Mike Webber is a psychotherapist and a minister as well as an entrepreneur. Educated in several serendipitous situations, he holds masters’ degrees and post graduate education suitable to his profession.
As a sophomore in college, a dream about helping people grew into a calling and that became a mashable career. The gifts became evident early on but the real learning and therefore the real depth of character was formed in trials. These real life events shook out the mistaken beliefs of a life of glory and blessing. The childish visions of fame and fortune and the residue of “it can’t happen to me” were erased in the crucible of real life.
Rarely will homelessness be listed in a job profile as a qualification so it is not on the resume but few things in life compare with the drop from a well paying corporate world job into abject poverty. Yet, knowing about human suffering is very different than knowing suffering face to face.
Gratitude is also different that way because when dependence on grace and mercy is a lifestyle rather than just repeating what your mother taught you, gratitude then means with tears.
So does love.
Philippians 3:8-11 (MSG)
8 Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as my Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ
9 and be embraced by him. I didn’t want some petty, inferior brand of righteousness that comes from keeping a list of rules when I could get the robust kind that comes from trusting Christ—God’s righteousness
10 I gave up all that inferior stuff so I could know Christ personally, experience his resurrection power, be a partner in his suffering, and go all the way with him to death itself.
11 If there was any way to get in on the resurrection from the dead, I wanted to do it..
These words were written in a letter written by an old man from prison by the name of Paul, (his Hebrew name is Saul) who we first met in the book of Acts in Chapter 7 at the stoning of Stephen. Not long thereafter, God struck him blind and then sent a believer word to go and pray for his healing. This is what God told him about this murderer:
Acts 9:11-16 (NIV)
11 The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying.
12 In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”
13 “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem.
14 And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”
15 But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel.
16 I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.” (emphasis mine)
Mike teaches that all of life comes down to decisions and that the most foundational of all decisions comes down to discipleship. Will you? or Wont you?
- Will you be a disciple in your marriage, or wont you?
- Will you be a disciple in your divorce, or wont you?
- Will you be a disciple on your job or in your business, or wont you?
- Will you be a disciple in your parenting, or wont you?
- Will your thinking be that of a disciple?
- Will your emotions be that of a disciple?
- Will your choices be that of a disciple?
Mike is investing the latter half of his earthly days using pastoral counseling, entrepreneurial development, coaching, mentoring, psychotherapy and spiritual direction to advance the most permeating disciplines of all disciplines:
- not law or theology
- not therapy or sociology
- not politics or medicine
But discipleship.
“I can find no more important work on planet earth, than making disciples”.