Friday, December 31, 2010

Resolutions from the Bible

For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. 1 Corinthians 2:2 (NIV)

Though you probe my heart and examine me at night, though you test me, you will find nothing; I have resolved that my mouth will not sin. Psalms 17:3 (NIV)

But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. Daniel 1:8 (NIV)

Taken from Rick Warren's Ministry Toolbox

Friday, December 10, 2010

When God speaks...You know it!

I don't know about you, but it's been a tough week. At times I've felt overwhelmed, frustrated, somewhat hopeless, depressed, beaten up, chewed up and spit out. The other morning, I was fumbling through my Bible hoping to find some cure for my blues.

Honestly, I wasn't really expecting I would find anything. Oh we've all heard people say, "You won't believe this - I was down in the dumps but this morning my Bible just happened to open to this verse and God spoke directly to me". Well, that rarely happens to me. In fact, my Bible would probably fall open to one of the Old Testament books like Numbers 26:48-50 which says, "The descendants of Naphtali by their clans were: through Jahzeel, the Jahzeelite clan; through Guni, the Gunite clan; through Jezer, the Jezerite clan; through Shillem, the Shillemite clan. These were the clans of Naphtali; those numbered were 45,400". What do you do with that?!

Well, I have to say that it actually happened. On Wednesday morning my Bible just happened to open to 2 Corinthians 6:3-10. This is where Paul is talking about his hardships as a minister of the Gospel.

Here is what it says: "We try to live in such a way that no one will be hindered from finding the Lord by the way we act, and so no one can find fault with our ministry. In everything we do we try to show that we are true ministers of God. We patiently endure troubles and hardships and calamities of every kind. We have been beaten, been put in jail, faced angry mobs, worked to exhaustion, endured sleepless nights, and gone without food. We have proved ourselves by our purity, our understanding, our patience, our kindness, our sincere love, and the power of the Holy Spirit. We have faithfully preached the truth. God's power has been working in us. We have righteousness as our weapon, both to attack and to defend ourselves. We serve God whether people honor us or despise us, whether they slander us or praise us. We are honest, but they call us impostors. We are well known, but we are treated as unknown. We live close to death, but here we are, still alive. We have been beaten within an inch of our lives. Our hearts ache, but we always have joy. We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing, and yet we have everything".

That was exactly what I needed at that very moment. God is good all the time!

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

It's About Time

Can you believe it's December already? Every month I say, 'Can you believe it's (fill in the month)". That great rocker and theologian Steve Miller had it right when he said, "Time keeps on slippin, slippin, slippin, into the future." Where does the time seem to go?

We all wish we had more of it. During the hectic holiday season, I'll bet it will fly by. There will seem to be alot less time as we rush to purchase that last-minute gift. Time will seem to evaporate as we have all of these good ideas of who to invite over, then poof - gone. The pressure of trying to get it all done before Christmas can be overwhelming. Why is it that this time of year when we focus more on "peace on earth" often feels like "hell on earth"? Well, I said on Sunday that I believe part of the reason is that Satan is reminded that this is the time Christians celebrate the birth of the newborn king - the rightful heir of God's creation - and he (Satan) is not happy. He will try to make your life miserable and sidetrack you from slowing down to focus on what Jesus' birth means for each of us - indeed the whole world.

When Jesus was on the earth, he talked alot about time. In most cases, he referenced the coming Kingdom of God. He encouraged his followers to stay alert because the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour. This coming Sunday at Bellwood (and for the next three Sundays), we are going to allow the worship service to be a time of intentional focus on making time for God. We will create space to allow us to be refreshed from the busyness of the season. And why not? It's about time.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Want some?

At Bellwood we are concluding our series on the letter to the Ephesians. Paul saved the best part for last. He concludes by encouraging believers to always put on the armor of God - and closes with a reminder to always pray in the power of the Holy Spirit. He says to stay alert and be persistent in prayer for all believers. And then he asks them to pray for him.

