Connecting to the Gospel

By Wendy T. on May 8, 2023

But I consider my life of no value to myself; my purpose is to finish my course and the ministry I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of God’s grace.

Acts 20:24 (CSB)

Last week in Bible Study, our group looked closely at this statement from Paul of how he saw the “why” of his life. Here, Paul clearly states that his overall motivation was to testify to the gospel. It seems like a very broad statement, and yet the broadness makes this motivation all the more powerful. No matter what situation Paul encountered, no matter how comfortable or painful, his way forward was always clear: share the good news of Jesus Christ.

Whether or not we identify it, each one of us lives life with a core motivation. Perhaps that motivation for you is avoiding pain, or feeling loved, or achieving control over your circumstances. For many years, my primary motivation was to never be seen making mistakes or not knowing an answer. On the outside, my life looked great. But on the inside, I was always afraid of being found out and known as a fraud.

From Motivation to Mission

Thankfully, when we claim Jesus as Savior and Lord, we are redeemed completely, including our motivations. The inward focus of our old thinking keeps us isolated and disconnected. In our new life, however, we find a “why” that looks outward, encouraging us to bring ourselves and our stories out into the world. I’ve known for many years that God designed me as a connector. I am made to connect people to the things they need, whether that is relationships, information, or resources. The more I walk in the newness of my redeemed identity, the more I get to do that in the service of the gospel.

Here at Outpost, I have the privilege of connecting people to hope and healing for their relational and sexual brokenness. Even though my job title has changed multiple times since coming on staff, I’ve consistently been able to participate in making these connections. I love to see and hear people’s reactions when a connection is made and they take the first step to encountering God in this area of their lives.

Connecting to Teaching

The first way I make connections is through our seminars and speaking engagements. When someone calls looking for teaching and training for their church or ministry, they talk to me. I get to help them figure out what their group needs, and how we can best meet that need.

Sometimes, I direct people to one of our already created seminars. Our Distinctions seminar is a great overview to help people understand and respond to issues around LGBTQ+ identities and questions. Our Foundations class, taught every month in-house, gives an introduction to how we understand our created being and what the healing journey entails. I love to help groups tailor the content for their particular audience, whether young adults, leadership teams, or multi-generational congregations.

In some cases, the best option is for two or three of our staff members and volunteer leaders to visit and share testimonies of transformation through Jesus. After sharing, we hold an extended Q&A time with the group we’re visiting. Our stories of God’s work are powerful. The stories encourage and teach and remind the listeners that no one needs to walk the path of life alone.

Connecting to Resources

The second way I make connections is by keeping our recommended resources list updated. While we primarily use the list when we visit churches or attend conferences, the list is also available on our website. At the top of our “Resources” page, you will find a link to a pdf file of book titles and video resources. The list is organized by topic and includes titles and videos for all age groups, including young readers and their parents. We love to help people find more ways to learn and be encouraged by the authors and video hosts.

Connecting to Hope

The third way God is using me to make connections is through planning our special events. Whether planning a fundraiser or a worship service, my goal is always to bring people together to encounter the love and truth of the living God. It is through these types of encounters that hearts are softened and lives are changed.

What a joy it is to have traded my old motivation for a new mission. Whatever my job tasks, and wherever God leads me to serve, my mission remains: to connect people to what they need most. That is, to connect people to the living God, that they, too, may experience hope and healing in Jesus’s name. Won’t you join me in sharing the good news with others? I pray you find (or are reminded of) your new motivation today. And may you be empowered by God to walk out your mission in love and truth.

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For more information on seminars or other training, call the office and ask for Wendy. Also, be sure to join us for our next special event, Called Out of Darkness, at 7:00 pm on June 22 at Cornerstone Church Crystal. More information on all these items is also on the website, www.outpostministries.org.

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From Fear to Courage

By Matt E. on April 6, 2023

The Joshua Fellowship Journey

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Joshua 1:9 (ESV)

Dear Friends,

Joshua Fellowship (JF) is Outpost’s support group for young men struggling with same sex attraction, sex addiction, and other forms of sexual and relational brokenness.  It is named from the words of the Lord to Joshua in Joshua 1:9. These are words that all the young men in our program desperately need to hear and believe if they are going to make it through the battles ahead of them in life. They are not taking hold of a literal promised land, but rather promises that God has made to each of them. The story of Joshua can inspire them to go after those promises. JF’s summer masculinity course, which takes place every June through August, focuses especially on these themes and provides opportunities to experience victory in the face of challenge in very practical and physical ways.

