Keeping Up With the Roberts Family
Each month Cliff and Denise Roberts write home to their high desert family at New Life Fellowship to share all the happenings in their lives and their new church community. We look forward to posting their spiritual insights as they continue walking with the Lord in Lakeland, Tennessee.
april: red letter soaping
I’m going to go ahead and get this confession out of the way FIRST so that I won’t have to be thinking about it later: I am writing this INSTEAD OF working on our taxes today! There, I feel much better. Thank you.
Our family has really been making a concerted effort to be good stewards with what the Lord’s entrusted to us, so it really irks me to know that the IRS doesn’t seem to share the same conviction. But I’ve sure got to dot my i’s and cross my t’s correctly for them! Still, it’s all the Lord’s to begin with, and His to distribute however and whenever He chooses, and I’m learning to do the same with our own giving, tithing, missional support and investments. I’ll get back to filing my taxes later, but for now…hi there!
I really wanted to do a season of red-letter SOAPs after I finished studying in the book of Luke, so I just started that a few days ago and it’s been lots of fun. It’s a bit different, and not exactly how I’m used to studying, but like I’ve said before, I want the Lord to stretch me in those unfamiliar places and open my eyes, ears and heart to things He just might happen to want to do differently. Well, then I spent time with Him during my first day of “red-letter SOAPing” and I have to laugh at myself a bit for the things we talked about together.
I opened up my Bible on that first morning of this new study series and began in Matthew 1. I turned a few pages until I arrived at the first red letters in my Bible: Matthew 3:15. John the Baptist just told Jesus, “I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?” (Matthew 3:14). Jesus replies to him and says, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” (Matthew 3:15). John was 100% correct—he DID need Jesus to baptize him; he DID recognize Jesus as the Lamb of God; he DID rightly identify both Jesus’ worthiness and authority. All of that was true, and Jesus didn’t refute any of it. He simply told John, “Let it be so…now”, “This is the right way…this time”, “For now…we’re going to do it like this instead,”. Man, talk about the Lord hitting the nail directly on my head! This is the exact lesson I’ve been trying to learn.
Jesus doesn’t even explain HOW this fulfills all righteousness. He gives no details and offers no insight into WHY. It’s simply, “Let it be so now”. But He remains as always, perfectly obedient to the Father. I could learn a lot here. The lessons practically write themselves for me, but that doesn’t make them any easier to learn. I can be so absolutely sure, so convinced, so dogmatic in my approach that I allow NOTHING to sway me, distract me, delay me or cause me to pause even a moment. But what about when the One interrupting all of that is the Lord? Am I okay with that?
This isn’t about simply blowing up my “ministry box”, or ridding myself of empty traditions, or embracing the new while letting go of the old. All of those things are valid and they are certainly part of what I believe the Lord is doing throughout His Church. I’ve got plenty of baggage I’m still dropping and things I’m struggling to learn after years of doing it very differently. But this is something more. John wasn’t misguided, or mistaken, or missing the point—he was absolutely correct in his assessment of the situation, perfectly humble, and tremendously honoring to the One deserving of ALL the honor and praise. Yet even then, the Father chose to do something OTHER than that. And while I’m happy (okay, maybe “reluctantly willing” would be more appropriate) to have the Lord point out mistakes, incorrect thinking, bad habits, and stuff that’s more me than Him, what about those things where I’m already 100% correct? I’m not talking about pride, but conviction. What about those times when I encounter the Lord and respond exactly as I should…and then He tells me, “No, this time we’re doing it like this…”?
It would be like seeing the burning bush and quickly removing my shoes in recognition of this holy place, only to have Him say, “Cliff, put your shoes back on. I want you to…” Wait a sec, this is holy ground and I’m acknowledging Your presence, God. I’m supposed to take my shoes off, right? Can I respond in that moment to His, “Let it be so now…”? Lessons I’ve learned, things I’ve taught, beliefs I continue to hold—does His “Let it be so now” trump all of that? Or is my faith more in my devotion than it is in His sovereignty? That stuff is harder to wrestle with in real-life situations, but John the Baptist did it, and God is challenging me more and more to do the same.
Okay, let’s talk real-world applications now. God’s already been challenging me and the rest of our family with tithing, giving, missions support, meeting needs and how all of those categories and amounts are HIS to decide, not my calculator’s to determine. So when He began leading us to set aside a portion of our tithe each month in anticipation of His direction for that particular giving, it was already a stretch. That’s not how I’ve done things, Lord. Shoot, that’s not even how we’ve taught our kids to do things either. Are You sure about this? But you know how the Holy Spirit often keeps gently reassuring and encouraging you with things that are uncomfortable and unfamiliar? Yeah, it was like that. So, we obeyed. Fast-forward to last month as Wisdom launched a sponsored internship with the Memphis Morning Center where she’s been volunteering. We already support the Morning Center financially, and I was aware of other needs too, but Wisdom’s internship just kept stirring in my heart. Lord, is this even okay to “tithe” this way? Do I need to give the same to the rest of our kids? This seems really weird.
