New Hope
Continuing Education, March 2007
William
Gaultiere, Ph.D.
Dr. Schuller,
Jim Kok, and I went fishing on Lake Arrowhead awhile back.
I was so honored to be in such esteemed company and we had
a wonderful time.
But this
was in the summer and it was hot and so we got very thirsty.
So Dr. Schuller got up, stepped out of the boat, and walked
across the water to lakeside store and got a bottle of water
and then returned. I was quite impressed!
A little
while later Dr. Schuller saw Jim sweating in the heat and
so he said, "You better go get some water." So
Jim got up, stepped outside the boat, walked across the lake,
and he too got himself a bottle of water! But I didn’t
know what to think when our pastor of Care and Kindness didn’t
bring back any water for me!
It reached
the heat of the day and I have to admit I was quite thirsty.
Jim noticed – I’ll give him credit for his sensitivity!
So he says to me, “Bill, you look like you need some
water. Why don’t you go get some? You can do it!”
So I got
up, stepped outside of the boat, and sunk like a rock! I
had to swim back and climb up into the boat. I sat down,
not knowing what to think about all this. Then Dr. Schuller
looked over at Jim and said, “Do you think we should’ve
told him where the stepping stones were?”
I’ve
spoken at this conference every year in its ten-year history.
It’s one of my favorite things to do. It just feels
good to be with people like you who care for others. You’re
the kind of people who would rather give someone who is thirsty
a bottle of water than to walk on water!
Sharing
with all of you in a general session like this is a great
honor for me. Jim is my boss here at the Crystal Cathedral
and I’ve worked for him for over 12 years. So he knows
all my weaknesses and yet he’s asked me to give this
talk at his Care and Kindness Conference!
Prayer
Dear Jesus
you are here with us by your Spirit. Please be our Teacher.
You know what each one of us need to receive from you. Please
bring whatever learning, healing, or encouragement is needed – that
we might better serve you as your ambassadors of care and
kindness. In your name we pray. Amen.
WE’RE
SO THIRSTY!
People
all around us are thirsty for God. We all long for God’s
presence and love, to be closely connected with him, to be
alive with his life, to live in his love, joy, and peace.
But we
tend to get busy or distracted by other things and God fades
into the background.
The Psalms
remind us of how thirsty we are for God’s Living Waters.
David and the other psalmists couldn’t get enough of
God and their psalms pulsate with a heart that beats for
God. They make my taste buds salivate for more of God’s
presence:
- “As
the deer pants for streams of water so my soul pants for
you O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God,
when can I go and meet with God?” (42:1)
- “O
God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts
for you, my body longs for you in a dry and weary land
where there is no water… Your love is better than
life” (63:1,3)
- “My
soul thirsts for you like a parched land” (143:6)
- “Earth
has nothing I desire besides you” (73:26)
- “One
thing I ask of the Lord, this is what I seek: that I may
dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life” (27:4)
- “Better
is one day in your courts than thousands elsewhere; I would
rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell
in the tents of the wicked” (84:10)
- “You
are my portion, O Lord” (119:57)
The more
I know of God’s presence – his goodness and love – the
thirstier I am to know him.
And
the more I want to share his lovingkindness with others
who are thirsty.
Jesus says
to us: “You are the salt of the earth.” You
and I are to be the salt of the earth. Why? Because his
Spirit is the Living Water that everyone thirsts for. This
Living Water is so pure, wholesome, and delicious – yet
most people prefer soda, coffee, or wine.
Salt helps
us develop a taste for the Spirit’s water that Jesus
offers. Salt expends itself to stimulate thirst and give
flavor. We are the salt of the earth when we live our lives
in a way that elicits people’s thirst for the Living
Waters of God’s loving presence, enabling them to “Taste
and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8).
There are
many ways to help people to drink the sweet-tasting living
waters of God’s love. For instance consider how Jesus lived
his life on earth. We tend to focus on his amazing miracles
like walking on water, calming the storm, and rising from
the dead. But have you ever thought about he lived his daily
life?
He repaired
broken chairs. He fixed breakfast. He washed feet. He touched
lepers. He healed sick people. He brought food to the hungry.
He played with children. He listened to the broken-hearted.
He went to parties with social outcasts. He invited the poor
into the Kingdom of Heaven. Day after day for three years
he quietly and patiently taught a few uneducated men and
women in how to be his apprentices in godly living. He loved
his enemies, blessed those who cursed him, and prayed for
those who abused and crucified him.
Isn’t
it amazing that Jesus Christ, the glorious and almighty Son
of God, lived as a compassionate servant? Doesn’t his
humility and generosity inspire you to want to be like him?
