I have a few friends that cause me to wince whenever I see an incoming phone call or text message from them. We aren’t especially close or deep in our relationship – we’re friendly and cordial, but saying we’re “friends” may even be a stretch. Those friends are not contributors, they are consumers.

The problem with this handful of friends is that they only call me when they need something. More than likely, if this person is calling, they’re only calling because I have something that they need or can do something that they need help with. I’m sure you have people in your life like that – you quickly realize the context of a relationship and soon identify that these few people will always be the “takers” in the relationship.

This mentality in people really frustrated me and made me want to really whittle down my friend list and start blocking a few numbers…until the revelation hit me that I do the same thing to God and His Body.

There is a mentality that has leaked out of secular culture and crept in to our churches – the mindset that screams “you are here to entertain and please me”. I’m worried it’s created a generation of spiritual consumers! We now seem to be overrun with the type of Christians that approach God and the local church only when they need something and disregard any finances, talent, time, or creativity that they can offer.

Here are a few ways to tell if you’re part of the spiritual consumers or contributors:

1. Consumers come to church late and leave right when it ends.
   Contributors show up early to offer a helping hand and greet newcomers.
2. Consumers show up to church only to be “fed”, then complain that their pastor or messages aren’t “meat” or “deep enough”.
   Contributors “feed themselves” in their private study time, and show up to church to serve and expand the big-picture Kingdom.
3. Consumers expect the church to rush to their rescue when financial crisis or sickness occurs, but do nothing to contribute to the immediate needs of others.
   Contributors are the first ones to the hospital, first ones baking a casserole for a sick member, and the first ones to open their wallets when they see a family hurting financially.
4. Consumers rush to speak to the pastor at every available opportunity – they desperately need one-on-one time with the “Man of God”.
   Contributors seek to pastor and lead their own families and inner circles – they rely on God more than man to lead them & they seek accountability when necessary from church leadership.
5. Consumers hop from church to church, seeking the perfect worship, preaching, and community – yet never seem to find it.
   Contributors plugin to the congregation God has called them to be a part, and they plant roots deep. They treat the Body like spiritual family and don’t abandon ship easily.

I thank God for everyone who steps foot in a church building, whether they are consumers or contributors. However, if you’re reading this, I know you’re called to be more than just a consumer, but a spiritual contributor for the sake of advancing the Gospel of Jesus.

May we all have the attitude and spirit of a contributor, and like the apostles in the book of Acts, seek to establish the Kingdom on earth rather than prioritizing our own comfort.

Have you ever had an idea or project laying dormant in your mind, and something suddenly happens that causes it to “click” and re-ignites the passion behind it?

In spring of 2016, I had a moment like that, while sitting in a church service. A little back story: I had been working on a book for 18 months. I had begun with fierce determination to write and publish my first book before I turned thirty, but the project had slowly lost steam and was currently sitting in a junk drawer in my brain, half-finished.

This particular church service was a little different – it was a “celebration service” where certain church members would come to the front, and share their personal testimonies of victory in their life. I remember sitting in this service as story after story was spoken from the mic on stage – powerful stories of God working various life-transforming miracles. Each story was 3-5 minutes in length, and I began to notice a pattern that bothered me. Most of the people that shared their stories did so in a way that made the testimony seem weak, or unauthentic. These were unbelievable but true stories – financial breakthrough in the midst of desperation, a little girl being healed of an auto-immune disease, a marriage coming back form the brink of divorce…yet many who held the mic lacked confidence and strength when telling their story. 6 out of the 7 people telling stories that day did so without much conviction or confidence in their voice or demeanor. I was stirred – and realized this wasn’t an isolated issue. Many Christians, when telling their stories, do so weakly and without passion. Yet, we carry some of the most powerful tales that can be told!

After that service, and through the course of the summer leading into fall, I began to hone my book down and gave it a purpose – to help inspire people to tell the story well. I put time into it, sought counsel through a writer’s conference and a trusted editor and publisher, and made the book a reality… 6 days before I turned 30!

Here it is: https://www.amazon.com/Tell-Well-Faith-Encourage-Others/dp/0990873870/

Here’s why I wrote it and what it’s all about: I wrote this for you. I sort of did this for me, because I had to get what was in my brain and heart out on to paper, but I mostly did this for you. 

I wanted a resource that would help equip people to tell The Story well.