Fear and Doubt

When I joined JF over 10 years ago, I was struggling in many seemingly independent areas of my life: career and finances, familial relationships, spiritual disciplines, physical fitness, and of course my sexuality. I joined JF in the fall, but it was during the summer masculinity course that I made the greatest strides in my healing journey. Over the course of the summer, I was stretched and challenged to achieve things that I’d previously been unwilling to even attempt. Over time I realized I had allowed failures in my past to teach me a very powerful lie: “I can’t.” As I chose to trust God and my leaders with my self-doubt and fear, I found myself able to take measured risks in the supportive and encouraging environment of the group. By the end of the summer, I was able to boldly declare “I can!” as I took on one of the most intimidating physical challenges I had ever faced.

The Well-Worn Path

The only thing more fulfilling than experiencing victory in your own life is leading others into victory alongside you. In 2021 I took the helm of JF as its coordinator. I’ve been incredibly blessed by the opportunity to share the hope and healing that God imparted to me through past leaders of the program with the next generation of JF participants. I love watching the various individuals who make up a summer cohort slowly evolve into an incredibly tight-knit and unified group by the end of the course. The shared experiences and mutual encouragement in the face of struggle forms a strong bond. This bond has resulted in many lasting friendships for myself and others who have gone through the program over the years.

Be Strong and Courageous!

The summer masculinity course, Strive, is returning this June. It is open to any young men aged 18 to 35 who want to take hold of the strength and courage they were created for and achieve victory in their fight for holy sexuality. Strive is structured to give participants as many opportunities as possible to confront their doubts and fears and to experience support, encouragement, and overcoming of struggles in very tangible ways. The spiritual disciplines of worship, prayer, scripture memory and meditation are paired with practical life disciplines and physical exercise to facilitate accelerated personal and spiritual growth. Are you discouraged by your ongoing sexual struggle? Do you feel trapped in unhealthy relationships or a dissatisfying job? Is your life dominated by passivity, fear, or doubt? Strive is designed to help you through these struggles and more.

Crossing the Jordan

As the Lord promised to Joshua, I now say to you: “Be Strong and Courageous!” It is time to leave the wanderings of doubt and insecurity behind and to courageously forge a path forward into freedom and strength. There is hope for healing on the other side of the Jordan. Your sexual and relational brokenness and identity insecurity is not too much for the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to conquer. Will you will submit to His instruction? Will you follow the well-worn path of the generations of overcomers before you? Will you join the men of JF and Strive on this journey out of doubt and fear and into strength and courage? I truly hope you will.

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God’s Great Love

By Wendy T. on March 10, 2023

The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;

        his mercies never come to an end;

they are new every morning;

        great is your faithfulness.

“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,

        “therefore I will hope in him.”

Lamentations 3:22-24 (ESV)

This past week, my Bible study readings were all about the great love God has for each one of us. I cannot remember a time in my life when I did not know about God’s love for me. Still, this set of readings and reflections caught me up short. Two Bible stories I have known for years came alive in a new way.

First came the story of Hosea and Gomer. Hosea was a prophet of God, and God instructed him to marry and remain faithful to a woman – Gomer – who would be repeatedly unfaithful to him. Hosea’s marriage was a physical picture of God’s faithfulness to and love for His people, Israel. In chapter 3, Hosea has to buy Gomer back from slavery. He does so willingly, redeeming her debt and restoring their relationship.

Second was the story of Israel being given the law. The writer focused on the verse where God says “I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God” (Exodus 20:5, CSB). God is not jealous of Israel, but jealous for Israel. God knows that no other thing in all creation will provide what the people need. God’s great love leads Him to remind them to worship only Yahweh, that they may be satisfied recipients of God’s faithful love for generations.

As I reflected on these stories together, the eyes of my heart were opened anew. I was overcome with the sense of just how great God’s love is for me. There are hardly words to describe the fullness of that moment. It was truly stunning.

God’s love for me is so great that He will pay whatever it takes, willingly, to bring me back to Himself. I may pursue other gods by giving my time, talents, and treasure to fleeting things. Yet God continues in loving me. God goes so far as to willingly pay off my debt that I might be redeemed and restored to relationship with Him. And this willingness comes directly from that great love. The God who created me and knows me best also knows that I will not be fully satisfied by any created thing, no matter how good that thing is. Only relationship with God is able to bring me an abundant life that Jesus spoke of in John 10:10.

This abundant life—alternatively rendered as “life to the full” in the NIV—is a life that is fully redeemed, healed, and restored. God is not in the business of doing things half-way. Rather, God is in the business of taking us from death to life. That is, God heals our hurts, repairs our brokenness, and restores us to wholeness.

