Category: Theological Musings

Top 10 Places To Connect With God…

Realizing that I like to do Top 10 lists here is another one for us. The top ten places I connect with God, which aren’t in any real particular order.

Place #10: Wherever Hudson – My Son – Is

Jesus says that we can learn a lot from children about his Kingdom and I’ve found this to be so true in and through Hudson.

Place #9: Mountains

Krista and I in Banff

I want to live on a mountain. I just feel close to God.  I have wonder and awe all-over. Connecting and mountains go hand-in-hand for me.

Place #8: Around the Dinner Table

Top 10 Meals I've Had: Eating at an Outdoor Seafood Cafe, in Dubrovnik with Krista

Its no surprise that Jesus instituted a meal to remember him. Meals are times of connection, fun, discussion, and dialogue. And for me I often feel closest to God with friends, food, and drinks around a table.

Place #7: Church Buildings

The church isn’t a building, it’s people. But even still I often feel like I can connect with God in a space that is regularly used for prayer and worship. Any place where people continually invite God’s presence to rest, is a place where I find God.

Place #6: Sunrises – Anywhere…

If I’m up for a sunrise it also means I have coffee, and there is something about having some stillness, seeing God’s creation, and listening that makes me feel close to God. Maybe you’ve felt the same thing.

Place #5: Around Art

Being around things of depth and beauty helps me to connect with God. I love good art whether photographs, pictures, or anything else. Has this ever happened to you? Seeing a picture of beauty that draws you closer to God? Here’s one of my favorites by Rembrandt. What’s yours?

Place #4: Serving

Somehow when you serve, volunteer, or give I feel connected to God. It’s simple why that is. Because when I do that, I’m acting like Jesus and so connecting with him.

Place #3: The Bible

The Bible isn’t a place so much as a conversation. But that’s where I connect with God in his conversation with me, often started whenever I read his word.

Place #2: In Silence

In the beginning God spoke and brought everything into existence, except us. We were brought into being in silence. And in deep silence I connect with God.

Place #1: In Everyday Life

I most often connect with God in everyday life. For me God isn’t removed but active. And it’s amazing how often he shows up when you’re looking for him in your day. Maybe in a conversation, an interruption, a brief moment. But he is there.

So what about you? What would you add or change in my list?

by Andrew Mills

Speaking New Things Into Being…

While out for lunch with someone the other day, I simply shared a few thoughts about where they were at. I was trying to simply understand their space, and maybe give some words to what they were feeling. When this happened it was like an understanding or world opened up for them. They said, “that’s it exactly”. It’s as if words opened up space for understanding, acceptance, and new meaning.

I’ve often pondered over Genesis 1. God creates with words. I’ve often wondered how his words have so much power, or how he could create something through speech. I no longer wonder about this.

Words have power. And when you listen, share, and speak something into someone else’s life it can breathe life – literally. Words have the power to create, to open up new understanding, new worlds, and new life. Sitting at a table drinking coffee and talking a few days ago confirmed that to me. The simple act of sharing deep conversation opened up new possibilities. In the Bible James teaches us about the tongue and how words can be used to hurt, and harm. But the flipside is true too. Words can be used to create hope and health.

So the question then is what are your words doing? Creating life, heath, and hope? Because words have power.

So today listen, and share deeply. Use your words to create, give life, and in this way follow the model of God in Genesis 1. Speak new life into being for someone today, and see what happens…

by Andrew Mills

Where I Saw Jesus This Week…

In general I think New Year’s Eve is very anti-climatic. You get together with people early in the night and then wait and try to have fun until the ball drops. Then you cheer for a few seconds, and kind of look at each other. Most of my New Year’s have been like this. Except for the past two.

