Carl Medearis's Blog, page 6

Syria. Why history matters.

My bachelors degree is in History from the University of Colorado. General history. I studied world history, American history, ancient history, any and all kinds of history. I took a class called -12th Century Europe – and loved it. I’ve always found it fascinating that we all acknowledge the adage “History repeats itself” and then we move ahead….and sure enough, it does.

Do you know that there is a small village just outside Damascus called Maaloula where the residents are all Christian and still speak ancient Aramaic – the language of Jesus. And this village is under attack as we speak – right smack in the middle of both sides. They’re trying to stay neutral, but because they are a Christian village, they get lumped in with the pro-government side which makes the rebels angry and so some have been killed – just because they are politically aligned with “Christians” and Assad. Make sense? Not really….

But it does say one thing – history matters!

The Iraqi President, Sadam Hussein was Sunni. But Iraq is mostly Shi’ite. And even though the Kurds were also Sunni – they were not Arab – so they didn’t like Saddam very much – particularly after he gassed them several times, killing tens of thousands (that’ll tend to make a group of people not like you). The way Saddam stayed in power was to encourage all the minority groups in Iraq to join his team – Team Baath. So the Christians – the Aramaic speaking ones, the Chaldeans, the Assyrians – and the Sabeans or Mandaeins, who are followers of John the Baptist. (I met some of these guys when I was in Iraq in 2001 – they wore robes with hoods over their faces and baptized themselves daily). And then there were the Arabic speaking Sunnis…. These all joined hands with Saddam to form a 40% strong minority – just enough to run the country. Saddam even married a Christian wife – nothing like solidifying a coalition like marrying into it. That’s what Assad has done. He has ruled through a secular Baath party alliance of minorities to control the majority. (Just more like 25% of the total though. A smaller minority than Saddam has had – which has probably led him to be even more brutal than Saddam was, in order to maintain control).

What we did in Iraq – possibly our biggest mistakes – we disbanded the secular Baath party, destroyed much the country’s infrastructure and humiliated anyone and everyone in positions of leadership.

In one of the most ironic of all my life’s weird incidences, I found myself in a room with U.S. Marine leaders and Iraqi leaders in April of 2003 listening to a National Guard Marine Colonel who had been a High School math teacher two weeks before, give a lecture to this group of Iraqi men about freedom and democracy and the evils of the Baath party. He then proceeded to ask questions about some of the details of the local utilities and no one would answer him – because only people in the Baath Party would even know those answers (they were all pretending they were not part of the Party).

History matters!

Did you know that the oldest church building is found in Syria? It’s in a small village on the banks of the Euphrates River next to Iraq.

History matters!

Did you know that the Apostle Paul met Jesus (literally) on the way to Damascus? And that the house of Ananias is still inside the old walls of that great city? And that there is still a Jewish Quarter in the old city – right on Straight Street.

History matters!

Syrians are some of the most humble, good-natured of all Arabs. Chris and I have often noted that our Syrian friends are the easiest to talk with. They are Druze, Christian (about ten varieties), Shi’ite, Sunni and Alawite – but all Syrian. Hard working. Smiley and fun-loving. The Crusades were fought there. Christians conquered the Assyrians. Muslims conquered the Christians. Christian Crusaders re-conquered the Muslims….and on it went. Today, Muslims and Christians in Syria have typically lived in peaceful harmony.

History matters!

Finally, most importantly to the history of this family – our son was born there. In the summer of 1994, the Medearis’s moved to Damascus for 2 months and had our son Jonathan. He was born one mile from Assad’s government palace. In a twist of political irony, Lebanon didn’t have a US Embassy because it was too dangerous, so we had to go to Syria to give birth to our son.

We love Syria. We love the Syrian people. They are a vibrant energetic wonderful collage of God-created human beings. And if we’re going to bomb them – any of them – we should at least know who “they” are. Otherwise we’re tempted to think that “those bad people” who are 7000 miles away (from Denver) aren’t really humans. Just like us. Who eat, breathe, love, get angry, want to reconcile – but don’t know how – and are created in the same image we all are – God’s. “They,” are in fact, “us.”

History matters! Because people matter!

Understanding Syria. And what do we do now?

