Musing About Ministry

Things You Can Pray for Your Church -- Acts 15

2010-12-23T09:13:00.000-06:00

4 Things You Can Pray for Your Church This Week

1. That in conflict, the church will listen more to the Holy Spirit than personal preferences. (v. 28)

2. That your church would have a healthy process to deal with inevitable conflict. (v. 2)

3. That your church will know what is worth fighting for and what isn't. (v. 11)

4. That even in unresolved conflict, grace will abound. (see final note below)

Thoughts on Acts 15

2010-12-23T09:07:00.001-06:00

"Sounds like a Baptist church!" was the immediate response after we read the chapter in prayer meeting last night.

Yes, it is true if you have been in church (Baptist or other) very long, conflict that grinds church life to a halt certainly can sound all too familiar. But there is a distinction here....this squabble mattered! The charge against the modern church will not be that we fight too much, but that we fight about the wrong things.

Truth be told, nothing is as likely to cause as much conflict as discussing what are the right things to fight about.

Three Reasons the Conflict Mattered

1. It impacted the mission of the church.

Paul and Barnabas had just returned from a mission trip that bore much fruit among the Gentiles. Would this need to be curtailed?

2. It impacted the fellowship of the church.

Could the growing Gentile branch of the church share "the pew", the table and the life with the existing Jewish branch of the table? Would the Gospel divide or disarm?

3. It impacted the theology of the church.

As large as the above items are, this one mattered most. What does it take to be saved? Grace or something like grace plus a few other things?

In the end they choose mission, fellowship and grace.

The role of leadership is fascinating the chapter.

Paul and Barnabas appear before the apostles and the elders of the church. At this point there is no definition of an elder in the church. Instead of reading our own preferences into the text I think it is safe to consider the elders as any loosely defined, but easy to identify church leader who was not one of the twelve.

Peter's testimony in the debate is very important. But it is not the final word. That belongs to James, the brother of Jesus. This really puts a hole in the idea that Peter carried a particular authority or would have authority to pass down to others.

They come to a strong conclusion.

Too often local churches and denominations address conflict by trying reduce the heat and not actually address the issue at hand. There is a desire to avoid the kind of hurt feelings and broken fellowship that clear winners and losers tend to cause.

Not so here

"The brothers, both the apostles and the elders, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia, greetings. ²⁴Since we have heard that some persons have gone out from us and troubled you with words, unsettling your minds, although we gave them no instructions, ²⁵it has seemed good to us, having come beloved Barnabas and Paul, ²⁶ men who have to one accord, to choose men and send them to you with our risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ."

But their clarity may be just what saved the unity of the church.

A surprise at the end...

After celebrating the success of navigating of the above conflict we are suddenly faced with another conflict.

This one is interpersonal. I feel deeply conflicted watching two of my New Testament heroes, Paul and Barnabas unable to work together.

Some conflicts are not easily addressed. In this case I can see the merits of both men's positions. Which is likely why it was never fully resolved.

But fast forward and we see Paul's later value of John Mark's ministry. And just as significantly we notice that Luke, so deeply influenced by Paul casts Barnabas in the most favorable lights throughout the book of Acts. There is something very rich in this.

There are times division will come and maybe even needs to come. But grace can still abound.

The Poor Innkeeper

2010-12-20T09:32:00.001-06:00

For the past few Sundays we have been looking over the shoulders of different characters in the Christmas story. What did they see, what did they feel, what did they know as Christ came into the world? We have looked at Mary, the angels of heaven, the shepherds and the wisemen.

One character I have avoided has been the Innkeeper.

At times I feel sorry for the Innkeeper. He seems to get worse treatment in the story than even Herod. John Phillips, who seems to know the actual name of the inn itself, is particularly tough.

"No room!" That was not true. There was the innkeeper's own room, but he never once considered that. No, indeed!

A few pages later, he seems to go out of his way to take another shot at the innkeeper as he describes the excited reaction of the shepherds.

No one seems to have bothered to rouse the innkeeper and his guests. They had no room for the Lord of glory in their inn. Why should they be roused? Let them sleep!

You get the feeling that John Phillips was once shut out by an innkeeper himself and ended up spending a very rough night sleeping in his car on a very cold night in a very bad part of town. Don't look for Dr. Phillips at the next National Innkeepers Convention!

Yet I have also heard it pointed out that the only shelter Mary and Joseph had that evening had been provided by the innkeeper. I remember some even pointing out that the manger area was a generous offer as it provided more privacy for the young couple who were imminently about to become a family.

Whole sermons have been preached in both these directions.

Interestingly the text only tells us this...

⁷And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. Luke 2:7 (ESV)

Notice...there is no innkeeper even mentioned! Yet for our preaching convenience we have created him...determined his motives and his just desserts.

The point is we don't know enough for any of this. Sometimes this makes me think of how I respond to the people in my congregation. Far too often, I can be tempted to come to entire conclusions about my people -- their lives, their choices, their motives -- with as much information as we have of our unmentioned innkeeper.

There is often more to the story than we know. In preaching and pastoring, let's be careful about filling in the blanks.

Yes, Virginia, You’d Better Believe there Really is » A Holy Experience

2010-12-17T10:08:00.000-06:00

Wonderful post about the Dead Sea Scrolls, Prophecy and Advent.

Yes, Virginia, You’d Better Believe there Really is » A Holy Experience

A New Kind of Hireling

2010-12-17T09:01:00.000-06:00


The Unfaithful Shepherd

A few days ago, Trevin Wax posted a very interesting question at his blog. Does getting paid make a difference in how you lead your church?

I made me wonder if Trevin and I had wondered across some of the same material as I had recently read some things that caused me wonder about the same question.

Trevin makes reference to the occasional ministerial fantasy of serving as pastor without depending financially on the church for your livelihood. The assumption being that pastors are potentially held back from doing what God wants them to do by the fear of losing their job (and more significantly their salary). The obvious solution is to not depend on the church financially.

I have heard of a few minister who through independent wealth or handsome book royalties have been able to do this. I have heard of far more minister who have wished for such freedom.

The premise is that if the church does not respond to your "near perfect" leadership then you can speak your mind without fear of repercussions....and ultimately just pick up and move away if need be. Sounds like risk free ministry. Which is no ministry at all.

This is no way to shepherd a flock. Ironically this "working for free" makes you nothing more than a hireling. Connected to a call or to a congregation as long as it is convenient, comfortable and coddled. Things don't go your way, you just pick up your amble marbles and go home.

I am reminded that Paul tells that we are to expect a real fight in ministry. So much so, he tells us we are to put on the whole armor of God. And from what I read, there is no place in that armor to carry marbles!

Does this leave us vulnerable? Yes. But that is the call of the shepherd.

¹¹ I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. ¹²He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. ¹³He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.

John 10:11-13 (ESV)

Thoughts on Acts 14

2010-12-16T10:30:00.000-06:00

One of the primary things that comes to mind in this chapter is the old Kenny Rogers song about "knowing when to hold, knowing when to fold, knowing when to walk away and when to run".

In the face of constant persecution we see Paul and Barnabas dig in their heels (vv. 2-3), hit the road (v. 6), walk back into town after being presumed dead (v. 20a), move on (v. 20b) and double back to all places that had been so tough (v. 21).

Not every circumstance calls for the same response. But what did not change is they continued to preach in every place when that was the very activity that was making life so dangerous. But as they shared with the young churches on their return, it is "through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God" (v. 23). When it comes to faith, tough is the default setting.

I am also fascinating by the three dangers of ministry highlighted in this chapter.

1. Mistreatment. (vv. 1-7)

Their opponents did not like them, their words or their ministry. And they did all they could combat them personally and sought to draw in as many allies for the battle as possible.

If you have been in ministry long. You know this is no stretch of the imagination.

2. Exaltation. (vv. 8-18)

After healing a lame man, Paul and Barnabas are suddenly treated as gods! The people of the town try to offer sacrifices to them.

While this exact experience may not have ever happened to you, ministers are put on ridiculous exalted pedestals all the time. Nationally known minister are often quoted and followed more closely than Jesus . But even in our own places of ministry, we know the feeling of being improperly idolized for our crafted prayers, incredible biblical knowledge and theological insight, timely visits, insightful counsel, and oh so sensitive hearts. And truth be told, we don't always hate these moments.

Which is why this might be the greater of these two dangers.

3. Popularity whiplash. (vv. 19-23)

Amazing the crowd that stones Paul, is the very same one that was just trying to worship him!

Personally, I may find this one of the most exhausting elements of ministry. The seemingly constant shifting winds of ministry approval. "Pastor, you are just what this church needs." "Pastor, I am really disappointed in you." "Pastor, I want you to do my funeral." "Pastor, I was here before you and I'll be here after you're gone." "Pastor...."

Through the years I have tried to remember this piece of advice I heard a coach once share, "you are not as good as they say you are and you are not as bad as they say you are".

So how do we survive?

"...with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed." v. 23

Stay at the work. Leave the rest to God, who has far more invested in His church than we ever will!

Wondering What To Preach 2011?

2010-12-10T06:43:00.001-06:00

Funny thing is that for some pastors that question is way too late to be asking now and for others it is still way too early.

Personally I am in the process of tweaking and moving some things around based on the calendar.

If you are in the process of wondering I would like to point out on interesting feature of this year's calender. Resurrection Sunday (Easter) falls on the sixteenth Sunday of the year. May I suggest that message a week from each chapter of Mark will land you at the Resurrection on the Resurrection.

Now, you may not want to rush through Mark's gospel at that speed, but it allow your folks to get the feel of the "Straightway" Gospel.

Just a suggestion. (But it will be some years before you get another chance.)

Thoughts on Acts 13

2010-12-09T10:00:00.005-06:00

Wonderful study/discussion on Acts 13 last night. A few highlights...

The church in Antioch demonstrated 4 great attributes worth emulating (vv. 1-3)

1. plurality
2. diversity
3. sensitivity
4. generosity

Sensitivity to God's Spirit was the byproduct of a church devoted to worship and fasting. (Devotion came first, then the leading of the Spirit to an attuned people.)

Sensitivity to God's Spirit gave Paul boldness in his words.

⁹But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him ¹⁰and said, "You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord?

In a joking fashion I was tempted to post these verses as my facebook status yesterday. Reality is there are some people who really need to hear them. But it is only the Holy Spirit that can give me that discernment and authority.

Paul spoke these words, because he had traveled this path.

Elymas was seeking to turn the proconsul from the truth. The very crime Paul had committed his life to before his Damascus Road encounter. Note, Elymas is given almost the identical encounter, but lacks the sensitivity to repent.

The opposite of sensitivity to the Spirit of God is found in v. 27.

²⁷For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him nor understand the utterances of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him.

Those who rejected Christ had heard the Word of God every week of their lives, but were never sensitive to it. How often does this happen in our congregations each week!

Proximity to the Gospel is never enough.

Finally, notice what happened between the Sabbaths.

The gospel is preached the first Sabbath and by the time the next Sabbath arrives, the entire city (v. 44) is in attendance. May the movement of God be so powerful in our churches this Sunday that we burst at the seems next Sunday!

Warning, with this movement came much opposition (vv. 45, 50).

But the gospel spread and "the disciples were filled with joy and the with the Holy Spirit."

You preached that before!

2010-11-03T08:38:00.000-05:00

It is quite likely that you have members of your church that mark the texts that you have preached. It is not uncommon for one of them to come to you with a bit of a wagging finger and say "you have preached that before."

What church members fail to realize is that passages of Scripture are not disposable. In their minds, use it once and you cannot use it again. Might as well rip it out of your Bible.

This past Sunday, I again had one of those conversations with a church member. The church member happened to be my wife! Once again, I explained that I may have preached from that text before, but that it was in fact a fresh sermon. I had not even looked at any old notes.

But she had. In fact, she had notes from both sermons in her Bible....and the sermons were nearly identical!

At this point, I was a little embarrassed. Had I really, unintentionally recycled an old sermon?

It is my preaching goal to have my sermon echo the spirit and content of the text. Here, several years apart, I had come to the same text, prayed over it, examined it from every angle I could, tried to understand the Spirit's design for the passage and then developed two extremely similar preaching outlines.

As I thought about it, the text hadn't changed so why should the sermon? The more I thought about it, the better I felt about both the messages.

Conviction Whiplash

2010-11-01T20:34:00.002-05:00

Ministry brothers, a quick word if I may.

I have been reading in Ezekiel recently and was caught by these words this morning in chapter 33.

30"As for you, son of man, your people who talk together about you by the walls and at the doors of the houses, say to one another, each to his brother, 'Come, and hear what the word is that comes from the LORD.' 31 And they come to you as people come, and they sit before you as my people, and they hear what you say but they will not do it; for with lustful talk in their mouths they act; their heart is set on their gain. 32And behold, you are to them like one who sings lustful songs with a beautiful voice and plays well on an instrument, for they hear what you say, but they will not do it. 33 When this comes—and come it will!— then they will know that a prophet has been among them."

I must admit, while I love my church those words resonated in me. It spoke to the frustration that I often feel on Sundays and even more so during the week. The appearance of attentiveness, yet possibly they see church as little more than spiritual entertainment.

To be honest, I wanted to yell out.... "yeah, that is what the problem in my church is!" It is the stinking sheep.

Oh, if only my reading for the day had ended there. I could have smugly gone about the rest of my day shaking my head about my people.

But instead I continued to read into chapter 34.

1The word of the LORD came to me: 2 "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them, even to the shepherds, Thus says the Lord GOD: Ah, shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves! Should not shepherds feed the sheep? 3 You eat the fat, you clothe yourselves with the wool, you slaughter the fat ones, but you do not feed the sheep. 4 The weak you have not strengthened, the sick you have not healed, the injured you have not bound up, the strayed you have not brought back, the lost you have not sought, and with force and harshness you have ruled them. 5 So they were scattered, because there was no shepherd, and they became food for all the wild beasts. 6My sheep were scattered; they wandered over all the mountains and on every high hill. My sheep were scattered over all the face of the earth, with none to search or seek for them.
7"Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 8 As I live, declares the Lord GOD, surely because my sheep have become a prey, and my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd, and because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds have fed themselves, and have not fed my sheep, 9therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the LORD: 10Thus says the Lord GOD, Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my sheep at their hand and put a stop to their feeding the sheep. No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, that they may not be food for them.