The past two years I’ve gotten together with friends and we go from house to house eating. Each person tries to create some food that is better than what they cooked before. We get dressed up have great food, and great conversation. And some people outdo themselves with awesome decorations. Look at this table set for dessert, which was home-made ice cream and a traditional mexican cookie with dulce de leche in the centre. And yes it tasted as good as it sounds…

So how did I see Jesus in all of this? Well its pretty simple eating, laughing, talking, and spending time together is a taste of the Kingdom of God. Jesus is clear in Luke 14, that the Kingdom of God is like a party. In fact when he talks about the Kingdom he often says its like a feast, a wedding, or in essence a great get together. Jesus is often found eating, relaxing, and being with others around a table (Matt. 9:10; Mark 2:15). So if back then Jesus was often found around a mixed table with friends, food, and fun why would he not be found there now?

So on New Year’s I sensed God around a table filled with food and friends. I saw Jesus in our conversation, our fun, and our willingness for one night to simply enjoy each other’s company.

So the next time you’re having a good meal with good friends watch for Jesus being there…because my guess is that Jesus loves good food and conversation as much as you do…

by Andrew Mills

My Top 10 Lessons I’ve Learned… Part 3

Here are the last 2 lessons I’ve learned this year.

Lesson #2: God Leads One Step at a Time

We often love to know the destination. But the life of faith isn’t a destination, it’s a journey. And what I’ve learned is that God reveals the next step but often not the destination. He asks me to trust him, in that as I walk with him, He always shows me the next step and asks me to trust him with that. And I’m learning to do just that.

Lesson #1: God is Certain

So much in our lives feels uncertain. As we look forward into the next year I don’t know what it holds. Maybe you too have some uncertainty in your life. You might not know what’s going to happen with your job, family, personal life or health. But what I’ve learned is that while I’m often uncertain about what the future holds: God isn’t. He is certain. He is steady and true. And he promises us that the future in front of us is good. This doesn’t mean easy and perfect. It means good. It means that he will cause everything good, bad, and boring to come together for good (Romans 8:28). God’s future for you and for me is full of hope, promise and more than we could ever hope, dream or imagine (Ephesians 3:20). So I’m learning to trust in that.

So I guess the only last question is to ask – what’s the next step God is leading you to take to reach your certain future? What is he asking you to do? Maybe today is the day to take that step.

by Andrew Mills

My Top 10 Lessons I’ve Learned…Part 1

Here are my top ten lessons I’ve learned this year. To hear the expanded explanation download my sermon from Sunday here.

Here are a few of the first fun ones, and the list gets more serious as it goes.

Lesson #10: God Loves Top 10 Lists

This is pretty self-explanatory. Just go check out the original top ten list…the 10 Commandments. Looks like God invented it, not David Letterman.

Lesson #9: Laughter is Good For the Soul

Proverbs talks about how laughter feeds the soul. This is true, so go and watch something funny. Get together with friends and laugh. You’ll feel better. And now you know that laughter is a spiritual thing, and a Godly thing.

Lesson #8: God Loves Coffee

Now this is hard to prove biblically because the Bible really never mentions coffee. But I think if you’ll notice how many great God conversations happen over coffee you’ll need to agree that God must love it then. I’m pretty sure the logic is infallible, much like God.

Lesson #7: We can Find God in Creation

This year I learned how close you can feel to God when you recognize him in creation. Whether that’s being in awe of mountains, feeling the tranquility of a quiet lake, or the beauty of a sunset we can see God revealed in creation. This year more than most I’ve found myself feeling close to him simply in awe of his handiwork.

Lesson #6: We can Find God in Others

Since we’re all made in the image of God we have the potential to reveal God. This is really what my posts entitled “Where I Saw Jesus This Week…” are about. They’re about finding God in the everyday, and that’s become clear to me this year. God is not distant but waiting to be discovered in our midst.

Tomorrow I’ll post the next 3. But for now – which lessons resonate with you?

Which ones has God taught you as well this year?

by Andrew Mills

The Christmas Story

Merry Christmas!

