† QUESTION: Dallas Willard says that we can promote the kingdom of God regardless of whether we are a ditch digger or a theologian. I struggle with this personally. I punch numbers into a computer all day long. How do I promote the kingdom in front of a computer screen?
‡ ANSWER: This is a genuinely critical question today especially in light of the modern tendency to quarantine religious faith into more and more narrow categories. The first answer we must give to this important question is that we should understand all useful work as a sacred offering to God. When Martin Luther recovered for us the great biblical theme of the priesthood of all believers, he was teaching us more than that "the plowboy and the milkmaid" could do priestly work. More profound still was his insight that the plowboy in his plowing and the milkmaid in her milking were doing priestly work. So the first thing to see is that our work at the computer screen (or whatever and wherever) is holy work, sacred work, hallowed work. God has declared all useful work holy and we dare not think of it in any other way.

Second, we are to do whatever work is set before us "to the audience of One." That is to say we do the work as unto God alone. We work for the love of God. This means initially that we devote ourselves entirely to the work, doing our very best, our most devoted work. No shortcuts, no sloth, no half-measures. To go around "witnessing to others" when we should be working is a failure to promote the kingdom of God in our work. The very excellence of our work is our witness.

Third, we do our work in a spirit of dependence upon God who enables and inspires us to do better than we could do in our own strength. We are constantly looking to God to give us creative, new ideas to do our work better. New angles on persistent problems, creative responses to difficult situations, innovative ways to break the horns of everyday dilemmas.

Fourth, we do our work in an attitude and spirit consistent with the fruit of the Spirit. Loving. Kind.Respectful. Cooperative. Congenial. Cheerful. Honest. Civil. Graceful. And more.

Fifth, and finally, we undertake the task of the present moment as a gift from God so that we may show forth the glory of life in the kingdom of God. The task of the present moment may be delivering a speech before world leaders or it may be cleaning out a cluttered closet, no matter. Both (and a thousand others beside them) at the right time and in the right place is a God-given opportunity to show forth the glory of life in the kingdom of God.

† QUESTION: Most of our evangelism is now focused on getting verbal assent to a set of facts which results in consumer conversions. If we are to make intentional apprenticeship to Christ our main focus, how would you suggest we change our evangelism approach to better accomplish this?
‡ ANSWER: We must stop trying to get "decisions" and invite people to become "disciples." We are not after believers but lifelong students of Christ. Thus the issue is not "Do you ‘believe' this set of facts?" but "Are you prepared to trust Christ with your life?" You see, we are inviting people to accept Christ as their life! They may not understand all that this means; they do not need to. What they need to know is that this is a whole-life call that will affect absolutely everything in their lives. And it is a lifelong journey of growth and development for Christ will become their everliving Savior, Teacher, Lord, and Friend.

† QUESTION: Paul in Romans 7 appears to still struggle with sin. My question is this: in this life how victorious can we be?
‡ ANSWER: A lot more than we are right now! The problem today is that many people (though, I think, not the person who poses this question) set "perfection" as the goal, and since they know themselves to be unable to attain this goal they fall back to a "just forgiven" posture. (You've seen the bumper sticker, "Christians aren't perfect, just forgiven." ) But, you understand, there can be a lot of territory between "perfection" and "just forgiven." What we should aim for is progress. Perfection is something God will take care of in us in his time and way. What we should be giving attention to is movement forward, growing in grace, deepening in divine intimacy. And I have found that the normal way this happens is similar to how the children of Israel were to enter the promised land, "little by little" (Deut. 7:22).

† QUESTION: I've heard that Richard Foster is involved in the New Age. What can you tell me about that rumor?
‡ ANSWER: It started when people took issue with a meditation exercise in the original 1978 edition of Celebration of Discipline saying that it advocated out-of-body experiences (see pp. 27-28) and discovered that the words new age were capitalized on page 170 . The controversy escalated until several people accused Richard of subscribing to New Age practices. The truth is that when he wrote Celebration in 1977, he had not even heard of the New Age Movement much less incorporated its practices into his life and writing. When the accusations surfaced we reread the original manuscript and discovered that the words "new age" were not capitalized but in the line-edited copy they were. In later editions the offending exercise was taken out and the words "We who follow Christ" were substituted for "We of the New Age". To learn more about Richard Foster's theological beliefs, read his Affirmation of Faith. For his position on the New Age Movement, read his Statement.

† QUESTION: Explain to me the difference between being hurt while not being harmed?
‡ ANSWER: Spiritual people are of all people most susceptible to being hurt. This is because we are indeed the meek of the earth. We have turned away from the normal human means of protection: attack first, destroy your enemy before they destroy you, manipulate people and circumstances with power, money, position, etc. Instead, we trust ourselves to the protection, care, and goodness of God. (This in no way precludes ordinary precaution in life.) As a result we are often hurt: taken advantage of, stolen from, deprived, killed. But we are never harmed. We know that there is more to the story than human history. We know there is an eternal Story and even in this life we catch a glimpse of holy history, the Story behind the story. In that eternal Story the people of God are perfectly situated in the hollow of God's hand and no ultimate harm can come to us. The John of Revelation got a whole eye-full of that eternal Story, and tells us that the Lord God will be our light and that we will reign with him "forever and ever" (Rev. 22:5).

† QUESTION: Somewhere I heard of Dallas Willard objecting to the WWJD question. What is wrong with asking in life situations, "What Would Jesus Do?"
‡ ANSWER: It is not wrong to consider what Jesus would do in given situations, but, in the main, this approach simply begs the question. In most cases we already know what Jesus would do, so this is not the question we need to ask. The question we must constantly have before us is, "How do I become the kind of person who will naturally do what Jesus would do if he were I?" That is the question of preparation and training, the question of spiritual disciplines and holy habits. When we are on the spot, when we are faced with the situation, it is too late because regardless of what we think Jesus would do, we will do what our nature and habits have trained us to do.

† QUESTION: Dallas Willard says that I am to learn to live my life as Jesus would live my life if Jesus were I. A beautiful thought! As a woman, would Jesus preach?
‡ ANSWER: Yes, if God's call to preach is upon you.

† QUESTION: I'm thinking about giving money to RENOVARÉ but my accountant thinks I should make sure the organization is run efficiently and is a bonafide 501(c)3. Who do I contact to get a copy of the required reports?
‡ ANSWER: Contact Joan Skulley at 303-792-0152 or .

† QUESTION: How do I invite Richard Foster to speak at a function?
‡ ANSWER: Richard is accepting very few invitations outside of leading RENOVARÉ Regional Conferences. Occasionally he makes an exception, and if you feel your event might be one of these, call his Personal Assistant, Lynda Graybeal, at 806-655-9121 or email Richard at . Please be sure to include the type of event, dates, number of talks, theme, audience, and any other information Richard would need to make an informed decision.

You should also use the above contact information if you want to inquire about Richard's availability to do anything outside the umbrella of RENOVARÉ, including endorsing a book, arranging for a personal meeting, writing a book, critiquing a manuscript, and any questions regarding Richard's books, i.e. making photocopies of a section, checking on what translations are available, and/or contracting for a new translation.