He doesn't ask that his situation be changed. Instead he asks for boldness to be able to continue preaching the gospel while still in chains! If it were me, I probably would have asked for prayer to be released from prison, but he asks for boldness to continue on right where he is.

All of us find ourselves (at one time or another) in situations that we want God to change. And it's OK to ask God to change them. He certainly can, but what if (sometimes) God would rather have us pray for boldness? It's much easier to go around the valley, but sometimes God wants us to walk boldly THROUGH the valley. Psalm 23 reminds us that He is with us.

This Sunday at Bellwood we will have a special time of prayer. Anyone who would like to come forward after the message will be able to have myself or one of the Elders pray over you. We will ask God to fit you with His armor so you are able to stand firm in the battle. We will pray that God will grant you boldness to persevere in whatever situation you find yourself.

Folks, we have access to the greatest power in the universe. It is the same power that raised Jesus from the dead. All we have to do is ask for it - and that's what we are going to do. Be there this Sunday if you want some!

Tuesday, November 16, 2010

10 Reasons to Be an Equipping Church

Here are some practical reasons why we focus on "equipping the saints for the work of ministry (service)":

1. Assimilation - Newcomers are brought into the fold quickly, making friends and getting involved.
2. Stewardship - People give to what they believe in.
3. Freedom - You serve because you want to, not because you have to. Knowing your S.H.A.P.E. allows you the freedom to serve.
4. Longevity - Burnout will no longer exist. Stress levels will plummet.
5. Influence - You want to make a difference in someone's life and see lives transformed.
6. Unity - People are so focused on their ministries that there is little time or desire to complain about minor issues.
7. Growth - Nothing is more contagious than an equipping church. Non-Christians will see lives being changed and want to be part of it.
8. Depth - Believers are automatically being turned into disciples.
9. Breadth - Having more people involved enables the church to reach even more people.
10. Rejuvenation - New life and new energy kick into high gear.

Taken from article, "Equipping the Saints" by Brian Proffit. It appeared in REV magazine some time ago.

Tuesday, November 9, 2010

God was at work at SCC Outreach

I've had several people ask me how it went on Sunday so I thought I would blog about it. SCC had their Open House on Sunday. This is the first time they had a Business Expo in the Welsch Center. There were probably 20 vendors that had tables set up. Several of the businesses and churches in Milford were there just to let current and prospective students aware of their services.

Bellwood was fortunate to be right beside Pizza Kitchen. Of course, they were giving away free pizza and we had homemade cookies to finish it off! It was a perfect location! We had a lot of traffic at our booth because we had a drawing for some give-aways: A $50 gift card to Best Buy, $25 gifts card to Casey's and a $25 gift card to Mini Mart. We simply asked the students to answer a 10 question survey so we might know what their needs are and how we could help to meet some of those. Everyone was happy to fill it out. I think we ended up with about 75 completed surveys.

Some of the questions were things like:
Would you need laundry services, transportation, overnight lodging in bad weather? Would you like a monthly home-cooked meal, a care basket of goodies? Would you be interested in a Saturday night Bible study or worship service? (Brenda Burkey came up with some great questions!) She will tally the results and then let us know how we can reach out to the students.

I am excited to see how God might be at work through all of this. Thanks to everyone who asked about this and especially to everyone who was in prayer about this. Keep praying!!

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

Just Do It

This is Nike's famous motto, but it also describes what Jesus expects of His followers when he says something. Jesus meant what he said and he' s talking to us. Too often we complicate it, though. If Jesus says, "Love your neighbor", we say, "Who is my neighbor? I need to go study about this so I can interpret just what Jesus is talking about".