Take a moment if you can and maybe read the story here. Read it to your family, friends, or on your own. But read it and be reminded of why we have Christmas:

Mary, a virgin, was living in Galilee of Nazareth and was engaged to be married to Joseph, a Jewish carpenter. An angel visited her and explained to her that she would conceive a son by the power of the Holy Spirit. She would carry and give birth to this child and she would name him Jesus.

At first Mary was afraid and troubled by the angel’s words. Being a virgin, Mary questioned the angel, “How will this be?” The angel explained that the child would be God’s own Son and, therefore, “nothing is impossible with God.” Humbled and in awe, Mary believed the angel of the Lord and rejoiced in God her Savior.

Mary must have reflected with awe on the words found in Isaiah 7:14 foretelling this event, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”

While Mary was still engaged to Joseph, she miraculously became pregnant through the Holy Spirit, as foretold to her by the angel. When Mary told Joseph she was pregnant, he had every right to feel disgraced and ashamed. He knew that the child was not his own, and Mary’s apparent unfaithfulness  would shape his community’s opinion of him and her. So Joseph decided to quietly break off the engagement seeking to spare Mary as much shame as possible. Joseph was a righteous man and sought to act with grace even in difficulty.

But God sent an angel to Joseph in a dream to confirm Mary’s miraculous story and reassure him that his marriage to her was God’s will. The angel explained God’s amazing plan that the child within Mary was conceived by the Holy Spirit. That the child was the Messiah, and was to be named Jesus meaning God with us. When Joseph woke from his dream, he willingly obeyed God and took Mary home to be his wife, in spite of the public humiliation he would face.

Joseph too must have wondered in awe as he remembered the words found in Isaiah 7:14, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.”

At that time, Caesar Augustus decreed that a census be taken, and every person in the entire Roman world had to go to his own town to register. Joseph, being of the line of David, was required to go to Bethlehem to register with Mary. While in Bethlehem, Mary gave birth to Jesus. The Inn was full so she gave birth to Jesus in a manager, on their own, on the outskirts of town. She wrapped the baby in cloths and placed him in a manger.

Out in the fields, an angel of the Lord appeared to the shepherds who were tending their flocks of sheep by night. The angel announced that the Savior had been born in the town of David. Suddenly a great host of heavenly beings appeared with the angels and began singing praises to God. As the angelic beings departed, the shepherds decided to travel to Bethlehem and see the Christ-child.

There they found Mary, Joseph and the baby, in the stable. They praised God for the miracle of the birth of the Messiah. They went on their way still praising and glorifying God. But Mary kept quiet, treasuring their words and pondering them in her heart.

After Jesus’ birth, Herod was king of Judea. At this time wise men from the east saw a star, they came in search, knowing the star signified the birth of the king of the Jews. The wise men came to the Jewish rulers in Jerusalem and asked where the Christ was to be born. The rulers explained, “In Bethlehem in Judea,” referring to Micah 5:2. Herod secretly met with the Magi and asked them to report back after they had found the child. Herod told the Magi that he too wanted to go and worship the babe. But secretly Herod was plotting to kill the child.

So the wise men continued to follow the star in search of the new born king and found Jesus with his mother in Bethlehem. They bowed and worshipped him, offering treasures of gold, incense, and myrrh. When they left, they did not return to Herod. They had been warned in a dream of his plot to destroy the child.

This is the story of Christmas. Merry Christmas, enjoy the day, and Jesus’ presence!!

by Andrew Mills

Christmas Eve and Traditions…

There sometimes seems to be a negativity towards tradition. That tradition is old, irrelevant, and outdated. This is surely the case sometimes, but I don’t think it is the case during this time of Christmas.

Tonight I’ll be running my first Christmas Eve service at 7:00 at the church. And I am so looking forward to it. I love the carols, lighting the candles, hearing the story, and the tradition of it. The tradition surrounding the Christmas Eve service doesn’t make it feel old and irrelevant to me but deep and rooted. I feel a part of something centuries old and meaningful. And tonight is extra meaningful for me because of tradition.

