missio

We had a great day yesterday at Harmony. We had new visitors on Sunday morning…and different visitors on Sunday evening! Here’s some thoughts:

• Shannon came to Echo Group. He’s awesome. Former drug-dealer in LA, blew lots of money, met Jesus at Angelus Temple. Awesome story. He’s stoked to get involved with Harmony, and is bubbling with excitement over changing this city from the inside-out…particularly the gang culture. So awesome.
• We had a great Echo Group last night. The prayer of Paul at the end of Ephesians 3 grabbed a hold of us in a real way, as Clay led us in praying for one another as Paul prayed for his brothers and sisters.
• Sunday morning was sweet as we talked about regeneration in John 3. Kevin Davis, a friend of the band, led worship, and it was awesome. The first song, Likeness of Jesus, was pretty much the theme-setter for our day yesterday.
• I’m still thinking about how I can have the heart, mind, hands, and feet of Jesus. I’m praying that He would work in me, and everyone else involved with Harmony (even remotely…this means you reading this) would also become more and more like Jesus.
• So stoked about the work that Jesus has prepared for us in this city!

My memory verse this week is Jeremiah 2:13. Here it is:

for My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the foundation of living waters; and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water.(ESV)

Here’s a rough breakdown of the verse, in Twitter-like format:

• Regardless of what we have done, we are still “God’s people”. He never disowns us! This is awesome news!
• We aren’t simply guilty of leaving God, just one evil that is more than enough to condemn us before Him. We are also guilty of replacing God with things that could never hold up. Therefore: two evils.
• God is not simply the fountain of life-giving water. He is the source of multiple waters, all with different flavors and holding different reflections of His goodness. The abundance of life in Him is overwhelming to us…and we have forsaken it.
• Hewing out cisterns takes work. We could rest in the Great Fountain, but instead choose to work in order to make a replacement that never even comes close. How ridiculous!
• Not only do we make cisterns, but we don’t even make them for our neighbor. We are utterly even in our idolatry: we make idols for ourselves.
• The cisterns themselves, upon their completion at our hands, are broken. Immediately upon our finishing of them. They are broken. Not only do they not hold water….but they are unable to hold water. They can’t.
• Here’s the rub: We have left God, and replaced His overabundant, infinite worth with shattered shards of worthlessness.
• Here’s the application: what broken cisterns have we made, and are trying to put in His place? Success? Drugs? Porn? Relationships? Alcohol? Control? Self image?

God forgive me. For leaving you, and for replacing you with worthless clay that cannot hold any water at all, much less the abounding life-giving water that You bring. Amen.