Hosea for Today: Part III of III

Prepare for Harvest Time

 

“Come on, Man! Let’s return to God.

    He hurt us, but He will heal us.

He hit us hard,

    but He’ll put us right again.

In time we’ll feel better.

    By His return He’ll have made us brand-new,

Alive and on our feet,

    fit to face him.

 

We’re ready to study God,

    eager for God-knowledge.

As sure as dawn breaks,

    so sure is His daily arrival.

He comes as the rain,

    as spring rain replenishing the dry ground.”

 

“What am I to do with you, false clerics?

    What do I make of you, ecclesiasts?

Your declarations of love last no longer

    than the morning mist and predawn dew.

That’s why I use prophets to shake you to attention,

    why my words cut you to the quick:

To wake you up to my judgment

    blazing like a laser.

 

I’m after love that lasts, not mere religion.

    I want you to know Me, not show off at prayer meetings.

You broke the covenant—just like Adam!

    You broke faith with Me—ungrateful wretches!

 

“Washington has become Crime City—

    Bribery on the streets, money in the palms.

It used to be robbers who mugged pedestrians.

    Now it’s gangs of poli-ticks

assaulting the righteous on their way to Shechem.

    Nothing is sacred to them.

 

“I see shocking things in this country of liberty:

    Celebrants in a religious whorehouse,

    moreover, clerics in the mud right there with them.

 

“You’re as bad as the worst of them, Judas.

    You’ve been sowing wild oats. Now it’s harvest time.”

Pray. Repent. Seek Me.

Hosea for Today: Part II of III

You Wouldn’t Recognize God If You Saw Him

 “Listen to this, you Oligarchs!

    Attention, citizens of America!

SCOTUS —all ears!

    You’re in charge of justice around here.

But what have you done? Exploited people of faith,

    Turned your back on the unborn,

Destroyed the integrity of free elections.

    I’m going to punish the lot of you.

 

“I know you, America, inside and out.

    Yes, Leftists, I see right through you!

False believers, playing religious long enough.

    All America is thoroughly polluted.

You couldn’t turn to God if you wanted to.

    Your evil life is a bad habit.

Every breath you take is a whore’s breath.

    You wouldn’t recognize God if you saw me.

 

“Bloated by arrogance, big as a house,

    you’re a public disgrace,

The lot of you—Liberals, Leftists, Socialists—

    lurching and weaving down your guilty streets.

When you decide to get your lives together

    and go off looking for Me once again,

You’ll find it’s too late.

    I, God, will be long gone.

 

You’ve played fast and loose with me for too long,

    filling the country with your brainwashed, entitled offspring.

A plague of locusts will

    devastate your violated land.

 

 “Blow the whistle on the stolen elections,

    Play Taps in Congress!

Signal the invasion of Sin City!

    Scare the crap out of your imported Squad!

Your grain fields will be laid waste,

    a lifeless moonscape.

I’m telling it straight, the unvarnished truth,

    to the citizens of America.

 

Congress is full of crooks and thieves,

    cheating the people of their Natural rights,

And I’m angry, good and angry.

    Every cell of your bodies will feel my anger.

 

“Destroyers of citizens’ Rights will lose theirs—

    a taste of their own medicine!

You were so determined

    to do it your own worthless way.

Therefore I’m pus to Leftists,

    dry rot in the house of RINOs.

 

“When the DNC sees it is sick

    and RINOs see their termite dung,

You will be running to China,

    Praying for help to Mahdi of Islam.

But they can’t heal you.

    They can’t cure your oozing sores;

Your rotting heart.

 

“I’m a grizzly charging sold-out politicians,

    A grizzly with cubs charging Soros.

I’ll rip you to pieces—yes, I will!

    No one can stop me now.

I’ll drag you off.

    No one can help you.

 

Then I’ll step far away from America

    Until, perhaps you come to your senses.

When you finally hit rock bottom,

    perchance you’ll come looking for me.

Thus, seek me with your whole heart.”

Hosea for Today: Part I of III

My Charge Against America

We Can Live At Peace With Each Other

I am honored to be serving on staff of Pacific Justice Institute who defends religious freedom, parental rights and other civil liberties without charge.

