WELL ISN’T THAT SPECIAL

 “All honor to God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ; for it is his boundless mercy that has given us the privilege of being born again so that we are now members of God’s own family. Now we live in the hope of eternal life because Christ rose again from the dead. And God has reserved for his children the priceless gift of eternal life; it is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay. And God, in his mighty power, will make sure that you get there safely to receive it because you are trusting him. It will be yours in that coming last day for all to see.” – 1 Peter 1:3-5 (TLB).

The Church Lady was a recurring character in a series of sketches on Saturday Night Live, in which she would have a show called Church Chat. She was known for the catchphrase, “Well, isn’t that special?” But the reality is we are special.

Yes, I know it sounds a bit trite to say. And yes it sounds like something you would hear in a kindergarten class or at a positive affirmation workshop but that doesn’t change the statement’s truth. So what makes us special? We are special because we are made in the image of God. He has intentionally, carefully, and intricately formed and made you with an individual personality, physical makeup, preferences and personality traits, and talents.

The Bible tells us so: “You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother’s womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it” (Psalm 139:13-14).

When you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior you were reborn as a unique component of the family of God. You might consider yourself small, untalented, or unremarkable, nevertheless, you play an essential role in fulfilling God’s mission. The church cannot be who it is meant to be unless you are willing to be who you were meant to be. That is until you are willing to use the gifts God gave you on behalf of His kingdom.

But on the other hand, we aren’t special. Our sin is not that special. If we think our past or present sins are special in that they are abhorrent or blameworthy, we need to look again to the cross of Jesus. The price for our sins was the cross of Jesus.

Our sin is a big deal, but it’s not that special, although we are tempted to think so. We fret over something we did wondering if we have gone too far this time. How can God love me anymore? How can I get back in His good graces? This is not only completely wrong, it suggests however innocent our intent, that the death and resurrection of Jesus were not sufficient to cover our special brand of sin. It was sufficient centuries ago, it is sufficient today and will be sufficient until the Lord returns.

The bottom line is this: our sin is not special. We might be unique but our sin is not. Our sin is not special enough to be the “exception” in the redemptive work of the cross.    

Discussion Questions:

  1. What should we do if we think our sins are special?
  2. Few of us find “guilt” or “fear of punishment” to be very good motivators for anything. What could be a different motivator for us to stop making choices that lead to sin?

CREATING A CULTURE OF BELONGING

“Aloneness can lead to loneliness. God’s preventative for loneliness is intimacy – meaningful, open, sharing relationships with one another. In Christ we have the capacity for the fulfilling sense of belonging which comes from intimate fellowship with God and with other believers.” – Neil T. Anderson.

At some level or another, we all want to “belong” to something bigger than ourselves. We crave relationships and feeling connected in some significant way to other people. In other words, other people matter. So much, in fact, that our desire to find connectedness and belonging impacts just about everything we do, whether we are believers or non-believers.

But in many cases, we walk a fine line between fitting in and belonging. Fitting in can require you to twist yourself into a pretzel in order to be accepted. Belonging is simply being accepted as who you are. Fitting in happens when we force ourselves into a mold in order to be accepted. We “fit in” to what a group considers cool. Belonging on the other hand happens when we are ourselves and find acceptance and community despite not being like everyone else. We as a church want to create a culture of belonging rather than a culture of fitting in.

To create a culture of belonging we need to stop seeing church or ministry as a group of friends hanging out. Instead, we need to see church and ministry as a group of Jesus followers called to minister to the needs of others. When we see ourselves as a group of friends hanging out we naturally want to keep it that way. The results can run the spectrum: from forming a clique on the mild end to rejecting people because they don’t fit in at the worst end. When we see ourselves as Jesus followers called to minister we no longer enter the church space for ourselves but for others. The result is we no longer worry about people being different or seemingly mismatched because we see everyone as a person whose spiritual development has been entrusted to us. Maya Angelou said, “I long, as does every human being, to be at home wherever I find myself.”