I wanted it to be funny, well written, personal, and empowering (I feel like I at least nailed 3 of those).

I wanted it to have real stories of my own life, interwoven with helpful nuggets and storytelling principles that could transform the way we see and tell our stories.

You know those moments in life that stick with you, those things that someone says—often off the cuff—that you can’t get out of your head? I remember hearing a strong, faithful man of God talking about the walk of the believer. He spoke of how, at the end of your life, only one thing will matter: your personal history with God. 

     Did you just attend church, or was your life made up of a series of God moments that show an actual relationship with the Lord?

I’ve learned that a huge key to this faith thing is simple… it’s about the story. The story of the Gospel, and the story of how that truth changed your life.

So this is a book of stories. Some of the stories are mine, some are stories that I’ve encountered along the way that I’ve felt were worth sharing. My stories are the ones I know best, so I to spend a lot of pages telling you those.

Then I help show you how to build yours – how to take the moments that God has touched your life, and make them come alive on your lips. 

Fill them with passionate invitation, and joyful expression of what a moment with God can do. 

Because there’s more to it than just hearing about or reading the stories for yourself.

I believe that Christians have the greatest hope in the entire world – but for the most part, we are terrible at communicating it.

The world has plenty of deep theology books. This isn’t that; just a few of my experiences that I pray you can benefit from. Sometimes, all it takes to compel you to live out an incredible story is hearing the story of someone else who is on the same journey.

Simply put, “Tell It Well” is a collection of personal Christian stories, and a call to action for other Christians to take the story that they have in their hearts or personal experiences with God and share it with the world.  This book will will equip & inspire Christians of all backgrounds to have confidence in sharing their experiences and God-stories with others.

Order yours today & begin the journey of better storytelling.

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Tell-Well-Faith-Encourage-Others/dp/0990873870/

On our honeymoon nearly 7 years ago, we decided to spend half our 8 days of celebrating newlywed bliss on land, and the other half on a Caribbean cruise. Neither of us had been on a cruise, but it sounded fun, and my wife only got the occasional motion sickness…so of course this was a good idea!

The first night of our ocean journey began with a storm in the bay in Miami before we set sail. We made our way to our room on the ship that afternoon, and got our things in place to begin exploring the vessel before departure the next morning. Since vacations are basically just a trip for you to go and eat in other places, our first stop was the dining halls where we had a world-class dinner. As we left the table, my wife made some comments about beginning to feel a little woozy, like she could feel the ship moving – I didn’t notice it much myself.

When we got back to the room, she laid down on the bed to regain her composure. I headed to the small restroom in our room, and as I walked across the room, I felt the ship bob significantly and I stumbled into the restroom door.

“Luke, Stop! Quit messing with me, you’re making me sea sick just watching you mess around like that!”

My wife thought I was just playing around, but I legitimately was feeling the moving of the ship so strongly that I couldn’t help but be propelled sideways across the hall! Although I would totally mess with her like that, in that instance I wasn’t. I’ll spare you the details of the rest of the effects of the motion sickness, but fortunately it got better the rest of the cruise as we set sail in calmer waters the next day.

I was reading Romans 8 not too long ago and a study I came across described the passage in a way I had never heard. I was in verses 1-9:

8 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.[a] 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you[b] free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin,[c] he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. 6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. 7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. 8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. 10 But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus[d] from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

The study I was reading highlighted verse 9 in a unique way:

What does it mean that “you are in the Spirit”? It means that you are in the sway of the Spirit, under the power of the Spirit. It means that the Spirit is the decisive influence on your life. I don´t say only influence. He has his enemies and competitors. But to be “in the Spirit” is to come from the power of darkness into the power of God (Acts 26:18).
(DesiringGod.org)

I loved that terminology,”Sway of the Spirit”. I immediately thought of that first night on the cruise ship. I don’t believe God wants to be like some maniacal puppet master of your life – that’s a whole other blog series on Free Will. However, He wants to nudge you, lead you, and guide you through this life! Are you allowing the Spirit of God to influence your movement? Is there a “sway” in your life that is caused by living surrendered to the power of His Spirit? My dad used to constantly teach us as kids about living for the flesh vs living for the Spirit – and he would constantly drive home the fact that life was easier and better lived in a way that was surrendered to the Spirit’s leadership!

So live in the Sway – I promise you won’t get seasick!