When a pastor becomes more concerned about his own interests....his comforts, his satisfaction, his success, his salary.... than he is about the care for his flock (yes, those same stinking sheep from chapter 33) then he is in deep trouble. God Himself stands against the shepherd!

Pastoring is tough enough by itself. I shudder to think about doing it with God opposed to me.

Why do these passages have to stand back to back in Scripture? Couldn't I have had a few moments to revel in the indictment of the brokenness of my people without having to deal with the brokenness of the pastor?

They stand so close together in the Word, because they stand so close together in my church.

Were They Missed?

2010-02-25T18:37:00.002-06:00

I am currently teaching through the final chapters of Mark's Gospel, and this week we find ourselves Mark 14 in the upper room with Jesus and the disciples.

Whenever I come to this passage (in preaching or at The Table) I feel a sense of inadequacy. I have yet to feel that I have ever carried my people to this text or the text to my people very well. It is too large. It is an unmistakable reality that what was unfolding around that table was in large measure the very hinge of history. The passions in the room (of both disciple and master) would be impossible to measure. Looking back and looking ahead the greatest movements in history were in view.

Yet I feel I do no better than awkwardly point and stumble without beginning to reveal all that is there. Sunday morning I will try again.

One thing that has caught me in this week of study was the disciples gathering in the Passover season with each other in the upper room. On this most family-centered of celebrations I wonder if their families missed them. Like that first Thanksgiving the kids don't come home from college, how strange did those tables feel without those disciples?

Sure the disciples, with their heads spinning and knees quaking, were hours away from faithless panic. But they had left father and mother to follow Christ. Imperfect as they were, they had put themselves in position to find redemption at their weakest hour.

I pray our service this Sunday will offer that same redemption to those who gather.

The Return of the GCR

2010-02-24T15:29:00.004-06:00

If I recall my last blog posts were about the GCR. (It has been that long that I do have to strain a bit to remember.)

As a Southern Baptist pastor I am interested in the ongoing conversation about the structure of our convention. As a believer in Christ I am interested in the most effective means to obey the Great Commission.

So I have been following the #gcr twitter feeds.....

To be honest I am confused by what I read. Dr. Floyd refers to the GCR as a grassroots movement of Southern Baptists but I would not call seminary presidents and agencies heads exactly grassroots. But more confusing to me is the giddy enthusiasm and support for the Progress Report. But when I read the report I just can't find any cause for these ecstatic utterances (even of the Baptist variety).

The talk is that everything is on the table. We will do anything to accomplish this task so great. It is time we repent and refocus everything on the evangelism side of the Great Commission. Yet the Progress Report offers a revamped missions statement, new accounting practices and....a redistribution of 1% of receipts to the IMB.

Not exactly storming hell with a water pistol! Or maybe it is storming hell with a water pistol....a very inexpensive water pistol.

I think my biggest concern is that we are asking the Task Force to provide things it cannot provide. If there are bottlenecks and blindspots in the system let's address them. But let us not think we can Task Force ourselves to the next Great Awakening!

I would also add, that while our resources often reveal where our heart is, money is not the missing ingredient to global Spiritual Climate Change. The shifting of dollars will be a result of Great Commission Resurgence not the cause.

With the risk of being considered an anti-Great Commission blogger, I do want to add a warning to my brothers and sisters that we not make the tragic error of counting on denominational restructuring for Great Commission Resurgence.

So may the GCRTF study and recommend. May we carefully consider. But let's also know a water pistol when we see one.

Great Commission Resurgence

2009-07-14T20:55:00.002-05:00

A good friend of mine pointed out that my slow fade from the blogger world left me with a negative final word concerning the Great Commission Resurgence. I have to agree that I do not want leave a negative word hanging in cyberspace.

I must admit I was impressed with the tone of this year's SBC annual meeting and I did end up voting in favor of the GCR emphasis. All the right things were said.

But I stand by my earlier post that words alone spoken to and about fellow Southern Baptists are not going to change the Kingdom composition of our world. The convention did inspire me to return home to my church and seek to make a Great Commission difference in my church and community.

One small means by which I have sought to implement this is to incorporate a moment of prayer for an IMB or NAMB missionary in our Sunday morning worship. Another step I have taken is to spend less time on things such as blogging.

Not sure what happens in the future when I have deep ministry thoughts that must be expressed. But for now, gonna focus on some other things.

Just remember....I am for the Great Commission.

(Any other questions Joel?)

Great Commission Resurgence Fever? Not Yet.

2009-05-04T21:29:00.004-05:00

I must confess I have yet to catch the Great Commission Resurgence fever.

In fact, I am a little confused by first document and second by its attending hoopla. Now, to many that may simply reveal my limited passions and intellect. It may also reveal that I am not part of the “official” SBC blogosphere.

My first confusion is that when I read it, I do not notice anything new. I would hate to think that there are a wide number of Baptist churches and pastors that have suddenly been introduced through this document to the Lordship of Christ or the importance of the Great Commandments or that our churches should have a healthy commitment to the Great Commission and Biblical preaching. Other than a vague (and timeless) statement that we should “seek to do things better” I am blind to the paradigm shift that has the SBC web a-flutter.

Some of what I hear in this discussion is the all too common tendency that is in all of us to think, “if I were in charge everything would be different (when I say different I humbly mean incredibly better)”. There is a bit of an antiestablishment energy to the debate. For better or worse what I read has the quality of a disgruntled opposition party within the denomination. (Opposition may be a bit too strong a word, but disgruntled seems to fit pretty well.)

Which I find ironic because the Great Commission Resurgence is the ultimate SBC insider document. Crafted and promoted by the SBC President and various SBC agency heads, we now know it was trotted out before a gathering of a group of “pastors of strategic churches” for final approval before regular Baptists were given a chance to sign their affirmation. This strikes me as “reform by the usual suspects”. Aren’t these the very folks that have been holding the official and unofficial reins of SBC leadership for some time now?

My greatest frustration with the GCR is that it too closely identifies the Southern Baptist Convention with a three day meeting in June and denominational agencies instead of with than with what happens the other 362 days in communities across our nation. It is not about denominational structure, it is about the churches. Keeping the conversation at the denominational and structural level allows us to flex our theoretical and rhetorical muscles without always doing very much where it matters most. I find it revealing with all that has been written about the GCR, at the time I write this there has been one lone response to Tony Kummer’s question at SBCVoices concerning churches that our currently living out the GCR. As long as we discuss blueprints we don’t have worry about the rubber hitting the road.

To be honest there is nothing specific in the document that I disagree with. There is also nothing specific enough in the document that excites me. I simply don’t see what all the fuss is about.

I now return you to your regularly scheduled pep rallies for the Great Commission Resurgence…..

Influence -- Galatians 2

2009-05-01T09:12:00.000-05:00

There may be few stranger coupling of words in the English language than “circumcision party”. Physically it doesn’t seem like a party for anyone involved. And according to Paul in Galatians 2, theologically it is no better.

The circumcision party of Paul’s day was clutching to empty forms of failed religious efforts. And worse they were requiring that everyone else join them in this futility. The Gentiles were now being asked to do what the Jews had found they could never do.

Even those who knew better were susceptible to this error. The appearance of circumcision party caused Peter to change his practice, along with the rest of the Jews. Even that great friend of the Gentiles, Barnabas was pulled off course.

Influence may be one of our most precious commodities. In chapter one we marveled about the kind of influence Peter and James might have had on Paul, how they contributed to his growth and maturity.

But that influence cuts both ways. When we get it wrong, in tone or spirit or effort or doctrine, it can have terrible effects.

I pray that I would recognize and remove anything in my life that is having a negative influence on the work of God.

Quotable Thursdays

2009-04-30T08:36:00.000-05:00

The seldom-stated truth is that many of us have a longing for God and an aversion to God. Some of us seek Him and flee Him at the same time. We may scrupulously observe the Ten Commandments and rarely miss church on a Sunday morning, but a love affair with Jesus is just not our cup of tea.
Brennan Manning
The Furious Longing of God

Also I make a decree that if anyone alters this edict, a beam shall be pulled out of his house, and he shall be impaled on it, and his house shall be made a dunghill.
Darius’ Zero Tolerance Policy
Ezra 6:11 (English Standard Version)

A man can’t be always defending the truth; there must be a time to feed on it.
CS Lewis

I would guess that of the sermons I’ve heard in the last twenty-five years, 15 percent had a discernible point; I could say, ‘The sermon was about X.’ Of those 15 percent, however, less than 10 percent demonstrably based the point on the text read. That is, no competent effort was made to persuade the hearer that God’s Word required a particular thing; it was simply asserted….Ministers have found it entirely too convenient and self-serving to dismiss congregational disinterest on the basis of attenuated attention spans or spiritual indifference. In most cases, the inattentiveness in the congregation is due to poor preaching—preaching that does not reward an energetic, conscientious listening. When attentive listeners are not rewarded for their energetic attentiveness, they eventually become inattentive.
T. David Gordon
Why Johnny Can’t Preach
via Challies.com

Wondering about Closed Doors Conversations

2009-04-27T20:57:00.002-05:00

Every once in a while, my wife and I will have a closed door conversation. We will stay in the car for a while or sit on the back porch or send the kids to the other side of the house. Usually it is no big deal, just stuff that doesn't really pertain at that moment to anyone else but my wife and I.

In Galatians chapter one Paul hints at some closed door conversations. His emphasis in this opening chapter is that the Gospel that he preaches came from God, not from man. It is not a human philosophy or mortal theology, but the revelation of Jesus Christ. Who he spoke to and what he spoke about does not pertain to the subjects at hand.

But he does mention two people he did have conversations with...Peter and James the brother of Jesus. But he does not say what they spoke about.

Closed doors or not, this inquiring mind wants to know. Oh, to have been a fly on the wall.

With James, he may have asked, "what was it like to grow up with the only sinless person in history...and not notice!" Paul, devout student of the Scriptures, who so vigorously persecuted the church and sought to destroy the name of Jesus must have commiserated with another who really should have known better.

And with Peter he must have certainly wanted to know the inside scoop of Jesus earthly ministry. What was it like to be with Him on the Mount, in the sea and on the road? What was it like to hear Him teach, to see Him heal, to have Him wash your feet?

Most importantly, what was it like to be forgiven for your greatest failures?

We obviously cannot know what they discussed, nor are we supposed to. It doesn’t really pertain to us. But it did to Paul. As much as he relied on the intimacy of his walk with Jesus, he turned to these two to grow him and encourage him.

To whom do you turn to in order to be sharpened in your faith these days?

May you have a brother, may you be a brother with whom you can close the doors and have your faith and ministry strengthened.

Quotable Thursdays

2009-04-09T10:18:00.003-05:00

Government: If you think the problems we create are bad, just wait until you see our solutions.

Eddie Hastings status bar on Facebook

People know what is sin; they just don't believe in it anymore. We mix up happiness and holiness, and God is no longer the reference point.

Michael Horton

Westminster Seminary

USA Today article

Without an idea of sin, Easter is meaningless.

Mark Driscoll

Mars Hill, Seattle

USA Today article

We began to put so much emphasis on how our way of doing church affected the lost, we failed to notice how it was affecting the saved.

Dr. Chuck Kelley

New Orleans Baptist Seminary

blaming a breakdown in discipleship for our evangelistic downturn

Our task is not to mirrow our culture but to convert it, and the cross calls us to do that in the most radical of ways.

Derek Tibball

The Message of the Cross

Quotable Thursdays

2009-04-02T08:45:00.003-05:00

Death be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so.
John Donne

Eewh, Satan is bad. Really bad.
Susan Moffett

More matter, with less art.
William Shakespeare (Hamlet)
A one sentence homilitics course.

Observe how the character of the Holy One, blessed be He, differs from that of flesh and blood. A mortal can put something into an empty vessel, but a into a full one. But the Holy One, blessed be He, is not so; He puts more into a full vessel, but not an empty one.
Traditional Rabbinic saying
quoted in Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary

This is a dream I've had since lunch, I'm not giving up on it.
Michael Scott

More than Musing About the Resurrection

2009-04-01T07:54:00.001-05:00

As I prepare for Resurrection Sunday, I have been look at some old messages. Here are some themes I have used to mark the Resurrection.

2000 What Difference Does Easter Make? (Matthew 28:1-7)

2002 Meeting Jesus Outside an Empty Tomb (John 20:1-18)
Mary Magdalene

2003 Resurrection as the Central Message of the Early Church (Selections from Acts)

2004 Transformed by the Resurrection (Mary, John, Thomas and Peter)

2005 Heavenly Words -- What an Angel Says to You Today (Matthew 28:1-10)

2005 Why I Believe (John 20)
speaking to skeptics, believers with doubts and believers with a mission

2006 Resurrection Significance -- A Sermon in Stereo (Ephesians 1:15-23 and 1 Peter 1:3-6)

2007 Dealing with Doubt -- Luke 24:1-35

2008 Is the Resurrection Believable? (1 Corinthians 15:1-11)

I found a statistic in a message from a couple of years ago that stated that 75% of nonChristians claim to believer the Biblical account of the resurrection. That may be the most troubling polling data I have ever seen.

My goal on this day is to shake folks free of a polite assent to the resurrection. It happened and it changes EVERYTHING!

Musing About Good Friday

2009-03-31T13:29:00.004-05:00

In preparation for next week's Good Friday service I have been going through my files looking over some notes from past years' services.

As food for thought, here are some themes I have previously used

2000 Retelling the Passion narrative

2001 Why did Jesus have to die? (Romans 3:23-26)

2003 Readings from the Gospel directing us to the Table and the Cross
(Pastor and Minister of Music)

2005 A Sermon from the Cross -- It is Finished (Psalm 22)

2006 Divine Power Displayed from the Cross (Mark 15.37-39)

2008 Thinking about Isaiah 53

My goal in these services are twofold. One, to recognize and consider the events of Jesus' death. Two, to prepare for Celebration of the Resurrection.

We can't get to Sunday, without walking through Friday.

May God bless you as you prepare.

