Author: Fred Shope

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Repost: Giving It All Up

This was first posted on February 15, 2008.

In A Renegade’s Guide to God, David Foster tells a story of a wealthy man who built a large art collection with his son. The son goes off to war and is killed. Later a soldier shows up at the man’s door with a portrait that he had painted of the man’s son, saying that the son had saved his life. The portrait is given an honored place in the man’s art collection.

The wealthy man dies and his entire estate is put up for auction. The first item is the portrait of the son. The crowd is waiting for the “good stuff” i.e. the Picassos, Rembrandts, and other great works. No one bids on the portrait. Finally a man bids ten dollars. It is the one who painted it and ten dollars is all he has to give. Because no one else bids he is the highest bidder. The auctioneer then says that the auction is closed. There was a clause in the will that states that the son’s portrait was to be the only thing auctioned and that whoever bought the picture would get the entire estate. So the soldier, who gave everything he had to get the son’s picture, also got everything else.

That’s what being a Christian is all about. You give up everything you have to “get the Son”, and you get everything else that the Father has. It’s all about a relationship with Jesus. It’s not about a bunch of rules, how you dress, what kind of Bible you carry, how you vote, what kind of music you listen to, whether you smoke or drink, or any other external things. It’s about whether you realize that you can not save yourself and that Jesus Christ loves you and has died for you so you don’t have to die. It’s about having a relationship of love with the Creator. It’s about following Jesus and letting his Spirit guide you and form you into his image.
Jesus said he came to give us a life that is abundant and full. That’s the way Christians should be. Are we?
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Taken, Blessed, Broken, Given

At the camp I drive for during the summer, we hold a weekly study for the staff. This summer we are looking at Life of the Beloved, by Henri Nouwen. In this book, Nouwen writes about four words that have helped him identify the movements of the Spirit in his life. Nouwen’s idea is that as followers of Jesus we are bread for the world, therefore we are taken, blessed, broken, and given, as the bread during communion. As I read the explanation of these words, I am finding them helpful in my own walk. In this four part series, I am going to share some of  my thoughts.

The first word is taken. You could substitute the word “chosen.” We are chosen by God to be his beloved children. He has become our Father, and he is pleased with his children. As Nouwen states:

“Our preciousness, uniqueness, and individuality are not given to us by those who meet us 
in clock-time — our brief chronological existence — but by the One who has chosen us
with an everlasting love, a love that existed from all eternity and will last through all eternity.”

Unfortunately, we live in a world that tells us that we are nothing, that there is nothing special about us. Those voices bombard us constantly, from advertisements that tell us we must have the latest (fill in the blank) in order to be happy and fulfilled, to preachers who tell us how far short we fall and how much harder we need to work. Those voices do not come from our Father. They come from our Enemy who seeks to steal our joy, kill our spirits, and destroy our lives.

Nouwen gives three ways we can stay in touch with our chosenness. The first is to keep unmasking the world around us for what it is. The world is full of manipulation and destruction. It’s prevailing wisdom is to step on anyone and everyone in the climb up the ladder. When we feel hurt or rejected, we should recognize those feelings, but also recognize that they are not the truth about ourselves. The truth is that the Father loves us with an everlasting love, and has chosen us to be his children.

The second way is to look for people and places where our chosenness is affirmed. These people and places will not be perfect, but as Nouwen writes,

“The limited, sometimes broken, love of those who share our humanity can often point us to the truth of who we are: precious in God’s eyes.” 


We need each other, and we need to affirm in each other the precious, beloved children that we are.

The third way is to celebrate our chosenness constantly. We are to be grateful to the Father for choosing us, and grateful to those who remind us of our chosenness. We need to be careful, because occasions for gratitude can also be occasions for cynicism, for questioning motives, even for bitterness. We must guard against this and consciously choose to be grateful.

 Rather than making us feel superior or more favored, claiming our chosenness will give us a great desire to help others recognize and claim their chosenness, their place as a beloved child of the Father. This is another reason we need to be in community with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We can build up and encourage one another as we gather together as God’s chosen, beloved children.

One final thought from Nouwen:

” It is only when we have claimed our own place in God’s love that we can experience this all-embracing, noncomparing love and feel safe, not only with God, but also with all our brothers and sisters.” 

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Weekend Wanderings

This has been a good week. Jan and I have seen God do some amazing things, as he has allowed us to be reconciled with a friend. It has rained every afternoon here in the sunny South, and we seem to be in a pattern where it’s going to continue for a while. Pray for the victims of the horrific shooting in Aurora, Colorado and their families. Pray also that those who would try to make political or other hay out of this tragedy would be seen for what they are, and that grace and compassion would rule.

Here are the links:

Arthur Sido on Aurora and some lessons.
How do you know how to do this?
The sermon.
Frank Viola on pettiness.
Good news.

Alternative insurance.
Mr Toad and Pentecost.
Stephen Mattson on America’s forgotten poor.
Good post from Ronnie McBrayer.
A changing sense of mission.