In this post-Christian world we are being pressured (in some cases, forced) to set aside strongly held biblical morals which have guided life and livelihoods for generations – nay, for ages. We are expected, not just acquiesce to, but fully accept whatever new cultural dictum is put forth. Even to the point of losing our own personal liberties and possessions to judgments from an amoral court system.

If truth be known, standing on one's faith in living out a biblical lifestyle does not always equate to intolerance or hate of another's life choices – as many charge us as doing. Most people of faith I know desire to accept others and learn to make reasonable accommodation for other's beliefs – as this 72-year old Washington businesswoman sought to do for her longtime LGBT customer. One must only listen to her appeal to know her heart when faced with the choice of accepting a light judgement:

"Your offer reveals that you don’t really understand me or what this conflict is all about. It’s about freedom, not money. I certainly don’t relish the idea of losing my business, my home, and everything else that your lawsuit threatens to take from my family, but my freedom to honor God in doing what I do best is more important. Washington’s constitution guarantees us “freedom of conscience in all matters of religious sentiment.” I cannot sell that precious freedom. You are asking me to walk in the way of a well-known betrayer, one who sold something of infinite worth for 30 pieces of silver. That is something I will not do.

I pray that you reconsider your position. I kindly served Rob for nearly a decade and would gladly continue to do so. I truly want the best for my friend. I’ve also employed and served many members of the LGBT community, and I will continue to do so regardless of what happens with this case. You chose to attack my faith and pursue this not simply as a matter of law, but to threaten my very means of working, eating, and having a home. If you are serious about clarifying the law, then I urge you to drop your claims against my home, business, and other assets and pursue the legal claims through the appeal process."

Her plea reminds me of the scripture verse in Romans 12:18 which admonishes: "If it is at all possible, as much as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

Perhaps if we were slow to assume the worse in each other, and took the time to hear each other out before forming baseless opinions or judgments, we would be able to live out that scriptural directive of living at peace with ourselves and each other.

Read the full article here:

Shame on the Silent Christian Leaders Who Refuse to Stand Against Tyranny

STOP YOUR CHARITY!

After considering a Facebook friend's much deserved rant about an overly-expectant charity I feel a post emerging from my sluggish pen (i.e. keyboard) about our charitable giving . . . STOP! JUST STOP! Yes, I said STOP!

For just one month - for January 2017 - stop all giving (except your church tithe; yes, your first 10% should go directly to your place of worship/prayer/place of faith).

Why stop? To fast. Fasting makes you slow down . . . I guess that's a pun. Slow down and think, pray, feel. About your charity - your time, talent, and treasure. What is your purpose in sharing those three most valuable personal commodities? What impact are you making with them? Is it even measurable? Does the charity even measure its impact or success and communicate that to you?

What is your mission in giving (again, not just money). That's right . . . What's your end game? Make you feel okay about yourself? For a pat on the back? Get on the major donor list? Recognition at the annual gala?

Or to make others feel good - or maybe just better? Does your effort enable the suffering of others or actually develop the person and the community? Are you in it for the short or long haul? A quick fix or a relationship? For life or legacy?

What is your mission as a steward of what you've earned or been given? Remember, its not just money, your time (which some consider more valuable), and talents. What will your legacy look like? Yep...when you're dead and gone? What will you leave the world besides your ashes? Will you steward from beyond your grave?

So stop giving for a month and fast...think...feel...pray...meditate on your God-gifted Time, Treasure, and Talent. Then write your Stewardship mission statement for 2017, and whatever exists beyond it and your life's legacy to the world. What, why, when, how, how much, for what end, and how will you know you did well in doing good?

Then, and only then . . . Give . . . As a Steward.

Steward your life, wholeheartedly and with godly joy.

Here's a link to a short post to help with your meditating and to create your mission statement to make a lasting, Kingdom impact through stewardship.

Outline your Stewardship

Lessons in a Tree Stand

Sitting in a tree stand, waiting for deer, is a difficult task (especially when it's real early on an icy 20° morning). Not necessarily the waiting; but my thoughts. Rather than allow myself to completely 'be' in this moment, I'm mentally doing a myriad of things. My mind is wired for analysis. My patience is fleeting. 