In my life, God’s restoration came once He revealed the great fear I had of being fully known by other people. It turned out that I truly believed that if people really knew me, they wouldn’t like me, and they certainly couldn’t love me. I spent many years hiding my true thoughts and feelings from everyone around me. Sometimes I even hid them from myself. It was too painful to face my hurts, so I tucked them away under lock and key. To the outside world, I presented a false version of myself. This false version was always okay, had everything together, and could always find you the right answer for whatever question came up.

Of course, our pain never does stay completely hidden. Eventually my pain came out in the form of a major depressive episode. I could no longer avoid having my true thoughts and feelings known by others. Thankfully, God had given me a church, a Bible study group, and a house of prayer filled with people ready and willing to love me like God does in the midst of my pain. Through many hours of sitting with God and with God’s people, I was able to really hear God’s great love for me. And that love poured into all the hurt places, washing away the pain and putting the broken pieces back together again.

Through the healing process, I also learned the goodness of sharing my true thoughts and feelings with those who love me. While I still struggle in this area, the experience of being truly known and loved by God and God’s people has brought me freedom to walk in a more abundant life than before. And I look forward to continuing to heal as I am rooted more and more in God’s love.

This hope that I now have—that wholeness and abundance are God’s intention for me—is the hope we offer to everyone who comes to Outpost. No matter the pain, no matter the struggle, no matter the brokenness, God’s love for us gives us the hope of healing. Even life-dominating issues like unwanted same-sex erotic/romantic attraction and confusion about identity are within God’s power to heal. Lamentations 3:22-24 provide one of my favorite summaries of God’s love. God’s love and mercies are new every morning. They never cease or come to an end. God is faithful to bring about what He has promised: life to the full. This is truly good news.

Maybe this is hard for you to believe right now. I know I spent many years not really believing that this good news was for me. Let me encourage you: this good news is for everyone. Jesus reminds us in John 3:16-17 of this fact:

“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but so that the world might be saved through Him.” (NASB)

The world is not everyone except you and me. The world is everyone including you and me. This is the truth of the Gospel. God loves each and every one of us. He created you, knitting you together intentionally, and is calling you to follow Him. May we each be willing to receive this great, unceasing love and allow God to heal our hurts, repair our brokenness, and restore our lives to the full.

Join us for more stories of God’s great love at the spring banquet on Saturday, March 25. Come hear how God is moving in the lives of our participants. Be encouraged by their testimony and by an evening of fellowship, worship, and vision-casting. Registration is open through Tuesday, March 21 on the events page.

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Seeing Ourselves Through the Eyes of Hope*

By Dan P. on February 9, 2023

We do not see things as they are.

We see things as we are.

– Dad

I recently came upon the above quote in A Father’s Book of Wisdom, a book given to me by a close friend. The “Dad” is the father of H. Jackson Brown, Jr., the book’s writer. I had to read these lines several times because they turned my thinking, and forced me to discern their meaning. There was something there, but what was it?

“Dad” gets points for candor and truth-telling. At least by my account. And it is the kind of truth-telling that invites the hearer to take a moment and do a personal inventory. “Wait a minute here, what am I seeing and why do I see this in this light?” Persuading people to take a personal look often elicits a strong and negative response. Why? Perception is reality—until it passes through due diligence!

Thus the difficulty with which the pro-LGBTQ+ world hears our message of hope for change and healing. Their reality is based on their perception of “the way things are,” just as our reality is based on our perceptions. We all see things from a faulty understanding sometimes, and not necessarily the way they are in reality. And, for us to convince someone otherwise, we need to enter their world, or at the very least, try to understand just exactly how it is that they see things. Theologically, this is what the Incarnation of Christ was all about: God becoming human in order to save us from ourselves. Missionally, this is our method. Like Paul, we try to become all things to all people that in so doing, some might be saved.

Point One is getting people to understand that reality may be something quite beyond their momentary perception. This issue of seeing things the way we are applies not only to evangelism and persuasion techniques regarding LGBTQ+ issues. Everyone does this. Indeed, Christians struggling with any number of issues can get “stuck” on this point, particularly if they are attempting to overcome a sin because of their deeply held spiritual convictions. Many find it hard to “recover” from their illness, addiction or problem, or to overcome unwanted same-sex attractions (SSA) because they see themselves incompletely. Perhaps they see themselves as incapable of change. Maybe they see their SSA or other condition as unchangeable. We, as truth-tellers, have a responsibility to inform their perception, to give them information which will give them the option of changing their opinions or actions which were previously based on an incomplete understanding of themselves. Much of this “information” about themselves should come from their Creator. He made them, let Him tell them what He had in mind! We simply remind people of God’s words.

