Author: Addis Andy

I’m very excited about a recent project I’ve been involved with regarding Bible study and our church. Let me introduce you to a new website called www.readingitright.com

This is a Bible study teaching format, and resource center that I wanted to share with you. Kind of cross pollinating between CrossEyedLife and this new website along with our church. Thanks for listening, and enjoy!

Reading It Right from Andy Addis on Vimeo.

 

YOU CAN DOWNLOAD THE CARD HERE: CLICK!

READING IT RIGHT…

Reading it Right is a Bible Study method based on the Bible’s own instruction of how it should be read as seen in 2 Timothy 3:16-17…

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

 

FINDING THE KEY…

God’s Word is the most valuable gift that we can put into our hands. But, for many over the years, reading, understanding and applying it has been somewhat of a mystery.

However, if you will let the Bible itself teach you how it is to be read it’s like finding the legend on a map. Once you know the way you’re supposed to be reading, the content you should be finding, the application you should be making… the Bible will come alive!

Second Timothy 3:16-17 tells us that the Bible is “useful” for 4 significant things: teaching, reproofing, correcting, and training in righteousness. With this in mind, it becomes simple: God wants you to read his word for these four uses.

Give it a try and see what you can learn from God’s word when you READ IT RIGHT!

 

FIRST, THE BIBLE STUDY METHOD…

Did you know that the Bible gives us instruction on how to read it? 

2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.

This means every word of the Bible is designed to provide us 4 things: teaching, rebuking, correcting and training. So, reading the Bible becomes a conversation with God in which we discover what each passage means in line with these purposes.

Summarize– (teach) First, discover the basic teaching in the passage. It’s not about deep insight, or personal application. Simply, What is the headline, or the main thought in a nutshell.

Expose– (reproof) Next, get honest about how this passage evaluates our lives.  The Bible challenges thoughts and actions. When it happens you may feel vulnerable and exposed. Don’t be defensive, be real!

Change– (correct) The next step is to make adjustments. In light of God’s Word we discover some things we need to stop and some we need to start. Making these changes will be an uphill climb, but worth every step.

Prepare– (train) The end result of this process is being one step further in spiritual maturity. God has a plan for your life and the Bible is preparing you for something. Discover/dream/pray what it might be.

 

SECOND, BIBLE STUDY APPLIED…

Let’s Get Started…
1.Find a quiet place without distraction. Bring a Bible, notebook, something to write with, and expectation!

2.Pray and ask God to speak to you from the Bible.

3.Read a short passage slowly and silently. Read it again out loud. Don’t rush the reading.

4.Use your journal to write down responses to the 4 purposes of the Bible.

5.Pray again:
• tell Him what changes you need to make after reading this passage
•worship Him by describing His greatness
•confess your sins
•thank Him for all He has already given/done
•make any requests for yourself and/or others

 

www.readingitright.com

 

 

Isaiah 43:19

Behold, I am doing a new thing;
    now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
    and rivers in the desert.

Happy New Year!

The video about can also be seen at:

VIMEO

Keep this in perspective… He calls Himself your Father…

Following our Christmas Eve service, in which we focused on Jesus as the Light of the world during the season of lights, I was approached by a friend and fellow CrossPointer.

He, coming from the medical profession, always has such a unique take on the human body and its relation to spiritual components that I asked him to put his thoughts on paper so I could share them.

Take a minute and think a little more deeply on Jesus being the Light of the world, and how our own bodies can teach us more of what that means.

Thanks Tom for a great piece to think on!

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Drawn to the Light

As we come into the world, we develop in utter darkness within the womb. This is life in the most innocent state, our spirit protected by God; just as in the Holy of Holies there is no need for light or fear of darkness.

 

God knows the darkness, he created it and was present before he divided it from light; God’s sovereignty is absolute, he rules over darkness.  He rules over all and has used darkness for his own purposes to hide himself before man.  The purpose of God’s delineation of light and darkness was to divide. The Hebrew verb “baw-dal’” is the term for dividing or partitioning. God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. Gen. 1:3-4

 

The physical sense of sight correlates to the spiritual search for light. The eye captures an image like a camera. Light enters through a small hole called the pupil and is focused on the retina, which is like the film in a camera. The optical lens, much like a lens on a camera, focuses the image onto the retina. The colored ring of the eye, the iris, controls the amount of light entering the eye. The iris constricts when light is bright and dilates when light is dim.  Blindness occurs due to darkness; when no light passes thru the lens to focus on the retina total blindness occurs. When we have full functioning of the eye the iris dilates completely when in darkness in an attempt to allow any possible light in.