Musing About Jonah

2009-03-30T15:18:00.003-05:00

Last night we arrived at Jonah in the Story of God. Here a few thoughts I carried away from the study....

Jonah's desire to flee from the presence of the LORD is mentioned three different times but is shown to be impossible by the storm (and the fish...and plant....and the worm....and the wind).
Even though sailors did not want to throw Jonah overboard, when the storm immediately settled with his expulsion, they did not circle around to pick him back up.
It is not clear when Jonah came to his senses. When the hit the water? When he hit the ocean floor? When he was attacked by a giant fish? Or on the first, second or third day inside the big fish?
Jonah's biggest problem was he did not find the character of God trustworthy(4.2).
Jonah is the only person who can tell this story. He seems conflicted at the end of the story...and it does not seem to have gotten any better by the time he tells his story to others.

If one studies the book to understand Jonah one will be surely disappointed. If we study to discover God, we will be enlightened. Jonah is not about Jonah, it is about God.

But maybe the biggest question to consider is why this mission trip to Nineveh? It seems so out of context with this point of the Biblical narrative. Even in the gospels Jesus is not ready to launch a Gentile mission. There is no other similar Gentile mission in all the Old Testament. What is going on here?

I believe that God wanted to show the Israelites back home that He would forgive. He forgave the Assyrians. He would certainly forgive His own people.

He also wanted to point out that even the horrendous Ninevites were willing to repent. Why wouldn't His own people repent?

Jonah is not about Jonah and the message is not entirely about Nineveh.

Quotable Thursdays

2009-03-26T10:44:00.003-05:00

The internet is abuzz about the new feature here at musings...Quotable Thursdays. QT is a gathering of thoughts I have recently encountered and considered worth remembering. Quotable Thursdays is guaranteed to be published on....some Thursdays.

Lady and Gentleman (a nod to actual audience size) the inaugural QT....

"There is no passivity in the attainment of holiness. "
John Stott

"The important thing about eternal life is not its duration but its quality."
John Stott

"For the witchery of paltry things obscures what it is right."
Wisdom 4:12
(too true for even a Baptist to ignore)

"When you mix religion and politics you get....politics."
Ed Stetzer via twitter

"If the king of England arrogates to himself the right to spew out falsehoods, he gives me the right to stuff them back down his throat."
Martin Luther concerning Henry VIII
(if he didn't so oppose the concept, I think Luther would be the patron saint of the blogosphere)

What have you encountered that was worth remembering?

Why Church Membership Matters

2009-03-24T14:52:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow night, as part of our midweek series 10 Things Every Christian Needs to Know I will be discussing why church membership matters.

When I mentioned the topic on Facebook a friend replied “Do tell. I have never understood why it was that important.”

Here is some of what I shared with my friend. (I think the teaching is much sharper with my friend in mind than just thinking about the Wednesday night crowd at First Baptist Church.)

So why does church membership matter?

To begin with I think church connectedness matters far more than church membership (paperwork). I have always had great people in our church that for whatever reason never "joined" the church but were wonderfully plugged into the full life of the church. I have also had many people join the church and never show up again. (I have never understood that. Why join if you don't plan on coming back?)

Paperwork isn't what matters. (But also a person shouldn't rebel against solely against paperwork either. We have paperwork in a ton of other places where it doesn't seem to bother us.)

Here are the clearest benefits to church connectedness.

* Element of identification.

An active statement that says "That group of people that have had their lives transformed and reordered by Jesus....I am with that group. I am one of them."

* It is where we are best nourished.

Healthy church remains the best place to be taught and encouraged. It is the best place for worship and for sharing the experience of faith with others on the same journey.

* There is a sense of accountability.

In practice this doesn't always happen, but church should be place where other people help keep us on target. If it works for the Biggest Loser, it is probably true in our faith as well. (This is not busy body, but true concern, similar to the kind of concern you would have for your physical brothers and sisters.)

* It keeps our faith from becoming vague.

Being linked to a specific church should both strengthen and deepen our convictions and keep us from just sliding all over the place in our belief structure.

* A few Biblical points.

In the Old Testament the people of God were always being gathered together. Jesus made it His practice to be in the synagogue each week (as did Paul later). When people got saved in Acts, they were "added to their number" and they "met daily".

There is no Biblical example of people expressing their faith in isolation.

What do you think?

Your Best Life Death Now

2009-03-23T05:56:00.001-05:00

"For God's love, good people, let me have more fire!"

It sounds like a typical exhortation for a passionate preacher. But when John Hooper made this cry he was not calling for greater power in preaching or even a better way to live. He was crying for a better way to die.

At the time, he was tied to the stake and the first two attempts at building a fire that would take his life had so far failed miserably. The flames had been enough to consume the lower half of his body, but not enough to take his life. He cried out for more fire to end his torture.

I have been reading about martyrs lately. First, in a book that addressed the reign of Mary I of England. At her ascension to the throne, Catholic Mary made her greatest priority the extinguishing of the young but rapidly growing, vibrant Protestant church in England. Over the course of her nearly four year reign, Mary had nearly 300 Protestants burned at the stake.

I had long known that this type of activity had earned Mary the moniker Bloody Mary, but for some reason it struck closer to heart recently. Mostly, I assume, because the very things that cost these men and women their lives are the very things I do each week as a pastor.

I picked up a rather slim book entitled The Martyrs of Mary Tudor to read more about these men and women.

Today, my call brings me far more respect than I deserve. I am paid generously to do my job, I am invited to pray at public events, people buy my lunch and a local golf course lets me play for free. I wondered how would I react if things were different. I wonder how the church at large would react we lived in those days.

Yet we often complain about how difficult ministry is today. The hours are long. People complain about ridiculous things. Our projects face opposition. I wonder what John Hooper would think. I wonder what our brothers and sisters in Christ who are facing real persecution right now would think.

What would it like to minister if the leading question of our day was not Your Best Life Now, but Your Best Death Now?

Ministers at the Mansion

2009-03-20T07:10:00.001-05:00

"Would you be interested in joining a group of ministers for lunch and an open discussion with Governor Jindal at the Governor's Mansion?"

It was one of the easier questions I had to answer this week.

To be honest I showed up today a little cynical. On one hand my respect for Governor Jindal is very high. Last summer we invited the governor to share his testimony at our church. I had checked with several folks who had assured me that he would not be political and that he would give a strong witness to the work of God in his life.

I was not disappointed. It would have been a powerful word from any anyone....but from the sitting governor of your state....it was amazing! It was the gospel story lived out in one man's life.

Yet I was still cynical today. My experience is the governor is a sincere man. But he is also a strategic man. (He didn't just arrive where he is today by accident.) Over the years I have observed that politicians have been far more effective using the church than the church has been in using politicians.

After the governor spent almost 90 minutes with us today, I am deeply convinced of his sincerity. I am convinced he would rather lose an election than compromise his faith and convictions.

Many at the table pray he never does either.

Which left me with a fresh concern. I can not read the hearts of other men, but I sensed that many heard the same convictions that I heard and saw hope. Not only for our state but may be even for our nation. This may be true. It certainly seems we could do worse!

But as I surveyed the room, twenty pastors and a governor. I could not help but notice the imbalance of power. For so many of the issues addressed, it was us as pastors that had the greatest opportunities for influence. It is the pulpit and the pew (or stool and folding chair) that is most leveraged to change the spiritual climate of our nation.

While the merits of trickle down economics may still be debated, there is no such thing as trickle down faith!

Pastors, may we raise up more men and women with the convictions and courage Bobby Jindal appears to have. Our nation (and our next door neighbor) could really benefit if we did.

Musing about Salt and Light

2009-03-17T09:24:00.005-05:00

I reference the Living Church by John Stott once again in my blog for two reasons. First, it is taking a while for me to read it as I am only reading snippets at a time. Second, Stott’s snippets are better than tons of tomes by most other writers.

In a chapter entitled, “Impact” Stott gives four very brief implications of the call to be salt and light. He addresses salt and light as both an evangelistic impact and a cultural impact.

1. Christians are radically different from non-Christians.

No one confuses light with darkness or preserved food with rotting meat.

2. Christians must permeate non-Christian society.

And do it more effectively than a mouse permeates a cat!

3. Christians can influence and change non-Christian society.

Retired Berkeley professor, Robert Bellah says that "the quality of a culture can be changed when 2% of its people have a new vision."

4. Christians must retain their Christian distinctiveness.

This is demonstrated through greater righteousness (Matthew 5:20), wider love (Matthew 5:43-44) and nobler ambition (Matthew 6:31-34).

May your community be different because of His church this week.

New Church Logo

2009-03-16T09:57:00.003-05:00

Turns Out "Chairs" Aren't a Spiritual Gift

2009-03-16T09:00:00.000-05:00

I have a problem.

My name is Tim and I often pay way too much attention to the wrong details. This revelation was reinforced this week as I helped my wife set up a classroom in the church for her breakout session at our Women's Conference.

For whatever reason, I take pride in my ability to lay out a room. (I think it is the old church planter in me.) I have learned that as many people as possible need to be able see other people in the room. Rows need to be staggered so that optimum eye contact can be maintained between speaker and audience. Space between chairs and rows must be properly configured. Wider is always better than longer.

As I explained to my wife (who seemed to have some doubts at the time) "I have the spiritual gift of chairs!"

But alas, there is no such thing as a gifts of "chairs."

Not a single person has ever been reached for the kingdom because of my chair designs. I think as a pastor I can spend way too much attention on these kind of details because they are things I can control. Chairs will go exactly where I want them to and when I finish they look so good!

That is a rare experience in ministry. So, I spend time on chairs and bulletin layouts and powerpoint presentations and church logos (our new one looks pretty good by the way) and colors for church polo shirts and even perfect phrasing for particular proclamation points.

But that is not really where ministry happens. Ministry is always much messier and far more intangible. It is connecting people with God's revealed truth and helping those connections take root.

Ministry is about the people who invariably come in and mess up my chairs anyhow.

Funeral Directors and Funeral Ministry

2009-03-14T07:54:00.005-05:00

I received a call earlier this week that the family was being called to the nursing home as it did not appear Mr. Young was going make it much longer. By the time I arrived he had indeed passed away.

Mr. Young was the lead funeral director at one of our town's funeral homes. Over 15 plus years as pastor I have worked with many funeral directors. My relationship with these men and women has always been good. They have always been extremely courteous and helpful over the years, both to the grieving families and to the officiating minister. (Except the one that drove me to the cemetary and then left without me. It wasn't a long walk...but still. I mean, my stuff was still in his car.)

I am particularly grateful for the first couple of funeral directors I worked with in Fort Lauderdale when I had absolutely no idea what I was doing.

I remember the first time I worked with Mr. Young, being deeply impressed with the dignity and warmth he brought to his work. I found out later that his wife was an inactive member of our church.

What surprised me was when I arrived at the nursing home was that even when the family patriarch is a funeral director, families can be completely unprepared for death. I was surprised how much my presence meant to the family. Even though his wife has not been in our church in a long time, I was introduced around the room as "my pastor." My ministry that day was enhanced by a couple of prior visits to the hospital and nursing home to see Mr. Young.

Driving back to town I wondered about the hour and a half this visit had consumed of my day. There are those who try to tell us that effective pastors have more important things to do than these kind of visits.

To be honest I really haven't found many more important ministries than caring for people and seeking to bring God's presence into their lives. How about you?

Operators are standing by!

2009-03-03T10:24:00.005-06:00

Admit it. There are times that you are tempted to reach for the phone during an infomercial. You didn't even plan to watch it, but you got distracted and before you know it you are watching an infomercial. You know you should likely change the channel (or better yet turn off the tv). But just between you and me, you are fascinated.

The featured product does truly look easy to use. And wow, it is versatile! And clean up certainly does appear to be a snap. And it would seem you would certainly be healthier, wealthier, more attractive and more popular if you made those three easy payments.

In looking ahead to this week's Explore the Bible Sunday School lesson, I am convinced that God would make really crummy infomercials. The mantra of the infomercial is "this is easy, this is effortless". God's message is far more often, this is going to be difficult.

Consider Isaiah's call in chapter 6. God asks who will go for us? Isaiah volunteers. To which God then describes one of the least appealing life missions in history.

"Preach till they can't/won't listen anymore. Then wait for your beloved nation to be a pile of ruins."

Operators are standing by.

Make no mistake God is good. (All the time, in fact.) But our preaching and teaching should never be confused with infomercials. Isaiah learned that. And so should we.

John Stott Musing About Ministry

2009-02-27T10:12:00.000-06:00

A few more words from The Living Church by John Stott.....

Discussing Acts 20:28 Stott addresses ministry to the sometimes more difficult people we encounter, in his words the unlovable.

Only, I think, by remembering how precious they are. They are so valuable that the three persons of the Trinity are together involved in caring for them. I find it very challenging, when trying to help a difficult person, to say under my breath: "How precious you are in God's sight! God the Father loves you. Christ died for you. The Holy Spirit has appointed me your pastor. As the three persons of the Trinity are committed to your welfare, it is a privilege for me to serve you."

I must admit that are not always my first thoughts in those moments. But in those moments my call must impact my character.

New Midweek Teaching Series -- Ten Things Every Christian Should Know

2009-02-26T09:05:00.005-06:00

Here is a new teaching series I began last night. We had a great time covering early church history. Quite a few folks had notebooks out and were really into it.

Ten Things Every Christian Should Know
Midweek @ First
Spring 2009

o Where did the Church come from?

o Where did denominations come from?

o How do I choose the right Bible?

o Why should I give money to the church?

o How do I share my faith story?

o Why does church membership matter?

o What does the Lord Supper mean?

o What does baptism stand for?

o What happens when we die?

o What are the signs of a false church or a cult?

o Where did the Bible come from?

Books I'm Reading -- The Living Church

2009-02-25T09:06:00.004-06:00

I am currently reading The Living Church by John Stott. I appreciate the subtitle -- Convictions of a Lifelong Pastor. (I am far more interested in what he is certain of than the things he may still be wondering about. I am grateful to read about his convictions.)

A couple of things struck me today from his chapter on evangelism. Stott borrows a concept from Alec Vidler called "holy worldliness". By creating this unlikely pairing of words the church is challenged to remain true to set aside to God and at the same time to be sent out amongst a world that rejects that very God. The church must be both things.