I know
you want to follow Jesus’ example because I know this
group. Many of you I know from New Hope or the Crystal Cathedral
or past Care & Kindness Conferences. You are good people.
You love God. He cares for you and you want to share his
compassion with others.
You’re
a special group of people to set aside time to come to a
conference on learning to be more kind to others. You try
hard to offer compassion to hurting people.
In fact,
my concern is that you may be trying too hard to care
for others in need. You can’t sustain a life of care
and kindness just by trying harder. It’s not enough
to care for others because we should. (Don’t misunderstand
me – it’s certainly better to be kind to others
because we should than not to be kind at all!)
But if
our motivation to offer compassion and kindness is pressure
or guilt or trying to please people or wanting to look like
a good Christian then the best we can hope for is getting
puffed up with pride. And eventually we’ll burn out.
Instead
of trying harder we need to try differently. We can’t
offer Jesus’ care in our own strength.
Even Jesus
didn’t minister to others in his own strength! He relied
on his Father’s love and the power of the Spirit. Repeatedly,
he withdrew to spend time in prayer with the Father. And
he said that he only did what he saw that the Father was
already doing (John 5:19). Jesus was always in tune with
and overflowing with God’s love.
That’s
the uniqueness of Christian’s care & kindness:
it’s always an overflow. We say with David in
Psalm 23, “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want.” We
appreciate Jesus. And he nourishes us, “He leads me
beside still waters.” Then we can say, “My cup
overflows.”
The Apostle
John said it this way: “We love because God first loved
us” (1 John 4:18). In other words we enjoy God’s
love and we learn to share it with others. You have to appreciate
God’s love for you in order to have it inside you to
give away to others.
This is
when Jesus’ words come true for us so that indeed, “It
is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).
LIVING
WATERS OF CARE & KINDNESS THAT KEEP FLOWING
We can
learn to overflow with Jesus’ care and kindness for
others. This means getting in the flow of God’s love
in three ways. And we see these three flows of care
and kindness in the story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman
at the well in John 4.
1. Refresh
the Lord – He’s thirsty too! (The Flow of Worship)
“[Jesus]
came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of
ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob's well was
there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down
by the well. It was about the sixth hour. When a Samaritan
woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, ‘Will
you give me a drink?’” (John 4:5-7).
“True
worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth… God
is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and
in truth.”
The woman
said, ‘I know that Messiah’ (called Christ) ‘is
coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.’ Then
Jesus declared, ‘I who speak to you am he’” (John
4:23-26).
“Will
you give me a drink?” Have you ever heard Jesus
ask you this question? Do you realize that Jesus is thirsty
for a drink from you?
Have you
ever thought about what it’d be like to create warm
sunshine, a beautiful blue sky, bright blooming flowers,
birds to sing heavenly songs, and a beating heart in our
chests right now… and yet, most of the time. most
people don’t thank you? So many of God’s gifts
we take for granted.
Recently,
my wife Kristi and I took our kids to Seal Beach. The 5 of
us stayed in a hotel there and our first day we spent most
of the day just enjoying the beach. It was an incredible
day, especially for winter: sunny and 80 degrees! That didn’t
happen in Chicago where I grew up!
It was
so beautiful. We had a wonderful time relaxing and playing
on the beach. I sensed God’s presence and creative
artistry all around me. And I thought about what we’re
talking about now, about Jesus saying, “Will you
give me a drink?” So I began thanking the Lord
and talking to him about his creation and what I was doing
with my family on the beach.
But as
I looked around the beach it struck me that probably not
many of the people I saw were appreciating the Lord as the
Creator of all this beauty. (I know that so often I take
him for granted myself.) I felt sad for the Lord.
I wanted
to be one person on this beach that day who blessed the Lord
with my thanks and praise. I wanted him to know that he held
my attention! So I determined to stay mindful of his presence
and appreciate him with me all day long.
Then a
poem started to form in my thoughts. It came to me in spurts
at different points in the day. I’m going to share
it with you. I have to admit it’s a little scary for
me to do this. Everybody has different tastes in poetry.
But I know that God appreciates poetic expression because
the Bible is full of poetry. And I hope you can catch the
spirit of attentiveness and praise to God that’s in
my poem.
Him
I Won’t Neglect
Today
the warm Sun above welcomes me,
His bright rays shine down on sand and sea;
The divine face smiles upon me and I’m found -
I dare not stare, but I sure look at his glory all around.
Here the blue ocean, so vast with silver sparkles of light,
Sends wave after wave of whispers that wash right
Over me, in me, through me and if I’m still -
Very still - I hear: “I love you… I always will.”
