Do you trust me?

Hey Friends…

 I’m wondering if you would trust me with a very delicate conversation. There is an aspect of our lives that many of us hold out as one of the last areas we are willing to hand over to Jesus. If we would follow Jesus into this corner of our thinking--which will undoubtedly force us to renew a few of our ideals—it is going to be a stretch. For some, the conversation could be somewhat uncomfortable. For others, it will be a massive breath of fresh air. For all of us, it is an incredibly necessary component to our discipleship as followers of Jesus Christ. You in? Do you trust me? I’ll tell you more in Deeper Thoughts below…
 
But first… two reminders, and two NEW events:
 
·      Men: TOMORROW – Saturday, May 4… 8:00 – 9:00 a.m. a quick and focused men’s challenge morning. This will be a simpler continental breakfast (coffee, donuts, snacks) and a shorter, more focused discussion, prayer, and challenge time. Click here to RSVP!
 
·      Ladies: Saturday, May 25… 9:30 – 11:30 a.m. – Join us for breakfast and a prayer walk at Morven Park in Leesburg. Click here for more details!
 
·      Our Next Mt. Hope Worship Night – A few weeks ago, God met us powerfully in an unscripted worship and prayer night where about 50 of us Mt. Hopers gathered to seek God for our church family, God’s direction for us, and God’s provision for our growth and capacity challenges. The movement of the Holy Spirit was thick; God’s presence was very tangible. Let's gather again! Sunday evening, June 2… 5:30 – 7:00 p.m. (or whenever God is done!). More details to come!
 
·      Summer Kick-off Celebration and Carnival – Sunday, June 9… 11:45 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Join us right after church for our “second annual” celebration of all things summer with food, fun, fellowship, games, and activities. While we’ll aim for this to be super-fun for the kids with relay races, competitions, and games, this is for the entire church family to gather for a great day in the pavilion! (Rain date will be June 23.)
 
OK…that’s it today for you email skimmers and those who are terrified of what I might have to say.  BUT…
 
Some Deeper Thoughts…
 
Over the last couple of weeks, we’ve hit some profoundly emotional heart-level subjects in our journey through the Book of Romans – “Uncharted Territory: Taking Life Where You Have Never Been.” From wrestling with our interpersonal relationships to a discovery of our Freedom in Christ at last weekend’s day retreat, the subjects have been both intense and personally sensitive.
 
This week--partially to just give us all a break from gut-wrenching soul-searching, and partially because it’s “what’s next” in the text of Romans—we are going to pivot to a more cerebral topic. But it is going to be just as important and transformational… if we will let Jesus into this particular corner of our brains.
 
Romans 12:1-2 reveals our need to reframe how we think. Precisely because of God’s mercy—everything we learned in Romans 1-8—we are called to lay down our lives as “living sacrifices” which are “holy and acceptable” to God.
 
The word “holy” means “set apart.” It means to belong to someone other than ourselves.
 
I don’t know about you, but I have a lot of strong opinions. I have a lot that I think to be true, a lot that I want to be true, and a lot that I try to make happen because I think it’s right. Every one of these things seem perfectly proper and truthful to me. In fact, full honesty: I’m pretty proud of all these ideas. Oh, and usually a bit stubborn about them. You?
 
The scriptures warn us about this: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death” (Proverbs 14:12).
 
Yikes.
 
“Seriously, Chris? I thought you said this was going to be a little lighter this week.”
 
Cerebral yes. Lighter… well… that depends.
 
Romans 12:2 tells us that not only do we need to be set-apart for (belonging to) God, but we also need to change our minds about a few things. Paul calls it a transformation--a metamorphosis (literally in the Greek)—that occurs when our minds are renewed. Our thinking is changed by God’s mercy. How we view things becomes entirely different.
 
If you’ve been with us throughout this series, you have caught this in previous weeks as we orbited through Romans 12:1-2 multiple times. Got it. So… what’s next?
 
As your spiritual shepherd (pastor), I am keenly burdened by an aspect of how Jesus Christ thought, spoke, felt, and believed that I perceive is incredibly foreign to most of us. If we will come to see and know Jesus for who he really was (is) in this area--and not the sanitized, politically co-opted, and Americanized version of Jesus often found floating around YouTube and podcasts these days—we are going to be challenged. His way of thinking will not match many of our presuppositions. We will be stretched to think and behave differently. And he may very well put us at odds with our own ideas and ideals that are incredibly important to us.
 
“So why would I want to come to church this Sunday, Chris? This doesn’t sound like any manner of fun whatsoever. I like my way of thinking, thank you very much.”
 
Me too.
 
But I want to follow Jesus more than I want to follow me. I like myself and my way of thinking just fine. But I wholeheartedly recognize that Jesus is a far better thinker, a far better visionary, a far better person than me. So, I’m up to rethink a few things if I have to. How about you?
 
This Sunday we will tread into a very delicate area that most of us prefer to keep off limits to any monkeying around by outsiders. I’m depending greatly on your trust that I’ll wade into this carefully. My bedrock promise is to give you only Jesus. I will not tell you what to think. I will only give you the tools to see how Jesus thought. That way you can sort out with Jesus how you should respond.
 
But I will also call us to nothing less. Without apology, let’s do this. Let’s sort out our minds with Jesus. Let’s set apart Jesus as Lord over everything we think.
 
“What’s the sensitive topic,” you ask?
 
Well, you gotta come Sunday to find out. 10:00 a.m. in-person (best!) or online-livestream (if you’re out of town). I say it almost every week--and I mean it this one too—Hmmm…. Gonna be good! Can’t wait!!
 
Much love to all…
 
Chris Eads
Mt. Hope Pastor
Friend