Yea, Alabama!!!

Oh Yeah, baby!!!  I’m feeling very good today – after a 34-10 shellacking of the #9 team in the nation – the Clemson Tigers!!!

Seriously, I loved what I saw from the Crimson Tide last night - great execution, firing off the line on both sides of the ball, exciting play by a lot of freshmen, fantastic receivers, strong defense, consistency at QB… This is the best I’ve seen Bama look this early in the season in a loooonnnnngggg time.

Now, it is so true that one game does not a season make, but I’m glad we played SOMEBODY and not a creme-puff or a cupcake like 9/10’s of the “big schools” did yesterday (Youngstown State???  C’mon Buckeyes…) It can only help us when the killer SEC schedule kicks in.

But today… Today, I am a very happy man!

Roll Tide Roll!

Sunday Replay 08.24.08

Wow.  That little word doesn’t quite describe it, but it’s the one that I’ve heard over and over since yesterday…  We had a “banner” day, one that I really believe we will look back at and see as a crucial step forward for our church and our mission to reach this community…

Attendance was right in line with our current “normal”, which means we didn’t ding the YTD average, and even advanced it a tenth of a basis point or two – but I know that’s just stuff pastors fill up pages of yellow legal pad figuring out on Mondays (yeah, I know “yellow legal pad” is sooo old school)…  What was exciting was the new faces – several guests worshipping with us.

And worship band – you just flat brought it!  Your creativity is off the charts, the musicianship improves every week.  And when I think where we were a year ago, you guys just about make my head explode!  I’m so thankful for you and the part you play in our mission.

We continued the “Church on the Move” message series, looking at the Outreach That Makes Us Bigger.  Right off the bat, we concluded that “Bigger” does mean numerical growth because: 1) Every number is a person with a name, a face, a family, and an eternal destiny.  2) God intends for the Church to grow.  We took a lightning tour through the first half of the book of Acts and observed how many times we can see words like “multiplied,” “added,” “grew,” “large numbers believed,” etc.  A growing church was part of God’s plan from the very beginning.  And if we are fulfilling our mission, we will grow – there’s no such thing as a friendly, evangelistic, small church…

Then we looked at the encounter of Jesus and “the wee little man,” Zaccheus, to see a model we can follow in outreach to those who are far from God. 

• Jesus looked for Zaccheus.  The man climbed the tree to see who Jesus was, but didn’t realize Jesus was actually looking for him.  We must make an effort to see the people around us who are searching for something.  We must offer them the chance to see who Jesus is. 
• Jesus spent time with Zaccheus: “Today is my day to be a guest in your home!”  In spite of harsh criticism from religious people, Jesus spent time with “sinners,” and “tax collectors.”  We must be willing to go into their homes, have them in our homes, go into their culture, into their circles, among their friends… 
• Jesus told Zaccheus the truth.  We don’t have the details of what Jesus said or taught while He was a guest in that home, but we see the results: a changed life and salvation.  In every relationship, the opportunity to tell the truth about Jesus will present itself.  When that happens, lives will be changed, people will be brought near to God.  We must be ready.

The response at the end of the message rocked me – I didn’t get an exact count, but the majority of people in attendance were down front, asking God to help them reach out to the people we all had prayed for Him to reveal to us.  I believe we will see many people come to faith in Christ because of those prayers.  Praise the Lord!

I told someone yesterday, “Our church has a fantastic future!” and their reply was, “The present ain’t too shabby either!”  That is true, but let’s make sure we never accept “status quo” or “good enough,” and drift into complacency.  Our mission propels us to advance the Kingdom, all the time, until Jesus comes!

HAMMER DOWN!

Have a great week!

Timing is everything…

Here’s proof:

 

Ministry lessons are ample… 

• A single well planned, well executed strike beats flash and puffery every time.
• Most things/people that try to intimidate us cannot stand when tested.
• Celebrate after the battle, not before…

Can you think of some more?