 

From the time we are born our spirit, much like our eyes, seeks to acquire light.  Having been separated from the purity of God, in darkness we try to comprehend the surroundings. Without light we are without direction, we do not know what darkness contains except what our senses communicate to us. Being born into sin, our only alternative is following the pathway identifying with things known.

 

Jesus is “The Light of the World” (John 5:12), the gift God gave as an example of how to live. When coming out of darkness into the presence of the light of Christ we are like the physical eye adapting to light. We have no conscious control over the eye adapting to the presence of light. We will adapt just as the iris does, restricting the amount of light on the retina. If the light is too brilliant for the physical eye, it can injure the nerve impulse transmission leading to temporary or permanent blindness, likewise God will give us no more than we can handle. We will follow Christ as the eye follows the light, and we will continually adjust to the brightness of His presence just as, with time, our physical eyes adjust. The vividness and radiance of Christ will escort and direct revealing a truthful image of our circumstances without confusion. God has given us a luminous path providing a return to our inheritance, the divine state to commune in the presence of God. No longer do we have to wander blindly in darkness but are able to see by the gift of His light.

By Tom Miller

An Open Letter…

This is an open letter to everyone who has stopped being a part of the Church. Whether your exit was public and loud, or a quiet and undetected escape. Whether you ran as far and fast as you could, or you slowly walked away, or maybe someone by word or deed pushed you out… this letter is to you. We love you, we need you and we want you to come home.

I am not trying, in anyway, to be the voice of God to you. But, I am trying desperately to be “a” voice for the Church… the body of broken, bruised, sinful and mistake ridden people who really only have one thing in common… Jesus forgave us. We’re asking that you would do the same… would you consider forgiving us for any hurt thats been done, or mistake that was made and attempt to reconnect with fellow strugglers?

I know we all come from different backgrounds, and our stories are as unique as our fingerprints, but please let me speak for “THE” Church for a moment… whatever happened that caused our separation… it’s not worth it and we need to heal.

If you’ve been hurt or offended by someone in the Church, I am sorry. The Church should be a place of love and support, but sometimes we let the letter of the law get in the way of the spirit of the law. We don’t act as loving as we should, and all I can ask is that you forgive us as Christ forgave you. I can promise you this, as long as there are breathing human beings in the Church, there will be problems, but don’t let that rob you of the joy of Christian community. Please forgive and come home.

If you’ve been overlooked or neglected by your Church. Please forgive us. Everyone is important, everyone matters and everyone needs a place at the table. Imperfect people are perfectly good at dropping the ball. I promise you that no one ever wanted you to feel left out, or on the outside. Sometimes we need you to let us know if you’re hurting, lonely, or just feeling disconnected. I know it’s hard to let others know when you’re feeling that way, but believe it or not there are people in Church who would love to meet you right where you are if they just knew. So, if you have “slipped through the cracks”… I am so sorry. No one ever wanted you to feel anything other than valued, included and important. Please, create an opportunity for a second chance and come home.

If you left the Church because you were bored… well, that’s probably legitimate… I believe it’s a sin to take the most exciting story in the world that has the opportunity to bring life into the world, and bore people to death with it. But, if boredom is what derailed you then let me set a couple of questions in front of you: First, isn’t truth still truth, even if it’s boring? You can’t give up on the Message, just because the messengers are an all natural cure for insomnia. Second, if the Church is boring, please take that as your excuse to fix it! Get in the children’s program and make learning the Word fun for the next generation, find a spot in the leadership to positively make some changes from within, ask some of the old school gatekeepers, “What do we have to do to reach your grandchildren?’ and just see that rock and a hard place start to slide like tectonic plates and then feel the earthquake as Church becomes… dare we say it… fun! If you walked away because Church was just bad, we need you to make it better, please come home.