This is particularly probing for me in this week, as I have just passed a second Mardi Gras in the community that I minister in. Our small town has achieved some notoriety for its distinct brand of revelry. The question before us is how do we express "holy worldliness" in this setting?

Maybe some of that answer comes from another quote in the chapter. This one comes from John Poulton. "Christians....need to look like what they are talking about." The one key to "holy worldliness" is the authentic and consistent faith of those who believe.

May our ministries grow and model these kind of Christians.

Musing about Mark 2:5

2009-02-20T22:17:00.006-06:00

This Sunday, I continue in the sermon series entitled Mark(ed) by the Gospel with the opening section of Mark 2. I have always enjoyed this particular passage for it surprises and the vividness of its narrative. I still remember a sermon that Charles Roesel preached on this passage during a chapel service when I was at NOBTS.

In my study this week I have been trying to understand the theological implications about Jesus' announcing the forgiveness of the man's sins. The man does not ask for this forgiveness. There is no direct evidence in the text that this was on the man's mind. In fact, we know less about this man's faith and thoughts than anyone else in the text.

Are we to make assumptions about this man's heart based on Jesus' response? Or do we see this as a time that Jesus' purpose is larger than any other issue in play? Does this teach us anything about the forgiveness of sins or was it simply a unique event with little theological echo? The passage has left me curious.

Yet I feel alone in my curiousity. Out of 5 commentaries, a NT dictionary and my favorite systematic theology, none even began to address these issues.

A few of the commentaries discussed the relationship between sin and disease. But that seems secondary in this passage. The man was clearly not healed when his sins were forgiven. And Jesus Himself makes no particular effort to emphasize this relationship in the text we are provided.

What I do know is 1) that is if Jesus were to fix our greatest need, we would often be surprised by what that was. 2) Sin is a bigger issue than we ever really come to terms with. 3) Jesus is the Son of God.

If you can help with the rest, please let me know!

Books I Am Reading.....Authentic Spiritual Mentoring

2009-02-19T09:40:00.009-06:00

In his book Authentic Spiritual Mentoring, Larry Kreider tells the story of a child who apparently has fallen out of bed during the night. When his parents asks what happened the child replies, "I guess I stayed too close to where I got in."

Unfortunately, that seems to also describe the faith of so many who fill our pews each Sunday morning. Believers, but still not far from the point that they "got in".

With that concern in mind I have been trying to read some books on discipleship. Kreider's book takes a very different approach than the Disciple Making Pastor by Bill Hull that I read earlier this year. While Hull remains skeptical about the efficiency of one on one mentoring, Kreider has built his ministry around those very relationships. (It should be noted that these differences are slightly minimized by the fact that Hull writes specifically to pastors while Kreider addresses a much wider audience. Hull is concerned that mentoring is not the most effective use of a pastor's time. But at the end of the day these are two very different discipleship philosophies.)

For Kreider mentoring is simply the best expression of spiritual parenting. He points to 2 Timothy 2:2 as an example of four generations of believers impacted by proper discipleship. Kreider addresses both the process of finding a mentor and being a mentor. He honestly addresses the challenges and potential pitfalls of mentoring. I particularly enjoyed a chapter entitled "Decision Making Mentoring". This chapter seemed to more about ecclesiology that discipleship, but it was one of the strongest sections I read.

The book provides a wonderful retelling of the Prodigal on pages 97-99. The accountability questions on page 142 while not profound certainly help to ensure that a mentoring relationship covers the ground that matters most.

Personally, I find myself somewhere between Hull and Kreider. I do not feel I should build my ministry primarily on mentoring, but I certainly want to use it more effectively as God leads. I am convinced that mentoring should be part of my pastoral ministry.

Fireproof

2009-02-18T07:34:00.001-06:00

This past Sunday evening our church showed the movie Fireproof. (We paid for the licence to do so here.)

I had actually never seen any of the movies produced by the Sherwood church. I certainly applaud the full use of media to enhance the effectiveness of ministry. But I wondered how discriminating many of the glowing reviews I was continually hearing were. A part of me did not want to be embarrassed by an inferior product that was so closely identified with the cause of Christ.

But for the Valentine's weekend and knowing the constant need to speak to and strengthen the marriages in our church we signed up.

The movie was great!

I was grateful for the manner in which multiple relationship issues were handled and I was impressed with how the gospel was presented. As good as the relationship elements were, I really enjoyed the portrayal of faith in the workplace. In fact, my favorite line in the movie is when Caleb says to his coworker and confidant "about your faith.....I'm in!"

I really would encourage you to find a way to use this in your church in the coming days.

Musing About Negativity

2009-02-17T10:17:00.003-06:00

My inbox this morning contained an email from some ministry vendor (interesting pairing of words) with the following subject "Just When You Feel Like Giving Up".

I can't tell you anymore about the email because I immediately deleted it. I am not sure why a ministry vendor is so certain that such a greeting was sure to resonate with me. Of the thousands of others who received the same email this morning (thanks Yahoo for the spam filtering) there likely were some to whom that connected.

But there were likely just as many who would have responded to a subject title such as "Just When Yourself to Greater Impact" or "Just When You Were Ready to Change the World". So why did they pick the negative? Why cater to gloom?

Some time ago a minister friend made an interesting observation to me. So much of our preaching is directed to the person whose life is falling apart. To the prodigal in the pig pen. But does not the gospel speak to the needs of all people, including the bigwig in the corner office. To the rich young ruler.

I wonder how often we have falsely narrowed the preaching of the gospel by only expecting the Eeyore crowd to be interested. Remember, Jesus is not just better than depression, He is better than success! Ask Zaccheaus. Ask James and John. Ask Paul, Luke and Lydia.

Musing on Weakness

2009-02-16T10:56:00.004-06:00

My apologies for my e-silence over the last couple of weeks. Recent ministry demands and opportunities left little time for any kind of musings, let alone quality coherent ones.

Since we last met, God has shown Himself powerfully in the midst of my weakness and doubt. Our church is in the midst of what to us feels like a fairly large capital giving campaign. The truth is if I could opt out on one area of pastoral ministry and leadership this would be my first, second and third choice.

However, what has been an uncomfortable discovery in these days is that this was not merely a deficiency in my skill sets or even a quirk of my personality. It has been a weakness of my faith.

I consider myself to be a person who is very comfortable believing big things about God and what He wants to do. I have little difficulty trusting God in my own finances. There is no sense believing in a medium sized God capable of only moderately difficult things. Yet Satan seems to have wide open access to my heart and spirit when it comes to financially intensive ministry projects. Over the last few weeks I have felt my heart shrivel in the face of the project. I doubt my church has noticed, but probably my staff has. I know my family has been more aware than they ever wanted to.

We will announce the results of our recent pledge campaign this coming Sunday. We will celebrate God's great work in our midst. And I will be more than a little embarrassed by my doubt and fear in these days.

Yes, in my weakness our Lord will be glorified. For that I am most grateful and totally dependent.

But the question that must be answered is, "will I allow my weakness to be transformed by His glory?" I pray it has been.

Some Political Thoughts...sort of

2009-01-28T22:28:00.006-06:00

Since our quarterly business meeting didn't take very long this evening, I had a few spare moments to fill. Below are some thoughts I shared with my congregations....only after we closed the business session!

I have been disturbed by recent decisions and actions by the new Obama administration. This has caused me to examine my long held position as a political non activist. Should I have been taking a larger role as a cultural warrior? It has not been a good week.

But on the other hand....I spent time listening to Christian radio this week. The shrillness of those voices did nothing to tempt me to "preach in camo" this Sunday. (Though in SW LA that might really do something for church attendance.) Instead my concern only increased. Because now I was concerned about my country and the church!

I worry that the reaction to these so called "obamanations" could truly distract the church from its most important tasks. You see the church is not called to win the culture war or to make the majority moral again. Even if we could ensure a political and legal structure that ensured morality, it would not necessarily draw men and women to Christ.

I fear that our eyes could end up on the wrong prize.

But what do we do about the expansion of abortion on demand? How are we to impact our culture? I am still convinced that Acts 19 holds that key. Witchcraft and idolatry were pushed to the brink of extinction in Ephesus. Not because the right leaders rose to power or new laws were enacted but because the gospel powerfully took hold of lives!

So how should we plug in politically? The follow up discussion about our political role unfolded this conclusion -- we participate and take a stand not to change others, but because we have been changed.

Therefore, I will continue to strive to make the Gospel my only rallying cry. It is the least I can do for my Savior. And it is the most I can do for my country.

Worth Celebrating

2009-01-27T10:18:00.002-06:00

In the midst of a very hectic day last week I was invited to be part of a wedding anniversary celebration. It was a busy day and I wasn't sure I was going to be able to make it.

But when you are invited to a 70th Wedding Anniversary you do everything you can to show up!

Congratulations to Buck and Eula Mae Reeves!

New Sermon Series

2009-01-21T12:00:00.009-06:00

I am excited to begin a new sermon series this coming Sunday morning. Mark has long been my favorite gospel, and I have enjoyed getting reaquainted with it the last few weeks.

This will be a longer series than I typically do on Sunday mornings, but if we get tired of the story of Jesus we are in pretty big trouble!

I hope is that the content of the messages will come close to the artwork our youth minister, Gregg Gilmore put together for the series. The artwork uses wordle.net to give weighted emphasis on the 200 most common words in the Gospel of Mark. We will likely do a fresh image for each chapter as we cover it.

[Note -- Due to it lack of footnotes and verse numbers, The Message was the easiest translation to translate into the word cloud. I am a little disappointed the word "immediately" did not show up in the cloud.]

The Disciplemaking Pastor

2009-01-20T09:09:00.005-06:00

As the year began, I mentioned a few books that I would be trying to work through this year. I have recently completed the first one on my list, The Disciplemaking Pastor by Bill Hull.

I will humbly post a few reflections these books as I finish them. I am a bit tentative to do so as these thoughts will shed more light on my intellectual limitations than anything else. I am embarrassed to share the same internet as Tim Challies, from whom you will find much more beneficial content. But these posts will keep me accountable, so I share them as much for me as for anyone else.

What caught me about Hull's book was his emphasis on leading individuals to full spiritual development instead of being satisfied with sanctuaries filled with middle aged babes in Christ. I want to be part of that process.

In order to accomplish this transformation Hull believes that there must be a complete reimagining of the expectations and roles of churches and ministers, using Ephesians 4 as the northstar for the journey. Pastors must become equippers and members must become ministers. Hull spends the heart of the book describing reorganizations of thought and deed that are needed in the typical church.

The books laser like focus on the ultimate goal of ministry was challenging in the best sense possible. However, I often felt that he focused too much on structure. I felt he too negative in describing typical church leadership as spiritually dead and politically motivated. My fifteen years of experience as a pastor caused me to bristle at these remarks. Yes occasionally, I have come across someone who fit those descriptions, but far more often the lay leaders of my churches have been just as hungry for spiritual growth (in themselves and others) as any of my fellow pastors.

Despite our preoccupations, structure is rarely the leading edge to developing believers to their full spiritual potential. It was when Hull emphasized message and expectations he was at his best and that his book pushed me the most.

On the surface, I liked his discipleship matrix of "come and see", "come and follow", "come and be with me" and "remain in me". But I feared that when he reserves "remain in me" for only the highest layer of discipleship that he has misapplied the core of John 15.

I also wish I had read the first edition instead of this revised edition. In this edition, Hull adds some further reflections which most of the time amounted to preaching the same sermon a second time.

SBC Pastor Takes Family to Disney!

2009-01-15T17:14:00.006-06:00

.....and enjoys every minute of it.

Mondays at Luigi B.G. (on a Friday)

2009-01-10T06:55:00.005-06:00

This week I am away from the office. We have returned to Florida for a long awaited, multi tasking trip. We are on vacation (Disney soon), we are attending a family gathering (siblings and parents in the town my brothers and I grew up in) and we made a brief stop in our former ministry field.

Our short visit in Panama City was rich. Last night we had a wonderful meal with about 40 folks from our former church, including the new pastor and his wife. What a blessing to reconnect with people who meant so much to us!

I also had a chance to have lunch with some dear brothers in ministry. Every Monday our pastors would gather for an above average time of sharing at our associational office and then we would head to the local pizza buffet where things were always guaranteed to get interesting. Not everyone loved Luigi but for me quality pastoral fellowship will always taste like thin crust pizza. Some have moved away and others couldn't make it, but Luigi and the brothers once again did not disappoint.

Musing About Moses' Ministry

2009-01-08T09:59:00.005-06:00

Wednesday evenings we have been slowly working our way through the Book of Numbers. I am beginning to feel that we have spent more time in Numbers than the Israelites did! (To make matters worse several church members have been grumbling saying it would have been better to have died in Egypt than continue this study.) I jest....mostly.

Last night we looked at Numbers 20, the episode where Moses strikes the rock instead of speaking to the rock, whereby losing the privilege of leading the people into the Promised Land. The discussion was quite lively as several folks speculated exactly what had been Moses great sin and why it mattered so much. It seems to be one of those passages we are just drawn to trying to fill in the blanks.

From a ministry point of view, what caught me was despite Moses' disobedience/lack of faith/anger/over identification with God the rock brought forth water. The people and their livestock were provided for. A miracle occurred. To the naked eye, you would not even notice a problem. But God did.

I wonder how often God works in spite of me. How often do I strut around as if I accomplished something noteworthy when God was really just working around me! How often I have pointed to results to validate my ministry when in reality it was just me making noise?

May my obedience increase. May my pride be adjusted. May I remain useful to the Master.

Story of God (Continued)

2009-01-04T21:37:00.008-06:00

Just wanted to provide an update on our Sunday night sermon series, the Story of God. The series was inspired by the concept of chronological Bible storying.

I wanted to introduce our folks to this ministry strategy that is used so prevalently by missionaries and nationals around the world. I also thought that we had quite a few in our church that would benefit from this narrative overview of God's Word.

So this past September we launched the Story of God series with the plan to go from "one end of the Bible to the other" in the current school year.

This evening we covered the Judges. This sentence addresses one of the major difficulties of the series. We are covering huge chunks at a time! Following the service I received a compliment that made me cringe. "I love how you can preach through the entire Bible without even opening your Bible."