All in all, I think it is a pretty bold move to ask someone to set aside his or her self-perception, in order to try to see things from a different angle. It’s like asking a New Yorker to move to Irian Jaya and live in a grass hut. Or like asking a stone-age native from Borneo to move to Beverly Hills. Either way, there will be self-conscious apprehension and high anxiety. Yet this is what we do at Outpost! We ask people to step out of their reality and see things from a completely different perspective. It’s a whole new world, and everyone feels off balance (especially at first). People want equilibrium. They like things the way they always were. (Not that that’s possible!)

I recall a joke about church politics that might shed some light on why things are as hard as they are: “The seven last words of the Church: We’ve never done it that way before!” People tell this joke to poke fun at how things (don’t) change in churches. But this is merely an extension of human nature. We are all admittedly uncomfortable about change. Any change. A New Testament picture of children learning offers a bit of insight. In Galatians 3:24, there was a hired hand whose sole job was to get the kids to school. Job Title: tutor (in the NASB). Tools: horse whip. He would literally beat the kids, driving them like cattle to school. The conventional thinking of the day was, if there were no tutor, the kids would dawdle and rebel and never quite make it to school. The children’s attitude is in all of us. Why would we want to change? Fishing and skipping rope are much more fun than school! And school would change us.

This phenomenon is very interesting on the flip side of this issue as well. Have you ever met someone who, in all his enthusiasm for daring feats of amazement, says things like, “It’s as easy as falling off a log” or “It’s like riding a bike.” Or, (and this one especially grates on me when I’m having trouble) “Hey, if I can do it, anyone can!” They easily exude confidence in others, when they see it accomplished in their own life. They see others the way they see themselves. They truly see the other being just like themselves, not so much the way the other one is in reality.

This attitude, however, may actually encourage us to learn the new thing. It may inspire hope in us that we can actually change when we feel hopeless about change. The lightness of heart may make the prospect of change really positive. Change will then be seen as a good thing, rather than something to fear or disdain.

So, how can we embrace optimistic hope about our own ability and willingness to change? How are we to engender that hope in others? Let me leave you with this scripture:

Hebrews 10:23-25: “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, … encouraging one another; and [this] all the more….” (NASB)

We are given this injunction by the writer of the book of Hebrews as encouragement to persevere. We shall overcome!

*This article first appeared in Dan’s World, July 1998. It has been abridged and updated. Used with permission.

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Transitions, Transitions

By Dan P. on January 3, 2023

Dear Friends,

Happy New Year! Along with the change to a new year, there are a number of other changes happening at Outpost Ministries. But first, a review of the changes from last year.

The first part of 2022 was a busy time. First, we bade farewell and congratulations to Jean, our Elijah Company (EC) and Living Waters (LW) Coordinator as she retired in January. Jean had been with Outpost part-time for about ten years. Then in February we welcomed her back as a volunteer LW leader! Ah, but then we said goodbye to Marti, our bookkeeper, who moved on in order to develop her own bookkeeping business.

Along about that time, we did some hiring! First, we outsourced our bookkeeping by contracting with SimplifyChurch, an agency that specializes in church finance. Then we hired Craig as our new EC Coordinator. That’s just the first two months!

In March we lost our Donor Relations manager, Joy, who had been full-time with Outpost-TCJHOP for about four years. Her jobs were able to be “in-sourced” and were taken up by Annetta, Wendy, and Scott. (More on them later!)

In April we said “bon voyage” to Jonathan, our President and Joshua Fellowship (JF) Coordinator. Jonathan sailed on to warmer climes—literally—as an Executive Pastor somewhere out in the Pacific Ocean. And just so you know, everyone gets into the transition act at this point. You see, I was then appointed by our Board of Directors as Interim President, while maintaining my other roles as CalebSpirit (CS) Coordinator and Senior Pastor (basically, I maintain spiritual oversight over the whole operation).

So as to not leave us high and dry, in March we hired Matt as JF Coordinator. Matt has made a one-year commitment to this very part-time position, as he is a relative newlywed and also working his full-time career job in architecture.

After a half-year of everyone getting acclimated to the changes, we said “Happy Retirement” to Annetta, who retired as Office Manager and Donor Relations Manager on November 30. It was a second career for Annetta, and thus a second retirement. But don’t worry, she’s married to the Interim President so she’ll still be around! She’s already managed to get in some volunteer hours since retiring!

Annetta’s tasks have been insourced to Wendy and Scott. Wendy has come on full-time, so she’s easily absorbing most of the Donor Relations and Human Resources tasks. Wendy will also have the time to focus on increased fundraising and outreach activities, including event planning. Scott, in the meantime, is upping his time to 25 hours a week and will be taking on the Office Manager responsibilities. Scott is doing additional fundraising in hopes of becoming full-time by the end of 2023. We will have no trouble finding jobs for Scott to do as this develops.

