by Chad Lewis on June 7, 2009
I just turned 35 and I have an almost 2 year old. I didn’t know if I would ever have children, but I have longed for kids for years. I am now blessed with one and would love a handful more.
Thomas is one of my greatest joys in this world. My heart aches (in a good way) when I see his joy as he runs up to embrace me when I come home. I literally could sit and watch him play for hours and do the same thing over and over again to see him laugh. I love my son and I am a thankful 35 year old man.
God has been tugging on my heart as I’ve watched Thomas lately. Thomas will grab his shapes out of toy box and put them through the right hole. The star shape goes through the star hole, etc… I always cheer when he figures it out and I always encourage him when he gets frustrated. This isn’t rocket science, but I do swell with heart felt pride seeing my son figure things out and simply try.
I’ve imagined lately how God views us, His precious children. God is the One who created everything – the massiveness of the Universe, the small sub-atomic particles, the flower, our souls, and the list goes on. The mathematics that describes how the whole universe is held together – He made that up.
Here I sit, a pastor who is 35 years old. I struggle so much. I long to know God more and to point others to Jesus. My attempts are often like trying to put the star in the star hole. Even if I accomplish something, it is only because God gave me the opportunity and the gifts to achieve it. Everything I have is from Him. The interesting, heart-warming, life-altering thing is that He delights in us. He delights in His kids and my love for Thomas is just a small shadow of what our Heavenly Father feels about us. He knows what is best for us and it is Him.
Be encouraged as you read Zephaniah 3:17 and know that, if you are a child of God, this is how He feels about you. And if you don’t know Jesus personally, the call goes out to you today.
17 For the LORD your God is living among you.
He is a mighty savior.
He will take delight in you with gladness.
With his love, he will calm all your fears.*
He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.”
by Chad Lewis on August 6, 2008
Woven throughout the New Testament is the beautiful reality that those who are in Christ now have a new identity. We don’t “do” things to earn anything or to make us anything. Who we are drives what we do and this is the amazing reality of the Gospel.
One of our new identities is that we have been adopted into a family. You might read that statement and say, “Yeah, I’ve known that since I was a kid.” But knowing something and living in the reality of it are two different things.
An Acts 29 pastor, Jeff Vanderstelt, writes, “We are God’s family and this means that we are His children who are adopted and fully accepted and loved. We don’t do good works to be justified. We do them because we ARE justified.”
So what does this mean for your life? As you enter this week, how might you love better if you began to view the Christians in your midst as your family?
I know for me, I gladly sacrifice with joy for my wife and son, but it is a different story when I step out of the context of my “immediate” family. When we begin to live in the reality that our family is much larger than we can imagine and that our family is for eternity, we might have a shift in focus.
Families eat together, play together, share financial burdens, surround each other with love, and the list goes on and on. As we do this, the world will see our love for one another. Francis Schaeffer writes, “…without true Christians loving one another, Christ says the world cannot be expected to listen, even when we give proper answers.” He goes on to write that we should work hard to give honest and helpful answers, but he concludes this thought by saying, “But after we have done our best to communicate to a lost world, still we must never forget that the final apologetic which Jesus gives is the observable love of true Christians for true Christians.”
Read John 1:12-13 and Ephesians 4:11-32 and ask God to reveal to you how you have neglected building up your family in love and what you need to do in order to better love and sacrifice for your family.
by Chad Lewis on June 25, 2008
In 2002, my life fell apart. I had written my entire story and it was unfolding just how I imagined. Upon moving to Georgia to marry a young lady I’d been dating for 2 years and to begin a new ministry, all was ripped away. It was as if I arrived to some foreign land and was put into a prison of darkness. The young ladies heart was no longer for me though it once beat stronger than I could imagine. The traveling ministry that I had dreamed of just dwindled away as if God had simply blocked all invitations to go and speak about the things that I wasn’t experiencing anyway.
For years I had dreamed about being an oak of righteousness and being useful in ministry, but I had made an idol out of getting married and I had made an idol out of ministry as well. My identity was so wrapped up in those things that it was nearly a fatal blow to my heart. It was the darkest time of my life.
As I was traveling to help out my grandmother in a time of need, I stopped at a rest stop and saw a tree stump. It had been cut pretty close to the ground. This image stung my heart because I felt that this was a picture of my spiritual life. I once thought myself a tree that was deeply rooted for God, but I realized that I had been cut down. I had been brought very low. I wasn’t what I thought I was.
I went up to the tree and examined it. In the middle of the stump grew a tiny green shoot. In my heart, I felt like God was saying that He had brought me low. He had cut me down, but He was beginning a new work and this work was like the little green shoot. This work would be done by Him and He would grow me by His grace to be an oak of righteousness that declared His glory and that others could come and take shade under. They could glorify God as this new tree would stand in the storms and not be easily shaken.
