How have you done so far in keeping those New Year’s resolutions? If you’re anything like me, you gave up making those resolutions years ago because of your fear of failure.

However, there is something exciting about a new year and a fresh start to instituting the necessary disciplines of life. At the core of the Christian life is loving and knowing Jesus. How is this done? Through spending time in the Word. Why then, do so many believers neglect this critically important spiritual discipline? For many, it’s lack of a plan.

JR Vassar, pastor of Apostles Church in New York City, who also helped found iGo Global (back when it was iWitness Ministries) wrote a great article on “Planning an Intentional Devotional Life in 2011.” It is definitely a must-read! Please take a couple minutes to read through it. Let us know which option you choose! Ky and I are using the M’Cheyne Reading System and we are really enjoying it!

The season that began long ago as a time to remember and meditate on Christ has somehow become a time of stress, Grinch-like shoppers, long checkout lines, empty wallets, and frustration. The last few weeks I’ve found myself dreading grocery shopping. What happened to the simplicity, joy, and Gospel-centeredness of the Christmas season?

Wait a minute. Why another blog to redirect our focus to the “real reason for the season?” Truth be told, few of us have taken very little time, if any, to focus on the incarnation. We need this reminder. I need this reminder.

This past weekend, Ky and I, along with Chassidy and her husband, John, attended Andrew Peterson’s Behold the Lamb concert in Corsicana, TX. Having listened to his album for the past few years, I knew it was bound to be a great evening. As the concert progressed, I was so moved. It was one thing to listen to the cd, but hearing the concert live, wow, what a worshipful experience. There aren’t words to describe how far it exceeded my expectations. (If you’re not familiar with his album, Behold the Lamb of God, well, you should definitely get your hands on a copy AND make plans to attend one of his concerts next year.)

Although the Bible appears to be many stories about many people, it is actually one big story about Jesus. The whole Bible points to Him. The Old Testament foreshadows the coming of the one who would redeem us from the burden of the law. The New Testament shares the life of Jesus on earth, his work through the church after his ascension, and his coming return. Andrew mimics this concept on his album. The first few songs walk through the Old Testament, talking about the Passover, the Exodus, the Kings, the Prophets, etc. He even includes a song called “Matthew’s Begats” (you know, the part everyone wants to skip over because of all the hard-to-pronounce names).

My favorite song on the album has always been Labor of Love. So often we picture the manger scene as this quiet, reverent, sterile environment. We forget that Jesus was born in a barn. A barn! I grew up working on a dairy farm and the last place I’d ever want to have a baby would be a place where people have to scoop up manure with a shovel. Most manger scenes and ornaments choose to leave out this piece of detail. This was long before they had running water, anti-bacterial hand soap and electricity! If you’ve ever been anywhere near a delivery room, you know that it is not a quiet and pleasant experience. I think the first verse of the traditional song, Silent Night does a great injustice to the true nature of the birth of Christ. I think Andrew opened my eyes to this disparity with his song: Labor of Love

It was not a silent night
There was blood on the ground
You could hear a woman cry
In the alleyways that night
On the streets of David’s town

And the stable was not clean
And the cobblestones were cold
And little Mary full of grace
With the tears upon her face
Had no mother’s hand to hold

It was a labor of pain
It was a cold sky above
But for the girl on the ground in the dark
With every beat of her beautiful heart
It was a labor of love

Noble Joseph at her side
Callused hands and weary eyes
There were no midwives to be found
In the streets of David’s town
In the middle of the night

So he held her and he prayed
Shafts of moonlight on his face
But the baby in her womb
He was the maker of the moon
He was the Author of the faith
That could make the mountains move

It was a labor of pain
It was a cold sky above
But for the girl on the ground in the dark
With every beat of her beautiful heart
It was a labor of love
For little Mary full of grace
With the tears upon her face
It was a labor of love

This song paints quite a different picture than what we’re used to seeing in the pretty and sparkly manger scenes. The incarnation is not a picture of a newborn baby shielded from the sin, the suffering and the hardship of this world. It is quite the opposite! Jesus, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords, willingly stepped off his throne, clothed himself in flesh,  and lived among sinful man. The Maker of the moon, the Creator of the universe, was born in a barn. God in flesh dwelt among us. How scandalous!

I challenge you, this Christmas season, don’t get so caught up in the “funtivities” that you lose sight of the outrageousness and scandal of the birth of Christ. Worship Him!

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross.

And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him, if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.” (Colossians 1: 15-23)

At iGo we are so blessed to work with amazing M’s on the field. We love being a part of what God is doing through their ministry. It is so exciting to hear how God is moving among their specific people groups and drawing people to himself. Our M partners are so faithful to pour into our students while they are on the field - demonstrating to them what it looks like to live missionally. They show our students how to cross cultural barriers in order to share the truth of Jesus and plant churches. We love being able to serve alongside these friends who have given their lives to spreading the gospel among the unreached people groups of the world. What a huge encouragement they are to us as well! Several of our M friends sent us the following messages after their summer teams arrived back in the states:

I just wanted to write you and brag on the team and thank you for the work that you guys did to help prepare them. G and L did a great job leading the team. They all did a wonderful job learning language, getting out every day and pr-ing, sharing the g*spel, and traveling out to some hard to get places. It was great to see them develop a love for this place and the people. They were a huge encouragement and blessing to us. One of my prs for our teams is that they will multiply our work rather than consume our time and require constant attention. Every iGo team that we have had has been a team that has added to our min***y and created a big push. I hope that we are able to have more iGo teams in the future.

Blessings,
J

After years of partnering with iGo, we count it an honor to work with a group so focused on spreading G’s fame to the nations. We love how our iGo students arrive on the field well-trained, focused, adaptable, and ready to fit into the M team’s field strategy.  iGo does a great job of investing in students over the years - helping to mentor them into the leaders of tomorrow. We could give countless examples of students who began their journey with iGo scared and inexperienced and grew into amazingly mature men and women of G who were able to lead teams all over the world. We look forward to partnering with iGo for many years to come.

–D

iGo has been an encouragement to us personally and a vital part of our strategy. Work is slow in our city but the iGo teams bring enthusiasm and cover much more ground than we can alone. The students are well prepared to ‘get’ the things we teach them and impact lostness. But more than anything, we are excited to see these American teenagers begin to understand a life with Jesus in a new way, living missionally at home, some returning as JSI’s for the summer, or even a
6 month internship. iGo is helping to raise up a generation that lives life in a new way - for His Glory alone.

– C

How humbling it is to be in partnership with these incredible men and women. It is truly a blessing to serve alongside them - shining as lights in some of the darkest places in the world while training up the next generation to live on mission. Join us in praying for these Ms and their difficult work on the field. May God continue to use them to Make Him Famous!