My Beloved, smiling too, skips into the water’s edge
And I follow, compelled by the knowledge:
Her countenance reflects heaven’s ‘luminating
And into her eyes I can look and keep looking.
There’s time to walk and talk as we lovers reach
To be hand-in-hand, under the Sun, on his beach;
As King he’s covered it with glistening gold so fine
To proclaim to us: “You’re royalty! And you’re
mine!”
The Sun sets even on days like this, but never shy
He uses his palette of light-colors and his canvass sky,
And with his finger he paints another glory portrait,
I see him again and now I stare – him I won’t
neglect.
Now, think
about Jesus asking you, “Will you give me a drink?” Jesus
is the Lord Almighty, the eternal Son of God, the Word of
God made flesh, the King of kings, the greatest Teacher ever,
the most beautiful person ever, the Holy One, the glorious
resurrected Savior…
And he
says to you and to me, “You’re my friend!” Continually
he shines forth his beauty and whispers words of love to
us.
And he’s
right here with us right now by his Spirit. He’s actually
here. He’s always with us…
But so
often we forget to notice and appreciate him. Worse, sometimes
we turn away. We look elsewhere to get our needs met. We
reject his offer to embrace us in love. And we walk past
people in need and in doing so we walk past Jesus.
Let’s
take a moment for silent prayer to refresh Jesus now. Let’s
give Jesus a drink of our appreciation. Can we do that? Thank
the Lord for his blessings. Praise him for his goodness.
Let’s give some care and kindness from our hearts to
Jesus.
In the
quiet of your heart pray to the Lord. You might simply say, “Jesus,
I love you because…”
2. Drink
in Deep (The Flow of Growth)
“The
Samaritan woman said to him, ‘You are a Jew and I am
a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?’ (For
Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)
Jesus answered
her, ‘If you knew the gift of God and who it is that
asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would
have given you living water.’
‘Sir,’ the
woman said, ‘you have nothing to draw with and the
well is deep. Where can you get this living water?...
Jesus answered, ‘Everyone
who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever
drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the
water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling
up to eternal life’” (John 4:9-14).
What is
your water source? Where do you turn to satisfy your own
thirst?
- Reservoirs
run dry in droughts like we keep getting in here in So.
Cal.
- Wells
are better but they may run out too if the underground
water table in an area gets so low that it stops seeping
into that well
- Mountain
spring water lasts – especially if it comes from
a snow-capped glacier!
The well
of our souls is very deep, but they may dry up. This why
the Psalmist prays, “Deep calls to deep in the roar
of your waterfalls” (Psalm 42:7). Deep inside we long
for the depths of God’s love. We look up to him – our
Glacier God – in admiration and appreciation and he
pours forth his love down to us from the heavens like a waterfall
splashing down on us.
But the
best part is that as we trust him he comes to live inside
our hearts; his love grows inside us! And so Jesus says, “Whoever
believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living
water will flow from within him” (John 7:38).
God’s
living water becomes a mountain spring from within our souls
when we believe in Jesus. But the kind of belief we need
to get into this flow is more than just believing the facts
that Jesus is the Son of God, come from heaven to earth,
born of the Virgin Mary, lived a holy life, died on the cross
for our sins, and was raised from the dead. No doubt it’s
essential that we believe those things! But that won’t
get you into Christ’s life-giving flow.
To believe
in Jesus is to trust him. It’s put all your confidence
in him. To lean the whole weight of your life on him alone.
To believe
in Jesus is to follow him as his disciple, his apprentice. It
means looking to Jesus as your Teacher in all that you do.
Continually you ask the question, “How would Jesus
do this if he were me?” You seek to become a person
like Jesus.
Of course,
as we already said you can’t do this by trying hard.
You do it by trusting him as your Coach and going
into training with him. You need a spiritual workout
program that transforms your insides to be more and more
like Jesus.
A disciple
does disciplines. There are many spiritual practices that
help you to grow and learn to live in the flow of Christ’s
living waters. We already talked about worship. And in a
minute we’re going to talk about service and prayer.
Other disciplines include meditation on Scripture, silence
and solitude, fasting, and spiritual friendship. There are
many others.
More important
than the specific disciplines you might do is the reason
why you do them. Spiritual practices don’t make
you a better Christian or earn you rewards from God. They
are…
- Medicines
to heal what ails us.
- Exercises
to strengthen us and enable us to overcome our weaknesses.
- Wise
ways to trust Jesus as our King and learn to follow him
in all that we do.