Too many leaders?
Alan Knox on the interconnected church.
A plant that feared the sun.
Sermons in stones.
Pig pens and band aids.

Todd Hiestand on hope.
What is the real story here?
Hugging the rock.
A question from Alan Knox.
How many of us have done this?

Have a blessed week!

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Putting Holes in the Darkness

A while back I read a story about Robert Louis Stevenson. One night when he was a little boy, his nanny called for him to come to bed. He didn’t hear her since he was intently staring out the window. When his nanny asked him what he was looking at, he pointed at the lamplighter lighting the street lights and said, “Look Nanny! That man is putting holes in the darkness!”

I got to thinking that that ‘s a large part of what being a follower of Jesus is. We’re to put holes in the darkness. We may not be able to save the world, but we can at least shine the love of Christ in the darkness around us. As Jesus said, “Let your light shine among men, so they can see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.”

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Weekend Wanderings

Another week has come and gone. It’s been a little cooler here in the sunny South, after a week of temperatures around 100 degrees. Summer break continues, and it doesn’t seem to be going by too quickly.

Without further ado, here are the links:

Eric Carpenter on sacrificing.
Jared Wilson on humility.
Just gotta love ’em.
The consumption monster.

Ronnie McBrayer knows how to handle a hammer.
Jesus and exorcism.
Quiet leadership.
Mark Galli on transformation.

What’s love got to do with it?
Glorious and messy (HT: Alan Knox).
Keith Giles on resistance.
Suburban olympics.

Chaplain Mike on being OK.
For the coffee drinkers.
Sometimes just being together is enough.
An author of note.
The forgotten character.

Have a blessed week!

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Wednesday Night Church

Last night was what you could call a movable church feast. First, a group of us met at a home for dinner, as is our usual practice. What made this night different was that after dinner we headed downtown to help a local restaurant owner clean her new place so she could open next week. We spent about ninety minutes cleaning, fixing some furniture, moving things, etc.

After we finished, some of us traveled down the street to a local pub where we continued to fellowship  over food and pints. It was a good couple of hours hanging out, talking about theology, philosophy, and what was going on in our lives. I had a bit of a hard time waking up at an early hour this morning, but it was definitely worth it. 🙂

Along with learning that the Church can be found even within the church, I am learning more and more that just hanging out with brothers and sisters in Christ is gathering with the church, no matter what is going on. Sometimes just rubbing shoulders with other followers of Jesus builds us up and forms us into Christ’s image. Children learn a great deal from watching parents, grandparents, and other family members. As the saying goes, more is caught than taught. So it is in the family of God. As we spend time with each other, sharing our lives, we pick up things that build us up and help us follow Jesus, even when we may not realize it. Discipleship is by example much more than by formal teaching.

I would encourage you to seek out believers that you can spend time with, sharing your lives and getting to see how they follow Christ. Don’t limit “church” to just studying the Bible or being taught.

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Repost: Continuation of “Even More”

I had lost my hero, my adviser, my example. That next Christmas was hard. The biggest thing about the celebration of Christmas for me had always been family, and now I was an orphan.

At the same time a group of us in our church had decided that things needed to change or we could no longer continue there. A few months before this, we had gone to two Sunday morning worship services. One was a traditional service and the other was a more contemporary service. The church was losing people and it was thought that if we provided opportunity for people to worship as they preferred, it would strengthen and grow the church. The contemporary service quickly became just like the traditional service, only with cooler music.

Our group of “revolutionaries” believed that we needed to approach “church” from a fresh angle. We agreed that the church needed to reach into the community around us. We began to meet weekly to set out a course of action and to plan the weekly gatherings. At first, things were moving in a direction that really encouraged me. I was an elder, and had agreed to become an elder in order to try and influence the church in a direction that was more “emerging”. Someone accused us trying to break away and start a new church. I said that I had no interest in planting a new church. (Famous last words)

As time went on I realized that the only way we were going to do what we believed God wanted us to do was to actually begin a new church under the auspices of the original church, with our own leadership. Unfortunately, there were a number of people in leadership, as well as other influential members, who wanted to have a say in what we were doing. We were accused of dividing the church and conditions were put on what we were doing. The conditions were probably good but they essentially put brakes on our efforts. As time went on, the enthusiasm for “doing church” differently waned and the worship service reverted to same old same old with cooler music. At the same time, there were positive signs, so I still planned to stay around and minister where I could.

Toward the end of the summer, I heard about a possible church plant here in Rock Hill. I was immediately intrigued. I contacted the one doing the planting and as we talked and got to know each other a little bit, God began to nudge me in the direction of helping in the plant. As time went on and I began to read and study, I became increasingly convinced of the need for a new church in Rock Hill. God continued to work on me, and by the end of December I decided to leave the current church and help plant the new one.

So now, I’m about to set off on another leg of my journey. Where this one will lead only God knows. If there’s on thing I’ve learned through the years it’s that no matter how much the road twists and turns, and no matter how dark things get, my Father is with me and is leading me exactly where he wants me to go. That makes the trip an adventure rather than a chore.