It is true, our overview of Judges covered so much ground this evening, we never landed actually landed in a particular text. I felt guilt the entire evening (which the previous comment only intensified).

If I have a defense, it is that CBS is designed for nonliterate or low literate cultures. The nature of the approach is by definition storytelling. It is not designed for verse by verse exposition.

And I do feel that there are at least a handful of people who are feeling the pieces come together as we move through the Story of God.

Yet, did I really preach if I never opened my Bible?

Books for the New Year

2009-01-01T20:57:00.005-06:00

Just this week, a good pastor friend asked me if I had any books on my reading horizon for the coming year. At the time, I did not have anything in mind.

But a quick trip (my family might say not so quick trip) to the somewhat local Christian bookstore can fix that rather easily. It is unlikely I will match my kids in their reading this coming year, but here goes.

The books that found themselves in my cart today centered on two areas of ministry that is on my heart this year.

First, I am thinking about discipleship. This has been an area of my library that is actually quite thin so I look forward to some time thinking about this critical aspect of ministry.

I hope to be reading The Disciplemaking Pastor by Bill Hull and Authentic Spiritual Mentoring by Larry Kreider. I love the subtitle of the second book, "nurturing younger believers toward spiritual maturity". Sign me up!

Second, I am hoping to lead our church to have a greater spiritual impact on our community. As one of the stronger evangelical churches in our small town, I really want to see our church take some leadership in this area.

I am looking to the following books to sharpen my thoughts in this area. The Church of Irrestistible Influence by Robert Lewis (with Rob Wilkins), a small book by Group entitled Field Guide to Neighborhood Outreach and what appears to be a fairly new release The Most Loving Place in Town (A Modern Day Parable for the Church) by Ken Blanchard and Phil Hodges.

I picked up one other book, The Living Church by John Stott. Again it was the subtitle that got me, "convictions of a lifelong pastor". When that lifelong pastor is the leading evangelical mind of the second half of the twentieth century (sorry about that Mohlerites) I am interested.

Now, if I could only get on the same kind of schedule my kids have, I might get these all read in a reasonable time. (I can tell you from reading his first chapter, Stott still has it.)

So, what is on your reading horizon?

Ear Tickling at Its Best...and Worst

2009-01-01T18:08:00.003-06:00

On the road the other day, I came across a radio preacher expounding how much God wants to bless you. I mean, God really really wants to bless you. After all, he explained

"your God is not El-Get By, He is El-Shaddai!"

It would be such great preaching....except the part about it being completely opposite the teaching of Scripture.

10I rejoiced in the Lord greatly that now at length you have revived your
concern for me. You were indeed concerned for me, but you had no opportunity.
11Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever
situation I am to be content. 12I know how to be brought low, and I know how to
abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing
plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13I can do all things through him who
strengthens me. Philippians 4.10-13 (ESV)

It seems Paul saw the El-Shaddai in the "barely getting by". Doesn't have the same rhetorical ring, but does have the small benefit of being Inspired Truth.

Christmas Message for Local Paper

2008-12-24T10:33:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas….from one small town to another!

Apart from the poetic inklings of popular Christmas carols, we do not know exactly what size a town Bethlehem was the night Jesus was born. We do get the distinct impression that it was not a large place. (This is reinforced by the fact we read very little about Bethlehem outside of Scripture, despite its rich history.) Quite likely, it was a small town.

But when you think about it, when you are the Creator God of a limitless universe….aren’t all towns small? From Beijing to Basile, from New York to Eunice, from Rio to Mamou, they are all tiny spots on the wall map of the cosmos.

But God came there.

From the beginning of time, people have gone to great lengths in an effort to ensure that when they die they will go to heaven. But long ago, Jesus did the unthinkable. He left heaven so He could come and die!

And God comes here.

It is our smallness, coupled with God’s greatness that stands at the heart of the wonder of Christmas. It is incredible to consider that on this Christmas Day, God is aware of your life. Even as you read this newspaper, you are in His heart. Unseen by the masses, you are known by the Master.

The angel informed Mary that her child would be known as Immanuel, that is “God with us”. God could no longer be considered far off, a distant figure from history, an unrelatable force. God had come to the small places and moved in.

This Christmas, through Jesus Christ may you experience God’s nearness, may you celebrate His coming and may you be transformed by His presence.

Because God is still here!

If you like ministry doom and gloom.....

2008-12-21T21:36:00.003-06:00

then you will love this story about church attendance in England. According to a report by Christian Research, church attendance will decline by 90% by 2050.

Do you think that is possible? Is this a clarion call for the church to change or evidence the church has changed too much? How does your eschatology fit into this report and how does this report fit into your eschatology?

Personally I find myself living between Romans 1:16 and Matthew 7:13. The unstoppable gospel that is the timeless power of God unto salvation and the truth that more people will walk away from that precious gospel than we care to think about.

The exact narrowness and wideness of those ways will vary from time to time. I don't know what the year 2050 will hold (I have a hard time getting past next Sunday), but I do know the gospel will not expire and the path will never be empty.

And that is really all I need to know about the future.

5 Loaves 2 Fish 5K Update

2008-12-19T18:29:00.003-06:00

I am excited to share that we have arranged for 2007 NCAA DI XC National Champ Josh McDougal to be part of our church's 5K.

The race will be held in lovely Eunice, LA on Valentine's Day 2009. All proceeds go to our local Relay for Life (American Cancer Society). Josh will be sharing his story and describing how fits into his life and his running.

For more info go to the race section of our church website.

Merry Christmas Neighbor

2008-12-18T10:20:00.005-06:00

Here is a Christmas postcard our church mailed out every residence in our local zipcode (only 6200 addresses). On the day it arrived we had several folks call the church to thank us for the card.

Of course, we could have gone all out and thrown the entire town a Christmas parade! (Great job FBC Osprey! Loved the pictures here.)

Merry Xmas

2008-12-15T08:41:00.000-06:00

Merry Xmas!

As Christmas greetings go, none has the ability to make a believer’s blood boil more than this one. But truth be told, it has been a while since I have seen this greeting used. The impression that I get is that was a very badly received experiment that seems to have gone away.

The origins of this experiment are not quite clear. Many have felt that it was yet another attempt to secularize the holiday. Or to put it more plainly, to take Christ out of Christmas. It is important to remember that folks have been very honest when explaining their preference for “Happy Holidays” by saying it speaks to the time of year without affirming the Christian holiday. However, I have never heard an equivalent confession concerning Merry Xmas.

As unpopular as it may be, the X in Xmas has a couple of very significant origins. First it is true that the Greek name of Christ, kristos (meaning Anointed One), was abbreviated to X. You see that in the famous Christian fish symbol which was made by combining the first letters from the Greek words Jesus Christ, God’s Son is Savior. The resulting letters (including X for Christ) spelt the word fish.

The second important faith origin is that the X also represents the cross. Bethlehem doesn’t matter nearly as much without Calvary and its cross. Without the cross, it is an amazing story, but it doesn’t really make a difference in my life today.

This one letter powerfully proclaims not only the person of Christmas but also the purpose of the Christ. Now, I don’t really know the motives of those prefer Merry Xmas, and I don’t plan on making it my greeting of choice….but for reminding me of the cross in this season, I am grateful for it.

May your journey to the manger include a glimpse of the cross this year.

C.S. Lewis' musing about ministry.....

2008-12-13T08:30:00.003-06:00

I came across this quote on JD Greers' blog yesterday. It may be my new favorite ministry thought of all time.

C. S. Lewis, called by many to be the most original expounder of Christianity in the 20th, once said something like, "I never really cared a wit about saying anything new or original, just to be as clear as I could on what Christians have always believed. Somehow that sounded original."

Jim Elliot's musings about ministry...

2008-12-12T10:26:00.006-06:00

I have recently finished reading Shadow of the Almighty by Elisabeth Elliot. The book is primarily the journals and letters of Elliot's missionary martyr husband, Jim Elliot. Elliot lost his life along with four other missionaries attempting to make contact with an unreached Amazon tribe in 1956.

Out of that context, comes Elliot's best remembered quote

He is no fool who gives that which he cannot keep to gain what he cannot
lost.

The fact that was written several years before his death makes it all the more profound. But in reading the Shadow of Almighty I was moved by several other passages in the book.

In addressing his parent's potential grief over both their sons' call to foreign missions Elliot wrote the following words

Grieve not then, if your sons seem to desert you, but rejoice, rather, seeing
the will of God done gladly. Remember how the Psalmist described children? He said that they were as an heritage from the Lord, and that every man should be happy who had his quiver full of them. And what is a quiver full of but arrows? And what are arrows for but to shoot? So, with the strong arms of prayer, draw the bowstring back and the let arrows fly -- all of them, straight at the Enemy's hosts.

On his struggles with sharing the truth of the gospel in new languages, he states

...the statement of truth is regarded as 'too deep', to difficult to express in Quichua, which is such a simple language. Still, it is better to try to make them understand, in order that they may know what they are rejecting, than it is, by pressing the acceptance more than the understanding, to allow them to accept something they do not understand.

At another point he writes in his journal

How well I see now that He is wanting to do something in me! So many missionaries, intent on doing something, forget that His main work is to make something of them, not just to do a work by their stiff and bungling fingers. Teach me, Lord Jesus, to live simply and love purely, like a child, and to know that You are unchanged in Your attitudes and actions toward me. Give me not to be hungering for the 'strange, rare and peculiar' when the common, ordinary, and regular -- rightly taken -- will suffice to feed and satisfy the soul. Bring struggle when I need it; take away ease at Your pleasure.

May God stir you deeply as you head into a strong weekend of ministry.

Followers Who Lead

2008-12-11T08:35:00.005-06:00

Several years ago there was an email forward going around that claimed to contain the questions from a turn of the century 8th grade final examination. To the average person (and even the above average person) the exam was frightening in its level of difficulty. The point of the email is to marvel at how expectations have fallen over the years.

1 Thessalonians 5.14-22 serves a similar role.

14 And we urge you, brothers, admonish the idle, [3] encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with them all. 15 See that no one repays anyone evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to everyone. 16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of
God in Christ Jesus for you. 19 Do not quench the Spirit. 20 Do not despise prophecies, 21 but test everything; hold fast what is good. 22 Abstain from every
form of evil.

As I ponder those expectations, my response is "what a strong challenge for spiritual leaders." But then I realize that based on vv. 12-13, these are not the expectations for the leaders but for the typical believer. These are things those under leadership should be doing.

The typical believer in our church should be pouring thier lives into others, holding each other accountable and having a stake in the growth of those around them.

Let us be challenged to keep expectations high...for ourselves and for those around us.

Season's Greetings

2008-12-08T09:02:00.000-06:00

Season’s Greetings!

As I think about holiday phrases, I don’t know if anyone has ever said “Season’s Greetings” to me in person. I see it on everywhere -- signs, greeting cards, newspaper ads and television announcements. But I don’t remember anyone actually ever saying it.

At some point in the past it was discovered to be a rather safe, nondenominational, multifaith holiday phrase….even if it doesn’t quite roll off the tongue.

But did you know that the “original” season’s greetings seemed hardly safe. Notice the following reactions.

Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him....When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear…

God sent the angel Gabriel...to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph…the virgin's name was Mary. The angel went to her and said, "Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you." Mary was greatly troubled at his words…

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby…an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified…

These “season’s greetings” were powerful events. They reveal at least three things, which are still true today.

1. A greeting from God is a big deal.
2. Despite the initial fear, the greetings bring the best news ever.
3. There was an expected response from the hearer of the greeting.

Next time we see (or maybe even hear) “Season’s Greetings”, remember those words are far from harmless. It reminds us that God is up to something!

How is a Pastor to Relate?

2008-12-04T08:40:00.003-06:00

Pal? Regular Guy? All Round Go To Person?

Over the years I have noticed many pastoral expectations. Some want their pastor to be their best friend. I remember a pastor from my home church being enthusiastically being introduced as "a guy if you met him in a paint store you wouldn't even know he was a pastor!" Others see their pastor as someone who is on call for whatever need may arise in thier life -- giving them a ride across town, sitting with an elderly family member or putting up storm shutters at the last minute.

These approaches just always seemed a little empty to me. They remind me of the NFL/United Way commercials where football players walk old ladies across the street and read books to a stadium full of children. Nice, but not exactly a calling.

In 1 Thessalonians 2 Paul paints three pictures of a minister's relationship to his flock. Like a nursing mother, they are gentle, taking care of their children. (v. 7) Like a father, they exhort, encourage and charge their children to walk in a manner worthy of God. (vv. 11-12) And like a brother, they share the same journey. (vv. 1, 9, 14)

Now those are things that are worth spending a life on.

One last way Paul relates in chapter 2. He says the church in Thessalonica is his "hope and joy and crown of boasting" They are his glory and joy. (vv. 19-20)

This Sunday take a good look at your congregation....they are your crown of boasting!

Not sure there is much boast there? What they likely need is a nurturing mother, an exhorting father and an understanding brother.

Undampened Spirits -- 1 Thessalonians 2

2008-12-02T10:07:00.007-06:00

These were weary days for the ministry team of Paul, Silas and Timothy. They had already suffered much and been severely mistreated in Philippi.

Preaching brought pain. Preaching brought rejection. Preaching brought discouragement. Preaching brought beatings and prison. While Paul had never heard of Pavlov and his puppies, Paul and company were in danger of being negatively conditioned.

One would understand if Paul became slightly less excited about preaching....or at least kept a low profile for a spell.

But as he walked into Thessalonica, Paul remembers they "had boldness in God to declare to you the gospel". As a result the kingdom was expanded and lives were changed.

It is quite possible you are in some weary days yourself. Your ministry efforts have not gone the way you wanted or felt they should. Your words have at times been rejected, ignored and sometimes opposed. To be honest, your passion for your call seems a little damp.

But let me assure, there are some Thessalonians who await your ministry today. May you find boldness in God today. It will not be in vain!

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-01T07:33:00.000-06:00

In honor of that great Christmas tradition of complaining about chain store greetings I offer these thoughts from an old news letter article I wrote.

Happy Holidays!