For all my life I would go to a Christmas Eve service and hear my dad and mom lead it together. And they used the same structure for almost 25 years.There were always new pieces but there were familiar parts and traditions within it. And tonight I get to carry that tradition on. After my dad passing, this is what I missed around this season. But tonight Krista and I get to carry on the tradition leading our first Christmas Eve service, and even using his service.

Those are the best traditions. The ones that have deep meaning, that make you feel a part of something, that generate beautiful memories, and are things you look forward to. And isn’t that what Christmas is about? Having beautiful traditions that create memories, meaning, depth, and hope?

My challenge to you is this: start a tradition. Start something that will give meaning to this time of the year each year. Start something that will give depth and create great memories. Start something you can pass onto your kids, grandkids, or family. Maybe its going to a Christmas Eve service, sharing stories, creating something as a family, or any other number of things. But this is the year to start a good tradition.

But for me I won’t be starting a new tradition…but carrying on an old one.

Leading a Christmas Eve service just like my dad would…

by Andrew Mills

Shine Like Stars…

Wouldn’t it have been cool to see the star in the sky that drew the Magi to Jesus? This great light that literally seemed to beckon these people to come and find this new-born boy in a manger. A star that drew people to discover new life, hope, and meaning.

But what if that’s still a possibility? What if it still happens? What if stars are still drawing people to God right now even as you read this?

And no they aren’t up in the sky – but they are all around us. They’re in the people we know and see.

Paul writes in Philippians 2:15 that people can shine like stars. That people, when they chase after God, are connected to him, hold onto the truth of him, and let Jesus guide their lives, become living stars.

Isn’t that a beautiful thought?

That your life and the way you live could become a living star for people around you guiding them to find Jesus. That your life can be a bright light, a star in the night, a break in the darkness. That you, this Christmas season, can be the star that guides people home to Jesus to discover new life, love, and hope.

You can shine like a star.

by Andrew Mills

Messy Spirituality

After an amazing children’s program on Sunday I thought I’d share something I’ve learned from my child.

My personal style or aesthetic is clean, simple, and modern. This is just me. I love working with clean lines and in clean spaces. My son has not inherited this trait. This is him after being home in a spotless house for under five minutes.

How is it that something that was so clean becomes so messy so quick? But this is my life…messy. So I do what any good parent does. I wade into the mess, into the toys, and sit and play with my son.

And God isn’t any different with any of us.

He enters into our mess, plays with us, and helps us clean it up.

So today if your life is feeling a bit messy and you’re stressed about Christmas or any number of other things; if your life is simply not feeling put together – just know this: God is with you, present in our messy lives.

He’s there. Just like how I sat and was with Hudson, God’s wherever you are today. He is with you.

My style may be to prefer clean spaces but that’s not God’s style.

God’s style is to simply be wherever you are…and isn’t that what we need anyway?

by Andrew Mills

Love Can’t Be Wasted…

Last night I participated in a funeral. It was a mixture of beauty and sadness. Community, friends, and family gave such love in such a difficult time.

When I got home I reflected on one thought from the service with my wife: that love is never wasted.

Sometimes when you love, give, and care and the result isn’t what you hoped for we feel like it was in vain. When we give love and someone passes, or they don’t change, or toss it aside we wonder if it had any meaning…But I believe that love that is given always has meaning.

Love that is given can’t be wasted.

As Paul says love is what will truly last, everything else will fade away. 1 John reminds us that love is all that matters. And Jesus most of all demonstrates that love is meant to be given even if the results or reception aren’t what we would have wanted; because that is what he has done with us. He gives love to each of us because we matter to him regardless of how it is used or its outcome.

But when you give love in this way, you run the risk of experiencing pain and hurt. That’s what happened last night. People loved deeply and so they felt the hurt deeply. But even when you feel hurt, or the outcome isn’t what we would hope: love still remains. Love still matters. Love still lasts. Despite the up and downs of our lives, love can steady us.

So today go out and love. Give love. Be love. Show love.

And invest in something that lasts…

by Andrew Mills