Should be fun.

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Repost: Even More

This was originally posted on January 15, 2008:

During a time of prayer one night in January, 2006, a friend told me that he saw me going through a time of winter. He saw snow swirling around, deeper and deeper, and wolves howling around the door. I thought, “Great! I just came out of the desert, and now I’m going to experience winter?” So, I was left wondering what was going to happen next.

The next few months were relatively uneventful. Mom continued to get worse and things were tight financially (but that wasn’t new). Things were unsettled in the church we served in. I felt a sense that things were changing, that God was doing something. What was happening, I had no idea, but there was a sense of anticipation and disquiet.

The year wore on, with Mom getting worse and worse, and Dad beginning to wear under the strain. In August, Dad had to make the decision to not do anything more to prolong Mom’s life, and we contacted hospice to come and help Mom be comfortable, and at the end of August Mom passed from this life into the presence of the Father. While we were grieving, we were also relieved that Mom was no longer suffering and was now more alive than ever. The next month was busy with helping my dad with some of the stuff resulting from Mom’s passing, and going with him to my nephew’s soccer games.

At the end of September, thirty-three days after Mom died, I drove my dad to a soccer game. The day seemed perfectly normal. Then, it all fell apart. At halftime of the game, Dad had a massive heart attack and joined Mom in the presence of Jesus. It was a huge shock, and something that knocked me for a loop.

I’ll try to finish this tomorrow.

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Weekend Wanderings

This past week, Jan and I celebrated our 32nd anniversary. We went to a bed & breakfast about an hour or so from here. Wednesday afternoon, we visited a winery, toured the property, tasted samples of their wine, and bought a bottle of Muscadine. That evening, we had dinner at a very nice restaurant, and then spent the rest of the evening relaxing at the inn. The inn is in a house that was built in 1879, and has been in operation for four years. It’s run by a disabled veteran who used to be an executive chef at the White House. Needless to say, breakfast the next morning was absolutely delicious. We took a tour of the grounds, relaxed for a bit more, and then came home. It was a wonderful time away. It’s hot here in the sunny South, as it is in just about the whole country. We’re expecting a break from the heat next Monday and I hope the rest of the folks get the break as well.

Here are the links:

We’re studying the book of Mark in our church gatherings. This is powerful.
How many of you remember Bobby Hurley from Duke?
The most dangerous man (or woman).
11 months, 3000 pictures, and a lot of coffee (HT: Jake Belder).
Kansas Bob on Jesus as the reality.
Doing the work of division.

Another kind of olympic games.
Swanny on freedom.
The Gospel and order.
Kingdom and cross.
Arthur Sido on July 4th.

Alan Knox on community and mission.
This would be why mass produced tomatoes don’t have much taste.
An iMonk classic on Luther.
J.R. Miller on freedom and grace.
Dan Edelen on authenticity and church.

Nate Pruitt on dreaming.
Frank Viola on mysticism.
Linda Brendle on remembering.
Eric Carpenter on edification.
Unity begins and ends in Christ.

Good post from Kansas Bob.
Chaplain Mike on Psalm 121.
Doing the work of unity.
Prayer without words.
Just who do you think you are?

There’s a little bit for you to read this week. Hope it’s a blessed one!

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And I Still Do

One day, a minister asked me if I took the young woman standing next to me as my wife, to love and cherish, in sickness and health, for better or worse, as long as we both would live. That warm July day, I said I do.

Fast forward thirty two years. The woman is no longer young. Neither am I. We have been through both health and sickness. There have been times when things couldn’t have been any better, and there have been other times when things seemed as if they couldn’t be any worse. That day in July, neither one of us could have predicted all that was going to happen as we journeyed together. I know Jan had no idea what she was getting into. We have been through moves, jobs gained and lost, and have raised two children to adulthood. There have been disagreements and arguments. There have been many changes in our lives.

There are a couple of things that have never changed. The first, and most important, is the love that our Father has for us and the grace he has shown us every day. There have been times we couldn’t have made it without God’s grace and love. He has been faithful to provide for us all along, many times in ways we could never expected. While we have never been wealthy in terms of material things, we have been rich in the things that can never be taken away. We have always had the love of friends and family and the knowledge that our Papa would give us exactly what we needed at exactly the right time. He owns the riches of heaven, and we have learned to trust him as he takes care of us.

The second constant had been the fact that this woman who stood beside me thirty two years ago has always stood beside me. Jan has been my support through all I have done, whether teaching, coaching, or teaching others about following Jesus. She has been right there when jobs disappeared and new jobs were slow in coming. She has comforted me in times of sorrow and grief, and been extremely patient with me in my failings and struggles. We have been a team through these years. After all these years, it still boggles my mind to think of how wonderfully God has blessed me. He has given me a treasure that I can’t even begin to fathom. I am one of those men who definitely married up. 


I cannot adequately express the depth of my love for you, Jan. Words don’t do justice to my gratitude for all you have been to me. I can say one thing though. I still do.