I never knew that such a friendly greeting could be so controversial. I do understand some of the frustration. After all, if someone doesn’t want to celebrate Christmas then they should not worry about it and just get back to work. We are tempted to say celebrate or don’t celebrate, but don’t try to change what Christmas means.

But after further review, it wouldn’t really be such a terrible thing if the chaos of Target, Wal-mart and the mall were separated from this Sacred Season. Maybe these marketers have done for us what we should have done for ourselves long ago.

Instead of taking offense at these Merry Christmas alternatives, I would encourage you to notice that even these alternatives contain unmistakable Christian messages.

Take “happy holidays” for instance. What is really being said here is a recognition that these are Holy Days.

I could not agree more. At Christmas we celebrate that before the beginning of time God selected a specific day for His Son to enter this world, to be born of the virgin Mary. He planned the persons, the time and the place for this great event. To say the least it was a day long circled on heaven’s calendar.

And do not forget that God knows just as much about this day (today) as He did of the day Jesus was born. He knows the persons, the time and the place you are surrounded by right now. And He certainly has a plan for today!

Yes, these certainly are happy holy-days indeed! I hope someone reminds you of that today.

The Essence of Ministry

2008-11-28T09:08:00.001-06:00

As Paul, along with Silas and Timothy, opens his letter to the Thessalonian church he addresses the minister's call at its simplest and most profound point.

"You know what kind of men we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord....." (1 Thessalonians 1:5b-6a).

For all the plethora of strategies, programs and models the church has ever developed none have improved on this approach. Live in such a way that people will have cause to copy you. Live in such a way that when they copy you, they will be copying Christ!

In other words, spend less time adapting your life to relate to people and spend more time adapting your life to Christ. When as ministers we do that publically, transformation occurs. Evangelism happens. Discipleship unfolds.

It means our public ministry is born in our private faith.

The Thanksgiving Pastor

2008-11-26T09:04:00.004-06:00

"We give thanks to God always for all of you, constantly mentioning you in our prayers, remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ."

1 Thessalonians 1:2-3 (ESV)

May it be so in your ministry.

A Thanksgiving Message

2008-11-24T14:32:00.003-06:00

Giving Thanks Like Jesus

The Pilgrims provide a great model for our Thanksgiving season. But there is one that is even greater. Let us examine how Jesus gave thanks.

Mark 6:35-44
Mark 8:1-9
John 11:38-44
Mark 14:22-25

1. Notice that Jesus gave thanks on the "unfinished side".

He gave thanks before anything had ever happened. Still had only a handful of food, Lazarus was still dead. Yet He gave thanks.

Now you may say, that is because He knew what was about to happen. Think about the things we know.

Hebrews 13:5

Matthew 7:9-12

Romans 8:28

We have plenty of cause to give thanks on the "unfinished side".

2. Jesus gave thanks at all times.

Jesus stood before massive crowds of hungry people a couple of fries short of a Happy Meal....and He gave thanks.

Where is the strangest place you have ever given thanks?

3. Jesus gave thanks in even the most difficult situations.

In the upper room, knowing exactly what stood before Him, Jesus gave thanks for the very symbols of His upcoming anguish. (The scene that follows in the Garden gives a glimpse into what must have been on His mind in those moments.)

Too often, he state that "God is good....the test results came back negative." The truth is God is good no matter what the test results say!

May we learn to be thankful in even the darkest moments.

Paul summarized the Jesus way of thanksgiving in Philippians 4:6

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Musing about Mueller (and prayer)

2008-11-20T07:45:00.006-06:00

George Mueller (Muller) is remembered as one of history's great men of faith. A German who came to England to do mission work among Jews, became a pastor best known for the establishment of five huge orphanages in Bristol.

I have recently finished reading George Muller, Delighted in God by Roger Steer.

The need for orphanages was profound in 19th century Britain as the child in need could not get placed without a sponsor. Street children rarely had sponsors. But Mueller saw an even greater need.

He would establish the orphanages in manner that had no alternative but to bring glory to God and to prove His power. With that in mind, he would never ask a single person for any support other than God Himself. In fact, he would not schedule any reports or speaking engagements when needs were great for concern he would have to give an honest answer about current situations and appear to be soliciting funds.

As long as he had God, he had no concerns.

I remain theologically perplexed by Mueller at times. I do not understand how our prayers move God. I do not know how he could be so certain that everything he prayed for was in the will of God to provide. Certainly, the provision of meals was an easy prayer, but the great expansions of ministry could not have been so obvious.

But there is something wonderful that in the face of great difficulties Mueller had no other strategy than prayer. Just a plan to take his needs before God and leave them there. Trusting God to do what was best. Oh, we need more of that!

A favorite Mueller story comes from a trans Atlantic voyage that was being delayed by fog. Mueller told the captain that he could not be late for his speaking engagements in America so they should pray for the fog to lift. Mueller prayed and the somewhat rattled captain was about to also pray when Mueller stopped him.

"Do not pray. First, you don't believe He will answer; and second, I believe He has and there is no need whatever for you to pray about it."

The fogged lifted moments later.

May we pray like you believe it. May we pray like we have no other resource.

Note -- My mother's first job out of school was working in the Mueller orphanages in Bristol.

Jezebel and Judas On the Trail of the Preacher

2008-11-18T10:00:00.006-06:00

Few names carry darker overtones than Jezebel and Judas. One was the epitome of sinister and ruthless evil. The other history's most despicable traitor.

So when Adolph Bedsole in his book The Pastor in Profile turns his attention to the fact that pastors often have to deal with folks who seem to be at least second cousins to this pair, the reader is tempted to sit back and relax while the boom is lowered on these ne'er do wells who so often hinder our ministries.

Reader beware! Bedsole's conclusion is that every pastor needs a Judas and Jezebel on his trail. It is his perspective that these difficult people keep us on our toes, require us to stay sharp, grow our humility, challenge us to stay pure and push us to our knees.

Having pastored Bedsole's church a few decades after his retirement I heard many of the stories of the Judas and Jezebels of his ministry....and even met a few myself.

His advice continues to ring true today --

1. Watch your step.

2. Leave disciple to the church.

3. Learn how to take it.

4. Keep your own soul.

5. Stay off the defensive.

6. Stay after the lost.

Don't be tripped up by difficult people in your ministry. If I may add my own observation, Elijah's and Jesus' ministry would have been smaller not greater without these two.

Louisiana Baptist Convention Report #2

2008-11-11T19:26:00.007-06:00

The morning began with a great run down St. Charles Avenue, but that wasn't really part of the Convention.

My observations from the official proceedings included --

1. NOBTS President Chuck Kelley's teaching from Romans 8 continued to be strong. This morning, he did a fantastic job on the section that we usually run past in the passage (v. 36). Trouble will come, but the trouble is weak compared to Christ!

2. The exhibit hall featured significantly above average food...fresh cinnamon rolls, Krispy Kreme donuts and beignets! New Orleans can't help but be New Orleans.

3. Nobody seemed to have a vibrate or silent setting on their phones. Considering that the majority of the persons in the room were preachers who get really aggravated by cell phone interruptions in church, it was amazing how many phones continued to ring throughout the morning.

4. US Senator David Vitter was recognized from the platform and greeted by strong applause. I am still stumped by this.

5. David Crosby, host pastor for the annual meeting delivered the Convention sermon. Preaching powerfully from 1 John 3, Dr. Crosby reminded us that "words alone can not carry the full freight of the gospel". The aftermath of Katrina has demanded a more complete approach to the proclamation of the gospel that includes both word and deed. When people ask him if the city is back to where it used to be, Dr. Crosby's response is that "we don't ever want to be back to where we used to be!"

Regardless of what our story has been the last few years, shouldn't that be our response too. We don't ever want to go back to where we used to be. May God continue to grow His people and His kingdom in Louisiana.

Louisiana Baptist Convention Report #1

2008-11-10T21:46:00.005-06:00

Since it was this year's SBC annual meeting that really first introduced me to the world of Southern Baptist bloggers it seems only appropriate that I take a few moments to reflect on the opening session of my home state's annual meeting.

Some simple observations from tonights proceedings held at the First Baptist Church of New Orleans.

1. FBC New Orleans is a beautiful facility. I attended FBCNO a couple of times back in my seminary days at its old facility in the Garden District, but I am impressed by what I have seen of their "new" campus.

2. LBC Exec. Director, David Hankins introduced a new evangelism emphasis to the convention this year. This is certainly not news as nearly every convention I have ever attended introduced a new evangelism strategy (yet lostness grows and grows....but that is a topic for another post). What is different is the theme of this emphasis is "sharing the blessing of peace." Evangelism as a gift of peace. There is something right about this.

3. The Louisiana College choir and ensemble did a fantastic job. Easily the highlight of the evening. I had heard the ensemble at the SBC in Indy and felt they were far superior to most of the other music (which included the Gaithers, though the Gettys were tough to beat.) I would like to schedule The Voices of Louisiana College for our church in the upcoming months.

4. Much was made about meeting in New Orleans this week. Needs were restated, visions were recast, commitments were renewed. For a person who has lived in this city and loved this city it was quite meaningful. But I also know, the people of my church feel very distant from New Orleans and would like to be even more distant if it were possible.

Why do Southern Baptists struggle with big cities this way? In the last state convention I was part of, the convention ceased to schedule annual meetings in Miami. It was not that the convention leadership did not care about the city, it was just that the rest of the state's response to it largest, most urban city was such that there was fear they would not even have a quorum for business.

At least we still meeting in New Orleans. And for this year at least, people have come.

[Note the SBC has worked hard to avoid returning their annual meeting to this significant city. It was suggested that efforts are being made for the 2012 meeting. I pray that comes to fruition. If the city can host the Superbowl and BCS championships, the people of God ought to be able to show as well!]

A Prayer for Pastors

2008-11-07T08:08:00.000-06:00

Heavenly Father,

We ask for the very thing you most desire....that people would know you and love you more. That their lives might be fully given to You and lived for You. May we measure our ministries and our churches by this definition alone.

Show us how we can be useful in that process. Give us the words, the spirit and the deeds that will draw people to You.

Amen

The Pastor in Profile

2008-11-06T07:36:00.005-06:00

The Pastor in Profile is one of my favorite books in my ministry library. Part of what makes it special to me is that it was written by a former pastor of my former church. When Adolph Bedsole became the pastor of the Immanuel Baptist Church in Panama City, they had never had a pastor stay longer than two years. He stayed for thirty six.

I became pastor twenty five years after he retired. But his fingerprints remained all over the church and throughout the community. In many ways my job was easier because I followed in his gracious footsteps. Quiet conversations with Bro. Bedsole in my office and in his home were some of the treasures of that season of ministry. I was humbled to be asked to have a part in his funeral.

But the book has more than sentimental value. Published in 1962, it remains full of wonderful, practical wisdom that has held up over the passage of time.

Here are some warnings he gives to young preachers in the opening chapter.

1. Be careful not to have an unduly exalted opinion of yourself.
2. Avoid the assumption of disparaging attitude to other preachers.
3. Don't allow yourself to become a tool of glory seeking "oldsters".
4. Do not look for conflict just to make a point.
5. Beware the desire to "clean out the church."
6. Refrain from the temptation of making dogmatic pronouncements.
7. Guard against become a copycat preacher.
8. Don't swayed by every wind of doctrine.

Examining my own heart as I reread this list has convinced me that I must still be a young preacher.

Next week, I will share highlights from one of my favorite chapters from the book -- Jezebel and Judas on the Trail of the Preacher!

Jeremiah 49 -- False Security

2008-11-05T06:55:00.002-06:00

In the midst of the judgments on the nations, I was caught by a particular verse.

Rise up, advance against a nation at ease, that dwells securely, declares the
LORD, that has no gates or bars, that dwells alone. Jeremiah
49:31 ESV

It reminded me of my family growing up. We locked the door of our house only if we were going on vacation....for more than five days. Remarkably, we were never robbed. (Likely because once inside our home, a thief would have been more likely to feel sorry for us than to rob us.) But regardless, it was an incredibly vulnerable way to live. Danger was so close, despite the fact we ignored it.

The people of Jeremiah 49:31 feel safe and at ease. No gates, no bars, no worries. But the judgment of God is coming. I can think of few better descriptions of so much of our world today. The world continually whispers in their ears that they are safe and secure. "You are doing just fine, we all are in fact. Don't worry."

Yet a very real judgment awaits.

It reminds me of the old definition of preaching -- to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. May God use me to do both this week.

Jeremiah 49 -- A Question Answered

2008-11-03T10:39:00.003-06:00

I must confess, I find the judgement on the nations in the later chapters of Jeremiah a bit difficult to read. I miss the vivid narrative anchors of the story of the earlier chapters. I search in vain for easily relatable characters.

But obviously, the chapters matter. They address the inevitable question of the survivors of God's judgment on Jerusalem.

What about them?

On the surface, Israel and Judah's behavior seems no worse than any of their surrounding neighbors. Yet they alone have faced severe judgment.

Now, the first truth is that the neighbors had not rejected their covenant relationship with God. Because Israel had more, they were held more accountable. But secondly, these chapters reveal that all the other nations will be held accountable as well. Their rebellion, their false worship, their antagonism against God's people would not be forgotten.

These chapters also remind us that God is LORD of all. Not just Israel, not just Judah. But all the nations stand before God. They are lifted by His hand. They will be brought down by His hand.

Yes, He is LORD of all. Thanks for asking.

A Prayer for Worship Leaders

2008-10-31T14:55:00.005-05:00

Heavenly Father

I ask for a strong awareness of your presence in our corporate worship this Sunday. May our day be filled with anticipation and bereft of distractions. May we bring into worship the very parts of our lives that most need a touch from You.

Prepare me for the quiet and the powerful, the simple and the dramatic. Do in me whatever is needed that I may assist your people to have a profound and meaningful encounter with You.

Then, may I glory in You. Truly glory in You.

Amen

As promised....the occasional political rant

2008-10-29T06:41:00.002-05:00

The election is less than a week away. I look forward to participating in the incredible privilege of voting. I also look forward to this train wreck of a campaign being over! (I am so excited, I spent the evening making one of those calendars with the doors that you open each day.)

