Dad had a time of struggle with the Cube.  Way back in the ’80′s when the fanaticism first hit he purchased a book that told you how to get it done.  I remember the hours put into his quest.  It carried no interest for me at the time.

I am my father’s son.  My daughter Emma got a Rubik’s cube for Christmas that lays on her dresser.  About two weeks ago I felt the urge to give it a shot.  Instructions are easy to find online and so I began walking in my Father’s shoes (much to my wife’s dismay).  About ten days later I did what I’d never done before, something I’d only ever dreamed was possible . . . I completed the Rubik’s Cube on my own!  Done it a few times since, too.

It feels kind of cheap, though.  It’s not that I worked it out myself.  I conquered it only with the patterns somebody else spent the time figuring out.  The accomplishment is mine, but I couldn’t have done it without somebody else’s help.  That’s kinda like our spiritual journeys when you think about it.  Becoming more like Jesus is a quest that we can’t do on our own, we need the help of the Spirit of God in us, but it won’t happen without our effort.

With this in mind, I’ll enjoy the prestige of being a Cube Conqueror, though my wife’s and kids’ reactions to each successful puzzle-breaking event are noticeably waning.  It may be with Somebody else’s help, but I am indeed a conqueror.

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. (Romans 8:37, TNIV)

Lunch was great today.  It was a meeting where I met two new friends whom God spoke to me through.  Early in the conversation one of them posed the question “Is church primarily input driven or output driven?”

Some may be offended that church could be lowered to secular concepts.  The Apostle Paul used business terminology in Philippians 4 to describe the benefits of investing in God’s work.  He actually used a technical term that basically amounted to the letter acting as a receipt for what had been credited to their heavenly account (4:18).  Jesus Himself used business terminology in the parable of the talents.  To God, what we do is His business.  Very important business.

My answer to his brilliant question was that church is output driven.  Jesus is always concerned with how much fruit we bear; how effectively we “sell” the world what He has to offer.  Churches that aren’t about His Father’s business will end up going out of business.  It’s a matter of supply and demand.  The better we market the product (our changed lives) the greater the demand will be, and Jesus will supply.

One could argue that the input driven model focuses on how the church transforms the people that come into it.  But, their is no distinction to the “quality” of person God uses.  Anyone can be changed.  Anyone can be transformed.  Besides, Jesus uses fruit tree imagery to show that a healthy tree both produces fruit (output) and grows itself.  It doesn’t matter what we were.  It only matters what we will become.

I decided to put week killer/grass feeder on my lawn last week.  There was both an abundance of dandelions and a sparseness of grass.  What was I thinking?!  The grass looks much better.  The weeds are gone.  The once-brown patches are a vibrant green.  Problem is . . . now I’ll have to mow it more far more often.  A nicer looking lawn doesn’t just require spreading the right chemicals.  It takes an ongoing effort.

Just like with our spiritual journey.  Advancing in your quest to experience Life to the fullest extent, a motivating factor in why we started The Gate 19 months ago, means we have to be more intentional about living our lives in a new way.  That’s why I blogged a few blogs ago about on-line devotionals.  That’s also why, for those of us who do better with a book in our hands, why I’ve ordered a small but effective devotional called “Our Daily Bread” for our church guest table.  One small page a day to help you set your heart and mind on God goes a long way.  We’ll try out others too, so feel free to let me know what you think.

Pastor/Author Francis Chan notes the our spiritual lives are like going up a down escalator:  It’s takes some consistent effort to get ahead, but if you stand still you will certainly go backwards. It’s time to start your climb again.

For me, it’s time to get out the mower again.

This issue of Leadership magazine, a publication I read cover to cover every time it arrives, is focused on the topic of addictions.  Addictions aren’t just alcohol and drugs.  Everybody is addicted to something.  It’s that thing or things you go to in your particularly stressful times for temporary relief.  It can be something that is good in moderation or even a necessary aspect of life but that you do in excess as an escape from your daily struggles.  Eating, having the occasional beer, your job, chocolate, sex . . . anything.  It can get to the point where you’ve manipulated your mind and heart to believe that you have to fulfill that desire in order to function effectively in the middle of a hectic lifestyle.  You often find yourself rationalizing your addiction to ease your conscience, but you feel bad about it after you’ve succumbed once again.

Leadership magazine identifies our addictions as misplaced worship.  What we’re really looking for is a satisfying spiritual experience and, when we don’t get it from God in His way and in His timing, we go out and get it on our own from whatever pleases us most.   We effectively worship the created rather than the Creator (Just like people who don’t know God; Romans 1:25) Who desperately wants to be our source of spiritual vitality in every aspect of our lives.

Fasting doesn’t have to be refraining just from food.  Food hits home for me, though.  My rationalization: I work from home and the kitchen is nearby . . . always tempting me.  And then there’s the “Church planting is so stressful!  This one indulgence is okay.  Besides, everybody needs to eat.”

So, today I am fasting from food.  Since I tend to “worship” food in times of stress, I’ll put that aside for today and instead talk to God and worship Him.  Every time the urge to eat hits me (which is quite often), it has reminded me to seek Jesus Christ to fill that void.  What do you have a tendency to worship instead of God?  Try fasting from it for a day and see what happens.