So 6 years later, I can say that God has begun and continues to work this into my life. If you have been brought low, do not despair. Turn to God and trust that He has brought you low for a reason. He can turn your mourning into dancing, and He can grow back any tree stronger than it was before. Always remember, He is God and He knows best.
by Chad Lewis on May 29, 2008
In the last two weeks, a truth has been growing deeper in me. The truth is that my identity is secure in Christ. I recently drew a picture on a note card and will keep it on my desk for a while. On one side, I drew a circle and wrote “Identity” in it. I wrote a few things that are true of me in Christ underneath. I am a new creation and part of a chosen people. Then in the middle of the card, I drew a brick wall. Then on the write side of the wall, I drew several circles and placed in them the following words: vision, performance, opinions, achievements, and approval.
A constant battle rages inside me. I tie my identity to how people accept or buy into my vision. I tie my identity with how well I perform and achieve. I tie my identity with so many other things and this only brings depression, insecurity, and disillusionment or self-righteousness and pride.
All of this is a big trap, because the truest thing about me is who I am in Christ. I am not rejected, worthless or a loser. I am not self-sufficient or strong. But the things that I am are locked away and can never be touched.
I am a…
Child of God→ 1 John 3:1-3, John 1:12-13, 1 John 4:10-12
Adopted→ Eph 1:4-10
Chosen→ Psalm 139, 1 Thess 1:4-5, Col 3:12-13
Totally Accepted and a Righteous Saint→ 2 Cor 5:17-6:1, Eph 1:1, 2 Cor 13:12-13, Rom 8:27, Rom 1:7
Meditate on some of these verses and be reminded of who you are and remember that this is the motivation for loving God and others. We have been captured by God’s amazing grace and He calls us to share this message and love with a world that is broken. So start by loving the person on your right or left today and remember who you are.
by Chad Lewis on January 18, 2006
During four summers of my life, I was on staff at a Christian camp in Mississippi. In addition to being a worship leader and activity coordinator, I pulled nightly patrol duty. I was nicknamed “The Green Lantern” because I had a green headlamp I would wear around camp. Rumors circulated that you didn’t want to be caught out of your cabin and see the green light coming towards you. Students were afraid. As I roamed the camp, the light helped me see. Basically its function was simple. It helped me see what was already there.
As Paul prays in Ephesians 1:17, he asks God to open the eyes of the Christian’s hearts. One author interprets this by translating it as follows: “I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light…” (NLT). I believe this is a beautiful thought as Paul goes on to ask that the people realize the hope, inheritance and power of those who believe. This would mean that their hearts would realize what is already true about them.
It seems so much of our sanctification consists of growing in a deeper understanding of what took place at salvation. As we grow deeper in the knowledge of God and His love for us, we grow more confident in trusting Him and surrendering our lives to Him each day. We need Him each day and there will never come a single moment when we will not need Him.
As I spoke at a retreat this past weekend at the very camp I wore the green light, I shared with the group about a new relationship that has been birthed out of a friendship. My heart is aglow with the adoration and encouragement of my new girlfriend Ginger. A man who has been married for 40 years relayed a message to me. He said, “Do you think you love her now? Just wait until you’re married.” “Do you think you love her then? Just wait until your first child is born.” He went on to explain how love deepens as life steadily goes by. This thought excites me very much.
I imagined how this is true about us with God. His love is never changing. It is the greatest it can ever be. We can do nothing to increase it or decrease it. He is unchangeable. However, our love towards Him will always be growing. As truths are revealed and our hearts are flooded with light, we will grow in love and adoration.
So I ask, “Do you think you love Him now? Just wait until you see Him carry you through the next storm.” “Do you think you’ll love Him then? Just wait until He shows you more and more the enormity of the cross and your adoption as His child.” The list could go on and on, but let us recall that we need to dwell on the amazing truths of Scripture and ask God to get out the floodlight so we can see what is already true about us in Christ.
by Chad Lewis on October 23, 2005
I just got finished with a review of Twenty Something by Margaret Feinberg. This was an interesting book as it sought to shed a little light on the trials of those struggling with life decisions being made in those twenty something years. This might be a nice gift for someone struggling with these decisions.
One thing that I gleaned came in the form of a simple reminder. She writes, “The most important thing about being in your twenties isn’t figuring out what you’re going to do, but figuring out who we are” (64).
We live in a culture that too often defines a person and their worth based on their occupation. I have several answers when people ask me what I do. To some I say I’m a student. To others that I travel and play music. Still to others, I am a retired school teacher drawing 4 cents a year on pension. I try not to be defined by what I’m doing, but the lies rage internally sometimes that tell me I’m insignificant if I’m not “doing” something great.
If my worth is in who I am, my worth is great. This has nothing to do with who I am necessarily, but rather Whose I am. I am God’s. My life is to be about seeking Him and sharing His love with a darkened world outside my Christian boundaries. Within my Christian realm, I am to teach truth and remind people who we are in Christ.
If you have the time, go to www.chadlewis.net and click on “listen.” After that, click on “Sweet Release” and listen prayerfully. Remember, you are not defined by what you do. We must seek God’s truth so that the lies that bombard us can be released. As A.W. Tozer said, “What comes into our mind when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” This thought shapes our very existance. We must think about God in the same way He reveals Himself to us in the Scriptures and be reminded that He is our Abba and that He cares for us more than we could ever dream or imagine.