In January of 2003 I was in a room filled with Congressmen in DC – they were asking me and my Arab friend, Samir, questions about Iraq. It quickly became evident they knew nothing of the county – it’s history, it culture, it’s multi-ethnic and multi-religious heritage. They knew nothing about the country we were about to invade/liberate. I remember asking four or five simple questions – questions anyone who knew anything about the Middle East should know. And not one of them knew even one answer. And here we are 10 years later: 5000 American lives lost. 150,000 (at least) Iraqi civilians dead. And continued daily bombings inside the country. That was probably not what these Congressmen envisioned at that large house in DC that January evening of 2003.

Today it’s Syria. Very different circumstances but many similarities. First and foremost, we should simply understand the basics. Here they are:

1. Syria is an Arabic speaking nation of about 23 million people. Even though it does have oil (not as much as the Gulf countries or Iraq), because of the corrupt regime, the Syrian people are some of the poorest in the region.

2. You might say that Syria is not a country – it’s the Ba’ath Party with an Army. For 50 years now, the Assad family has ruled with an iron fist.

3. The Assads are part of the Alawite tribe/religion. It’s a sect of Shi’ite Islam fairly unique to Syria. All the Alawites and Shi’ites combined make up about 13% of the Syrian population. Much like its neighbors Iraq and Lebanon, the majority (605 Sunni) grew tired of the minority ruling them (which is what happened with the minority Saddam Hussein – Sunni – ruling the majority Shi’ites of Iraq and the minority Christians in Lebanon ruling the majority Sunnis and Shias.

4. About 10% of Syria are Christians. Mostly various brands of Orthodox and Catholic. There are a few Protestants and Evangelicals as well. Then there are about 3% Druze and about 500,000 Palestinian refugees.

5. Assad has kept control by providing relative stability and security to the minorities in the country. So while most Christians in Syria don’t like President Assad they are unwilling to openly fight against him for two reasons: 1. Fear for their lives. 2. Fear of a conservative Sunni-led government that might replace him.

6. This war – and the U.S. support (or not) is largely about Israel and de-arming the Hezbollah. Iran supplies most of its funding and weapons to the Hezbollah via Syria. The current Assad (Alawite/Shi’ite) regime is friendly with Iran and the Hezbollah. If Assad falls, then the Hezbollah will find it difficult to exist.

7. The initial war seemed to be a grassroots vote against Assad. It has been gradually replaced by an ideological and even religious war of Sunni-Shia, and pro-Iran-Russia-Hezbollah versus pro America-Israel. The average person is caught in the middle.

8. We really don’t have a plan for what to do if Assad falls. The chances of a new government working well are a longshot and would likely take a decade or more (as we’ll see in Egypt).

My advice? It’s an internal struggle for the heart and soul of Syria – that (as painful as it is to watch) is Syria’s to figure out. Stepping in when we don’t understand what we’re stepping into will only increase the pain and prolong the struggle.

As people who follow the way of Jesus – we can pray. And fast. And do what we can to serve the horrendous humanitarian crisis unfolding in Lebanon and Jordan with Syrian refugees. Now may be the time to serve them in the name of Jesus with open heart and hands.

So we are not passive. We should act. Just choose your actions wisely. The Syrians on the borders are waiting for our help.

Looking for someone to bomb….

Does it ever seem to you that there are some unknown group of folks in and around the US White House who are just looking for someone to bomb? It sure does to me. I have some ideas as to who those bomb-loving people are, but that’s not my focus today. But I’ve gotta ask a question, “Who would Jesus bomb?” No seriously. Don’t just write that off, think about it a bit. Was Jesus ever for violence?

There are a couple of pesky passages in the gospels that are hard for us peace-loving types to ignore. There’s the ole “I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” Then there’s the “I will turn your relatives against you” passage. And the ever-annoying “Go out and buy a sword if you don’t have one” comment by Jesus.

He drove out animals and humans with a whip (although, I could argue that a more rational response would have been for Jesus to smite them – as in, dead. They were doing some bad stuff in the temple).

The book of Revelation has some pretty violent stuff in it (if you take it literally, at least). And of course the Old Testament makes our current rage of vampire and zombie shows look like Sesame Street.

So there’s no shortage of violence in the scriptures. The very death of Jesus was violent. The tearing of the temple curtain and the ensuing earthquake were violent manifestations of God’s power. Then there’s this one – I’ve long pondered this passage in Matthew 11:12 “From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force.”