Similarly difficult for me – for which this solitary environment provides an ideal moment – is having a quiet, devotional time with God (praying for prey doesn't count). But rather than allowing the beauty of creation and nature's orchestra to embrace and lift me, I'm contemplating my calendar, career tracks and past mis-cues. And in contrast to the stillness, unmitigated static from tinnitus* competes with the sounds of birds and raindrops on leaves.

Past thoughts invade the present moment; replaying various innings of my life. But unlike the annoying video challenges in football and baseball, there's nothing that can change the outcome for me.

It recalls my past life of editing our pastor's Sunday messages on reel-to-reel tape for radio broadcast. I meticulously removed every 'uh', stutter, or cough. He never sounded so professional as he did on-the-air. It was a tedious task when his delivery was off. Listen, pause, rewind, pause . . . spinning the reels back and forth, listening where to mark and trim the bloopers from the reel.

But real life doesn't allow video challenges or post-production cut-and-tape. As with live broadcasts, what we say and do is out there for the world to see, hear, critique – and judge.

Where live productions succeed is in pre-production. That requires the study of scripts and screen plays, blocking, staging, memorizing lines and cues. If not, at least you had better be really good at ad lib and improvising.

Our personal and spiritual pre-production comes together best in our quiet times. No devotions = no preparation for success. Thus, for the unprepared pragmatists as myself, our daily improvising is sorely tested. We pray for the video challenge, and post-production editing, and then beat ourselves up for not studying the script or recognizing the cues.

But here in this tree stand – if I force myself to become quiet enough and become willing to embrace the thoughts that come – I may start to sense the Producer at work in nature and in my life. I may begin to feel, see, and hear His hand in the next act . . . and his Spirit happens to be a great Director.

Perhaps spending more time studying His script, screenplay and cues for this next one, I won't want so much post-production analysis. And waiting for prey is always a good time to pray.

I just heard a confirming voice of thunder telegraphing the advancing rain. "Break a leg!", I think as I scramble to descend ahead of the danger of lightning. But hopefully not from falling out of this tree stand. (PS. I didn't get my deer)

As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?” These things I remember, as I pour out my soul: how I would go with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God with glad shouts and songs of praise, a multitude keeping festival.

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.

My soul is cast down within me; therefore I remember you from the land of Jordan and of Hermon, from Mount Mizar. Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls; all your breakers and your waves have gone over me. By day the LORD commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life. I say to God, my rock: “Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?” As with a deadly wound in my bones, my adversaries taunt me, while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?”

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God. Psalm 42 ESV

* Tinnitus (TIN-ih-tus) is noise or ringing in the ears.

Realizing Isolation as Part of Healing

I realize that no blog post can be inclusive of all points of view, but I find myself wanting to respond to this post on isolation as a negative part of healing. 
http://blog.christianleadershipalliance.org/2014/09/15/six-steps-towards-healing-for-the-wounded-leader/

In her PhD dissertation, Shelley Trebesch focuses on periods of isolation as required time spent seeking an intimacy with God. Intimacy is the place where we recognize our need before our Creator and become honest in regard to being His steward. Shelley outlines a number of processes that take place in isolation that often come in response to organizational discipline (Trebesch 1997, 35-43):

1.  Stripping – sometimes the cause of the isolation (as it was with my self-initiated sabbatical after my resignation), a leader will face his or her identity – or loss of identity – in view of a separation from ministry whether voluntary or involuntary.

2.  Wrestling with God – if the isolation is forced, this brings the leader to desperately search for God and their true identity apart from the position and activity of ministry. This spiritual exertion can be as literal as Jacob’s interaction with God in Genesis 32, as we cling to God until we realize contentment.

3.  Increased Intimacy – this stage brings about an openness and honesty of the leader’s weakness, brokenness and vulnerability. There is a freedom in allowing others to see their hearts in this state. Leaders will often truncate this process here as it can be too painful, or they find another outlet for ministry. However, for those who are able to separate themselves from the position of ministry, they will discover a growing satisfaction in Christ alone.

4.  Released to Look Toward the Future – Rather than succumb to the temptation to truncate this process, the leader must allow God to remove them when He is ready. There will be an intuitive renewal and openness to the future. This is often when leadership emergence reveals itself.

