We All Fall Down

The following lesson comes from the ragamuffin soul of the late Brennan Manning. I believe that you- just like me- will be able to see yourself in these words. We all fall down. And then Jesus picks us up, dusts us off, and we start all over again- fresh, clean and new. Have a blessed Sabbath.

“Because salvation is by grace through faith, I believe that among the countless number of people standing in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hands (see Revelation 7:9), I shall see the prostitute from the Kit-Kat Ranch in Carson City, Nevada, who tearfully told me that she could find no other employment to support her two-year-old son. I shall see the woman who had an abortion and is haunted by guilt and remorse but did the best she could faced with grueling alternatives; the businessman besieged with debt who sold his integrity in a series of desperate transactions; the insecure clergyman addicted to being liked, who never challenged his people from the pulpit and longed for unconditional love; the sexually abused teen molested by his father and now selling his body on the street, who, as he falls asleep each night after his last 'trick', whispers the name of the unknown God he learned about in Sunday school. 

'But how?' we ask. 

Then the voice says, 'They have washed their robes and have made them white in the blood of the Lamb.' 

There they are. There *we* are - the multitude who so wanted to be faithful, who at times got defeated, soiled by life, and bested by trials, wearing the bloodied garments of life's tribulations, but through it all clung to faith. 

My friends, if this is not good news to you, you have never understood the gospel of grace.” 

― Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled, Beat-Up, and Burnt Out

Because of Jesus,

Do We Really Believe in Grace?

I read again yesterday (and I see tweets with similar messages almost daily) that we need new leadership in our nation if we are to return to being a Christian nation. It makes me laugh to think that anyone still believes that changing politicians has any effect on that issue. I long ago came to the realization that anyone who thinks that USAmerica is a Christian nation is fooling themselves. I am not the first to say this; others have long held that we are a non-Christian nation. Depending on their point of view, they point to things like illegal wars, legalized abortion, R-rated movies, an unwillingness to take care of the poor and under-resourced, sexual immorality and a Democratic president as signs that we have abandoned God. I am not going to discuss or even consider any of those points today. You see, I think we are way beyond being non-Christian. I think we are Anti-Jesus at the core of our culture, and here's why- we don't really believe in grace.

Grace is at the heart of the teachings of Christ. Every other religion in the world is based on people trying to "earn" their way into the presence of their god. It's all about what you can do, about living your life by the religious law. Religion is about man's search for a deity. Christianity is based on what Jesus has already done for us. It is about God's search for us. If we confess, repent, and bow to Jesus as Lord and Savior, then our sins are forever forgiven. In fact, they are forgotten. And this is true everyday of our lives. With Jesus, whatever we have done in our past, be it good or evil, is irrelevant to God today. It is only NOW that we are in the presence of God. And it is now, because of grace, that we are forgiven- yet again.

The culture we live in, however, has little concept of grace. There are plenty of individuals who understand and offer grace; I have seen them first hand in my own life. But in our culture, they are seriously outnumbered. People who fail, people who sin, and people who make mistakes that have tragic consequences are people to be condemned and reminded of what they have done for the rest of their lives. They may confess and repent, but there will be no grace. They may even receive a second chance, but there will be no grace- because we will always remember. We love to remind people how they have failed and how we have "forgiven" them. Mike Foster, one of the founders of People of the Second Chance, says that we live in a "Vulture Culture." There is an entire wing of the media built around waiting for people to fail- and then it becomes must see TV. We can't wait to hear the stories. In our society, we are never free of our transgressions. Someone will always be there to remind us. With Jesus, we are free everyday- "and he who the Son sets free is free indeed!"  

Stop me if you have heard this before, but I am a sinner, and unless Jesus is reading this today, so are you! As the brilliant theologian and musician Michael Card wrote,"I belong to Jesus, and I realize that He loves me- a ragamuffin like me!- just as I am and not as I should be." Confess your sins to your neighbors and see how many of them would love you "just as you are."  We, as a culture, are all about people getting what they deserve. And Jesus, as a Savior, is all about people NEVER getting what they deserve! No matter what our sins may be. Brennan Manning wrote in The Ragamuffin Gospel, "The sinners to whom Jesus directed his messianic ministry were not those who skipped morning devotions or Sunday church. His ministry was to those whom society considered real sinners. They had done nothing to merit salvation. Yet they opened themselves up to the gift that was offered them. On the other hand, the self-righteous placed their trust in the works of the Law and closed their hearts to the message of grace." Grace defines our relationship with Christ, but I cannot find it many places in our culture. Even our churches often reject those who are considered to be "notorious sinners"- when that is EXACTLY the group with whom Jesus hung out. If we find grace, the "tent pole" of our faith, to be a foreign concept, how can we be anything but Anti-Jesus? Not because we deny the Nazarene, but because we just don't get it!