So there’s surely some violence happening in and around us. Some even seems to be God-sanctioned.

Romans 13 seems to acknowledge that there’s always going to be some pretty bad people doing bad stuff, which is why governments “bear the sword.”

So here’s my answer. Wait, what was the question again? Oh yes, “Who would Jesus bomb?” Or to put that in a more Dallas Willardian phraseology, we might say “If Jesus had your life to live, who would he bomb?”

I think the answer is clearly….no one. Not for any reason. Ever.

Yes, the scriptures acknowledge evil in the world. And they acknowledge violence and the use of violence. But the clear teaching is for us to love our enemy. To do good to them. To not repay evil. To turn the other cheek. Again and again these are held up as the standard. Does the USA have the “right” to bomb Syria for that government’s horrible actions? Maybe. Will it be helpful? History would say – doubtful.

The problem when we fight back – is the other side fights back harder. It’s the spiritual law of Newtonian physics that says something like: “For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction.” Also “Every object that starts in motion will continue in motion until something stops it.” (How do you like my version? I was a history major)!

I hit you. You hit me. I judge you. You judge me. I don’t forgive you. You don’t forgive me.

That’s why Jesus’ laws of relational physics are so profound. They say “Do not judge, or you will be judged.” “Forgive.” “Turn the other cheek.” “Love your enemy.”

You might respond, “Then who will stop the crazies of the world like Saddam, Bin Laden or Assad?” And I’d ask you a question back – “Who do you think should stop them?” And the Dr. Phil reply to your reply might be apt – “So how’s that working for you?”

What if God was the judge? What if he alone doles out judgement and causes nations to rise and fall? What if that’s not in our portfolio as humans?

Yeah but….but….what about______ (Fill in the blank with a bad guy).

Well, actually, God created that (fill in the blank) person. God knew him. God is his judge. YOU do not judge. What we do is forgive. Love. All which I’m pretty sure are more powerful forces than the largest bomb that can ever be dropped.

Yes, this way of Jesus is confusing. It’s upside down. Not for the faint of heart. It’s far easier to fire a missile from a warship 1000 miles off the coast of Syria at a target filled with stuff and people you’ll never see than it is to go and conquer them with the power of a loving embrace. Who has the courage to do that?

The Mecca Grill

So I’m supposed to be working on my new book today. But….well, here’s the story….

I dropped my wife and daughter off at The Corner Store in Denver (Chris’ brother’s store/cafe) where they are painting a full wall mural of the city of Denver on the outside of his place, and left to write at a Starbucks (where I now sit). The problem is, I got sidetracked. When I pulled into this Starbucks (off Alemeda and something) I saw two very Arab looking men smoking the Hookah (Hubbly Bubbly – water pipe thingy) outside of a place called “The Mecca Grill.”

I grabbed my computer and tried to walk to Starbucks – where I would write furiously my amazing thoughts that were going to come out of my head today – but I couldn’t do it. Literally, I’m not making this up (mostly), my feet wouldn’t pass that sweet aroma of apple mixed with light tobacco wafting from the pipe. I turned and said “Marhaba. Keef-Kun?” (Hello, how are you guys” for those of you who don’t speak the language of God).

Shocked, they replied with “Good man. You?” In English. Funny world eh?

Anyway, they immediately invited me to sit with them. Offered me a drink and the very Hookah they were smoking. Of course, I accepted, as not to offend.

We dove in. Within one minute we were talking about the Middle East. Muslims and Christians. Jesus and faith. Family. What’s messed up with America and what they love about America. What’s messed up with their countries and what’s wonderful in their countries. One was Libyan. The other – Lebanese. i knew his exact neighborhood. He kept mumbling “Mish-maoul.” (it’s impossible), because he just couldn’t believe he was talking to this big white American guy who knew his neighborhood so intimately.

Then, I had to ask: “So tell me. What’s it like being Muslim in America?”

They both hesitated. I assured them that I really wanted to know. I even primed them a bit with “It must be hard.”

After some coaxing they both came clean – it wasn’t that bad. WHAT? “What do you mean, it must be hard” I repeated.