Though some might say that this teaching will keep us from doing anything, we should note that those who have been used in this world the greatest are those who knew themselves and knew God. From this source of identity, a life of work springs forth. Duty becomes desire and the light shines greatest in the darkness because it is God’s light and not some contrived effort on our own. It is then that people will see our lives and glorify our Father because it was only possible through Him.
Be blessed and seek to live in the reality of who you are in Christ,
Chad
by Chad Lewis on October 17, 2005
Hattiesburg, Mississippi housed me the last few days as I went to share with Temple Baptist’s student ministry and be a part of a wedding between two of my friends. Weddings can be an amazing reminder of who we all are if we children of God.
As Phillip waited to see Shelley bust through the double doors, he began bouncing up and down lightly on his toes. As the organ hit strong and hard, the audience stood and somewhat blocked Phillip’s view. He stood on his tiptoes in order to see his best friend in her white dress. Upon his face radiated joy as he received his beautiful bride.
Do we get it? Do we see that God created this to be a picture of who we are in Christ? We are the beautiful bride and because we are in Christ, we are totally accepted – totally. We will be presented holy and blameless because Christ lived the perfect life that we could not live. He took our sin and gave us His righteousness. This is the most lopsided exchange in all eternity but it was God’s plan before the foundations of the world.
Take some time to meditate on Ephesians 5:25-33 and then look back to Ephesians 1:3-14. It is more than amazing. We are now alive in Christ. We are now containers of Christ. We once were children of darkness and wrath was our destiny. Now the great exchange has taken place if you are a follower of Christ. Sit and think upon these things as we must live each day in the reality of our belovedness.
by Chad Lewis on September 26, 2005
My view of people has been subtly changed within the last weeks. I have been seeing everyone as a broken person. God has used this new perspective to flood me with patience and care for the most obstinate persons that I have come in contact with lately.
I have seen the unruly youth as one crying out for attention so desperately that they are willing to interrupt a youth meeting. I have seen the impatient, mean man who honks at me as someone who has been offended greatly by someone else. I have seen them as broken people who are coping with their brokenness with anger, hate, distractions, sex, materialism and whatever else they can do to fill the void that resounds as deeply as the Grand Canyon.
What can fill that void? God alone can fill it, because just as a famous philosopher said, “Our hearts are restless until they find rest in Thee.”
One of God’s greatest acts of grace was to fill us with a void so great, that nothing on this planet could satisfy it. When we see people looting in the streets of New Orleans, we should not be shocked. We should not be shocked by the evil in the world, we should probably agree with Brother Lawrence and wonder how the world could not be more evil. We live in a fallen world with fallen people containing fallen desires. Who can save us from this wretched plight we live within? Thanks be to Jesus Christ who not only redeems us from our falleness, He gives us power to live and abide in fullness of life everyday.
So let us pray for God’s eyes as we see the lady who is checking out with 18 items in the 15 item express line and complaining about the wait. And let us pray that God would break our hearts for the broken.
by Chad Lewis on August 12, 2005
While at a leadership meeting tonight, we had a time to get away and ponder what might be keeping us away from true, life giving ministry and leadership. As I prayed and asked God to shine the light in my heart, many things flooded to mind.
It is interesting to me that many people want to be someone else. A few (not many mind you) have told me that they wish they could do what I’m doing – that they could essentially be me. If possible, I would let them live in my skin for a day. If they weren’t overwhelmed by the anxieties, insecurities and rampaging thoughts running amuck in the head, then they could get out of bed and begin living a day filled many trials and struggles. I know we all struggle, but for some reason, we always think life would be better if we could be in someone else’s shoes. But truth be known, we question God’s sovereignty and say He is not sufficient for us if we live in that fantasy land.
So I’m pondering what is keeping me from life giving leadership and ministry and the answer comes back again and again. It is not my anxiety or battles with periods of sadness. It is not my lack of gifts or lack of charisma. It is not many things. I have come to believe that it is simply not believing in what is already true – not trusting in the finished work of Christ.
It is simply Chad not being O.K. with all that makes up Chad. I shouldn’t need validation from anyone to know who I am – I am chosen of Christ and am now free to live in the reality of what is and who am I now – a new creation, a child of God, a saint, holy, beloved and adored. I have been given all I need and the rest of my life will be discovering more about this incredible gospel that has set me free to be what I was created to be – “me”. And this “me” was created to worship and enjoy God forever. It is not about what I can do for God but what He has done for me. From this rest flows the reality of my work – I work to know Him and He loves others through me. I work to rest in Him and He moves mountains and bears much fruit through me.
My life is liberated as I get caught up in something much more than the little kingdom I was trying to build. I now am about letting others know about this amazing Kingdom of God’s as He invites us to join Him in this wonderful journey of life. God’s muscles are infinitely bigger than mine and I must continue to learn to be O.K. with who I am and know that God is controlling my life.
So I sat and pondered and realized that the God of all creation knows my name and cares enough to remind me of this truth. May you be reminded of this truth today.
I just turned 35 and I have an almost 2 year old. I didn’t know if I would ever have children, but I have longed for kids for years. I am now blessed with one and would love a handful more.