This week, take a moment and consider whether you may be contributing to a “fitting in culture.”  Do you expect others to be like you? Do you avoid those who are different from you? Do you unintentionally create a box for people to “fit into” or else they won’t be accepted? How would you feel if the tables were turned?

If the answer to any of those questions is yes, ask God to use you in creating a sense of belonging in the church. Ask God to help you be the type of person others can be around and accept them despite their opinions, imperfections, or differences. Ask God to see them, not as outsiders, but as people loved by God who we serve as best we can. This does not mean we will have a deep connection with everyone and anyone. It just means you will help create the kind of environment in which everyone can have a sense of belonging.

God’s desire has always been for the church to be a respite of hope, love, and belonging. From His perspective, whoever you are, wherever you’ve been, or whatever you’ve done, you belong and you are welcome.

Discussion Questions:

  1. If God put in us the need to belong, the church should be the safest place on earth to do that. What can we do as individuals to create a sense of belonging?
  2. Who can we invite to church that clearly has a need to belong?

STANDING IN THE GAP

“I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one. So now I will pour out my fury on them, consuming them with the fire of my anger. I will heap on their heads the full penalty for all their sins. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!” – Ezekiel 22:30-31.

In the ancient world of the Bible, cities had walls surrounding them to provide protection from enemies. When the wall was breached, the city was vulnerable to destruction; the only way to secure it was for people to risk their lives by literally standing in the gap in the wall and fighting the enemy. Throughout the Old Testament, God had an up-and-down relationship with Israel. They will serve Him, then turn to other Gods, backslide, follow Baal, repent, obey God, get into sin, worship someone else, repent… and so on. It was a cycle that lasted centuries.

In Ezekiel, we read the words that express the sadness of God when He found no one willing to stand in the gap for Israel. Judgment was coming, but God looked for someone to get in the way. Ezekiel 22:30, “I looked for someone who might rebuild the wall of righteousness that guards the land. I searched for someone to stand in the gap in the wall so I wouldn’t have to destroy the land, but I found no one.”Although the Ezekiel passage deals with the sins of Jerusalem, it applies to us today. So how does standing in the gap apply to us individually and corporately as the church?

What these words tell us today is that God is still seeking people to stand in the gap for His people. He still wants us to pray, serve, and be vulnerable to the needs of His people.

The Apostle Paul understood firsthand the power of standing in the gap. In his letter to the Roman church, he implored them to pray for him, writing, “Dear brothers and sisters, I urge you in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to join in my struggle by praying to God for me. Do this because of your love for me, given to you by the Holy Spirit” (Romans 15:30). He likewise beseeched the church in Ephesus, “And pray for me, too. Ask God to give me the right words so I can boldly explain God’s mysterious plan that the Good News is for Jews and Gentiles alike” (Ephesians 6:19). Throughout his epistles, Paul urged his fellow believers to stand in the gap for him.

Spiritually, standing in the gap could mean being a prayer warrior, interceding for your family, for people in need, or for your country. It could mean tackling a challenging assignment or sacrificially helping others. It could mean praying for the sick or being a faithful servant in your church or community. The reality is that standing in the gap can bring some uncomfortable things into our lives. One willingness to put ourselves out there and enter the stories and lives of people and stand in the gap in prayer and advocacy can be uncomfortable, to say the least. It is easy to stand in the gap sitting in our living rooms than to put a human face and a story on that same topic.

Clearly, God’s heart is moved to act when people cry out on behalf of others. When we as believers stand in the gap.

Discussion Questions:

  1. God calls each and every one of us to stand in the gap whenever, however, and wherever there is a need in the world, in the community, or in our families. Agree or disagree and why?
  2. Would you consider yourself an intercessor? How so?

ARE YOU OBSERVANT?

“Sometimes it is the quiet observer who sees the most,” – Kathryn Nelson.

Most people grow up in a city or suburb and wave to their neighbors but really don’t know them all that well. Statistics indicate that roughly 25 percent of people really know their neighbors. If we’re lucky, we may know the people who live next to us but probably don’t know most of the people who live two or three houses away from ours.