You know their reply? Here it is – almost in unison: “You know what,” they began, “You have to put yourself in the other’s shoes. When America or Israel or someone else bombs an Arab country, we get angry. Really mad. No one likes to be attacked. No one likes being hurt by an outside force. Some crazy Muslims hurt this country so we don’t blame Americans for being angry. We totally get that. But we’ve never felt personally under attack. Americans are so nice. We just wish their family values were more like ours. Dude, kids don’t respect their parents. You know.”

The Libyan guy got on a roll with the whole family thing. He continued, “Dude, if I disrespect my dad or say something like ‘crap’ or ‘butt’ or anything just a little bit bad, he’ll kill me. Man, seriously, I probably wouldn’t be alive. But the way American kids talk to their parents. Dude, they need help.”

We talked like this for an hour. They weren’t bitter about anything. They seemed happy. They forgave the few ignorant Americans would had hurt them (it did finally come out that they had been in some “awkward” situations). These guys were awesome.

I asked them, “So…how many Americans have you talked with like this – like our conversation now?” Can you guess their answer? Yep. Zero. They’ve been here since 2007 and 2009. So I just told them they needed to work their Arab hospitality magic on us. Don’t wait for us to be nice to them – go ahead and just love us – we’ll respond well if you do.

But it just left me wondering if we’re the ones who should be loving and welcoming them – rather than them welcoming us? I dunno, just a thought….

Now….back to writing this important stuff I’m working on. Let’s see…I think today’s topic is “How to love your neighbor.”

“Religion makes people Stupid!”

I said that to someone just this morning. Sort of a knee-jerk reaction. They asked about what’s going on in Egypt and out it came – “Religion makes people stupid.” I said it. I stand by it.

I typically prefer more nuance. Maybe saying something like “Being overly religious makes people do stupid things sometimes.” Or how about, “The religiosity of the Pharisees is what Jesus spoke so clearly against.” But I’m sick of it. Religion. Okay, I know there’s ONE time in the Scriptures that the word “religion” is used positively. James says that “the true religion the Father accepts is looking after orphans and widows.” So we all know THAT religion is a good one. But what actual earthly religion honestly promotes that as its main theme? Exactly.

So I hate religion. The religion that makes some Muslim Brotherhood go to the Mosque on Friday and come out in a total rage and go burn a church.

The religion that makes Christians come out of church on a Sunday in Nigeria and go burn a mosque.

The religion that makes a half a million Shi’ites in south Lebanon say they will do whatever it takes to fight the “evil Sunnis.” (And vice versa in Syria).

The religion that makes the Ku Klux Klan quote the Bible in support of it’s racist bigotry.

The religion that makes all of us at times condemn and judge the outsider – the other. The one that makes whole nations and ethnic populations think that God has given them (and only them) some sort of special mandate to subjugate another people. Whether Catholic “explorers” killing New World natives in the name of God 400 years ago, or Protestant missionaries bringing democracy and small pox to those same native Americans 200 years ago, or Jews expelling hundreds of thousands from their home in Palestine last century, or Muslims blowing up innocent men, women and children in a crowded market in Baghdad, Beirut or Tel Aviv – it’s all stupid.

Religion makes people stupid. Maybe the New Atheists are right. We are stupid when we blindly follow our religions.

Thankfully many are waking up and choosing to follow Jesus instead. Jesus brings life and Freedom. Healing and Peace. When we follow him, we get our brains back – in humility, we stop being stupid.

Fight Stupidity. Follow Jesus!

Simply Jesus

This November 7-9 a unique group of people will gather here in Denver. Jesus-followers. Jesus-Lovers. Some just intrigued by Jesus. A few who signed up to follow him many years ago but have lost their way. But all seeking to find the One who brings life, freedom, adventure and a new way of living. We will simply focus on Jesus.

I had this vision about a year ago – of a room full of people amazed at Jesus. People wanting to sit at his feet, but also go in his Name. Not in the name of Christianity or of a specific denomination or organization – but in His Name. The Name!

I’m reminded of the call that Jesus presented to Saul in Acts chapter nine. Jesus told Ananias that Saul was chosen to “carry my name.” What a thought. To simply “carry the Name” of Jesus. The name of Jesus. Not Christ. Not Lord. Not even God. For sure not “Christianity” or my local church – but the name of Jesus.

I grew up “going witnessing.” Remember that? We’d go out “witnessing to people.” But we’re never told to “go witnessing.” We are to say what we’ve seen, heard and experienced. That’s a witness. A witness is not a judge or jury. Not a defense attorney – a witness simply says what they saw, heard or experienced – without commentary. That’s different than “going witnessing.”