I personally experienced this isolation process in 2006, following my voluntary resignation from a ministry, as I found myself seriously questioning my leadership ability and competency for ministry. It was paradoxical to me at that time, that while many other local organizations were seeking out my leadership, there was an unmistakable barrier between them and me . . . until which time I came through that process with a clear freedom to accept a new position.

The process was undesired, but critical to my spiritual formation, as well as my professional growth as a leader. It was only after my acceptance of a new position as God’s direction for me that I was contacted by the other organizations with the news that I was not their choice. It was this process that led me to an awareness of God’s preparation of me for a specific ministry position. I also feel that without this process of isolation I would not have been as prepared for continued leadership or for the intense introspection of the MA program that I was undertaking. 

  

I have learned that isolation can be a friend, but also a trap. Use it sparingly, but realize it as part of healing as a leader. 

Shelley Trebesch, “Developing Persons in Christian Organizations: A Case Study of OMF International.” (Ph.D. diss., FTS) 1997.

Some good quotes for me to embrace today

Push aside the expectations of others and instead focus on the appreciation of what you've accomplished. If you believe in it, then that's all the truly matters. - unknown

Don't judge me on the basis of what you heard from others. Judge me on the basis of what YOU know about me, or else try knowing me. - Ashish Basumatary

There's people that are just in awe of what you do, and then there are people who just think it's garbage. And I think there are people who are just uncomfortable seeing someone have fun with their job. - Todd Barry

With fame, you can't trust everybody. You can't depend on them being there for you as a person. They will only be there because of what you've got and what you can bring to their life. It's not a relationship - it's a leech. - Chris Brown

The ultimate victory in competition is derived from the inner satisfaction of knowing that you have done your best and that you have gotten the most out of what you had to give. - Howard Cosell

Believe half of what you see and only some of what you hear, unless you hear it from me. - Chris Daughtry

Incredible change happens in your life when you decide to take control of what you do have power over instead of craving control over what you don't. - Steve Maraboli

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart . . ."

The Ask: It's About Vulnerablility And Trust

I have spent two decades leading nonprofits that were supported by asking for financial support.  Now that I am consulting for nonprofits, I realize how difficult it is for many of them to ask.  That hesitation translates into them not recognizing the need to invest in getting help—or more often, an inability to afford the help they critically need to become stable and sustainable.

Several years ago I wrote a blog post about fundraising not being about the "ask." (link)  That post included a TED video with Amanda Palmer, a musician who decided to trust her fans for her support.  It became an act of vulnerability and trust . . . putting herself out there, even when confronted by other musicians who mocked her efforts (which actually became very successful).

I realized that nonprofits have a hard time trusting their "fans" and don't communicate their ask in ways that allow supporters to see them as transparent and vulnerable.  It was then that I began to be more transparent and vulnerable to our donors.  I spoke more freely about our work, our difficulties, our successes, the needs we had, and highlighting the return they recieve for their investment.  I believe that is what sustained the organization through the recession—and even saw an increase in income and average gift per donor.

Now that I am consulting, many clients can't afford consulting services.  Perhaps don't realize they need to invest in their organizational development, and may not trust that their outcomes will be fruitful.

This leads me to ask you to help me help them.  I'm becoming vulnerable and asking for help, so that these nonprofits can get the help they need, and serve our communities.  I'm seeking subsidies to provide pro bono services to nonprofits who can't afford consulting, but who can't grow without that help.  Thank you.

Please consider investing in CharisNP:

Online Assessment Tools for Identifying Organizational Issues

Nonprofit Leader,

As an Executive Director I often wanted to know how well my board and staff understood our organization’s mission and vision, and if they were being clarified well enough.  I needed to assess the awareness of my board of how critical their understanding our programs and networking was to the organization and to our position in the community.  

Each time I looked over an organization’s financials and fundraising, I found areas needing improving, and fundraising issues that the staff and board had not recognized had changed over time.  It was that process of discovery and analysis that helped me revitalize several stagnant nonprofits and help them thrive. 

