Overcommitted To Success

I want to start this morning with a very simple, but very profound question. How do you define success? And I have to be more specific, because there’s so many different categories for this question, aren’t there? Like - how do you define success as a parent? Or if you’re the student, if you’re the kid - how do you define success in school? Is it grades? Or level of extra curricullars? Or or how many friends you have? If you’re married or dating - how do you define success? Is it having the most beautiful spouse, or the types of dates you go on? How do you define success? At work - in your job - what metric do you use? Is it how much you like your job? Or how big the paycheck is? Or what level you are at in the company? How do you define success? I’ll give you an example from my life - what does success mean as a pastor? 

When I first started in ministry, I was 25 years old - lead pastor of my very first church, and I thought success was about size. If your church gets bigger you win. Big church equals good church - that was my picture and it fit a lot of what we see in our culture. I started to orient everything in my church towards getting it to grow. Big is good, so we have to get bigger. And think about it - we celebrate the big churches in this country - you probably know some of the famous pastors that are out there by name. But then there was a series of stories of really big famous pastors who all had scandals and failures or burn outs. Some of them just straight up self destructed. I heard a story of a pastor, incredibly successful, wildly famous pastor - wrote books, put out curriculum, spoke at all the conferences. But he left his church and I heard him give a talk one time where he was describing what it was like on a Sunday morning at the height of his church’s success. In between services this pastor would literally hide in the closet in his office to get away from the people - because it was so overwhelming. Churches crumbled and as a pastor of a small church - I saw that and I realized, oh shoot - big does not mean good. Big does not mean successful. So what is success for me as a pastor? So I switched it. Nah, nah, nah - it’s not quantity, it’s quality. It’s not the big churches that are successful. It’s the small churches. The good churches are the small ones. And I started orienting all my decisions around chasing that version of success. But here’s the bad news I found out - little churches can be toxic too. In fact they can get so interconnected in their little church that when a new person tries to get into the community they are pushed away. And then I met some really authentic and healthy pastors who serve really vibrant, giant churches and I was even more confused. Wait a minute - healthy churches can be small OR big? And unhealthy churches can be big or small? So which one was the right answer? Which one am I chasing as a pastor? If you know me at all, I’m pretty good at going after my goals and getting things done - but I didn’t even know where I was supposed to put the target. 

Now the reason I’m getting into all of this, giving you a peek behind the curtain a little bit on church organization - is because I believe this has direct parallels to how you define success in your spiritual life. You see today I want to give you a picture of what winning in life can actually look like. And it’ll change your life if you lean in, but if you don’t - you may waste the one life you get by winning at the wrong game. Because today we are starting a brand new series called Overcommitted. We’re going to spend some time in the teachings of Jesus to shift our mentality from the rat race of the world…to the peace that comes from abiding with Jesus. This morning we are going to get into what it looks like when we are overcommitted to success. 

Now if you’d like to grab your bible and open it up - we are going to be in the book of John, chapter 15. If you’re not familiar, or if it takes you a while to look it up - I want to encourage you. You only get better with practice. Sometimes people ask me how I can jump to places in the bible so quickly - and it’s nothing special. [hold it up]. I just use sticky notes. It can take me a minute to find my spot too. But let me assure you - this is a book that is worth getting to know your way around. The table of contents at the front can give you a page number - but the book of John is towards the back of the bible, in what we call the New Testament. And of course, if you don’t have a physical bible you can always look it up on your phone and that works just as well. Chapter 15, verse 1 starts out and this is Jesus talking and he says, [read v.1-4]. Pretty simple stuff - one of the most common metaphors we use in Christianity. Jesus is the grapevine, we are the branches, and God is the gardener. If you stay attached to Jesus, your soul stays alive. Last week, if you were here with us - you might remember I said that a lot of the stuff that is IN the bible is in there because humans are forgetful. It’s not complicated or tricky, it’s not even challenging or full of hidden meaning - it’s in there purely to remind us of powerful truths. If you cut a flower off a bush, it will wilt. If you break a branch off a tree - it will die. And if a Christian is disconnected from Jesus, we cannot live a fruitful life. And verse 4 gives us the first major teaching I want you to catch this morning. Jesus says, “Remain in me and I will remain in you.” Here’s why this is so important, here’s why this is so key - think about your cell phone for a second. You can have the best hardware, the best apps - all organized and beautifully laid out. You can have all the software that functions perfectly and even a tech savvy user who knows how to work the phone - but if there is no wifi service, it doesn’t matter how beautiful and organized and perfect the rest of your life is - without that connection, your potential is limited and eventually it becomes useless. 