The average routine goes like this: We drive home from work, push the button on our remote garage door opener, pull into the garage, close the garage door, and go into the house. If we emerge from the house that evening, we may go only to our backyard, possibly to play a little soccer with the kids or to throw a steak on the grill.  Then we go to bed and repeat the process. The next morning, we raise the garage door, back out, and wave to a neighbor as we pull away from our house.

God commands us to love our neighbors like Jesus. Love is the deliberate act of valuing someone more than you value yourself. Love is the deliberate act of acting for and listening to others. Love is wanting others to succeed, to be happy and fulfilled, and to have a relationship with God.

It begins with getting to know our neighbors. Contrast virtual relationships with relationships that are personal, deepening, supportive, faith-building relationships of love that are highly valued as expressions of God’s love. We can miss the needs of people around us if we are not paying attention. I wasn’t taking an interest in them. Because I wasn’t looking out for their needs, I missed chances to help. And that grieves me a lot. Instead of grieving missed opportunities, be intentional about looking away from yourself and toward the needs of others, where you’ll find happiness in serving God through serving others.

Effective relationships are a two-way street so as we bless others we will be blessed as well. Acts 20:35 says, “And I have been a constant example of how you can help those in need by working hard. You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

Everyone has a need for close relationships. We thrive in healthy friendships and find great fulfillment there. To have these types of friendships, we need to realize it is our responsibility to find and build healthy relationships. To do so, we must reach out to others and treat them the way we would desire to be treated by a friend — looking out for what is in their best interest.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What does being observant mean to you?
  2. Who is that neighbor who is hard for you to love? Ask the Lord to fill your heart with his love and mercy, then extend that love and mercy to them today. What can we do to be more watchful as we train our minds?

MOVE INTO THE NEIGHBORHOOD

“The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out,
true from start to finish..”
–  John 1:14 (MSG).

Jesus moved into the neighborhood. Ahh…neighborhoods. The neighborhood reminds us of where we grew up, and the people we grew up around. Remember the street corners, the place where you used to play baseball or other games, the open fields, playgrounds, talking with your friends as you walked along or rode your bike. The word was made flesh and moved into your neighborhood, into Panama City, Callaway, Lynn Haven, Fort Walton, Destin, Parker, and all over Bay and Walton counties, Florida, the U.S., and the world.

Think about that for a second.  If you’ve ever bought a home or moved your family to a new place, you do your due diligence.  How good are the schools?  Is it safe?  Are there good amenities and parks and culture?  Will the commute to work be convenient?  What about local churches?  Jesus didn’t think in those terms. Jesus left heaven to come to a fallen, broken world.  He moved into a place laced with danger to live among us.

Here is God in human form, God expressing himself in a language that we can all understand. “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us…” The Word became flesh and blood and moved into the neighborhood, a neighborhood that needs Jesus.

Love God, love your neighbor. No other teaching is greater than these for those who believe in God. But this idea sometimes just becomes, ‘I should love everybody!’ and so we commit to being nice, loving people. But Jesus was really asking us to intentionally know and love our neighbor. Meet the person next door. Get to know them. Eat with them. It turns out that this is the heart of sharing the Gospel with someone – knowing them, loving them, being there for them, and earning a place in their life. Sharing the Gospel without sharing life doesn’t have great results. But a relationship investment demonstrates love. Could it be that it’s not that we have to be in our neighborhoods, but that we’ve been given the privilege of being in our neighborhoods?

You may take regular walks in your neighborhood. But this week, don’t look at it as any walk. Take a quiet, observant walk. If you typically walk with someone in your family, don’t talk. Don’t listen to music. Just walk in silence and observe your neighborhood. Maybe go for a walk at a different time of day or take a different route than you normally would. And look around. What do you see? Whom do you see? What needs do you see? Then pray, “Lord, how are you calling me to respond to this need?

Jesus was not – and is not – distant from us. We aren’t faceless, nameless people to Jesus. As we extend Jesus’ love in tangible ways, let’s “move into the neighborhood” and do life with people.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What is our responsibility in our neighborhoods?
  2. How can we build better relationships with our neighbors?