It was the fresh perspective of an outsider that made the difference.  In many cases a consultant is hired to show an organization’s leaders what they have been missing and help them make the right changes.  Some of the leadership and/or staff may recognize the issues, but may not be able to be the agents for the needed change.  Thus, the third-party consultant is engaged.  

But how do small, struggling under-funded nonprofits afford the rates for an experienced consultant?  They can’t, and so they keep struggling through tough organizational issues, ineffective programs, staff turnover, disconnect with the community, and loss of funding as a result.  And what are the options for well-run organizations to take an occasional fresh look at their organizational dynamics and leadership?

It was recognizing these issues that led me to create several online assessment tools that provide the data nonprofits need to get the overall view of their organization and start recognizing the needed changes to make.  By limiting travel and time of on-site interviews we reduce the cost and still provide a needed summary analysis to help an organization: 1. understand the stage in their life-cycle, 2. examine Staff-CEO-Board relationships, 3. measure their fundraising effectiveness.  

By developing anonymous surveys administered online, I have been able to assist a number of organizations of various age, size and budget.  The survey results are graphed for ease of understanding, and a brief, interpretive assessment is provided of potential action steps for further considerations.  The next steps are up to your organization’s leadership and funding capabilities.  You may decide to engage me or other advisor to help you move forward.  In any case, you will have this very important data with which to help change your organization for the better.

I invite you to take a few moments to examine my website and my background, and the four levels of low-cost assessment analysis tools I offer at www.CharisNP.com.  Whether you decide to engage my services beyond the surveys is completely up to you.  I am available to you to discuss how these can help your organization and help you lead quality change.

 

Serving together,

James K. Lewis, m.a., cfre^®

Is Public Office a Missional Vocation?

I am deeply moved by the numerous and diverse efforts of Jesus followers at my church to impact our community and the Kingdom. Overseas missions, neighborhood outreach, education, human trafficking, connections to help the homeless, advocating for fostering and adoption . . . it is an awesome example of stewardship - and a retaking of ownership of "social" activity within our world.

I wrote about this effort in several papers while studying at Fuller, and as I did there, I would like to take this discussion one step further, into a broader stewardship role for the church. Dallas Willard makes an excellent point in The Spirit of the Disciplines that “charity and social welfare programs, while good and clearly our duty, cannot even begin to fulfill our responsibility as children of the light to a needy world.” He then calls upon the people of God to “assume the responsibility, under God and by his power, of owning and directing the world’s wealth and goods” (1988:202). He points out that by doing so, with Christ, the church would be able to reduce the causes of poverty. That is a level of stewardship the church has not attempted on such a large scale—and likely will not without realizing that the sacred calling of God is not just within the church, but in all vocations and careers. The church should commission men and women into “farming, industry, law, education, banking, and journalism with the same zeal previously given to evangelism and missionary work” (1988:214).

The outcome of this ownership will lead to being able to speak into the development of policy . . . Once the people of God are involved as stewards in influencing the marketplace for the community’s good, they can have a hand in advising public agencies in serving the truly needy. This culminates in the people of God showing how the church “enters into full participation in the rule of God where they are” (1988:218). That is true stewardship of all that God has made and put under our authority, including social service to those in need. Religious control of social functions, as it has been in the past, can be seen as an authentic Christian response to need. P. Beyer, in Religion and Globalization states that this validates the Christian message (1994:197).

If this be the case, what is keeping us from contributing to the setting of policy in our city? Is not civic service as much a step into missional living as other forms of outreach and involvement? Is the desire to serve a public office not as sacred a vocation? If so, we should commission and support with our time, treasure, and talents those taking that step as well as the missionary.

When do you need a consultant?

 

Numerous issues in a nonprofit organization rise to the occasion of requiring paid outside assistance. These involve acknowledging you’re facing something larger than your in-house skill set can handle alone. Accepting that help is needed is the first step in any weakness or dysfunctional behavior – whether of a person or an organization.

Sometimes a struggling organization just needs help transitioning to its next stage of growth. Perhaps a well established organization needs help re-inventing itself. Facing reality is the most difficult when leaders and staff are deeply ingrained in the present organizational culture. It becomes even harder if the leader is a founder or long-term CEO, where he or she may be sensing a loss of control or that recent changes are becoming overwhelming. A lack of positive organizational dynamics keeps many dysfunctions hidden, and people are unwilling to be the one vulnerable enough to upset the apple cart.