I remember, when I served in the UP - they do directions a little differently up there. I was talking to this lady in the church - she had invited Sara and I to come spend fourth of July weekend at their place - do a cookout, should be a lot of fun. And I was excited to go - but she starts giving me directions, like actual directions (when you get to this stop sign take a left, and then after two lights you’ll see a funny rock next to a tree, and the road will curve up to the right.) And she’s going on and on, and I want to be respectful but in my head I’m thinking, “Lady, I’m remembering none of this - I’m just waiting for your lips to stop moving so I can put the address into google maps.” Siri, give me directions to 1135 Podunk Lane. This is how I think it’s going to go. So I’m standing there being super rude, and not paying attention to ANY of the directions, because I have this brilliant little rectangle in my pocket and I know it’s going to take care of me. But here’s the thing I learned about living in the Upper Pennisula… the cell phone towers, and the wifi signal, the 5G or whatever -WHICH I NEED TO GET THE RECTANGLE TO WORK, is a little [shake hand sideways]. So of course, we’re on our way - and the phone starts freezing up. Google maps is failing me, and I’m wishing for the good old days when we printed out directions from mapquest and pretended to be pirates. And literally the only thing I can remember from this ladies directions was the line, “it’s a little tricky, but I’m sure you’ll find it.” My point with all of this, of course, is that it doesn’t matter how great and wonderful and organized and successful the rest of your life might be - if you don’t have that connection to Jesus. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. STAY connected to Jesus, and your soul stays alive. 

Now that word, Remain, it can also be translated as ABIDE. In the Greek it’s the word “meno” - and it shows up 10 times in this one chapter, and 40 times in the whole book. And this is a little scholarly trick - if the bible uses a word TEN TIMES in a single chapter, it’s a super smart practice to pay attention to that word. And here’s the funny thing about abiding or “remaining” - you don’t have to do anything. A tree branch doesn’t put in extra effort to create an apple - or a vineyard with grapes. It just happens naturally if you stay connected. Our job is not to work hard on our relationship with Jesus - we just have to show up for it. Abide with God. I thought it was sort of clever, someone pointed out - hey, you know we are human BEINGS, not human DOINGS. It’s not about DOING, just BE. If you want to get that wifi signal, that source, that power that makes everything else in your life function with success - the first step, the first teaching is just simply Abide with Jesus. John Ortberg once said, “God is not in a hurry. You are. That’s why you are tired.” Jesus gets us started with the simple reassurance - remain in me, and I will remain in you. 

In verse 5 it keeps going, [read v.5-6]. And again this seems super basic, but it’s super important because we keep forgetting. If you abide with Jesus your soul stays alive. But if you break away, your soul withers. And I love that word wither. I’ve said this before, but every time I hear the word “Wither” it makes me think about blueberries. My kids love blueberries, especially my daughter Maggie. She’s not quite two but that girl can put away an entire paycheck of blueberries in a single sitting. But sometimes we go blueberry picking and we pick up 10, 15 pounds of blueberries all at once. And if we don’t eat them fast enough, and we forget to freeze some - what happens? They get all wrinkley and soft and nasty - don’t they. A fresh blueberry is taut and firm and bursting with flavor - but too long off the vine and it’s mushy and nasty. This is our hearts away from God. And this is not just some ethereal problem in our hearts or in our minds - this stuff manifests physically! According to the APA 77% of Americans report experiencing physical symptoms of stress weekly. 77%! Burnout is not officially recognized by the World Health Organization as a medical diagnosis, related to chronic workplace stress. 41% of Americans don’t use their vacation time, and 61% of people say they feel pressure to succeed from social media comparisons. We, as a society, we are withering. Only 15% of employees worldwide, according to Gallup, 15% of employees are engaged and fulfilled in their work. That means 85% of people have a job that is sucking them dry. Corrie Ten Boom put it like this, she said, “If the devil can’t make you sin, he’ll make you busy.” We are chasing success. We are failing to abide - and it is taking a toll on our souls. If we can figure out how to abide with Jesus - we will flourish. But apart from God - we will wither. Our families wither. Our town, our schools, our country - we will wither the further we get from God.