I CAN ONLY IMAGINE

“No, you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to countless thousands of angels in a joyful gathering. You have come to the assembly of God’s firstborn children, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God himself, who is the judge over all things. You have come to the spirits of the righteous ones in heaven who have now been made perfect.” – Hebrews 12:22-23

Ever spend a few moments trying to imagine what heaven will be like?

Many people picture heaven as a never-ending church service in the sky. Or they think we will all become angels who float around on clouds playing harps for the rest of time. Neither of these makes eternity seem very appealing. And both are completely inaccurate according to the Bible because we simply cannot grasp just how glorious and full of grandeur heaven will be. Imagine the joy as we live in the presence of God and fellowship with each other.

One of the most fascinating glimpses we have of heaven is in Hebrews 12:22-23, a passage that provides a list of heaven’s inhabitants. We’re going to spend eternity with God, with His angels, with the Old Testament saints, and with Christians through all the ages. Can you imagine being in an environment like that? There will be no misunderstandings. Our relationships will be open, honest, interesting, loving, and uncomplicated by sin or our sinful natures. We will dwell with God, the angels, and one another in perfect compatibility and refreshing intimacy.

We will all be together in heaven. It won’t make any difference when we lived on earth. Imagine meeting or talking to people whom we’ve only read about in the Bible or in books. Imagine meeting Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. Imagine having all the time we wanted to talk to Augustine, Jonathan Edwards, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, or Billy Graham.  Or meet with missionaries such as William Carey, Adoniram Judson, Jim Elliot, Hudson Taylor, and Amy Carmichael.

No matter how many people we meet,  the experience of meeting them will pale in comparison to the wonder of being with God. God’s greatest gift to us is now and always will be nothing less than Himself.

C.S. Lewis once said, “Aim at heaven and you will get earth thrown in. Aim at earth and you get neither.” Heaven should always be in our line of sight because this world is not our home. Our true citizenship is in heaven. Focusing on heaven should free us to give to and serve others far more than when we are focused on the things of this world.

Heaven is our future home. That’s where our citizenship is; we’re only travelers on earth. A lifetime here will seem like a mere breath compared to the time we spend in eternity. Whenever you read a Bible passage that describes some heavenly scene or activity, put yourself in the picture, because if you accepted Jesus as your Savior, one day you walk through those gates, step on that street, and come face to face with Jesus.

Discussion Question:

  1. Do you spend time reflecting on what lies in store for you after this life? Do you understand and more importantly own your heavenly citizenship?
  2. Reread 2 Peter 3:10-15: What is going to happen to the earth and everything that goes on here? How should this knowledge shape our lives now?

WHAT DO WE DO WHEN IN A SPIRITUAL RUT

“But forget all that—it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness. I will create rivers in the dry wasteland.” – Isaiah 43:18-19.

There are few Christians who can say they have never been in a spiritual ‘rut’ at one time or another in their life. We get distracted, pulled down, and undone. God feels distant and extraneous. Day after day, sermon after sermon, small group after small group, prayer after prayer, we find ourselves concerned that there is too big a gap between our desired relationship with God and the one we are actually experiencing.

Every relationship can find itself in a rut. You can love your spouse. But if you planned to sit down with him or her every morning for a few minutes and nothing ever changed, then it would most likely become routine. It will start to feel bland, even tedious after a while if we didn’t find other ways to make it more interesting and fun. Relationships require reconnecting every day, genuine affirmation, shared enjoyment of activities, gratitude, and a whole lot of laughter to stay out of a rut.

The same is true of our relationship with God. Too often, we think our relationship with God is different from our human relationships. We read a devotional and spend the first minutes with God daily. In addition, we attend church, attend a small group, do personal Bible studies, and pray daily. We even have an accountability partner.

All that is great. Each of those things is an excellent foundational practice for life with Christ, but if we are not careful they can become robotic and we can miss the dynamic love relationship with God that He desires. As inconceivable as that sounds we can become bored with God.  Here is what you need to know. The beauty of God’s love is that it survives spiritual dry times. Don’t let the lie sink into your mind that spiritual dryness indicates that God has lost interest in you or has decided that you are not salvageable. Nothing could be further from the truth. The most faithful and happiest Christians in history have experienced days of being in a spiritual rut. If you are in a dry time, focusing on God’s character can sustain your faith.