At the moment, then, we are left with needing to make two new hires. One, a JF Coordinator to replace Matt by this March. Two, a new President to take over my Interim President duties. I’m all in favor of replacing myself with a new President as soon as possible! Please pray for the Board of Directors and me as we seek to hire the new President. Then add another prayer for me as I seek to replace Matt in JF.

The sheer number of personnel changes is overwhelming to a small organization like Outpost. A year ago we started with eight paid staff. Only three of those eight remain! We now have only five staff total: two full-time and three part-time.

With the search for new President, the Board and I are well aware of the risks of hiring the wrong person to lead our organization. We’ve seen what happens to other organizations when their leadership fails to follow the biblical mandates. They yield their prophetic voice and spiritual authority to social pressure. They weaken and eventually close their doors. Once the prophetic is lost, souls are lost, too. We do not want to give the enemy a foothold!

This hiring decision will set the stage for the next phase of Outpost Ministries and hopefully will carry us far beyond our 50th anniversary in 2026. We want to remain strong and retain a voice of power and love for the 50 years beyond that! I urge you again, please pray for Outpost Ministries! This will be a critical change in our organization, offering new hope and new vision for an increasingly hopeless and blind world.

Let us pray like Isaiah for Outpost Ministries to be the light that people walking in darkness will see. Then pray like Jesus taught in Matthew 5:16, “that they may see [Outpost’s] good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

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The Hope in Advent

By Dan P. on December 1, 2022

I’ve picked up on a theme this year: Advent is “in” again with Christians. Suddenly, it seems, there are dozens of new Advent devotionals out there. And this is appropriate, for Advent marks the start of the new Church Year, which starts the fourth Sunday before Christmas. This year, November 27 is New Church Year’s Day.

Advent is a period of waiting for what’s to come. It hearkens back to Isaiah 9:2 about “The people who walk in darkness”, for that’s what waiting feels like. ‘Tis all darkness and gloom! But it also bespeaks a glimmer of hope. Something good is coming!

Paul describes this same longing in Romans 8:23, which also parallels our experience today: “We groan as we eagerly wait for our adoption, the freeing of our bodies from sin.”

One of the greatest Advent hymns pushes our thinking forward to awaiting the second coming of Christ when we will be free of sin:

He rules the world with truth and grace / And makes the nations prove

The glories of His righteousness / And wonders of His love…

Upon Jesus’s return he will cause everyone to prove just how glorious his righteousness is and how “wonder-full” is His love! Imagine a world that agrees that LGBTQ+ is sinful and is awed by Jesus’s love!

At Outpost, of course we focus intensely on righteousness. Most of us struggle with unrighteousness in our sexuality. We long for real righteousness that is not a performance, but truly heartfelt goodness. Half of this struggle, it seems, is about “doing our sexuality right,” while the other half is about “doing it right for the right reasons.” That’s why I quoted from the GW translation, where it says, “the freeing of our bodies from sin.”

Additionally, we provide space for people to meditate on God’s love for them, to imagine the wonder and marvel at the attractiveness of that love. It never ends! Jesus said, “I will never turn away anyone who comes to me” (John 6:37). This Advent, we invite you to “Come! Let us adore Him!”

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The Fellowship of CalebSpirit

By Dan P. on November 3, 2022

“But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me fully, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it.”

Numbers 14:24, ESV, emphasis added

In our continuing series of “This is Outpost,” I’ve been granted the privilege to tell you about our ministry among older men seeking wholeness in regard to their sexuality and relationships, CalebSpirit. This group got its start in about 2003 after the 2002 reorganization of Joshua Fellowship (JF). JF was the only ministry group Outpost had when I first came in the late 1980s as a participant. CalebSpirit started as a group study of a book called Men Pursuing Purity by Andrew Comiskey. At the outset, we just called the group “Men Pursuing Purity,” or MPP for short. Once we completed that book study however, we felt the name wasn’t quite right. But what to name ourselves? For lack of a better name, we simply went with “Men Over 30,” or MO3 for short, in keeping with our 3-character acronym precedent. Eventually, we “aged out” of MO3, since most of us were well past 50. Another name change came about then by popular demand. After doing a study of the “oldies but goodies” in the Old Testament–and taking a cue from Joshua Fellowship–we settled upon CalebSpirit based upon Numbers 14:24, quoted above.

Ironically, CalebSpirit is more of a fellowship than Joshua Fellowship. We follow a rather simple plan each week: welcome, book discussion, prayer time, and closing fellowship time. Each fall, we typically choose a book or curriculum, have a kick-off retreat to get started, then follow the weekly schedule. That’s how the school year goes, generally. We toss in a few other social events like a movie night and a Christmas party. In the summer months, we often do outdoor activities like BBQ picnics, croquet tournaments, mini-golf, biking, kayaking, etc.