Jumping down to verse 8, [read v.8-11]. Okay, so I have to stop myself for a second - because this is one of those parts of the bible where I could just keep reading and reading because these are such beautiful words. Hear that again, [read v.11-17]. That’s just - chef’s kiss, isn’t it? And this opens up the third major thing I want you to catch from the text today. First we say that Jesus wants us to ABIDE in him, but what he’s showing us now is that what he means is tied to love. And that love leads to joy. Jesus says “remain in my love” and then in verse 11, I have told you this so that you would be filled with joy.” So what we see is that abiding with Jesus, keeping that wifi connection to God strong, is actually all wrapped up in love and joy. The hardest part about abiding is that it’s not a thing you do - but a place you find in your heart. And if I can come alongside you for a second - this is something I struggled with for years. When I was a kid, I used to go to Christian camp every summer out in the woods. And they would do this thing where they would give us “devotion time” - they’d give us a bible and a notebook and we’d go off in the woods to have prayer time. And it was SO BORING. I don’t sit still very well, and I just didn’t know how to connect with God. And so for years I had this guilt. I want to be this good Christian kid, and I want to pray and talk to God - but I would sit there, and my mind would wander and it just felt so awkward. And I thought - I am so bad at “abiding.” And then as I grew up I realized something - that’s the way it always is when you first meet someone! Have you ever had that? Where you hang out with someone, and you get past the normal small talk questions and then you’ve just got nothing else to say? And it can be SO AWKWARD! I know the men in the room have no idea what I’m talking about, because men don’t always need to talk to connect. Men, am I speaking your language? Say yes. I know guys who will literally tell me - “that guys my best friend, we hang out twice a week, we haven’t spoken in three years.” There are men in the world who would be super comfortable communicating purely in grunts and eyebrow movement. But for some of us other chatty kathys - we need words, otherwise it feels uncomfortable. And so my council to you, because this is what I went through - if your devotion time, your prayer time - when you’re trying to abide with Jesus… if it feels uncomfortable, if it feels like a chore or like you must be doing it wrong - push through the awkward. Abiding is meant to be deeply connected to joy. So, keep at it. Just like hanging out with a new friend, you don’t always know how to get past the small talk - but when you do, then your abiding fills with Joy. My time with Jesus, my time in prayer is now some of the most rewarding and fulfilling moments in my day. This is going to sound bad - but it is better than kissing my wife. It is better than holding my daughter - and you guys know I love my children, you know how important they are to me. But my time with Jesus? Where I’m in his presence, and all the scattered pieces of my life that the world has been trying to batter into brokenness are collected back together. Where I experience his love and I can lay the burdens of my life at his feet and feel the reassurance of his presence? It’s the best part of my day. And if my day has a hiccup in the schedule - maybe I’ve got a meeting or something and I don’t get a chance to have that time with God, I miss it. I feel empty without it. Jesus says, “remain in me” and what he means is “remain in love - which leads to joy.” Abiding is meant to be wrapped in joy. And if that is not how it is for you now - I hope I can give you a glimpse of it here, so that you will be hungry for a deeper connection with the God that is out there.

What I really want to get across this morning is that we are overcommitted to all the wrong ideas about success. Success in the world’s eyes is all depending on YOU. All the pressure is on you to perform. We create these massive lists - if you want to be a successful parent, you must complete this list. If you want to be a successful employee, you must complete this list. If you want to be successful - every ounce of that success is on your shoulders. And that model is causing us to wither. We are overcommitted to the world’s version of success. And into that picture of a world pressing down and crushing humanity Jesus comes and says, “come to me all who are weary, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  Success in the world depends on you. Success in God’s kingdom depends on Jesus.

In New York City, down at Rockefeller Center is a really famous statue of a guy called Atlas. He’s like this giant Titan guy covered with bulging muscles who is literally carrying the entire world on his shoulders. And despite his rippling pectorals - it’s clearly hard for him to hold up the world. But across the street, on the other side of Fifth Avenue, is St. Patrick’s Cathedral. And in that quiet cathedral is another statue. A little statue of the boy Jesus, who is effortlessly holding the entire world in his hand. He is not straining, he’s not stressed, he is not worried. So which statue is your life? Are you trying to be Atlas - carrying the burden of control? Do you feel like if you don’t hold the entire world on your shoulders, everything will fall apart? Career, finances, family issues, the state of our society. That way lies withering. But the child Jesus is an invitation to surrender - where you can find peace instead of pressure. Success doesn’t depend on you - it depends on Jesus. So we have to shift the metrics if we actually want to succeed.

So let me ask you - what does your relationship with God look like right now? I’m not saying God gives me private information about your connection to Jesus - but if I were to go ask God, hey what’s your relationship with them like? Would God describe you as connected? Are you getting that wifi signal? Are you holding onto the vine? Or are you trying to hold up the world all on your own? 