I have come to grips with the fact that the world I live in will continue to punish and seek revenge against us when we fail and when we fall, but that does not mean I cannot do better. Society will continue to remind me of my sins long after I confess and repent of them, but I must be a messenger of grace to a hurting world. Our culture will continue to throw stones and misinterpret the teachings of Jesus. All I can do is try to show love, compassion, forgiveness and grace to each person with whom I come in contact each day, and demonstrate this truth-  because of grace I walk everyday with a Savior who loves me just as I am...and what could be better than that?

Because of Jesus,

Grace for Ragamuffins

Today's "words to soak in" for Lent are excerpts from the first chapter of Brennan Manning's classic book The Ragamuffin Gospel (1990, Multnomah Press). It could also be called The Official Guide To Grace- or maybe that's just me. Enjoy.

Something is radically wrong.

The Christian community often resembles a Wall Street exchange of works where in the elite are honored and the ordinary ignored. Love is stifled, freedom shackled, and self-righteousness believed. The institutional church has become a wounder of the healers rather than a healer of the wounded... Put bluntly the American Church today accepts grace in theory but denies it in practice.

Our culture has made the word grace impossible to understand. We resonate with slogans such as:
"There's no free lunch."
"You get what you deserve."
"You want love? Earn it."
"You want mercy? Show you deserve it."
"Do unto others before they do it unto you."

Though lip service is paid to the gospel of grace, many Christians live as if it is only personal discipline and self-denial that will mold the perfect me. The emphasis is on what I do rather than on what God is doing.

Our approach to the Christian life is just as absurd as the enthusiastic young man who had just received his plumber's license and was taken to see Niagara Falls. He studied it for a minute and then said, "I think I can fix this."

We believe that we can pull ourselves up by our bootstraps- indeed, we can do it ourselves. Sooner or later we are confronted with the painful truth of our inadequacy and insufficiency. Our security is shattered and our bootstraps are cut.

As we walk through this season of understanding what God did for us in the person of Jesus, and what Jesus did for us in the sacrifice of his life, we pray for the God of grace have mercy on us- again. We are no good on our own. And the sooner we realize the biblical truth that we should should be thankful for that weakness, the closer we come to understanding the Easter event. Have a blessed Sabbath.

Because of Jesus,

Ragamuffins & Grace

It was on my heart to share this vintage post with you again today in the hope that it will get your week off to a grace-filled start...


Yesterday I shared the words and music of the late Rich Mullins with you. One of his heroes and influnces was the late Brennan Manning. Today's "words to soak in" for Lent are excerpts from the first chapter of Brennan's classic book The Ragamuffin Gospel (1990, Multnomah Press). It could also be called The Official Guide To Grace. In a world so badly in need of grace and forgiveness, we Christians hold the key- the love of God whose name is Jesus. Why are we so slow to share it?


Something is radically wrong.


The Christian community often resembles a Wall Street exchange of works where in the elite are honored and the ordinary ignored. Love is stifled, freedom shackled, and self-righteousness believed. The institutional church has become a wounder of the healers rather than a healer of the wounded... Put bluntly the American Church today accepts grace in theory but denies it in practice.


Our culture has made the word grace impossible to understand. We resonate with slogans such as:
"There's no free lunch."
"You get what you deserve."
"You want love? Earn it."
"You want mercy? Show you deserve it."
"Do unto others before they do it unto you."

Though lip service is paid to the gospel of grace, many Christians live as if it is only personal discipline and self-denial that will mold the perfect me. The emphasis is on what I do rather than on what God is doing.

Our approach to the Christian life is just as absurd as the enthusiastic young man who had just received his plumber's license and was taken to see Niagara Falls. He studied it for a minute and then said, "I think I can fix this." 

We believe that we can pull ourselves up by our bootstraps- indeed, we can do it ourselves. Sooner or later we are confronted with the painful truth of our inadequacy and insufficiency. Our security is shattered and our bootstraps are cut.

We cannot do it alone.  We need Jesus.  God of grace have mercy on us- again.


Because of Jesus,

Your God Is Too Small

Prayer Request: Ashley Goad and her team are headed to Russia today, so be praying for their mission and that God will open big doors for them. And also that they find a way to stay warm in temps that may get to -18. Brrr....

The late Brennan Manning was one of my favorite people, and this is one of my favorite quotes from him:

"If we maintain the open-mindedness of children, we challenge fixed ideas and established structures, including our own. We listen to people in other denominations and religions. We don't find demons in those with whom we disagree. We don't cozy up to people who mouth our jargon. If we are open, we rarely resort to either-or: either creation or evolution, liberty or law, sacred or secular, Beethoven or Madonna. We focus on both-and, fully aware that God's truth cannot be imprisoned in a small definition. " 

Too many of us lose the open-mindedness Brennan speaks of above. We all try to put God in our own little boxes, and then seek to destroy anyone who finds God outside that box. I have often said that anyone who begins a sentence with "God can't" or "God wouldn't" has obviously never heard of Jesus. Sending His only son to die for us was impractical, irrational and foolish. It was the ultimate in "outside the box" thinking. And yet that is exactly what God did. 