At this point in the campaign it is an American tradition to declare with great disgust that this is nastiest presidential race ever. I typically chuckle when I hear that because our nation had some doozies in its formative years that have long been forgotten but would be difficult to match.

But we might actually be onto something this time.

However, this time it is not the candidates that are to blame. Line up the voters, the media and the candidates and amazingly it is the politicians who have the most to be proud of!

The print and television media's bias against McCain and Palin has been transparent and I hope will in time be at least somewhat embarrassing to those involved. On the other hand, many of the anti Obama emails I am receiving hourly almost make me look forward to getting the pharmaceutical emails as a change of pace. (I have been tempted to forward the pharmacy emails to the political emailers and political emailers to the pharmacy folks, but instead I am wearing letters off the DEL key.)

Who knows....maybe next time things will be different.

The Story of God -- Phrustrated Pharaoh

2008-10-28T08:29:00.005-05:00

Some more thoughts from our Sunday night sermon series, The Story of God....

To Pharaoh it must have felt like he was trying to push water up hill. The more he attempts to make this unwelcome people go away, the stronger they become.

After trying to work them to death and then offering the worst nationalized health plan in history, Pharaoh is desperate. His final effort is to deputize the entire nation to perform "no mercy" killings on the Israeli newborns. But he could not even convince his own daughter to sign on to his program.

All of these efforts had focused on destroying the male population. Which makes the roll calls of Numbers chapter 1 suddenly more meaningful.

Reuben, 46,500 men. Simeon, 59,300 men. Gad, 44, 650 men. Judah, 74,600 men. Issachar, 54,400 men. Zebulon, 57,400 men. Ephraim, 40,500 men. Manasseh, 32,200 men. Benjamin, 35,400 men. Dan, 62,700 men. Assher, 41,500 men. Naphtali, 53,400 men.

Male only censuses seem to be quite standard for this time in history, but none has ever so specifically celebrated the hand of God. There was no missing generation of men....the despite the wicked heart and evil designs of a phrustrated pharaoh.

An Insolent Assembly -- Jeremiah 44

2008-10-27T09:59:00.003-05:00

A group of Judean exiles have sought refuge in Egypt despite the very clear warning from God that they were not to leave Judah. Even if they felt life would be better -- more secure and more comfortable, they were not to leave.

They left.

To make matters worse, they went to Egypt. The defining moment for Israel had been his rescue of the people from Egypt and now they voluntarily return. It is like being rescued by a firefighter from a burning building and then running right back into the same building!

While they are there they begin to worship the gods of Egypt (like this group wasn't lost enough already!).

Against this backdrop, a great assembly of the people is called. Jeremiah is invited. Assemblies of this nature were often used for corporate confession. But shockingly, the people have gathered not to grieve their sin but to reaffirm their rebellion.

Their obstinacy is based on poor history. They reveal to Jeremiah that they never had problems while they worshipped false gods before. It was only when Jeremiah started making noise about stopping that the trouble began. Therefore, they were done with Jeremiah and going back to what worked.

May we never confuse the blessings of God, with the preference of our perspective.

A Prayer for Leaders

2008-10-27T09:21:00.000-05:00

Heavenly Father,

As we lead your people, may we do your work. May our priorities come from your priorities. May our passions and frustrations be the same as yours.

May our leadership be strong and full of faith, full of boldness when needed and and saturated with patience when called for. Grant us wisdom and courage.

May we never confuse our will for yours.

Amen

A Prayer for Preachers

2008-10-24T09:18:00.006-05:00

Heavenly Father

As we preach this week, may our words come from Your Word, may our thoughts come from Your Holy Spirit and may the results accomplish Your Purpose.

May we settle for nothing less than simply revealing You in the midst of this world.

Amen

Unwanted Seasons...Unseen Reasons

2008-10-23T06:30:00.001-05:00

It is my turn to teach again on Sunday night for the Story of God. We turn to the opening chapters of Exodus and begin to consider the most significant event in the Old Testament (based on the number of OT references to this narrative).

What strikes me is that the Israelites are in Egypt because God led them there. But it is also clear they are not supposed to stay there forever. But, in the meantime the Israelites suffer bondage and bitterness under Pharoah. It had to be the most unwanted seasons in Israel's history.

Why the delay in the return to the promise land? Why were the people left vulnerable to bondage and slavery? Was it simply the wickedness of Pharoah's heart?

I guess the question I have is why must the blessed experience such suffering?

Yet, Exodus 2 reveals that God's timing was quite precise, and His awareness was comprehensive. So it seems the suffering was certainly part of God plan. Even for the blessed.

Note --
While they waited --

1) the people dramatically grew in number, preparing them for the conquest

2) the exodus would provide the shared experience which would define the new nation
3) they would have opportunity to learn to trust God for everything they would need
4) they would leave town loaded down with the wealth of Egypt

I wonder what powerful thing God may be doing in the unwanted parts of your life right now.

Jeremiah 41 -- A Misguided Super Patriot

2008-10-22T06:30:00.000-05:00

In the eyes of many Ishmael (not that one, the one in Jeremiah) would be considered a super patriot. A freedom fighter. The kind of figure people name their children after and compose ballads about.

In the aftermath of the fall of Jerusalem, with the help of a small dedicated band of brothers, Ishmael murders the Babylonian appointed governor in the city. Thanks to Ishmael, the foreign devil has received what was due him and maybe Judah is a step closer to independence once again. Cue the parade and tickertape.

Yet, God's Word seems oddly silent when it comes to celebrating Ishmael. The story is simply told, quickly followed by the story of Ishmael's own defeat and ultimate flight from Judah.

So why does hero status allude this super patriot?

Included in his violent efforts at Judean restoration was the murder of a group of pilgrims that had come to Jerusalem in a spirit of mourning in order to offer sacrifices where the temple once stood. It is not entirely clear why he did this. May be he did not want word of the murder of the governor to get out. But in the process he killed the very kind of worshipper that God had long been looking for in Jerusalem!

Furthermore, it seems Ishmael may have been motivated by self interest more than any thing else. As a member of the royal family, he had lost more than any one else. And as one of the few surviving members of the royal family, he possibly had the designs for his new royal signet ring in the back pocket.

Ultimately, Ishmael finds himself fighting himself not just fighting against Babylon but against God. The word from Jeremiah had been pretty clear that Babylon was God's instrument.

Passion and commitment do not trump submission and obedience. We must be strong and courageous, but only under the authority of the Commander of the Lord's army

May you do something significant today...but only the right things.

Story of God (Continued)

2008-10-21T10:15:00.003-05:00

I shared a while back that we would be starting a new sermon series entitled The Story of God. The series would attempt to provide a narrative overview from end of the Bible to the other, helping our folks see the consistency of God's work and to help them place into context the Biblical stories they already know.

One of the elements to the series that I have been looking forward to is that a couple of our staff members would be taking turns with the teaching. This past Sunday night, our children's minister David Harper spoke on the life of Joseph.

Covering Joseph in one message is no easy task, but David did a great job. For me the strongest section was hwhen e challenged us to find ourselves in the story, but he confessed that he had far more in common with the brothers than he did with Joseph.

The brothers, he pointed out, were

1) most likely to fear the worst in a situation

2) shackled by guilt of their past

but they were

1) forgiven instead of blamed

2) and incredibly they were invited to dine at the master's table, even though the master knew the very worst about them!

Oh, what grace. I couldn't have said it better myself.

On Vacation

2008-10-15T14:39:00.003-05:00

Anonymous left a comment earlier today inquiring to my whereabouts. He is right, my family is on vacation. The blogging had gotten a little thin as I was caught by an administratively busy season in our church life and needing to do some extra work in terms of advance sermon preps.

But I shall return next week refreshed and renewed.

In the meantime, keep up with some of our vacation adventures at my wife's blog www.mylouisianaview.blogspot.com. (Not included are any pictures of some wonderful running opportunities, including a 17 miler on a converter railroad line in the crisp weather, surrounded by beautiful fall leaves!)

God bless you this week.

Impressive Image

2008-10-15T14:13:00.004-05:00

Here is a fascinating image I came across while I was on vacation. Each line represents a cross reference from one chapter of the Bible to another chapter of the Bible. What a wonderful gift God has given us!

—Image courtesy Chris Harrison, Carnegie Mellon University; Christoph Romhild, North Elbian Evangelical Lutheran Church/Science

I love you pastor.

2008-10-03T11:02:00.004-05:00

As preachers we want to be careful of our words. To mean what we say and to say what we mean. So when someone outside our family and our most intimate acquaintances says "I love you", how do you respond?

For some the words, "I love you" are easy to speak. For others they always seem awkward, even to those closest to them. Early in my ministry I never had given the question much thought. (In large part because the topic had never come up. Which likely speaks to the depth of impact of my earliest days as a pastor, serving only on the weekends while I attended seminary during the week.)

I think the question really came up the first time while I was being interviewed for what would become my second pastorate. It seemed the former pastor was uncomfortable with this level of relational vocabulary. I think I can understand the pastor's reticence to water down the meaning and depth of our language's most important words. But I also heard the hurt of an unreturned "I love you."

The result is that for years I found myself thinking way too much when someone said to me "I love you pastor."

I have come to understand that a huge element of my call as pastor is to love my congregation. I think this is part of what Jesus was speaking to Peter about on the beach. "If you love me, feed/tend my sheep." I have no desire to be a hireling, employed to simply manage sheep. I want to be a shepherd. A shepherd knows his sheep. A good shepherd loves his sheep.

So, today it gives me great pleasure to humbly reply, "I love you too."

Jeremiah 39 -- The Shoe Drops

2008-10-03T10:29:00.006-05:00

Thirty eight chapters of warnings. Vividly told, precisely predicted. Yet in reading chapter 39, there is a shock to the suddenness of the fall of Jerusalem. The siege is described as beginning then within a sentence, two years have passed and there is a breach in the wall. It is over.

The king escapes....but only temporarily. He is taken to Babylon, as are the vast majority of the population of the once great city of Jerusalem. King Zedekiah's children are slaughtered before is very eyes. The nobles of Jerusalem are killed as well. The walls of Jerusalem are torn down.

Aside from the rampant sin and rebellion I have at time sympathised with the kings of Judah during Jeremiah's ministry. The word from God was to surrender to the enemy. They were counseled to seek peace terms before a battle had even been waged. No patriot would do such a thing. No true leader would be party to such capitulation. Nothing could be worse.

Well, God said there was a fate that was worse. And Zedekiah saw it unfold before his very eyes. His family and his friends executed. The city emptied of its people and filled with an occupying force. The walls turned into a heap of rubble.

Hindsight is always much easier than faithsight. Heeding the warning is more difficult than the foreseeing the woe. But be certain of this...God's Word is true. It will be just like He said. These surely must have been Zedekiah's thoughts as he sat in chains reviewing the recent turn of events. Alas hindsight is easier, except for the fact it is useless.

But there were some who had faithsight, including Ebed-melech the Ethiopian. In the previous chapter, he alone had stood to defend Jeremiah to the king. His words even swayed the king to most likely save Jeremiah's life.

The chapter of woe, ends with a footnote. Ebed-melech the Ethiopian was spared the destruction of the city due to his faith in God.

Hindsight may be easier, but faithsight is where I want to live. It is where I want my people to live.

Jeremiah 37 -- The Original EF Hutton

2008-09-29T09:43:00.005-05:00

By this point in the book of Jeremiah I think what fascinates me is the love/hate relationship that Jeremiah inspires. The people seem to hate Jeremiah. The priests and prophets mock him at every turn. And kings continue to imprison him.

Yet, the kings in particular repeatedly wear out a path to whereever Jeremiah is staying at the time (often in prison) and to ask if he has a word.

It is odd. You would think a person this despised and derided would simply be ignored. They disagreed with everything he said. They ignored his pleas and his prophecies. They found other people to say the exact opposite of whatever Jeremiah had preached.

Yet they kept coming. "Do you have a word from God?" they would ask. As much as they hated him, they could not help themselves from wanting to listen. The truth does that. It is so rare that people will lean in to hear it.

A temptation for Jeremiah would have been to cater to that crowd. Afterall, he too was hungry for a good word for his own people. Yet twice in this chapter he is asked for a word and twice the word is not good, going so far as to say that even if all that was left of the massive Chaldean army was its wounded they would still take the city and burn it to the ground.

Again Jeremiah finishes the day in prison. The truth will do that too! People want to hear a word from God, but they are not always ready to accept a word from God.

May the power of your message this week be its truth.

A Distracted Church

2008-09-23T17:08:00.004-05:00

"Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God." Psalm 20:7 A timely variation of this verse could be "some trust in Republicans and some in Democrats...."

It is my fear that nothing distracts the people of God in our country quite like a presidential election. [At this point I might have to grant some of you permission to determine to no longer read this blog.]

This is not to say that people of faith should not prayerfully take their faith into the voting booth and carefully and diligently make sure no chads remain. But the bluster of the campaign pulls us away from our true call and worse causes us to abandon our truest positions of power. When we occupy ourselves with politics it is often at the cost of the gospel.

To make matters worse the chariots and horses before us are not really in that great a shape. Somebody should get a carfax report on these rides. A recent report from Lifeway Research reported that 80% of Southern Baptist pastors intend to vote for a particular candidate and only 1% intend to vote for the other. Now, I may or may not be in that majority but I find it a little puzzling that there would be such a sweeping support for a man whose lifestyle has been made possible by his wife's beer distributorship empire (I think there have been some SBC resolutions concerning alcohol), who criticized leading evangelicals as "agents of intolerance" and whose marital fidelity at least in the past has been questionable (an issue that in other administrations has been very important to us).

Please do not take this as an endorsement of his opponent, because it is not. It is just to point out that our state of distraction causes us to develop enthusiasm in places we never would imagine. But we do so because we must win!

If we don't win, the world will come to end. (Don't believe me, just check your email in box for anything that begins with FW:FW:FW:FW:FW.) Our people are frightened about what will happen if "our guy" loses. But I have checked...Our Guy does not lose!

May we be ready before and after the election to help our folks stay focused on that which has the greatest impact in all circumstances -- Jesus Christ and Him crucified!

Invited to Speak

2008-09-22T10:44:00.003-05:00

I do not often get invited to speak outside of my own church, but right now I have two invitations before. Neither of them are likely to impress you, but they are invitations still the same.