But how can we carry the name and be his witness unless we know him? Without an ounce of judgment, I can honestly say that many Christians don’t know Jesus. They know theology and doctrine. They know missions and evangelism and church planting and church politics – but they don’t know Jesus.

I was at Starbucks this week doing some writing and I noticed the man sitting next to me with his bible open and a stack of 3 X 5 study cards, so I asked him what he was doing. He said “studying for an ordination exam ” for a specific church denomination (a good one too). I asked him what the test was about. He said it had four parts: The Bible. Church Policy. Church History. And Theology.

All good stuff. I’ve studied and enjoyed all of those. They are all valuable. But something’s missing in that list.

And that’s why we’re doing Simply Jesus here in November. If we’re to carry The Name, we need to know who that Name belongs to.

www.SimplyJesusGathering.com

Is Peace Possible?

Is Peace Possible?

Those of us who aspire to follow Jesus know that we are blessed when we become peacemakers. Not simply people who keep the peace (that’s the United Nations’ job) but making peace. Ultimately we realize that only the King can truly make peace, and as his envoys, we work together with Him to achieve that ultimate dream.

In the meantime (as we work to reconcile hearts to God through Christ) we also seek the peace of the nations through any means available. Israelis and Palestinians are longing for that peace.

Here are the issues on the table in order for a solution to be reached:

Security

Both sides need assurance of security. The Israelis and the Palestinians are convinced that the other side is out to annihilate them, and both seem to have ample evidence to prove that.

So basic security needs to be addressed. Stop attacks. Stop harassment. Control the radical fringe on both sides (my estimate is that only about 10% on either side does not want peace). While a majority of Israelis and Palestinians desire to live in peace with their neighbors, they must be willing to make difficult and brave decisions. Those not willing to make those steps are the real roadblocks to a lasting solution”

Borders

Israel has never defined its borders – or the borders it wants. 1967 provided a starting point – from the UN – but Israel has never agreed to that. The Palestinians and other Arab countries have agreed to that – many times, for many years.

Israel needs to decide what borders it’s asking for. Is it the defacto borders created by the wall they’ve built? If so – they need to declare it. At least that’s a starting point. The Palestinians have declared their starting point – the 1967 borders.

The 1967 borders would mean that Israel withdraws from the West Bank and the Golan Heights. And where the wall has encroached on West Bank land (according to the ’67 borders) there could be land for land swaps. It wouldn’t be hard to do.

But Israel has to decide and declare what they want.

The Israeli Settlements

The word “Settlement” always sounds simple and naive. It reminds me of our early American history – the Westward movement of the likes of Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone. Heroes. Pioneers. Settling the untamed West (never mind the part about all the people who already lived there).

And these “settlements” are very much the same as our history of 200 years ago. Mostly Anglo-European and North American Jews moving onto land that has been lived on for thousands of years by an Arabic speaking population and building cities there.

Almost all agree that these towns will have to be removed in order for any meaningful Palestinian state to exist. This is the #1 challenge. Israel has not been willing to take this seriously.

The Right of Return and Prisoners

Palestinians will always bring up two issues: the right of all Palestinians living outside the country to return to their homeland (or the homeland of their forefathers). Some of the Palestinians have left as normal emigration, but most left under duress as the Israeli state declared itself and expanded in 1948, 1967 and 1973. Two million Palestinians live in neighboring Lebanon, Syria and Jordan – they would like the ability (right) to go home if they so chose.

Depending on who’s counting, there are between 5 and 10 thousand Palestinians currently being held in Israelis jails and prisons. The majority without any due process. There needs to be a legal process established to identify the actual criminals versus those that are simply part of the “usual suspects” that a military state tends to round up.

Final Thoughts

Israel tends to tout itself as the one and only democracy in the Middle East – other than that simply being untrue – as there are several democracies (although quite imperfect) around the Middle East – it’s also not true internally. Being a Jewish state (which is the Zionist dream) is by definition not democratic. Inside all of the land controlled by Israel, only half are Jews. The rest are Muslims and Christians from Arab descent.

There is a vigorous debate inside of Israel about its identity. What does it mean to be Israeli? There is even the question of what it means to be a Jew. It’s a country with no Constitution (the only in the world), with no defined borders and an uncertain national identity. Israel needs to first decide who she is before she can demand concessions from its neighbors.