“Let it be so…now.”
Aww man, it’s like I’m undone all over again just remembering His goodness. He’s so patient, so loving and kind, so faithful…and did I mention patient? I desperately want to understand, and I don’t know if that will ever change about me. But more important than understanding, I want to obey Him. I’m willing to do that ignorantly, stupidly even if He requires it. After all, the cross itself has been called “foolish” by plenty of people (1 Cor. 1:18). I don’t think this would be as difficult if the Lord was simply correcting my “before Jesus” stuff—you know, all the things Paul considered rubbish in Philippians 3. But when He steps all over my Christian toes, my honestly held and humbly submitted convictions, that’s a whole lot more sensitive. I can’t just dismiss those things as rubbish and leave them all in my wake. He’s not asking me to either. He’s simply saying, “Let it be so now”, and I’m reminded again that my life is not my own, nor does it consist of all my convictions and faith. My life is His…period. I wish I could say that I don’t need His regular reminders of that fundamental truth, but He keeps reminding me, and I’m thankful for it.
These are the kinds of conversations I’ve been having over coffee, on the phone, even briefly in passing during the course of a casual encounter. I’m becoming more and more aware of those moments, and more thankful for each one as well. As always, our door is open for anyone wanting to chat about this stuff or whatever else the Lord is doing in our lives. Feel free to drop in, give us a call, have some coffee, learn a board game, or help me with my taxes. HA! And again, thank you to everyone who’s partnered with us in this journey. Your friendship is such a treasure, and your prayers are appreciated, felt, and reciprocated. For those who support us financially on this crazy missions journey in Lakeland, TN, you can give through newlifebarstow.com/give. Our Barstow family maintains a special place in our lives and we love seeing what God is doing there as we witness the ongoing fruit from seeds He planted years ago with lifelong friends. We love you guys lots.
Tons of love from the all of us,
The Roberts Family
(Cliff, Denise, Purity, Wisdom, Truth, Justice, Honor and Life)
Our family has really been making a concerted effort to be good stewards with what the Lord’s entrusted to us, so it really irks me to know that the IRS doesn’t seem to share the same conviction. But I’ve sure got to dot my i’s and cross my t’s correctly for them! Still, it’s all the Lord’s to begin with, and His to distribute however and whenever He chooses, and I’m learning to do the same with our own giving, tithing, missional support and investments. I’ll get back to filing my taxes later, but for now…hi there!
I really wanted to do a season of red-letter SOAPs after I finished studying in the book of Luke, so I just started that a few days ago and it’s been lots of fun. It’s a bit different, and not exactly how I’m used to studying, but like I’ve said before, I want the Lord to stretch me in those unfamiliar places and open my eyes, ears and heart to things He just might happen to want to do differently. Well, then I spent time with Him during my first day of “red-letter SOAPing” and I have to laugh at myself a bit for the things we talked about together.
I opened up my Bible on that first morning of this new study series and began in Matthew 1. I turned a few pages until I arrived at the first red letters in my Bible: Matthew 3:15. John the Baptist just told Jesus, “I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?” (Matthew 3:14). Jesus replies to him and says, “Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness.” (Matthew 3:15). John was 100% correct—he DID need Jesus to baptize him; he DID recognize Jesus as the Lamb of God; he DID rightly identify both Jesus’ worthiness and authority. All of that was true, and Jesus didn’t refute any of it. He simply told John, “Let it be so…now”, “This is the right way…this time”, “For now…we’re going to do it like this instead,”. Man, talk about the Lord hitting the nail directly on my head! This is the exact lesson I’ve been trying to learn.
Jesus doesn’t even explain HOW this fulfills all righteousness. He gives no details and offers no insight into WHY. It’s simply, “Let it be so now”. But He remains as always, perfectly obedient to the Father. I could learn a lot here. The lessons practically write themselves for me, but that doesn’t make them any easier to learn. I can be so absolutely sure, so convinced, so dogmatic in my approach that I allow NOTHING to sway me, distract me, delay me or cause me to pause even a moment. But what about when the One interrupting all of that is the Lord? Am I okay with that?
This isn’t about simply blowing up my “ministry box”, or ridding myself of empty traditions, or embracing the new while letting go of the old. All of those things are valid and they are certainly part of what I believe the Lord is doing throughout His Church. I’ve got plenty of baggage I’m still dropping and things I’m struggling to learn after years of doing it very differently. But this is something more. John wasn’t misguided, or mistaken, or missing the point—he was absolutely correct in his assessment of the situation, perfectly humble, and tremendously honoring to the One deserving of ALL the honor and praise. Yet even then, the Father chose to do something OTHER than that. And while I’m happy (okay, maybe “reluctantly willing” would be more appropriate) to have the Lord point out mistakes, incorrect thinking, bad habits, and stuff that’s more me than Him, what about those things where I’m already 100% correct? I’m not talking about pride, but conviction. What about those times when I encounter the Lord and respond exactly as I should…and then He tells me, “No, this time we’re doing it like this…”?