There are too many Christians in our world (and on my worst days this includes me) who think they have all the answers, when in fact following Jesus is often more about questions. We think that we have a full understanding of God. You know what? If you think you understand God, then your God is too small...


Because of Jesus,

Remembering a Ragamuffin

Brennan Manning passed away yesterday.  I was fortunate to hear him speak on several occasions and to have read several of his books, including The Ragamuffin Gospel, which remains one of the most important books I have ever read.  It changed many lives, including that of the late, great Rich Mullins. More recently, I hear from my old friend Todd Willis about how the book had transformed his small group. I wrote this post back in 2010, and I share it again today to honor Brennan.  Actually, to allow Brennan to honor Jesus.  Because Brennan would wonder why anyone would want to pay any attention to a ragamuffin like him...

Perhaps the greatest theological truth ever written is this:  "Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so..."  It is a love we cannot earn and do not deserve; it is a love we simply have to accept.  Yet I am not so sure we really believe that.  I am not certain we understand the concept of grace.  We are too busy trying to EARN God's love; we are too involved in being against things and declaring our point of view to be correct.  We are missing the point.  We are all ragamuffins who fall short of living without sin, yet Jesus loves us anyway.  Today I want to share with you some excerpts from the first chapter of Brennan Manning's classic book The Ragamuffin Gospel (1990, Multnomah Press).   I hope these words will offer hope and clarity to you as you worship God on this Sabbath.

Something is radically wrong.

The Christian community often resembles a Wall Street exchange of works where in the elite are honored and the ordinary ignored. Love is stifled, freedom shackled, and self-righteousness believed. The institutional church has become a wounder of the healers rather than a healer of the wounded... Put bluntly the American Church today accepts grace in theory but denies it in practice.

Our culture has made the word grace impossible to understand. We resonate with slogans such as:
"There's no free lunch."
"You get what you deserve."
"You want love? Earn it."
"You want mercy? Show you deserve it."
"Do unto others before they do it unto you."

Though lip service is paid to the gospel of grace, many Christians live as if it is only personal discipline and self-denial that will mold the perfect me. The emphasis is on what I do rather than on what God is doing.

Our approach to the Christian life is just as absurd as the enthusiastic young man who had just received his plumber's license and was taken to see Niagara Falls. He studied it for a minute and then said, "I think I can fix this."

We believe that we can pull ourselves up by our bootstraps- indeed, we can do it ourselves. Sooner or later we are confronted with the painful truth of our inadequacy and insufficiency. Our security is shattered and our bootstraps are cut.

It is time for us to realize that if we can earn God's love by our beliefs and actions, then Jesus was not necessary.  His coming to earth was a fool's errand if we can bridge the gap that sin creates between ourselves and God by our own efforts.  It is time our theology got back to the basics.  Sing the truth to yourself today and everyday, and feel the power of God's love.  "YES- Jesus loves me!"


Because of Jesus,

A Bigger Faith

"If we maintain the open-mindedness of children, we challenge fixed ideas and established structures, including our own. We listen to people in other denominations and religions. We don't find demons in those with whom we disagree. We don't cozy up to people who mouth our jargon. If we are open, we rarely resort to either-or: either creation or evolution, liberty or law, sacred or secular, Beethoven or Madonna. We focus on both-and, fully aware that God's truth cannot be imprisoned in a small definition. "  - Brennan Manning

Too many of us lose the open-mindedness Brennan speaks of above.  We all try to put God in our own little boxes, and then seek to destroy anyone who finds God outside that box.  I have often said that anyone who begins a sentence with "God can't" or "God wouldn't" has obviously never heard of Jesus.  Sending His only son to die for us was impractical, irrational and foolish.  It was the ultimate in "outside the box" thinking.  And yet that is exactly what God did. 

There are too many Christians in our world (and on my worst days this includes me) who think they have all the answers, when in fact following Jesus is often more about questions.  We think that we have a full understanding of God.  You know what?  If you think you understand God, then your God is too small...

Because of Jesus,

A Ragamuffin Thought

Feeling discouraged?  Feeling like you have somehow failed in your walk with Jesus?  The great author (and chief Ragamuffin) Brennan Manning has some words for you today...


