow).  We exist so that people will grow in their love for each other (Serve). We exist so that people will find hope through faith in Jesus Christ (Seek).

Culture is not something we usually think about. It’s like water to a fish or air to a bird. It’s simply the environment we live in. Culture is one of the most important factors driving an organization. Unhealthy cultures produce bad results. Healthy cultures produce good results.

Webster defines culture as “the predominating attitudes, values, and behaviors that characterize the functioning of a group or organization.” In this sense, culture in inescapable. You can’t not have a culture, and every culture is either healthy, unhealthy, or somewhere in between. Our calling as a Consistory is to build a God-honoring, Christ-centered, grace-filled, biblically sound, kingdom-focused congregation. This culture will be healthy and result in these kinds of fruit:

• Real Community. Everyone matters. Everyone belongs. Everyone contributes. Together is better.
• Speaking the truth in love. Truth is not hoarded but shared.
• Great teams. The right people serving in the right places at the right time.
• Passionate. Everyone is free to follow God’s calling which results in passion.
• Grace-full, grateful and generous. We are blessed to be a blessing!

What would you add to this list? Share your suggestion with any consistory member or staff.

Pray for us as we seek to build a kingdom culture.

I meet regularly with individuals and small groups for the purpose of making disciples. My picture of discipleship used to be flinging mud against a wall. I dumped as much information as possible on people and crossed my fingers, hoping that the Holy Spirit was shaping them (and me). I am thankful that the Spirit did work in spite of my ill-conceived efforts, but I became curious if there was a better way.

While reading Michael Horton’s book, Core Christianity: Finding Yourself in God’s Story, I came across this insight, “We study things we care about” (15). If that’s true about our hobbies and work, it’s even more true about our faith and how we make disciples. Discipleship is about what we love. One practice that helps me grow as a Jesus loving disciple is reading the Bible with the four Ds in mind – drama, doctrine, doxology, and discipleship. These four Ds are knit together by Jesus Christ. Every drama points to him; doctrine is about him; doxology ends in praising him; and discipleship happens as a response to him.

As we dwell in the Word, the Word dwells in us, Dwelling in the story of Jesus shapes and forms us as his followers. Horton, in his book describes it this way: “Jesus is not swept into your story. You are swept into his” (150). Getting swept into the story deepens our understanding of the reason for our hope as Christians.

Drama refers to the unfolding story of God from Genesis to Revelation. Drama yields doctrine, the truths of the Christian faith. Doctrine, rooted in the drama, creates thankful hearts of praise – doxology – which is our worshipful response to who God is and what God has done. Doxology yields the fruit of love and good works which is discipleship that turns outside of ourselves, looking up to God in faith and out to our neighbors in love. When disciples know the story and its meaning, they will respond appropriately to the God who acts. And, they will be increasingly conformed to the central character as they serve others. To know what we believe and why we believe it lies at the heart of making disciples.

Kent Landhuis
Pastor of Teaching and Leadership