Reaching Out to Families of Prisoners

When Laure Clemons’ husband was sent to prison, her world almost fell completely apart.  She was overwhelmed trying to make her way through a maze of paying bills, managing a home, and raising children.  She went to see a court official in her community to ask what resources and assistance was available for the families of prisoners.  The one word answer – “nothing” – stunned her.

Laure began to educate herself – ferreting out the agencies and organizations that provided the help she needed:  counseling and life skills training, practical help in finances, parenting, and household management.  Gradually, she was able to “stop doing her husband’s time” and make life work again.  She learned how to have a successful family, career, and social life even though her husband was in prison.

Laure often wondered how, and if, other families of prisoners found the help they surely needed.  Out of that wondering, “Extended Family” was born.  Extended Family is a community based organization that serves as a support and resource to the families of prisoners.  What Extended Family does best is connect the families of prisoners to each other and to the practical help that is so essential to them – through regular family meetings, a national resource data bank, and one-on-one peer networking.

I recently heard Laure speak and had the chance to meet and talk briefly with her.  Her compassion for the families of prisoners is obvious.  Extended Family has spread and touched many lives across the country since it began in 2003.  In the development stage is a book for children entitled, “When Are You Coming Home? And Other Hard Questions.”

A staggering percentage of people around us have a family connection to someone in who is or has been imprisoned.  Prison Fellowship and other prison ministries do great work with inmates.  The “Angel Tree” focuses on providing Christmas gifts and support for their children.  Extended Family offers another way to provide real practical assistance to whole families who might otherwise slip through the cracks and walk alone.

I warmly and wholeheartedly commend Extended Family to every externally-focused, mission-minded congregation as a potential ministry partner.

Sunday Replay 08.17.08

Another great day at church.  The worship band raised the creativity bar a little, and I know they were anxious about it beforehand – but worship was awesome!  Yeah, I know we’ve got to make up some ground technically, but I couldn’t be more pleased with how far we’ve come already!

We continued our “Church on the Move” message series, focusing on the Learning That Makes Us Deeper.  We examined the experience of the Bereans in Acts 17, and saw that one of the key indicators that the church is “on mission” is a pervasive willingness to hear, study, and grow in the teaching of God’s Word, the Bible.  There is a direct correlation between the depth of our devotion to the Word and the power of our impact on the World! 

The Bereans received the Word that was taught, they researched the Scriptures for themselves to make sure they were getting the truth, and they responded to the Word in obedience.  Being a “people of the Book” doesn’t mean we spend all – or even most – of our time reading, studying and discussing…  It means we GO and SERVE!

Next up: Outreach Makes Us Bigger

Lots of great stuff coming our way this fall:  Disciple University, a personalized, self-directed journey to being a mature, devoted follower of Jesus and a disciplemaker…  “To the Streets – Community Service as Worship” will give us another chance to put our faith in action “outside the walls”… and a strategic planning initiative that will help us dream about, think about, and prepare for future ministry.  Exciting and challenging stuff!

A quote to close: “If you do not change what you are doing today, tomorrow will be no different than yesterday.”

Have a great week!

We’re Doing It Wrong…

Right up front, this is an observation, not a criticism – but we’ve GOT to find a way to get more “soul” if we’re going to sing songs like “Oh Happy Day”…  Here’s how it’s supposed to be done:

(Hey worship band:  Joking! You know I love you guys…)

Sunday Replay 08.10.08

What a beautiful day! Could anyone have imagined a church picnic on a day with a high of 76 - in August - in Indiana?  AND the sun was shining?

It was so great to have the church’s founding pastor, Brother Virgil, with us.  He brought a word of greeting and encouragement to get things rolling, and then the worship band flat brought it!   Seriously, worship was amazing yesterday – thanks guys for your faithfulness and willingness to let God use you!