It would be like seeing the burning bush and quickly removing my shoes in recognition of this holy place, only to have Him say, “Cliff, put your shoes back on. I want you to…” Wait a sec, this is holy ground and I’m acknowledging Your presence, God. I’m supposed to take my shoes off, right? Can I respond in that moment to His, “Let it be so now…”? Lessons I’ve learned, things I’ve taught, beliefs I continue to hold—does His “Let it be so now” trump all of that? Or is my faith more in my devotion than it is in His sovereignty? That stuff is harder to wrestle with in real-life situations, but John the Baptist did it, and God is challenging me more and more to do the same.
Okay, let’s talk real-world applications now. God’s already been challenging me and the rest of our family with tithing, giving, missions support, meeting needs and how all of those categories and amounts are HIS to decide, not my calculator’s to determine. So when He began leading us to set aside a portion of our tithe each month in anticipation of His direction for that particular giving, it was already a stretch. That’s not how I’ve done things, Lord. Shoot, that’s not even how we’ve taught our kids to do things either. Are You sure about this? But you know how the Holy Spirit often keeps gently reassuring and encouraging you with things that are uncomfortable and unfamiliar? Yeah, it was like that. So, we obeyed. Fast-forward to last month as Wisdom launched a sponsored internship with the Memphis Morning Center where she’s been volunteering. We already support the Morning Center financially, and I was aware of other needs too, but Wisdom’s internship just kept stirring in my heart. Lord, is this even okay to “tithe” this way? Do I need to give the same to the rest of our kids? This seems really weird.
“Let it be so…now.”
Aww man, it’s like I’m undone all over again just remembering His goodness. He’s so patient, so loving and kind, so faithful…and did I mention patient? I desperately want to understand, and I don’t know if that will ever change about me. But more important than understanding, I want to obey Him. I’m willing to do that ignorantly, stupidly even if He requires it. After all, the cross itself has been called “foolish” by plenty of people (1 Cor. 1:18). I don’t think this would be as difficult if the Lord was simply correcting my “before Jesus” stuff—you know, all the things Paul considered rubbish in Philippians 3. But when He steps all over my Christian toes, my honestly held and humbly submitted convictions, that’s a whole lot more sensitive. I can’t just dismiss those things as rubbish and leave them all in my wake. He’s not asking me to either. He’s simply saying, “Let it be so now”, and I’m reminded again that my life is not my own, nor does it consist of all my convictions and faith. My life is His…period. I wish I could say that I don’t need His regular reminders of that fundamental truth, but He keeps reminding me, and I’m thankful for it.
These are the kinds of conversations I’ve been having over coffee, on the phone, even briefly in passing during the course of a casual encounter. I’m becoming more and more aware of those moments, and more thankful for each one as well. As always, our door is open for anyone wanting to chat about this stuff or whatever else the Lord is doing in our lives. Feel free to drop in, give us a call, have some coffee, learn a board game, or help me with my taxes. HA! And again, thank you to everyone who’s partnered with us in this journey. Your friendship is such a treasure, and your prayers are appreciated, felt, and reciprocated. For those who support us financially on this crazy missions journey in Lakeland, TN, you can give through newlifebarstow.com/give. Our Barstow family maintains a special place in our lives and we love seeing what God is doing there as we witness the ongoing fruit from seeds He planted years ago with lifelong friends. We love you guys lots.
Tons of love from the all of us,
The Roberts Family
(Cliff, Denise, Purity, Wisdom, Truth, Justice, Honor and Life)
Do you want a brief glimpse into my cellphone’s built-in camera usage? In the past month, this is the ONLY photo I’ve taken that hasn’t been a receipt, medical form submission, or for an eBay listing. And there aren’t any people in it at all! So yes, most of the pictures in our monthly updates come from other members of our family. There, now you know. But isn’t it a pretty flower?
Life is learning about the Tabernacle in his Bible class, and Denise found this amazing LEGO-like building project that they’ve been doing together for the past several weeks. He can tell you about the meaning and significance for LOTS of parts of the Tabernacle, and the finished product is pretty amazing…
Ta-dah! Yeah, it’s huge, like over two feet long. Life did a great job building it and it’s so awesome to see the creative ways we can tell stories and learn about God’s Word. Denise is an AWESOME Bible teacher!
Wisdom still adores babies and loves helping in the nursery at Memphis Tabernacle. Purity is nearing the end of her second year internship: leading preschool, helping with kids and doing an assortment of activities that keep her extra busy on top of online classes with LIFE Pacific University.
She’s almost done though, so hang in there, girl!
She’s almost done though, so hang in there, girl!