“For those who feel their lives are a grave disappointment to God, it requires enormous trust and reckless, raging confidence to accept that the love of Jesus Christ knows no shadow of alteration or change. When Jesus said, "Come to me, all you who labor and are heavy burdened," He assumed we would grow weary, discouraged, and disheartened along the way. These words are a touching testimony to the genuine humanness of Jesus. He had no romantic notion of the cost of discipleship. He knew that following Him was as unsentimental as duty, as demanding as love.”  ― Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled, Beat-Up, and Burnt Out


Jesus does not call us to perfection, or to comparison with saints, or to fame and glory in His name.  Jesus calls us to follow.  And as with most trips, there will be wrong turns and bad choices.  Thank God that because of Jesus, we are loved despite ourselves, not because of what we accomplish.  And that love never changes...


Because of Jesus,

You May Be Right...

Billy Joel once wrote, "You may be right...I may be crazy!"  Admitting someone else might have some insights that we lack is totally out of style these days.  In 2012, being right is all that matters- even if it means denying some obvious facts.  Watching the nightly news and following the ongoing political campaigns makes it painfully clear that we live in a world where compromise is dead.  "Our side" must always be correct, and our unwillingness to admit that the other side can be partly right has led to a paralysis in our families, our churches and our nation.  We blindly adhere to party lines and ancient doctrines and try to claim a moral high ground that in some cases simply does not exist.  We forget that Jesus had dinner with outcasts and the demonized because he felt they had important things to say.  We forget that almost everything Jesus said challenged the rules, traditions and structures of his day.  We forget that Jesus called out the church leaders who thought they could define and limit God.  Faith is not about being right.  It is about being open to everything our enormous, gigantic God has to teach us, and trusting that the Holy Spirit will show us truth.  And some of those lessons- in fact, many of them- will come from people we seek to discredit.  Brennan Manning said it like this:


“If we maintain the open-mindedness of children, we challenge fixed ideas and established structures, including our own. We listen to people in other denominations and religions. We don't find demons in those with whom we disagree. We don't cozy up to people who mouth our jargon. If we are open, we rarely resort to either/or: either creation or evolution, liberty or law, sacred or secular, Beethoven or Madonna. We focus on both/and, fully aware that God's truth cannot be imprisoned in a small definition. ” 


We find ourselves living in an Either/Or world, and it is crippling the passion and power of the church I love so much. I encourage you this week to let go of your desire to always be right, and instead focus on a desire to be faithful.  Seek "that of God" in all you encounter, and listen to those who disagree with you.  Become "Jesus with skin" to our divided world.  I don't know much, but I do know this- I cannot change the world by proving you are wrong.  But I can change it by listening to you, respecting you and loving you in the name of Jesus.  Both/And.  Give it a try...


Because of Jesus,

A Ragamuffin Thought

“The gospel is absurd and the life of Jesus is meaningless unless we believe that He lived, died, and rose again with but one purpose in mind: to make brand-new creation. Not to make people with better morals but to create a community of prophets and professional lovers, men and women who would surrender to the mystery of the fire of the Spirit that burns within, who would live in ever greater fidelity to the omnipresent Word of God, who would enter into the center of it all, the very heart and mystery of Christ, into the center of the flame that consumes, purifies, and sets everything aglow with peace, joy, boldness, and extravagant, furious love. This, my friend, is what it really means to be a Christian.” 

― Brennan Manning, The Furious Longing of God


'Nuff said.

Words I Wish I Had Written

The following lesson comes from the ragamuffin soul of the great Brennan Manning.  I believe that you- just like me- will be able to see yourself in these words.  Have a blessed weekend.


“Because salvation is by grace through faith, I believe that among the countless number of people standing in front of the throne and in front of the Lamb, dressed in white robes and holding palms in their hands (see Revelation 7:9), I shall see the prostitute from the Kit-Kat Ranch in Carson City, Nevada, who tearfully told me that she could find no other employment to support her two-year-old son. I shall see the woman who had an abortion and is haunted by guilt and remorse but did the best she could faced with grueling alternatives; the businessman besieged with debt who sold his integrity in a series of desperate transactions; the insecure clergyman addicted to being liked, who never challenged his people from the pulpit and longed for unconditional love; the sexually abused teen molested by his father and now selling his body on the street, who, as he falls asleep each night after his last 'trick', whispers the name of the unknown God he learned about in Sunday school. 

'But how?' we ask. 

Then the voice says, 'They have washed their robes and have made them white in the blood of the Lamb.' 

There they are. There *we* are - the multitude who so wanted to be faithful, who at times got defeated, soiled by life, and bested by trials, wearing the bloodied garments of life's tribulations, but through it all clung to faith. 

My friends, if this is not good news to you, you have never understood the gospel of grace.” 

― Brennan Manning, The Ragamuffin Gospel: Good News for the Bedraggled, Beat-Up, and Burnt Out


Because of Jesus,