Remember that God loves you so much. He loves you and He is with you on the mountaintop and in the valley. Zephaniah 3:17 says, “For the Lord your God is living among you. He is a mighty savior. He will take delight in you with gladness. With his love, he will calm all your fears. He will rejoice over you with joyful songs.” The Bible is the best antidote to a dry spell. The Word of God is living and active. It is there to help grow and strengthen us. Too often, we complicate it and act like Bible reading is only helpful if we have the right study method or reading plan or are in the right frame of mind. But the beautiful thing about God’s Word is, it doesn’t depend on us – it depends on Him. He is faithful to work when we are half asleep in the morning or when we can’t sleep in the early hours of the night. Spend time in the Bible when you are in a spiritual rut.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What constitutes being in a spiritual rut in your mind? 
  2. Do you feel spiritually stuck in a rut, stagnant, going through the motions, or too comfortable? How did you move past it?
  3. How can prayer be a catalyst for moving out of a spiritual rut? 

CREATING LIFE-SHAPING CONVERSATIONS

“Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person” – (Colossians 4:6).

Nothing gets the heart racing and the palms sweating more than knowing that you have to have a hard conversation with somebody. Hard conversations challenge everyone. Most of us resist bringing up uncomfortable topics, and all of us squirm when others initiate such conversations with us.

We encounter hard conversations with family, within the church, and with people who don’t follow Jesus. They pop up everywhere, and most days, we feel ill-equipped to navigate sensitive subjects the way we truly wish we could. What if we could address those challenges and find ways to have more real conversations about hard things?

Talking to people about Jesus is not like having a conversation about your favorite restaurant or vacation spot. It isn’t even like talking about your marriage or even parenting styles—as important as those are. Talking to people about Jesus is the most intimate and important conversation you could ever have with someone.

If we want to take advantage of opportunities to share our faith, we have to learn to embrace the so-called awkwardness. If our chief concerns are about avoiding awkwardness, it would be more awkward not to talk about eternal things. You and I never know those who have been, who are, and who will soon be wrestling with these weighty spiritual issues, waiting for someone to bring them God’s word. Believe that God is both willing and able to give you what you need in order that you might joyfully spread the word about his Son, however seemingly awkward it may feel at first.

Conversations with non-believers should not be difficult. We know it’s an amazing thing we have the privilege to do, but we want to just get through it as quickly and safely as possible.  Our job isn’t to change someone. Our job is to speak. Instead of viewing talking with a non-Christian as a life-risking endeavor, what if we found common ground? To find common ground we must show a real interest in them.

That doesn’t mean we start with our conversion story. Rather get to know the person. Ask him how he is doing, or what is new in her life. Ideally, your initial conversations should be very little about you and all about them. Ask him or her about life and ideas and plans and achievements and concerns and anxieties.  Be interested and respectful.

Talking to others about Jesus isn’t easy. But like anything in life, the more you do it, the easier it is, and the better you are at it. One of the unexpected blessings of telling others about Jesus is how God uses it to remind me of His love for each of us.

Discussion Questions:

  1. How do we find common ground with others in a conversation? 
  2. To what extent do you invest the necessary time and energy to make meaningful connections with others? What stands in the way? What choices are you making?

BREAKING GROUND: FINDING COMMON GROUND

“Even though I am a free man with no master, I have become a slave to all people to bring many to Christ. When I was with the Jews, I lived like a Jew to bring the Jews to Christ. When I was with those who follow the Jewish law, I too lived under that law. Even though I am not subject to the law, I did this so I could bring to Christ those who are under the law. When I am with the Gentiles who do not follow the Jewish law, I too live apart from that law so I can bring them to Christ. But I do not ignore the law of God; I obey the law of Christ. When I am with those who are weak, I share their weakness, for I want to bring the weak to Christ. Yes, I try to find common ground with everyone, doing everything I can to save some. I do everything to spread the Good News and share in its blessings.” – 1 Corinthians 9:19-23.