Now I want to be really transparent with you all about this. I am one of those people who tries to be Atlas. I’ve got a thing with pride and I’m a little bit of a workaholic - and I’m just not very good at abiding. It doesn’t come natural to me. But recently God has been working in my heart in powerful ways and I wanted to tell you about that. I’ve told this story before, so you might recognize it - but bear with me. I have been the pastor of this church for about a year and a half. Before that I was a pastor for ten years in three different churches. And every church that I served was declining when I arrived and we turned it around. I was a legacy pastor, well trained, enthusiastic and shockingly arrogant. Every church I ever served grew in attendance, budget, life groups, community outreach - you name it, we did it. I thought that my track record was part of why I got hired to serve here at Center. This church had been through a lot with a long transition - and I was going to come in and work my magic, and save this church. And so I got here last summer and for the first time in my career - the church did not immediately start to rebound. By any metric you want to you use, we were struggling. I was obsessed with success, and for the first time I didn’t have it. And I was still working with the world’s definition of success - so it was all on my shoulders. I get the credit. I get the blame. It’s my fault. I just have to work harder, strive more, be better. And it hit a peak back in January/February of this year. We were something like 11,000 behind budget, attendance was struggling, and I was quickly running out of ideas. You might remember we did this event called Gather 25, and we launched a season of prayer and fasting - and I don’t know if people know this, but I entered that season in a state of basically complete desperation. And I’m praying and asking God for help. And I was sitting out in that lobby, it was a Thursday afternoon in late February, right before Gather 25. And I’m praying to God for help, because if I use the world’s definition of success I’m failing. God please help me save Center Church. God please help me with the budget, with discipleship, please help me. And I had a moment where I heard from God, and basically what he pointed out to me was, “do you notice how every single prayer was for YOU, JJ, to be the savior the church?” And I thought to myself, “yeah, I’m the rockstar pastor who is supposed to ride in on a white horse and solve all the church’s problems.” And what God told me that day was, “JJ you have been trying to sit in the savior’s seat. But that’s my seat. Get out of my chair.” And literally in that moment, I’m out in the lobby, and I fell out of my chair. I sat on the floor. And then I came in here, and I sat on this floor and I wept and I repented of my foolish arrogance.

You might remember this because a week later I put a stool on the stage and I told this story. I said, “God said I have to get out of the savior seat.” Because the world’s definition of success depends on me, but God’s definition of success depends on Jesus. I had it backwards. And so I publicly repented of my striving. I stopped trying to be super hero pastor, stopped trying to be clever and I just started abiding. I started praying every morning for an hour. That prayer time became the most important thing on my to do list. The most effective strategy for church growth. I threw away the world’s definition of success, and I started using God’s definition of success. And that’s when things started happening in the church that had nothing to do with me. We were struggling to pay for Hand 2 Hand groceries, do you remember this? I got a phone call, completely out of the blue - “hey, I’ve got a giant pallet of food that was left behind by meals on wheels - could you guys use 300 cans of chicken?” Are you kidding me? We fed children with God’s direct intervention that week. I want to show you something [put the picture on the screen]. This is a graph we use in leadership to track trends in the church, attendance, finance all that stuff. We were talking about this in Advisory Team a few weeks ago. If you can’t see it, or if you’re listening to the podcast I’ll describe it. It’s a graph that says “Rolling 12 month average weekly tithes” at the top. And there’s a big red bar at the top, and the label on that is Budget. That’s where we need to be to function fully as a church. And then WAY below that red line is a black squiggly line that is our actual giving. And you can see that it bottoms out in January and February. But then the line goes up and up and up - in March, April, May, June, and July. And this graph is actually a few months old - I SO wish it had the last month on there as well, because as of last Sunday that black bar is now ABOVE the red line. But the reason I show you this is that I want you to realize when things started to turn around for this church. Ever since February. Ever since we threw out the world’s definition of success, and we started abiding. God I don’t know what you’re doing, but I just want to abide in your presence. When we let God sit in the savior’s seat - we remain in him and suddenly we find that he is remaining in us too. And I don’t want to make this all about money - it’s just that money is super convenient to measure on a graph. But I think about NTS camp - we sent twice as many kids as last year. 

So let me leave you with this. What is one success habit in your life - where you are trying to be Atlas, holding up the whole world - what is one “success habit” that you can replace with an abiding habit? Think of one thing you can implement this week. I’m speaking from very recent, personal experience - it’ll change your life. Let’s pray. Amen.