All these activities are designed to help us better relate to one another as men, for men will more typically connect by doing things together, especially while using the good of their masculine bodies. The connection happens “on the side” of the activity, rather than being the stated reason we get together. Through the years we’ve done some really wild things, like batting cage practice and disc golf. A funny thing happened on the disc golf course one time. We decided to go to a particular park and play. Turns out we “played through” (or rather, we LET play through) a national disc golf tournament. We had no idea that professional golfers were on the course with us until we finished our course. That made the Dairy Queen conversation afterward real lively!

From the very beginning of CalebSpirit we have opened the group up to men who don’t necessarily struggle with same-sex attraction (SSA), but who struggle with any identified sexual or relational brokenness issue. In fact, one of our early volunteers never struggled with SSA, but so identified with the typical Outpost participant that he worked with us for about 10 years before his untimely death in a farm accident. His sudden departure left an indelible mark on the lives of the current participants.

We are currently studying a book by Dane Ortlund called Gentle and Lowly: The Heart of Christ for Sinners and Sufferers. This book is a healing balm for battle-worn soldiers in the fight against sin and temptation. Our minds and hearts are being stretched to the limit to understand that Jesus “in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet [is] without sin” (see Hebrews 4:15). Jesus enters the fray. His strength in overcoming temptation gives us encouragement to persevere. His presence in the trenches with us empowers us to walk in victory over the enemy of our souls.

Beyond our study together and intercession for each other, a real sense of belonging and togetherness is developing among us. These men do not have easy lives. Some are married and their marriages are difficult. Some are divorced. Some have never married and have become so used to the idea of being alone that connecting with anyone about anything feels awkward if not impossible. Even just having a group to go to the State Fair with can be a boost. Then there’s all the help we need with projects or moving or simply the ministry of presence during divorce proceedings. None of it is meant to be done alone.

Thank you for your generous support through giving and prayer for the ministries of Outpost! It is making a real difference in the lives of the men of CalebSpirit.

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Filed Under: How Do I Change?, How Do I Live Out My Faith?, Is Freedom Possible?, Letters from Outpost, Outpost News, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , ,

The Gift of Noticing (& an Auction Update)

By Wendy T. on October 13, 2022

Dear friends,

Fall has always been my favorite season. Maybe it’s the coziness of the clothes, maybe the beauty of the leaves, maybe the apple cider and pie, maybe the start of school. Whatever the reason, I can manage the heat of a Minnesota August by remembering that soon September and October will bring all sorts of things that I love. This year, however, I was so caught up in my tasks and to-do list that I almost missed out.

Have you Noticed?

Last week, God impressed upon my heart that I was about to miss the season. I heard God encouraging me to look up and notice the world, to see the beauty of creation during this time. And what did I see? Mostly, I saw trees in so many beautiful colors: fiery reds, vibrant oranges, and soft yellows. I saw a beautifully clear blue sky, bright and sunny, celebrating the crispness of the breeze.  And then, as I walked to my office door, I was surprised by a single purple flower, blooming alone.

This flower was definitely unusual. Between the rocky ground, the colder-than-average temperature, and the lack of any other flower nearby, this flower seemed to be blooming just for me. I didn’t remember seeing it the day before, and I certainly don’t recall anyone planting purple petunias along that strip of soil. My heart swelled with joy, much-needed in the midst of my hardship-filled week. I stooped to take a picture, to savor the moment, the bloom, and the feeling.

Isn’t that just like God? First, He invites us into a new season and a new way of looking at the world. As we respond and accept that invitation, He is already there, waiting with a gift for us. That morning, for me, the invitation was to notice and appreciate God’s handiwork. The gift was a small bloom of joy to soothe my weary spirit.

Keeping Focus

Seeing the flower that morning also reminded me of my experience with the Fall Auction. The auction is arguably my favorite event. Between the excitement of gathering items beforehand, the fun of the bidding, and the good food and conversations, my extroverted spirit soars. However, it’s easy to let the numerous tasks and stresses of preparation overwhelm me. This year, the stresses were increased by our general financial situation.

During the week immediately preceding the event, I heard a different invitation from God. This invitation was similar to His words to Martha in Luke 10:41: “Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; but only one thing is necessary;” (NASB). In this time, while preparation was necessary, my tasks and to-do lists were not the focus of the event. Rather, my focus needed to shift to gathering with our supporters, sharing what God is doing through the ministry, and allowing God to provide for our needs.

As I shifted my gaze from the tasks to the face of Jesus, I found the gift of His peace and presence in abundance. And then we saw God provide. A total of 55 people participated between the online and in-person events, about 1/3 of them people who hadn’t participated before. We raised just over $10,000 to help cover our deficit, more than half of which were outright gifts, not bids. And while we didn’t reach our goal, God did more than we expected based on the number of registrations.