Whether it is in politics, the professional world, a party, or a pew, we face potential conflict every day in our polarized society. As discussions get more heated and social media is deluged with strong opinions and relationships are splintering we need to find common ground rather than take sides. It’s good to find common ground with people. When we find common ground and we see things from other people’s perspectives, we can have a voice in their lives, we can have an influence.

Paul is writing in 1 Corinthians 9 in defense of his ministry. There is a group of people who have criticized or misrepresented him in his absence, and Paul is explaining his actions and motives. He explains some motives that we can adopt in our own lives. Things that will allow us to reflect Jesus Christ to others. One of those things is becoming all things to all people. It starts in our families and close relationships but carries into every part of our lives. By seeking common ground with people—shared interests, even if they require effort on our part—we have an opportunity to make investments for eternity.

If we don’t find common ground then we will not build connections. When we become flexible and figure out the best way to meet people where they are, we can build relationships. When we listen to them and respect their traditions and passions we can build common ground. Trained missionaries know that, before they can reach a cultural group, they must understand the particulars of that culture. The same is true for every believer, even if we never leave our own city.

The result is a blessing in our lives. Our relationships become richer. That friend you couldn’t imagine coming to Christ might listen and accept the truth you share with them. There is joy when we leave our comfort zone to accomplish something that matters in this life. That is what we are all about as a church. Not to stand outside the world and shout the gospel at it, but to go into the world and express it through our actions and commitment to reflect the love of God. To share life with people, so that we can also share something eternal.

It all begins with the relationships directly in front of you.

Discussion Questions:

  1. How do we find common ground with others in a conversation? 
  2. To what extent do you invest the necessary time and energy to make meaningful connections with others? What stands in the way? What choices are you making?

WHAT DO YOU WANT TO BE KNOWN FOR?

“The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you. And just as God raised Christ Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same Spirit living within you.” – Romans 8:11.

There is a scene in God’s Not Dead: A Light in the Darkness where a young woman knocks on the pastor’s door and says, “do you know why our generation (millennials) is leaving the church: because the whole world knows what the church is against, but it is getting harder and harder to know what it is for.”

Christians need to be known more for what we are for than what we are against. We need to be known for what we are for just like the Savior we seek to follow.

So what do you want to be known for? Good question, It doesn’t matter if you are talking about a church, a business, or a nonprofit. Because when an organization or church is able to close the gap between what they are known for and what they want to be known for, it results in good things.

Back in the days of the early church, the believers struggled with how to accept the sinner but not the sin. They went so far as to hold a conference to discuss the issue and whether Gentiles were required to follow Jewish practices to follow Jesus. It was the ruling of James, the brother of Christ and leader of the church, “that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God” (Acts 15:19). The early church decided they wanted to be known for bringing people into the family of God instead of putting up unnecessary barriers that would keep them out.

Is that what the church is all about today?  Do we talk about the pastor’s insights, a great worship band, guest services, or condemnation of sin? There is nothing wrong with most of these things—but none of them are what we want to be known for. So what do we as the church body want to be known for and just as importantly what are we now known for? Are we seen as people of grace, love, and acceptance or are we seen as judgmental, arrogant, and intolerant?

Jesus had something to say on this matter. He said unequivocally, “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples” (John 13:34-35). Jesus told us that how we are known is so important that it will be the way people around us will know we are His followers. But notice Jesus does not say you should be known for your kindness or your generosity. Those things are indeed important and good, but Jesus tells us that what matters most is the love we have for one another. That is what we are to be known for as a church and as individuals.

Love for all people is the defining quality of Jesus. When Jesus said people will know we are His disciples by the way we have love for one another, He means that first and foremost our hearts must be transformed by the amazing grace of God’s love.

Discussion Questions:

  1. What do you think are common perceptions about the church? Do you think the church is known more for what it’s against or what it’s for?
  2. Growing up, what was your experience with the church? Was it positive or negative?