Simon Cox Blog: Stay the Course: My Interview with Wilfredo de Jesus on His Recent Book

Wednesday 21 December 2016

Stay the Course: My Interview with Wilfredo de Jesus on His Recent Book

"Pastor Choco" pastors one of the fastest growing churches in Chicago.

Ed:You write in the book that Christ is the True North. It keeps us on track with God and His purposes for us. What advice can you give to help us stay the course when culture is drifting?

Pastor Choco: Let me share a story. I was recently on a two-hour flight from Chicago to Dallas. As I was walked off the airplane after landing, the cockpit opened and I saw the pilot. I asked him, “Can you tell me how many times you guys had to punch all these buttons in the past two hours?”

He responded, “We probably touched them several thousands of times.” “Really?” I asked.

“Absolutely,” he responded. “If you don't continue coming back to the original plan, the route, the plane would end up in the ocean as a result of the headwinds and tailwinds. There is constant drifting, and have to continue to go back to these buttons to make sure we end up in Dallas."

I asked, "Can you give me a percentage that this plane was on target from Chicago to Dallas?" He answered, "Only 1% of the time. The other 99% we're making adjustments."

My advice to all of us is that we’ve got to keep coming back to the basics—the altar, the Bible, our daily devotions, Jesus. We’ve got to keep checking to make sure we’re not drifting with the culture. Every day, we must be check ourselves. If not, we'll drift into the ocean with this culture.

Ed:One of the questions people ask is, “What's the kingdom damage when believers give in and accept the change, when they fiercely oppose change, or when they withdraw because they can't stand the change?” What is your response to this kind of question?

Pastor Choco: I think there are four responses ...