If your life changed drastically, and the Church just didn’t seem to care, I want you to know, the truth is we’re desperate to meet you where you are. A divorce can make you feel like you’ve lost everything, but don’t believe the lie! God says, “Never will I leave, never will I forsake you.” Neither should your Church. Moving to a new city often makes you feel completely unstable, and finding a Church like your old one is almost impossible. Well, that’s actually true, but there’s good news… the people are different, the music’s not even close, and you really loved your old preacher, but despite all that… Jesus is still the same! Sometimes we feel like we’ve just outgrown the Church… we went when we were kids, or we used to be in the youth group, or I liked my old Sunday School class. So, you just kind of drifted away and leaving Church… “just happened”… Those were good days, but they aren’t gone… they just prepared you for what’s next. You have grown, but you haven’t outgrown God. Whatever has changed, remember He is the same yesterday, today and forever… we love you, please come home.

Maybe you left Church because you have struggled with your faith. Doubts, questions and fears have just made it easier to move on, and faith to you is now just a “personal” issue, if it’s anything at all. C’mon, let’s get real for a moment. The reason it’s called faith, is because it can’t be proved. Part of the reality of faith is the struggle… I mean, what did God name His people: Israel, right? You know what that word means don’t you…? Israel means “wrestles with God.” Questions, doubts and the struggle should be embraced in the Church… they are what make us strong enough to survive. In fact, you might have a specific theological issue. Something that you heard taught you don’t like, a teaching that runs counter to culture that’s difficult to embrace, or a legitimate question that you can’t seem to get an answer to… please, stay in the game and wrestle with God and his people until you find peace. Walking away will never answer the question. Imagine that your faith is a boat on the water that’s sinking… diving overboard is not going to fix anything. The only thing that makes sense is to stay in the boat and bail water. So, if you and the Church aren’t on speaking terms anymore because of “the struggle”… please, climb back up in the boat and start bailing water. We need you, come home.

Maybe your out of the Church because “You’ve had it up to here.” Organized religion, hypocrits, the hyper-religious, or the inward-focused, naval gazing culture of the modern Church just turn you off. Well, here we go…

• the only thing worse than organized religion is disorganized religion
• hypocrits go to WalMart, but we’ve learned to deal with them
• sure there are hyper-religious people in the Church, and when you leave they win… we can’t have that now can we
• and it’s true that the Church has gotten a reputation for big buildings, big personalities and big budgets… so, why don’t you jump into Church and help start a grass roots movement where we make Jesus the Rock Star of the Church and remember that the Church isn’t a building, or an organization… it’s the people… we are the Church, and we need you… please come home

Obviously, I can’t speak to every hurt and every concern felt by everyone, but I can say this: We love you… we want you… we need you… please consider forgiving, trying again, just letting it go and coming home.

We’re the Church, and we’re not the same without you.

I’ve had a project in the back of my mind for a while.

I have written a short children’s story about a boy named Blotch who lives among a people stained by their own lives. It’s an allegory for the Gospel and is intended to create discussion between you and a kiddo about God’s goodness, our sinfulness and the blessing of Jesus.

It’s five chapters of young Blotch’s journey and includes a family discussion guide for each chapter.

I’m including the first chapter and discussion guide for the CrossEyedLife community to read, pray about and help me process. In later chapters, Blotch runs into the secret keepers of Hiderville, the frustration of those in Pretendville and the scary tempers of Blameville. This is all before he finally meets… the King.

Anyway, here is a taste. I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Be blessed.

 

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Chapter 1- The Journey Begins

Blotch was the smallest of three brothers, in the smallest family, in the smallest village in the whole kingdom. As the bright orange sun began to set, little Blotch sat in the same place that he ended almost every day.

He was perched on the edge of a very small cliff on the edge of a very small pond looking into the clear and perfectly still water. It was so calm the surface of the water was like a mirror, and Blotch would stare at his reflection for hours.

It’s not that he liked the way he looked; in fact it was just the opposite. He would spend every evening trying to race the vanishing light of the sun as he counted all the spots and stains upon his face and body. But, like every other day as the light faded, his mother called him to dinner and he would run home.

He could never get to the end of his counting, there were just too many stains.

Blotch was not born with all his stains, none of his people were. Each person began their life with only one small mark, but the number of stains grew and grew all the days of their lives.

The stains were no mystery. Everyone knew where they came from.

If you told a lie, a stain appeared.

When you said something mean, there was another spot.

Disobeying parents? Oops, here comes another.