As soon as Israel decides, peace will not be that difficult.

Mumford and Sons leading Worship?

Two weekends ago, my son Jon and I (and one of his friends) flew down to Austin, Texas to see a Mumford and Sons concert. Well, actually we went to see my friend Ted Dekker and stay at his house – and…we all went to the concert.

Ted and I had a little deal. I’d get us free tickets and backstage passes to hang out with Marcus Mumford (since I know him) and Ted would pay for our whole trip. It worked brilliantly.

There we were at the Austin 360 Amphitheater with 14,000 screaming fans on the second night of a sold out concert – feeling all cool. Because we knew the leader of the band. We had these little green cads that said “All Access.” There was no place off-limits. We marched right down to the front as if we owned the place, then tested our green cards walking up to the big bouncer dude named “Tom” and I asked with a good bit of swagger “Do these get us back there?” – pointing to the stage and beyond. He actually looked surprised as he moved aside. Our confidence grew as we walked up the stairs while the warm-up act was playing; right up into the middle of the sound equipment. We were 20 feet from the musicians – behind them looking out at the crowd who all appeared to be staring jealously at us – even though they couldn’t actually see us.

Behind backstage (I didn’t really know that existed) were semi trucks, motorhomes, a bar and miniature restaurant, trailers for the band to hang out in, and…a basketball hoop.

As fun and interesting as all that is, that’s not what I’m wanting to write about – we did see the band and get some good hang out time with Marcus Mumford and his wonderful wife Carey – even played a little b-ball together after…but the worship concert was stunning.

I know their songs. They have two albums worth – so I probably know all 30 or so. They sang 18 songs that night. “Lover of the Light.” “I will Wait.” “The Cave.” People swayed to the music. Hands raised. Songs focused on grace, God, hope, light, forgiveness, even Jesus. All sung with gusto and adoration. I leaned to my right and yelled in Ted’s ear, “It’s a freaking worship concert dude.”

How does that happen? How would 28,000 people in two evenings pay an average of $60 a ticket to worship? The place was electric. There was “Something.” They had “it.” Charisma. I grew up calling that feeling “the anointing.” You can’t manufacture it. You can’t make it up. You can’t buy it or ask for it or demand it. It either is or isn’t. And it was!

Why? How? And by the way, some of you ask, how can it be worshipping God when they drop the language bombs they do? Answer: have you ever heard a worship leader in a church play the wrong note? Doesn’t sound good – it’s off. Or maybe you’ve even seen a pastor (off-duty of course) hit his thumb while hammering in a nail and mention God’s name in another context. Does either delegitimize the worship leader or pastor? It may not be nice or best, but…it happens!

Here’s what’s hilarious; back in the year 1999 I was speaking at a gathering of churches from across southern England when I was asked to speak to their youth one night. When I walked into the dark room packed with kids sprawled across the floor like an explosion had recently occurred, guess who was up front strumming a guitar and leading some worship. Yep, Marcus Mumford. I remember thinking, “Oh man, he’s not very good. Obviously doesn’t have a future in worship leading.”

I’ve since told Marcus that story and my thoughts about him at the time. He just smiled and said “You’re right mate. And I’m not a worship leader.”

Well, not so fast my fine English friend. Not so fast. I think he is! He’s doing what I dream of. Speaking hope and peace and grace over crowds of otherwise non church-goers. Inviting them into something they’ve possibly never experienced. They don’t know what it is, and he’s not saying, but it is. A Mumford and Sons concert ushers in a sense of the Divine without naming the Name. It draws the bewildered yet hungry crowd heavenward. Giving them something to long for – even if it’s only an hour and a half’s worth. The lyrics don’t describe, they summon. The band doesn’t preach, it plays. And the swaying crowd becomes part of the symphony crying out to the One who’s name they may not know, but who their hearts long for.

It may not be Mumford and Son’s job to speak His Name, but it may be yours and mine.

Vacation Needed!

I’m tired. Pooped. Not quite in the “drained” or “exhausted” category. Definitely not burned out. Just really tired.

Here’s the deal – I LOVE what I do. I love my wife and kids. (They even seem to love me). I love my neighbors and my friends and the Middle East and speaking at churches and conferences, and writing and developing a website, and hosting conferences and developing six University courses, and….Okay. You got the picture. And that’s my problem.