God is Faithful

In the short weeks of following up with winners and processing donations, I have been humbled again by God’s faithfulness. The ministry of Outpost belongs to God; it is through Him that we live and move and have our being. He will provide for all we need, to the praise of His glory, not ours. And I am so grateful to you, our supporters, for your faithfulness in giving as God calls so that hope and healing can go forth in God’s name.

I don’t know what God is inviting you into today. But rest assured, wherever and whatever that is, God is already there. And the gift you will receive upon arrival will meet your need and feed your spirit. Go ahead, accept the invitation of your Creator. And be greatly blessed by the result.

Yours,

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Filed Under: Auction, Events, How Do I Live Out My Faith?, Letters from Outpost, Outpost News, Uncategorized Tagged With: ,

A New Creation

By Rodger G. on September 14, 2022

This article originally appeared on CHANGED Movement’s Love & Culture blog in April 2022. used with permission.

“From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

2 Corinthians 5:16-17

Several years ago, I was part of a small group of men. We all struggled with issues around sexual purity and identity. We met weekly to encourage and support each other. During one of the meetings, after rejecting most of their encouragement regarding God’s love and view of me, one of the men confronted me.  He asked, “Are you so arrogant to believe everyone here is wrong and you are right?” The truth was, yes. In fact, I was that arrogant. In that moment, the Holy Spirit spoke to me clearly saying, “They see you like I see you, they see the real authentic you. Rodger, your vision is distorted by lies, you don’t see that you are a new creation.” See, I saw myself through the distortion of self-applied    labels and identities. I didn’t recognize the new man. No wonder walking in newness of life felt impossible.

The Old and New Testament speak of the hope that one day God would come and save His people. This salvation wouldn’t just be rescuing them from the evil surrounding them but it would be a salvation that completely changed the person who had faith in God. While this is fantastic, He promises to do even more. God said His Spirit would live in his followers, empowering them to live a righteous life, a righteousness that flows from the inside out1. The Prophet Ezekiel wrote, “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.”2 The Old Testament hope has become the New Testament reality. Paul writes “the gospel is the power of God to save all who believe.”3 That is, when you believe this good news you encounter the power of God and it changes you, it changes everything!

Knowing and experiencing this power is central to Christianity. Paul asked God to give the Ephesians “the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened so that you would know…what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe…” Paul continues, it’s the same power (his great might)  “that he (God) worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places…”4  WOW, breathe that in a few times, it’s intoxicating in the best way!!! The very same power that raised Jesus from the dead is at work in us. Because of this we are saved, born again, resurrected into new life, adopted as daughters or sons, and we’ve been released from slavery to sin and death and set free to live a righteous life. This power is so powerful that it has made each of us a new creation. And, the Holy Spirit lives in us!

In 2 Corinthians 5, Paul writes about the ministry which he is, indeed, we are all called, the ministry of reconciliation. Paul states, “From now on we regard no one according to the flesh….”. He stopped assessing or judging people according to their appearance, what he could see with his eyes. He had initially done so with Jesus (and the fledgling church) and it didn’t work out well. Thankfully, this kind of vision problem can be healed by encountering the Risen Christ.

The effect of this change is we no longer see with distorted vision. Instead of seeing the distorted person, we see the authentic person who is in Christ; we see the new creation. Paul writes, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”5 Again, this is a good time to stop for just a few seconds and think about this truth. When we came to Jesus we were made a new creation. The word he uses for “new” means “all things are new, previously non-existent, far different from what they were before.”6 This is outrageous; I am not the man I use to be! Christianity is not rehabilitation for those addicted to sin. It’s not therapy to piece together a fragmented psyche. No, the old Rodger died, he was buried. Now, by faith in God, His power has made me a new creation, born again, resurrected into new life. And, so are you.

I may not feel or behave like a new creation, but I am. As a new born baby, born again into this walk of faith, I will develop and mature. It is by faith that we are saved! And it is the fruit of this faith in his grace, love and power that we mature in him. With faith that I am who God says I am, I challenge other voices that identify me as something other than what God says in Scripture. I recognize that my appetites, desires, or lust don’t define. My body’s sexual response doesn’t define me. God defines me and I see myself through His eyes. I see that I am a new creation. And, with hope in Christ and the testimonies of others, I “run the race set before me.”7 

Now that you are a new creation, do you see through those new eyes? When you look at others, how do you see them?  When looking at followers of Jesus, do you see the new creation?  Many disciples continue with the labels they had prior to faith in Jesus. They continue with labels that are no longer true. No worries. These labels are like “yellow sticky notes” stuck on a woolly sweater. With just a breeze, those labels are blown away. You don’t need to try to rip off the labels or confront the person, but rather love the authentic person Christ made them to be. Jesus will bring a breeze at just the right time. I encourage you to see with new eyes. Look for the authentic in others. For believers, this is always their new creation. For those yet to come to faith in Jesus, ask the Father to see them as He does. Never label someone with a label the Father would not give them.8 Ask the Lord who they really are and interact with them from that perspective. Honor them and love them as the Father does.