Whenever anyone was bad, mean, or just did something wrong another stain would appear. Even the best people Blotch knew had their own stains!

No one could tell what caused a specific stain on someone else, but everyone knew that whatever caused it wasn’t good. No one liked them, but no one knew what to do about them.

Tonight Blotch would not solve the problem of the stains, because off in the distance he heard his mother calling him home. It was time for dinner.

 

Around the table with his father, mother and two older brothers, Blotch sat quietly while everyone talked about their day. They shared stories of bullies at school, mean conversations at work and rude people at the store. These were the kinds of things stained people talked about.

Blotch didn’t say a word. That is, until his mother turned to him and said, “Well, my little Blotch, why so quiet tonight?”

With a shaky voice and some tears in his eyes, Blotch changed the conversation and spoke loud enough for everyone to hear, “How do we get rid of the stains?” 
Every voice around the table went silent, and every eye in the family focused on little Blotch.

“I’m tired of the spots, the marks and the stains, I want them to go away,” said Blotch. The look in his eye and the tone of his voice showed that he didn’t know whether to cry or be mad.

His oldest brother was the first to speak and in an angry tone he said, “Oh be quiet Blotch, everyone’s got them.”

As he spoke those words, a faint little spot appeared just under his left eye, probably because he spoke so rudely. Blotch’s middle brother didn’t say a word, but Blotch wondered what the look on his face meant. 
When a stain appeared on the end of this brother’s nose, Blotch knew he must be thinking hateful things about him.

Just then, Blotch’s father took control of the conversation saying, “Now, now Blotch. You’re brother is right, stains are just a part of life and you need to learn to live with them like everybody else.”

Blotch didn’t want to live with the stains, and even though he didn’t know why, deep down inside he believed they were not meant to have them.

He was a little embarrassed by the conversation and thought he might be a little angry at his brother. When he saw the new spot on his left wrist, he knew he was not thinking nice thoughts.

Blotch pushed away from the table only to walk over to his father and crawl up on his lap. He thought their conversation might be a little more private this way. “Daddy, what if there was a way we could get rid of the spots?” Blotch asked.

“Well, that would be just wonderful my little Blotch, but how in the world could that ever be?” said his father.

Blotch could feel his stomach tighten up, because of what he wanted to ask his father. He thought about his plan almost every night while sitting by the pond counting stains.
 “Daddy, what if someone knows how to get rid of the stains? What if someone in one of the other villages knows what to do? What if the King of the kingdom could make them go away?” Blotch asked, sitting up and wiping the tears from his own eyes. He looked right at his father, and bigger than he had ever been, asked one more question.

“Daddy, would you let me go on an adventure to see if someone knows how to get rid of the stains?”

Blotch’s heart pounded like thunder as he sat in silence waiting for his father’s answer. Even though it was just a few seconds, it seemed like an hour.

Finally, to Blotch’s joy and surprise, his father quietly said, “Yes.”

This time, the tears were in his father’s eyes. Even though Blotch was too little for such a journey, his father new he had to try and find the answer.

 

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Family Discussion Guide for Chapter 1

Start the Journey

 

 

Little Help: Sin is a word that means to miss the mark. The best way to illustrate it is to think of archery. If you shoot an arrow at a target and hit anything other than deadcenter, you missed the mark, or you sinned. When we sin, it’s simply missing the mark God has for us and that is why everyone has sinned.

 

1. How did Blotch and the others get their stains?
2. You and I don’t have spots appearing on our bodies, but in what way do we have the same problems that Blotch does?
3. Read Romans 3:23 – “Romans 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”
4. Explain what a sin is? (Affirm them and explain sin using the illustration above)
5. How does this verse show that EVERYBODY has sinned?
6. Why do you think Blotch wanted to get rid of his stains so badly?
7. Do you think we should try and get rid of our sins, and how should we do it?
8. Blotch is looking for the King to get rid of his stains, who should we go to for our stains?

 

I’ve heard it said that genius is being able to see patterns that exist and insanity is seeing patterns that don’t. So, this is your opportunity to give me a label.

I think there is a spiritual cycle in life that is evidenced in a repeatable pattern in the Psalms. The pattern is displayed differently, in whole or in part, in a wide variety of the 150 Psalms, but I see it most clearly in Psalm 73.

This was the text for one of the very first sermons I preached more than 2 decades ago and has been an echoing theme in my heart and life for as many years.