A friend said it well this weekend in Kansas City. Steve Jones. Worship leader/mentor/cool dude extraordinaire. This is what he said as I was telling him about NT Wright coming to our Simply Jesus gathering in Denver this November 7-9. “Carl, I’ve got you figured out,” he started (others have said that and failed, so I was all ears). “You say YES to basically anything that fits into the category of Jesus/Fun/People and if it’s out-of-the-box. Right?”

Hmmmm, well YES. Busted. So….?

“Then you tell everyone you know about whatever that thing is, and expect them to get equally excited about it, since you think it’s a wonderful idea. Right?” Well….yes, that’d also be correct.

Steve went on to say “And if they don’t get excited you are disappointed because you really want them to like the idea and be all in. Right?” Wow. Nailed it. Totally absolutely nailed it. That’s me. There you go. Is this a confession or a clarification or…? I dunno. But it’s true.

Which leads me to our vacation. Because it’s true that this is totally the way I’m wired, I get tired (hey, that rhymed). When I was younger and even crazier than I am now – i didn’t realize that i needed vacations. I thought going to speak somewhere 6 times on a weekend counted. Chris tried. My kids cried. But I didn’t listen. I was busy saying YES and getting others to come along. It caught up with me at about my 40th birthday. Tiredness. Hmmm, what’s that, I wondered? It’s called: living life at the pace I do, makes me tired – and those around me tired as well.

So…I’ve learned to both slow down (a little) AND take total vacations. Where I vacate. Stop. Not slow down. But….stop!

And that’s what we’re about to do now – fly off to Florida for 9 days. Just our family. On an island with no cars. Only a beach, a swimming pool, tennis courts and a house. I cannot wait. Vacation needed!

I’m pretty sure the world and God will be just fine without me for the next 9 days.

Myth #5 – Leaders have to be Upfront

One of the most surprising models of leadership I’ve ever encountered is that of Doug Coe. He leads from the Third Chair. From behind. At the National Prayer Breakfast in DC each year – he’s unseen. Literally, unless you have an appointment with him, you will not see him. He’s never on stage. He’ll sometimes slip in the back quietly and leave quietly. But he’s been the prime mover of this event (and much of what happens from it) for 40 years or more.

When I’m asked “Who is the most significant leader in the world when it comes to things of God” I answer – “That’s easy. It’s Doug Coe.” 8 out of 10 say “Who’s that?” Interesting, that we wouldn’t know the name of the man who perhaps has the most influence of any leader in the world (in any arena).

Leading from behind. An interesting concept. Putting others on the stage even when you know you’re probably more qualified to talk about things than they are. I’m a professional. I can work up a pretty decent talk on Jesus in no time. It might take a businessman or a political leader or just the regular Joe down the street hours to come up with a talk that’d be only half as good as my worse talk. But….it might be worth it. Here are 4 reasons why putting others in charge might be a good idea:

1. It’s a biblical injunction for those of us who are “full-time professionals” to equip others to do the work of the ministry (Ephesians 4). More literally, we are not the ones doing the ministry – we are training others to do it.

2. It gets good men and women who are often on the side-lines directly involved. They will do better than we give them credit for when we put them upfront.

3. Peter and John were “ordinary, unschooled men” who had simply “been with Jesus.” This is the requirement – to have been with Jesus. It’s not Bible College and Seminary (although I’m not against those things), it’s not Titles or Positions – the authority comes by “being with Jesus.” Lots of ordinary “lay” people have been with him as much or more than I have. They need to shine. Often when they speak from their hearts – as children would – they speak with great passion and power.

4. God often worked with and through secular leadership – rather than the religious leaders. He used Kings in the Old Testament for his purposes constantly. Think of Ezra and Nehemiah – one was a trained religious leader (Ezra) but it was the simply cup-bearer that got the ball rolling.

Jonah was the “professional prophet” (who really didn’t do that well) and yet it was the King of Ninevah who called the people to repentance. King David was a political leader. So was Moses and Daniel. Jesus chose young businessmen to be his Apostles.

Only a few are called to be the “trained professionals.” And for those of us who think that’s what we are – our job is clear – to raise up and place upfront the non-religious leaders to take the stage.

It’s challenge that I’ve seen bear much fruit!