I pray that you encounter the love and power of God so intimately that nothing causes you to look back but that you see everything as lost for the sake of the gospel. I pray you no longer see yourself or others “according to the flesh,’ but as God sees. I pray you see yourself as a new creation and engage how different you are. You are not who you were! You are a disciple, a follower of Jesus, a Christian. This is your authentic self. Nothing else identifies you. I pray you and others are able to see in you the fruit of intimacy with Jesus, His righteousness, peace and joy increasing in you and through you!!!

1 See Matthew 5 In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus “raises the bar” regarding righteousness. “You have heard it said…but I say….” The righteousness of the Kingdom of God flows for inside out; it is not measured only by action but by one’s heart, feelings, fantasies and attitudes. 

2 Ezekiel 36:25-27

3 Romans 1:16

4 Ephesians 1:17-19

5 2 Corinthians 5:17

6 The mean of “new” from the Strongs, https://www.blueletterbible.org/lexicon/g2537/esv/mgnt/0-1/

7 Hebrews 12:1; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 2 Timothy 4:7

8 Kris Vallotton, one of the senior leaders at Bethel Church, Redding, one day had an encounter with a young man who had shared the labels he had applied to himself. When Kris spoke to the Lord about the young man, the Lord said to Kris, “Never label people with labels I would not give them. See them as I do.”

Filed Under: How Do I Change?, How Do I Live Out My Faith?, Is Freedom Possible?, Outpost News, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,

Knowing the Love that Surpasses Knowledge

By Scott R. on August 11, 2022

“For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of His glorious riches He may strengthen you with power through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”

Ephesians 3:14-21 (NIV)

Dear friends,

I am amazed at the prayers of Paul in the New Testament. Paul had a keen sense of the Christian life and our deepest needs. Ephesians 3:14-21 is no exception. What strikes me about this passage is that Paul prays for Christ to indwell Christians. However, doesn’t Jesus already indwell Christians by the Holy Spirit? Yes, but Paul also prays for Christians to know the love of Christ “that surpasses knowledge.” Paul is making a distinction here between knowing about God’s love for us and knowing God’s love experientially.

Why does this matter? I believe it is a matter of life and death.

First, let’s look at the straightforward way this difference matters. To know about God’s love for you through the Gospel is not the same as to have received it yourself. The Gospel requires a response through repentance and faith; knowing the truth of the Gospel alone cannot and does not save anyone. To be led out of spiritual death into life, each one of us must chose to receive the Gospel. That is, we must each know it in our heart and spirit as well as in our mind.

The second way this matters is more complicated. To know about something and to experience something are not the same. Jonathan Edwards once talked about the difference between knowing that honey is sweet and actually tasting its sweetness. To know about something without actually having experienced it leaves us with a sense of disconnect. The same disconnect is true in relationships. I might know about a certain celebrity, but that is not the same as having a personal relationship with that celebrity.

Where am I going with this? In my Christian walk, this passage in Ephesians has been significant to me because of its implications for my relationship with God. If God’s love is abstract to me, it does not affect me at all. If, however, God’s love is something I experience deeply and regularly, my capacity to respond to, love, and obey God from a place of fullness is greatly increased.

It’s not just my story, however. Both in Joshua Fellowship (JF) and Living Waters, I have heard participants share that deep down, they are not truly sure God loves them. I can relate to that belief; I believed for years that God deeply disliked me even though I was saved. Learning about Jesus is not enough. One must “taste and see that the Lord is good” (Psalm 34:8) in order to know Jesus’ love in the center of his or her being.

That is why I love being a part of JF and Living Waters. I get to participate in God’s work to see men and women freed from the shame and lies that keep them from experiencing God’s presence and love for them. That is why I am excited to see how God uses the remainder of JF’s Strive summer course to bring the young men into deeper freedom and joy. And that is why I look forward to the upcoming Living Waters book study, where men and women will dive into God’s love and acceptance of them through the breaking of lies and healing of wounds. Praise God, for He is able to do infinitely more that we can ask or imagine, to the praise of His glory! Amen.

Filed Under: Is Freedom Possible?, Letters from Outpost, Outpost News, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , ,
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