Here’s a snapshot of the pattern I think most of us experience regularly:

1. God is good/Life is good
2. Things change and life gets hard
3. Faith weakens/we struggle
4. God shows up (either to bless or discipline)
5. God is good/Life is good

The key benefit to recognizing this pattern in our lives is two fold.

First, when we are in the middle of the struggle, it reminds us that God was good, is good and will always be good. Things will change.

Second, it reminds us that when things are good and we have no struggles… things will change. Get ready.

Let’s detail the process.

1. God is good/Life is good

 The starting point of the process is what we might refer to as normal. Things are good, we are at peace and we’d like things to stay right where they are.

Truly God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart. (Psalm 73)

This is just a little something that’s been on my heart, I hope you’ll join me:

30 Day Attitude Challenge from Andy Addis on Vimeo.

 

Find out more at 30 Day Attitude Challenge

 

 

I can’t decide which I love more, coffee or coffeeshops.

Like so many others I find it easier to get work done hiding in public, so, when deadlines are pressing I find a comfy, over stuffed chair in the corner of a coffeeshop, plug in, tune out, start sipping and get stuff done.

No staff members ringing through on my extension, no random drop by visits and most beneficially, no giant stacks of other things begging to be done and competing for my attention. Just a caffeine driven focus!

Where I live in Hutchinson there a few options when choosing your coffeeshop bunker, but the deciding factors for defining my home base are:

1. the coffee
2. the wifi
3. the the plug ins
4. the chairs

I know what you’re thinking. “He has far too much time on his hands if he has the opportunity to come up with a punch list for choosing a coffeeshop.”

Well, I have two responses to you (one snotty, the other legit): first, if you have time to read this then don’t say I have too much time (snotty), second, don’t worry there is a spiritual perspective on this (legit).

It all started when I sat down here at this non-descript, nationally known coffee shop where this article was produced. Next to my usual chair, I noticed a new plug-in. And, I noticed it’s awesomeness: 2 USB charging ports built in!

I have to be honest, my first thoughts were, “This place rocks… they must care about me and my Apple products.”

Right or wrong, this ‘establishment’ just jumped a little higher on the list when making my workspace decision. But, don’t forget… it’s still about the coffee. The only reason they are still in the running is because the coffee is worth the price.

So, if you asked me Continue reading “It’s both…”

Reprinted from The Hutch News
The Lord’s ‘firefight’ is our hope
Friday, August 24, 2012 09:41:09 PM
By Andy Addis

Here’s an understatement: This was a hot summer.

You know you’ve endured some blistering days when you are thankful for 90-plus degrees. But the heat did more than take its toll on summer fun. The wildfires of 2012 will leave their mark for quite some time, not only on the land, but on our lives.

I was glued to the television watching the fires encroach on some of my favorite places to visit in Colorado, and more than once I prayed for the firefighters putting themselves in harm’s way.

Those are some amazing heroes, and I am in awe of the innumerable ways they can battle a fire. Long gone are the days of the singular hope put in a hydrant and a hose. Direct and indirect attack, venting, aerial drops, isolations are all in the arsenal of the modern firefighter. But my favorite is the back-burn.

It’s a technique that has been around for a long time. Basically, the firefighters will determine the movement and direction of the fire. Then, selecting an area in its path, they start their own fire.

It seems a little crazy, but the result is that this controlled fire consumes all the fuel and leaves nothing for the wildfire. When the out-of-control blaze gets to that spot, there’s nothing to burn.

Brilliant!

I love this technique because it reminds me so much of what Jesus did for us. Sin is a curse upon every human being. God’s wrath is just and right, and we “sinners” deserve the full weight of it.

But Christ came not as just another man, but as the Son of God in the form of man. He died on the cross for us as a willing act of obedience to God and a gift of grace to us. He became a substitutionary sacrifice on our behalf, and when He did, He absorbed the full wrath of God, shielding us.

Basically, He “back-burned” an escape route for us.

Romans 5: 8-11: “God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God. For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”

When Jesus died for us on the cross, the fire of God’s wrath fell and consumed Him in our place. And the top of Calvary’s hill, scorched with the fire of God’s judgement, is now a safe place for us to stand.

Because of what He did, we can stand securely at the foot of the cross because there is nothing left to burn.