Consulting with outside professionals isn’t limited to the need of addressing serious issues . . . most leaders could use regular coaching with peers and/or professional consultants. But some circumstances call for more serious consideration for outside help:

Strategic Planning. This process can require an anonymity that an independent consultant allows. Often I’ve found a key staff or board member who admits to not being sure of the direction or even of the organization’s mission and vision. In one case it was found that a new board member wasn’t aware of the organization’s religious core principles of faith. Appropriately laying the foundation before discussing strategy is critical to success. 

Analyzing fundraising effectiveness. In such a volatile economic landscape, it can become comfortable for an organization to stay the course with tired or limited funding appeals and stale communications. Organizations tend to stay with old metrics and “shot-gunning” rather than using new tools to target a segment of their donor base who are more likely to respond to different types of communications. E-commerce is still only effective in a small portion of demographics, and it is key to understand when and how to phase that in.

Closely aligned with fundraising is an understanding of an organization’s publics – those who can control or limit an organization’s ability to flourish. Many times an organization has “blinders” and they are not aware that they’ve grown myopic in their programs and vision. I’ve seen organizations atrophy due to ignoring the reality of their external context and relationships. This is where familiarity breeds contempt; stakeholders who once supported and helped form the organization can, if ignored or taken for granted, become the worse critics.

A most serious issue that desperately demands immediate assistance is internal organizational conflict due to a lack of unity in mission and vision. It's critical to quickly re-establish clarity of mission and unity between the leaders and the staff or board. This requires outside intervention. But choose the consultant carefully, as this requires a professional who is able to decipher the organization’s deeper cultural and personal issues – not merely personnel or HR issues that are on the surface. The former is ripe with personality clashes and broken trust, while the latter involves organization policy and procedure – which may need addressing, but is not the root cause.

I will mention briefly the need for a consultant and/or interim management through a period of crisis leadership change. Addressing this will require a separate blog, but it's most critical to contract with outside assistance rather than use internal staff in such a case.

These are just a few areas of concern where an independent third party will be able to increase awareness, broker unity, and ensure the stability and sustaining of the organization’s mission. Don’t wait until you realize the need – develop relationships with those you trust and who will be ready and willing to intercede within your organization when needed. While these resources may be costly, you will save time and money with the judicious use of consultants. They will be worth it to the organization, as you will gain much more than you spend. They may be reported as an expense, but they are an asset to any organization.

For more information on choosing Consultants:

http://strengtheningnonprofits.org/resources/guidebooks/Working_with_Consultants.pdf

http://www.first5la.org/files/Nonprofit%20Consultants-How%20to_Buttenheim.pdf

http://charisnp.com/
http://www.artiosinstitute.com/

http://www.theedgegroup.org/

The Common Good of Community

These days, providing for the common good by equalizing the economic level playing field through the “creation or redistribution of wealth”—or giving one’s fair share—is an interesting conversation.  

It intrigues me that many of those who take up such a mantra, themselves live apart from those with whom they wish to build solidarity. However, as “First Things” editor R. R. Reno points out: “Solidarity is not the same as equality. It’s about being with others, being part of something, rather than being the same or having the same amounts of stuff.”^[1] So, if disparity of wealth is not the issue dividing us, what is?

Reno goes on to state that it is actual space that divides us, not just financial distance. We need each other.  Just as the scientific study of isolation on infants indicated that touch and the spoken word are necessary for proper emotional and physical nurturing, people need community. Reno also claims it’s a grievous error to think that this distance can be broached by the rich paying a greater share of taxes – as this chasm is a social gap, not merely economic. 

What the poor and disadvantaged need is not bread alone . . . they need to be in community with us – in solidarity with those seeking to help them. 

Again, solidarity is not merely monetary equality, but togetherness. Detrick Bonhoeffer warned that those who dream of community are likely the destroyer of community. How? They focus only what they want it to be, not on the community itself as it is. Such are those who desire to build a better community from afar – thinking that their charitable contributions, requiring increased taxes, or that their advocacy and activism will bring solidarity . . . without having to bridge the space between themselves and those they “target” with their doing good.   