- Practices
for being with Jesus in order to become more like him from
the inside out.
- Ways
to help us to become people who are caring and kind in
our character such that more and more we live this out
in our behaviors.
3. Overflow
to Friends and Strangers Alike (The Flow of Service)
“Then,
leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town and
said to the people, ‘Come, see a man who told me everything
I ever did. Could this be the Christ?’ They came out
of the town and made their way toward him” (John 4:28-29).
“Many
of the Samaritans from that town believed in [Jesus] because
of the woman's testimony… So when the Samaritans came
to him, they urged him to stay with them, and he stayed two
days” (John 4:39-40).
The Samaritan
woman had just met Jesus as her Messiah and she was taken
with him. But she didn’t keep him all to herself. Immediately,
she ran to her village and shared his love with them. She
overflowed with Living Water! And her whole village came
to Jesus and he stayed to minister to them for two more days.
JUST
A CUP OF COLD WATER
What does
it look like to overflow to other people with God’s
Living Water?
Jesus said, “And
if anyone gives even a cup of cold water to one of these
little ones because he is my disciple, I tell you the truth,
he will certainly not lose his reward." (Matthew 10:42)
It’s
just sharing a cup of cold water in Jesus’ name. In
Jesus’ name. That doesn’t mean saying the
words “In Jesus’ name!” And it doesn’t
necessarily mean giving a comprehensive verbal witness of
the gospel. To care for someone in Jesus’ name simply
means to care in Jesus’ strength and on his behalf
as “Christ’s Ambassador.”
Then when
we refresh someone who is thirsty, Jesus,
“The
King will say… ‘I was thirsty and you gave me
something to drink…’ The righteous will answer
him, ‘Lord when did we see you… thirsty and
give you something to drink?’ …Then the King
will reply, ‘…Whatever you did for one of the
least of these… you did for me’” (Matthew
25:31-46).
It could
be anyone who we give the cup of cold water to. In every
person we meet is another face of Christ. Another person
made in God’s image who is thirsty to be connected
with the God of love. It doesn’t matter whether the
other person is a family member or stranger, friend or enemy,
attractive or ugly, appreciative or complaining – Christ
is in that person and he’s thirsty for a cup of cold
water.
A cup of
cold water is a little kindness you do for someone. It’s
something that anyone can offer from their heart.
Simple
acts of care and kindness. That’s what Pastor
Jim Kok calls them. And it’s what this ten-year long
tsunami wave called the “Care and Kindness Conference” is
all about.
Richard
Foster in his book Prayer explained how Therese
of Lisieux (1873-1897) in her short life learned that
serving Jesus by caring for other people in little ways is
a big deal:
This Little
Way, as she called it, is deceptively simple. It is in short,
to seek out the menial job, to welcome unjust criticism,
to befriend those who annoy us, to help those who are ungrateful.
For her part, Therese was convinced that these “trifles” pleased
Jesus more than the great deeds of recognized holiness.
The beauty
of the Little Way is how utterly available it is to everyone.
From the child to the adult, from the sophisticated to the
simple, from the most powerful to the least influential,
all can undertake this ministry of small things. The opportunities
to live in this way come to us constantly, while the great
fidelities happen only now and again. Almost daily we can
give smiling service to nagging co-workers, listen attentively
to silly bores, express little kindnesses without making
a fuss (Prayer, p. 62).
Serving
God in the “Little Way” doesn’t get much
attention. Most people would rather do great things for God
that are applauded by large crowds. But it’s the quiet,
humble way of simply giving a cup of cold water in Jesus’ name
that gives these little kindnesses their great value. They
lend dignity and hope to those who need it desperately.
They also
work to conquer our own selfish ambition and pride, freeing
us up even further to notice others and bless them.
Corrie
Ten Boom’s Father
I want
to tell you a story that beautifully illustrates the “Little
Way” of taking your everyday life and offering
simple acts of care and kindness in Jesus’ name. It’s
important that we realize that care and kindness isn’t
limited to church-based ministry. It’s how we’re
to live with our families, as we run our errands, and in
our jobs.
This story
is about Corrie Ten Boom’s father, Casper Ten Boom.
You’ll recall that Corrie wrote the amazing book, “The
Hiding Place,” about the Jews that her family hid from
the Nazis to save them from the concentration camps. Casper
Ten Boom’s character illustrates what this Care and
Kindness Conference is all about. In him we see the kind
of faith and generosity of spirit that we want to learn to
live out.
In her
book, “In My Father’s House,” Corrie Ten
Boom talks about her father and the way he lived out his
faith in his work as a watchmaker. She saw this up close
because his shop was on the first floor of their home and
because he trained her in the trade. She says that her dad
was recognized as one of the best watchmakers in all of Holland.
