Pastor John’s Blog

It was years later that I really started working on my 3-point shot and learned that if you put in the work, through practice (sorry Mr. Iverson, it is important), you actually can develop a skill. I wasn’t playing on any official team, and the NBA still wasn’t calling, but my shot for pick-up games improved significantly. I also used to be terrified of public speaking, but over time became comfortable in front of people. The point is, you can grow! I’ve since heard this called a ‘growth’ mindset (I can change and improve), versus a ‘fixed’ mindset (I guess this is just the way I am).

Sunday we looked at Philippians 4:6-7, opening with the phrase, “Do not be anxious about anything.” Anxiety is crippling so many people today, but Paul offers a clear antidote to anxiety: Prayer. I challenged us to do two things this week (a homework assignment?).

This is partly why our memory verses for November are Philippians 4:6-7. It starts with the command, “Do not be anxious about anything.” That word “anything” is a hard word for us. Really? Anything? Surely there is something worth being anxious about? Paul was likely writing from prison in Rome. When he first came to them, he had been beaten and jailed in Philippi. He knew the Philippian church was under attack both from without and within. If he can say “anything,” it at least covers the things most of us face day to day.

This week we launched our new theme for the year “Walk by Faith.” We believe God is at work at Valley View, calling each of us to walk by faith in the coming year. What step of faith would He have you take this year? What would you long to see Him do in and through you in the next year? Be praying for God to clearly reveal it to you. Be listening for the Holy Spirit to guide you. Walking by faith is how we grow and how we see God do amazing things in and through our church and all over the South End of Louisville!

Bruce Lee was famous for his amazing strength and speed, especially for his size. He was a pioneer in combining various forms of the martial arts to develop a more effective and well-rounded fighting system. He also understood the power of focus. One could have an immense amount of power, but, if not delivered with focus, it was ineffective. One way he illustrated this was what he called the “1-inch punch.” He had developed the ability to center all of his energy with such focus, that he could start a mere 1-inch away from his opponent and knock a person backwards.

This week I was hanging out with Greg, a guy I hadn’t seen since April. Back then he shared with me how a simple 10 minute prayer strategy had changed his life (I wrote about it here). This week he said, “Since I last saw you I’ve read two books: Desiring God by John Piper and The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer. I can’t believe I’ve lived this long without reading those books. Those should be required reading for every Christian!” He then went on to share how Piper’s book especially had completely renewed his joy and his walk with Christ.

Who will you follow? Who will you look to for spiritual direction and encouragement? Everyone follows someone. We need to surround ourselves intentionally with those that are passionate about pursuing Christ. Get around the people you want to be like! The more we grow in community and “Spur one another on to love and good deeds,” the more Valley View influences the South End of Louisville with the Gospel of Jesus Christ!

As is often the case in life, it’s easy to start strong, but it’s how you finish that matters. I was feeling pretty good for the first two-and-a-half miles. Then we hit the final push to cross over the Continental Divide at 12,500 feet (just above my head in the photo). That last half mile was nearly straight up. I went from pretty good, then to ok, then to thumbs up, then no response at all. All I could do was think, “just keep putting one foot in front of the other and get this done.” My son later said, “I was getting a little worried when you went non-verbal.”

I often think of that old chipmunks cartoon where each wanted the other to go first, so much so that they always just barely escaped tragedy because of their continual insistence that the other take first place. It makes me laugh, but maybe also cry a little when I think of how often I demand my way first rather than insisting others have their way.

It was one breath taking moment after another. And it was a powerful reminder of God’s majestic, creative hand. All of this tucked away in the middle of the USA, and this only a tiny fraction of the amazing things one can see, all created by God for our joy. I’m often reminded of Psalm 8, a passage I first personally encountered while hiking in college with my youth pastor, Kerry Jones. We stood under a stone arch in the Red River Gorge, the sunlight peeking through, while Kerry read aloud v 3-4: “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” The answer in verse 5 is that he does indeed care for us: “Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor.”