I count it a large privilege to share God's Word in any setting possible, but I am much more comfortable doing so within the context of an existing relationship. Speaking or preaching to strangers has always been a bit uncomfortable for me (and the same can likely be said for my listeners as well).

I don't know them. They don't know me. And I won't be with them next week to stand with them as they seek to apply His Word to their lives. I feel deeply called to be a pastor. Not so much to be an evangelist.

This morning I will be bringing a devotion to the Baptist Campus Ministries group at our local community college. (The reason I was invited to speak was because our ladies are providing lunch!) These students (and staff) hear from a different preacher every week. I think that most weeks the typical message leans toward an evangelistic presentation. If this is the case, I worry that these students may be developing an immunity to the gospel they have not yet fully heard or understood.

My goal this morning is simply to help them know Jesus a bit better. I will be sharing from Mark 2 and plan to encourage the students to consider that their spiritual needs are actually greater than any other part of their life. I would like them to be caught by the wonder of God's Word to their lives. That will, in time lead to their becoming fully devoted followers of Christ.

But like I said, I don't get out much.

Teaching The Books of Numbers -- Update

2008-09-18T07:26:00.000-05:00

Several weeks ago I shared that I was starting a new midweek teaching series on the book of Numbers. We are still in the earlier chapters and have not yet encountered much narrative (ok, none at all so far). But the book has provided a wonderful emphasis on the centrality of God amongst His people.

The sections concerning regulations do not quite preach with the ease of say Philippians or James. For instance chapter 5 spends quite sometime describing what amounts to an "adultery smoothie". If a woman is suspected of unfaithfulness she is to take a drink that has been prescribed by the priest. If she is innocent, nothing will happen. However, if she is guilty.....let's just say it is not good.

What does this mean? For one thing the husband is to bring his concerns and suspicions to God and not deal with them himself. But what I found interesting was that while we think of sexual immorality as a thoroughly modern problem brought on by "Sex in the City" mindset of our day, it turns out that promiscuity is "old school", requiring entire chapters of the Bible even for the veil and head covering set.

There is nothing new under the sun. All the more reason for us to build our lives with God at the center.

Jeremiah 35 -- A Counter Cultural Family

2008-09-17T09:49:00.002-05:00

The Rechabites are less than famous. (They only appear on one page of your Bible.) The Rechabites were less than wealthy. (They owned no homes, land or crops.) It is quite likely that the Rechabites were hardly noticed by their neighbors after taking refuge in the city.

But God knew them. He noticed them and was pleased by what He saw.

He sent Jeremiah to find them and as usual He gave Jeremiah an unusual assignment. Find the Rechabites, bring them into the temple and offer them a big bowl of wine. (Jeremiah had to be wondering how many more facets of his call still remained to be discovered….he was now God’s sommelier!)

But they refused the wine. Instead of seizing the opportunity to enjoy some of life’s “finer” things, they quietly declined the offer. You see their father had vowed that his family would drink no wine, build no houses, and sow no seeds. Instead they would live in tents and enjoy many days in the land. It seems this man did not want the bonuses of the land to get in the way of the blessings of the LORD.

Their faithfulness to their father’s vow served as an indictment to the rest of the people of Jerusalem. But it also serves as a reminder to Jeremiah (and the people) that it is possible to live faithfully before God. It can be done. It has been done! God gives a special blessing to this family.

What do see these days? A culture living in defiance of God. A church that is much less than it should be. Believers who disappoint.

Yes, all of that is out there.

But there are Rechabites out there too. Simple families and individuals who have quietly committed to not let the bonuses of life distract them from the blessings of the LORD.

May you see them. May you grow them. May you bless them.

Balancing Spontaneity and Strategery?

2008-09-16T11:07:00.002-05:00

It is that time of the year when our church council begins to work on the calendar for next year. This past Sunday evening we gathered to give the calendar a first run through. Before we began I asked the Council to give thought to some of the most significant/meaningful events of the past year.

The list was interesting. Several items mentioned were annual events such as our women’s conference and Vacation Bible School. Other items were new things we planned at this time last year like our community 5K run. But some of our best moments came together as the year unfolded, including a visit from our governor, Bobby Jindal who gave his testimony in our church.

So as we plan for next year we will work on some of our standard events, we will give thought to some new ideas. But we will also leave room to be flexible to the Lord’s leading.

One idea that we are looking forward doing again this year is promoting the Lottie Moon Christmas Offering with live phone interviews during our morning worship service with missionaries on the field. We patch the phone call through our sound system and use google earth on the screens to travel to the place the missionaries live and work.

Last year, we were able to have a couple of these missionaries with us in person later in the year. This year we are planning a bit further ahead and several groups in the church are putting together care packages for the missionaries to help deepen our connections with our missionaries. It is our goal to introduce our church to some of the new missionaries that have joined the board since Lottie!

What are you planning these days? Do you have a part of your church life that you would like to emphasize? How will you keep annual events fresh?

Mark 9:43-48 Illustrated

2008-09-15T10:02:00.002-05:00

Today, Tom White is learning to run for the third time in his life.

The October 2008 issue of Runner's World tells his remarkable story. White, a medical doctor by trade arranged to have his left leg cut off. While over 3,500 limb amputations are performed every week in the United States, this one was different. You see it was not medically necessary. It is unlikely there was a doctor in the land who would have recommended it and I really doubt that insurance covered it.

A couple of decades ago White was a competitive runner, achieving a measurable amount of success at the collegiate level. But everything changed when he was involved in a serious motorcycle accident which nearly severed his leg. Remarkable for the time of the time accident, his leg was saved.

Several years later, he met and married a runner. He cheered for her as she competed, but he ached to run again himself. Eventually he taught himself how to run all over again.

However, the long term damage from his accident made running more and more difficult over the years. Even to the point that walking was becomiming painful at times. So much so that White became convinced that he would be better off without the leg. His desire to run again was so strong that he "he decided to pay a man to cut off his leg with a power saw." (The man was a noted surgeon, but you still get the point.) Today with the use of a high tech prostheses White is back on the road, running again.

Tom White would rather be a runner that have both his legs.

I am impressed by Tom's commitment....and to be honest, a little concerned about mine.

And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell,to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, 'where their worm does not die and

the fire is not quenched.'

Mark 9:43-48 ESV

Quick Ike Update

2008-09-13T10:56:00.004-05:00

We are watching local Houston coverage (Direct TV channel 361) and things look pretty rough. I don't know Houston well, but occasionally I visit MD Anderson hospital and I did run the Houston Marathon this past January, so I recognize some landmarks.

Personally, we seem to have weathered our distant edge of the storm quite well. Ike seemed a little noisier at home than Gustav did at church. (Storms in the night always seem worse than daylight ones.) But a quick look around this morning shows much less damage than Gustav. Gratefully, I do not hear the cacophony of generators that filled the air in the days that followed our last storm.

Thanks again for your concerns and prayers.

A Favorite Resource

2008-09-12T20:27:00.002-05:00

For several years one of my favorite resources was the Zondervan Illustrated Bible Backgrounds Commentary Set. (http://www.amazon.com/Zondervan-Illustrated-Bible-Backgrounds-Commentary/dp/0310217407) While I rarely used it as a primary reference work, I often used as a supplement to "meatier" commentaries.

But alas, the set did not belong to me. It belonged to the church library at my former church. However, in recent months the church I currently serve has begun a new church library. And it should come as a surprise to no one that one the first items I recommended was this four volume NT commentary set.

I had the pleasure of renewing acquaintances this week as I prepared a message from Ephesians 6 concerning God's Expectation that we be battle ready believers. In the ZIBBCS (the initials just shortened that right up didn't they) I learned about the Ephesia Grammata, six words commonly used by Ephesians as a verbal talisman when they sought extra strength and power. This could possibly color Paul emphasis on "being strong in the Lord" not in some pagan power.

What are some of your favorite resources that you consistently find meaningful?

Here we go again....

2008-09-12T15:00:00.003-05:00

For the third consecutive weekend, we prepare for Sunday worship with storms close to the forefront of our minds. (If you are tired of reading about the storms, imagine how we feel living it.)

Two weeks ago we spent Sunday afternoon making final preps for Gustav. Last week we had just gotten our power back and were concerned about this storm named Ike that was headed our way. This weekend, it turns out Ike is not going to come directly to us. But we will be close enough to feel the inconveniences. I will be amazed if the storm passes and we do not lose power, possibly for a few days again.

Once again our little town is a major evacuation route, this time the traffic is heading east instead of north. We still have a major National Guard deployment in town and last night we noticed dozens of power trucks filling up an empty parking lot, presumably ready to leap into action after the storm. It was just in the last couple of days that our stores had finally restocked their perishable items. You can't help but wonder if we will go another week with empty shelves.

But like I said, this storm does not seem to have our name on it. But as those of you who live in the hurricane zone well know, there is a mental fog that eventually invades the mind in these days. So much to do. So little to do. Focus seems out of the question. (It is possible that is not true for vast numbers of people, but it seems true for me.) I am grateful for a couple of good days of study earlier in the week.

The up side is that our family will spend some extra time together, since there is not much else to do. And that's not bad at all.

Jeremiah 30 -- Hope for the Embattled Preacher

2008-09-10T09:52:00.006-05:00

"Write these things down." That is God's Word to Jeremiah. This is interesting because to this point, all of the oracles Jeremiah has been given have been spoken words.

Even a cursory reading of the text demonstrates that these spoken words have not been well received and understandably Jeremiah has at times been wearied by the process of preaching to unresponsive people.

The funny thing is, a preacher rarely gets the response he believes the message deserves. In his hours of preparation and study the preacher has often been powerfully taken by the Word of LORD that has been revealed to him. It is not unusual to emerge from the study with the conviction that this week's message may be the most important or most timely message you have ever preached. You can not wait to break these words for your people. (If this is not happening in your life, I pray it will this week.)

But then we preach...and await the floodgates of response.

And at times nothing visible ever happens. Even when there is a trickle of response we are deeply grieved and puzzled that there was not more. Jeremiah knew the feeling well. In fact, he didn't seem to know any other feeling. (The stadium crusade with countless streams of people coming down the aisle would have been unfathomable for him.)

But God told Jeremiah, "write these words down."

It was a powerful reminder to Jeremiah (and to us) that we don't always just preach for today. God was telling Jeremiah that even though the people were not ready to listen then, a time was coming when his words would be heard, needed and deeply cherished. His preaching was not in vain. The Word would not return void.

We do not have any way to know how God's Word is used in the lives of those we preach to. We do not know how God will use those words years down the road. We do not just preach for today.

Jeremiah would likely never see that day himself. But it is likely that several million people read his words this week alone. And people responded.

So as you preach this week, remember we do not just preach for today. But also keep in mind as you prepare this week....you are not just preaching for today!

Preaching the Story of God

2008-09-09T14:56:00.004-05:00

Ever since visiting my IMB missionary brother Andrew in Bolivia several years ago, I have been fascinated by “chronological Bible storying”. CBS is a strategy for communicating the gospel, using story primarily for those who are low in literacy and or have very little experience with the message of the Bible. The missionary/church planter will tell the story of God’s Word week by week culminating in an invitation to not just hear about this God, but to know Him through His Son Jesus.

Ironically, I think what attracts me to chronological Bible storying is the fact that I am literate (though this was a topic of debate in the halls of higher learning at one point) and I am very familiar with God’s Word. The truth is, I envy the experience of discovery and excitement that must unfold each week as new truth is unveiled about who God is as people hear it for the first time.

What would creation mean to me if I heard about it as though it were some just released secret? How would I relate to the trials, triumphs and failures of the people of Israel? What would I think of the incarnation of God as Christ…and his death? And then His resurrection! Would I even believe that a guy like Saul could become a man like Paul?

This past Sunday evening I began a new sermon series entitled “The Story of God” which will attempt to use the principles of CBS to help my literate and somewhat Biblically aware congregation be caught once again (or for the first time) by the wonder of God’s story. Working with my fellow staff members, we selected thirty eight key Biblical narratives that we will be sharing between now and the spring.

Here is the list I am using.

How would your list look? What would you include that we did not? What would you drop from the list?

Ministry on Cardboard

2008-09-05T11:02:00.007-05:00

I found this at http://www.twelvewitnesses.com/.

Powerful.

The Return to Normalcy

2008-09-05T09:03:00.003-05:00

It is Friday morning. Power finally came on at church yesterday afternoon and this morning we are back to work. We are working toward having the building and ourselves ready for a regular
Sunday this Sunday.

I will be back to preaching on God's Expectations. We have a baptism scheduled for Sunday morning and our first choir rehearsals for our Christmas musical begin this week.

I look forward to returning this blog to "musing about ministry" instead of "muttering about meteorology". Thank you for your interest, concern and prayers for Eunice, LA.

God bless you as you prepare to lead and feed your congregation this Sunday.

Life After Gustav -- Wednesday Night

2008-09-03T19:48:00.007-05:00

Power is slowly returning to our town. Our house got power back yesterday afternoon, but as we went to bed yesterday it was reported that 91% of our town was still without power. We sort of felt guilty for having power when so many others did not.

Meanwhile, our church still has no power. This afternoon the staff met at church and using a small generator for lights and gas to cook, we cooked up everything in our church freezer then delivered it to folks still without power.

But this lack of power, this 19th century life, is not all bad. In the aftermath of several storms I have witnessed a very unique bloom of community. Having been cooped up for several days and now without electricity people emerge from their homes. Neighbors seeking breeze begin to shoot that same breeze with one another. They check on each other and seek to help in any way possible. Damaged roofs are tarped even when the homeowner has evacuated and is not home. Generators are shared. Yesterday a neighbor whom until this week I have only waved to from my driveway to his, walked across the street to invite my family to take showers at his house since he had functioning hot water. It is really a wonderful thing to watch.

Then the power comes back on and we return to our cocoons.

We have begun to hear some sad stories in the wake of the storm. We have had several fatalities from tornadoes following the storm. One of these, a twenty one year young lady, is related to several folks in our church. Another church member worked with a man who was killed cutting down a tree in advance of the storm.

Tomorrow we will continue to address storm issues and also begin to think past the storm.