He was chairman of the International Watchmakers and he wrote
a weekly paper for other watchmakers.
Corrie
writes of her father: “Father was a craftsman treating
his fine watches with care and respect. People who walked
into his workshop would often lean against the table and
observe how precisely he cleaned and repaired a watch. It
was like watching a fine artist paint a landscape or listening
to a master musician.
“And
he found his strength for his work and his ministry from
God. When customers brought watches to him with difficult
repair problems Father could be seen bowing his head in prayer
for the answer and occasionally praying out loud for divine
guidance, ‘Lord, you turn the wheels of the galaxy.
You know what makes the planets spin and you know what makes
this watch run.’
Corrie
tells about a time when her family was in a financial crisis
and a wealthy gentleman came to the shop and purchased a
watch with cash that the Ten Boom family desperately needed.
However the customer then mentioned that he had done business
with a recently deceased watchmaker named Van Houghton and
had attempted to do business with Van Houghton’s son,
but when the watch that he had purchased from the son needed
repair the son wasn’t able to repair it. So the customer
went to Casper Ten Boom’s shop to buy a watch from
him.
When Casper
heard the man’s story he asked him, “May I look
at your old watch?” The man gave him the watch and
Casper very quickly repaired it on the spot. Then he encouraged
the customer to buy a new watch from young Van Houghton saying, “Sir,
I trust the young watchmaker. He’s just as good as
his father. I think you can encourage him by buying a new
watch for him. This young man has had a difficult time in
his trade without his father. If you have a problem with
one of his watches come to me and I’ll help you out.
Now, I shall give you back your money and you return my watch.”
And Corrie
watched her father return the customer’s money that
their family needed. After the customer left Casper reminded
Corrie that he had spoken of the gospel at the Senior Van
Houghton’s burial and he said, “Corrie, what
do you think that young man would’ve said when he heard
that one of his good customers had gone to Mr. Ten Boom?
Do you think that the name of the Lord would be honored?
There is blessed money and there is cursed money. Trust the
Lord. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills and he will
take care of us.”
Don’t
you admire how Casper Ten Boom lived out his Christian faith
in his everyday life?
Casper
brought honor and praise to God in his work and his Christian
witness. And excellence of craft was part of his devotion
to God. He gave Jesus a drink, worshiping him.
He trusted
God to meet his personal needs. God’s living water
flowed deep in his own soul.
And he
was kind to his customers, doing an excellent job for them.
He was even generous to Van Houghton’s son, the young
watchman who was struggling. He overflowed with the Lord’s
compassion and kindness.
JUST
A BREATH AND A PRAYER
In closing
I would like to lead us in a prayer. One of the most important
ways we can give care and kindness to others in Jesus’ name
is to pray. Of course, we don’t want to just pray we
also need to act! But prayer is the power behind our actions.
And when
you pray in secret for someone it sorts out how much you
really care for Jesus’ sake, because no one but you
and Jesus know if you’ve been in your prayer closet!
And when
we pray out loud for someone, with them, it is usually appreciated
as a warm and deeply impacting expression of compassion.
For our
prayer I’m going to introduce you to an ancient form
of praying that goes back to the desert monks of the 3rd and
4th centuries. It’s called “Breath
Prayer.”
(You can
learn more about this and many other spiritual practices
on my website ChristianSoulCare.com.)
Our Breath
Prayer keys on a Bible verse: “Let justice roll
down like waters… and righteousness like an ever-flowing
stream” (Amos 5:24, NASB). You may want to write
that down on your outline…
The power
of a Breath Prayer is in its simplicity of focus on God and
staying with it as you breathe your prayer in and out. Just
a few minutes of praying this way can be a powerful time!
In my Breath
Prayers I like to use the 3-part Worship-Grow-Serve Flow:
- Appreciate
God’s justice and righteousness – it keeps
flowing down, lower
- Receive
it into your soul: “Let justice roll down like
waters…”
- Let
it flow through you to those in need: “Righteousness
like an ever-flowing stream”
- Now
let’s add the rhythm of our breathing to our praying…
- Wait
to Breath as you praise God who is just and righteous…
- Breathe
in deep to receive God’s Word as you say, “Let
justice roll down like waters…” Hold your
breath. Drink in God’s living waters…
- Breathe
out to share God’s Word with others as you say, “Righteousness
like an ever-flowing stream…
- Continue
your Breath Prayer in your own pace...
- For
the person on your right… left… someone you
know who needs kindness
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