We continued talking about living the mission in the “Church on the Move” message series.  Today’s focus was the “Fellowship that makes us closer.”  Fellowship is more than food and conversation – it is sharing life together in a way that changes everything about our relationships with each other.  Digging in to Romans 12, we saw that we are called to:

• Love each other - deciding to always seek what is best for each other.
• Honor each other - looking for ways to appreciate, esteem, and respect one another.
• Share with each other – giving, working, helping to meet needs of people inside and outside the church.
• Support each other – in good times and bad, letting others know that we’re there for them and we care for them.
• Get along with each other – life together creates conflict, but we forgive, put up with, have patience…

I’m excited about this series of messages!  Next up, the Learning that makes us deeper…

The church picnic was a blast!  The burgers and dogs were just right, and the side dishes were out of this world.  The men’s dessert contest was a lot of fun, too – even though my entry didn’t win.  Congratulations to Chris E. – his unbelievable key lime cheesecake was a shoo-in!  One of the ladies told me my dessert scared her… but I think she meant it in a good way.

Have a great week!

A hair raising question…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

     Is Bob Costas rockin’ a toupee – or is the highest profile Olympic anchor in history sporting an $8 SuperCut special?

No Greater Love

On Wednesday I was an eyewitness to an incredible act of sacrifice…

One of my elders has been on dialysis since experiencing kidney failure last fall.  Wednesday, his daughter, a grown woman with a husband and kids of her own, gave him a one of her kidneys.  The transplant surgery took place at IU Medical Center in Indianapolis.

The daughter gave up a very important part of herself willingly and with some risk to her own health.  She was motivated by love for her father and appreciation for his love for her and his investment and influence in her life.  He was deeply moved, wept openly when we talked about it, and truly wants to live in a way that makes her sacrifice “worth it.”

I was honored and humbled to be allowed access to such a love transaction in this family.

I was riding home from the hospital late Wednesday night, when I began to weep as I thought about God’s love and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for lost sinners…

What struck me is the fact that I brought nothing of value to this transaction – My history with God was very different than the history between that dad and daughter.  I was a rebel, fueled by selfishness and pride…  I was the prodigal, on my hands and knees in pig feces and urine about to eat hog slop…  When I thought of God at all, it was to thumb my nose in His face… I was not a “match” in any way for the love, mercy, grace, and compassion of the King of the Universe.

And yet, in spite of my incompatibility, without regard to my suitability – God gave, Jesus died. 

For me.  The rebel.  The enemy was called friend…

Thank you, Lord, in that while we were yet (still) sinners, Christ died for us.

Sunday Replay 08.03.08

Wow!  Once again, God has blown me away!  The “77 Hours of Prayer” and the 3 day fast was a phenomenal time of refreshing and reflection for me…  I sensed God speaking to me about my personal relationship with Him, my relationship to Vic and the boys, and about the future direction of the church.  I was also encouraged to hear the experiences of others who participated.  I was totally serious when I cast the future vision for 24/7, ’round-the-clock prayer and worship going on in our sanctuary!

The worship team was “reshuffled” a little bit, due to the absence of a member (oh, hello Anya…), but did a fine job.  I love that classic hymn, “I Surrender All” – and it fit perfectly with the conclusion of the service yesterday.

Preachers are prone to overstatement – it’s a key tool in the toolbox of those of us who speak for a living – but I think we will look back and note these next few weeks as an important milestone in the life of our church.  We began the “Church on the Move” message series, talking about “Living the Mission.”  We looked at “The Great Commandment” and “The Great Commission” and focused on how each of the things Jesus talked about were component parts of our church mission statement - We exist to glorify God:  in worship, in service to our community, in outreach to the lost and unchurched, and in providing a place of nurturing relationships and spiritual growth - Then we looked in Acts 2 to see how the church lived out that very mission from it’s earliest days.  We saw that our mission statement can be boiled down to “5 Words” – Fellowship, Learning, Outreach, Worship, Service – and that when those words describe our ministry and life together, then we will know we are living the mission.

I can’t wait for the upcoming messages in the series:

• Fellowship Makes Us Closer
• Learning Makes Us Deeper
• Outreach Makes Us Bigger
• Worship Makes Us Purer
• Service Makes Us Stronger

These are exciting times and I truly believe the best is yet to come.  We are going to see amazing opportunities for ministry in and to our community that will have eternal repercussions!  You do not want to dragged along behind, screaming “Beep, Beep!”  And you definitely don’t want to be a religious possum!

Have a great week!