What personal and professional time, talent, and treasures are creating space rather than lessening it in your sphere of community? We will each need to go beyond our “soup-kitchener” and donor activity, as well as our share of the tax burden, and deal with decreasing the space between ourselves and those we seek to help. If we want to see solidarity of community, we must do it as Jesus did . . . with our feet, our hands, and our actions.

¹ Reno, R. R. "The Public Square: Solidarity." First Things (Institute on Religion and Public LIfe), no. 234 (June/July 2013): 3-4.

A Brief Review of Dallas Willard's "Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ"

[Note: this report was my submittal in the course, ML582: Character, Community and Leadership at Fuller Theological Seminary in 2009 and is edited to reflect his passing]

Willard, Dallas, 2002. Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress.

            Dallas Willard (1935-2013) was a professor and former Director of the School of Philosophy at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles where he taught since 1965. Willard lived out his personal philosophy within his teaching, writing and in his strategy for his life: “I know what good work is. I’m going to do it, and I expect God to help me. I will give my life to it. Of course, I will be a prisoner of Christ; that’s what I am.”[i] This philosophy is very much evidenced in his writing and in his commitment to allowing the Spirit to reign and provide direction in his life. Although not setting out to teach in a secular university, he was led to do so subsequent to his graduate work. Willard stated that he never self-promoted himself – not seeking a position or a raise – but considers himself a “literalist in terms of the Bible,”[ii] as it relates to advancement coming from God.

            The thesis of this book is that in the process of realizing the character of Christ, one may “remove or master” each impediment to gaining that character (:10-11); and that process should be orderly – not haphazard or mysterious – to those wanting to overcome human (sinful) nature.

            Willard presents five chapters of introductory, foundation-building elements which examines mankind’s frailty in the human existence, and provides support for the development of spiritual formation; including why people often fall short of the ideal of Christ-like character.

An “Interlude” chapter reflects on the reality of seeking this transformation.  It is Willard’s perspective that our own effort falls short; we are in need of God’s grace.  He states that those who are “the greatest saints are not those who need less grace, but those who consume the most grace;” God’s grace sustains them (:93-94).

Willard then lays out through six chapters a process of transformation of: (1) Mind/ Thought; (2) Mind/Feeling; (3) Will; (4) Body; (5) Social Dimension; and (6) Soul.  These areas of one’s self are outlined earlier in chapter two as distinct areas in which we must allow the Spirit to work through for our transformation (:38). 

In the two concluding chapters Willard examines how this process of transformation interfaces with the world and within the local church.  In the world, a contrast of light and darkness presents a picture of the outcome of personal sanctification, and its effect upon us and the world we are in (:224).  Willard then presents God’s plan for spiritual formation within the congregation of the people of God with a focus on being rather than doing. 

This book makes me recall Richard J. Foster’s Celebration of Discipline.  While I read Foster’s book in 1978 during a period of discipleship, I find Willard’s book is timely to this era of my life.  Through this book I am able to more fully recognize my shortcomings and how I may have diverted from disciplines in my life, which were a critical and primary element of my new life in Christ.  I am not surprised that Foster provides an endorsement for this book.[iii]

Willard puts flesh on the teaching of sanctification in a way I need to reconsider within my life and leadership ministry, and grasp that the transforming work of the Spirit “. . . brings every element in (my) being, working from inside out, into harmony with the will of God . . .”[iv]  C.S. Lewis’ The Great Divorce also comes to mind, as the landscape on the way to the Kingdom feels unbearably unreachable until one repents through an act of the will.

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[i] Dallas Willard, “My Journey To and Beyond Tenure in a Secular University” (Remarks given at the Faculty Forum Luncheon of the C.S. Lewis Foundation Summer Conference, University of San Diego, 21 June 2003), available at http://www.dwillard.org/biography/tenure.asp, Internet.

[ii] Ibid.

[iii] Richard Foster states, “No one has thought more carefully than Dallas Willard about the human personality and how it can be transformed into Christlikeness.” This endorsement is found on the back cover of the hardcover version of Renovation of the Heart.

[iv] A summary which quotes the author is found on the back cover of the hardcover version of Renovation of the Heart.