The Danish theologian, Soren Kierkegaard said it this way:

"Imagine that it says in the New Testament that it is God's will that every human being is to have $100,000. Do you think we would need a commentary or bible scholar to help us interpret that? I wonder if everyone would not say: This is easy enough to understand; no commentary is needed...But what stands in the New Testament (about the narrow way, about dying to the world, and so on) is no more difficult than this matter of $100,000. The difficulty lies somewhere else, in its not pleasing us - and therefore,therefore, therefore we must have commentaries and professors and more commentaries. We are not "running the risk" of its becoming ambiguous - no, that is precisely what we want, and we hope that little by little with the cooperation of commentaries, it will become ambiguous.

We have invented scholarship in order to evade doing God's will. This much we certainly do understand - that face to face with God and his obviously understood will to say "This I will not do" - this no one dares to do. We do not dare do it that way, so we protect ourselves by making it seem as if it were very difficult to understand and that therefore we study and investigate etc., that is, we protect ourselves by hiding behind big books". OUCH!

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Good Quote

I attended the AVDS Conference in Hesston, Kansas this weekend. I heard this quote:
"You can't really know or experience God's forgiveness until you offer it to someone else".

Let that sink in for awhile...

Thursday, October 28, 2010

Repairing Relationships


We have all been hurt by people in our life. Forgiveness is a choice we make for ourselves so we can live in freedom (whether the offender deserves it or not). The Bible has alot to say about forgiveness. Here are just a few verses:

Matthew 6:12,14-15 "...and forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us. If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins."

Matthew 18:21-22 Then Peter came to him and asked, "Lord, how often should I forgive someone who sins against me? Seven times?" "No!" Jesus replied, "seventy times seven!

Mark 11:24-25 "Listen to me! You can pray for anything, and if you believe, you will have it. But when you are praying, first forgive anyone you are holding a grudge against, so that your Father in heaven will forgive your sins, too."

Luke 23:34 Jesus said, "Father, forgive these people, because they don't know what they are doing."

Colossians 3:13 You must make allowance for each other's faults and forgive the person who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.

We have also been responsible for hurting people in our life. It's not always easy to think or remember whom we may have hurt along the way. If you are having trouble thinking of anybody, perhaps these questions will help:

* Is there anyone to whom you owe a debt that you haven't repaid? A friend, family member, a business?

* Is there anyone you've broken a promise to? A spouse, a child?

* Is there anyone you are guilty of controlling or manipulating? A spouse, child, brother, employee, friend?

* Have you been verbally, emotionally, or physically abusive to anyone?

* Is there anyone you have not appreciated or paid attention to?

* Is there anyone you have been unfaithful to?

* Have you lied to anyone?

If God should happen to bring to mind anyone as you read this list, then here is what Jesus says to do before the next worship service:

Matthew 5:23-24 "So if you are standing before the altar in the Temple, offering a sacrifice to God, and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, leave your sacrifice there beside the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.

Will there be anyone left in the worship service on Sunday? I guess we'll just have to wait and see...

Wednesday, October 20, 2010

Definition of a Hypocrite

"How can we worship a homeless man on Sunday and ignore one on Monday?"

But Jesus said, "Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but I, the Son of Man, have no home of my own, not even a place to lay my head." Matthew 8:20 (NLT)

Thoughts from the book of Acts

This comes from Perry Noble, Senior Pastor of NewSpring Church in South Carolina.
  • The church had to let go of the comfortable and the familiar in order to fully follow Jesus and advance HIS Gospel.
  • The church was passionately obsessed with seeing more and more people come to faith in Christ.
  • The message of the church was Jesus…nothing political or social, they didn’t try to legislate morality…simply Jesus!
  • God kept raising up gifted leaders who were willing to embrace their calling…one group of people were not expected to do it all…and when people embraced God’s calling on their lives–the church grew!
  • The people in the church were willing to work hard AND beg God to intervene on their behalf.
  • The crowds opinion can change often…the early church leaders knew that and were obsessed with Jesus and not with the opinions of others.
  • A praying church is unstoppable! (Acts 12!)
  • God reigns…despite circumstances…HE REIGNS!
  • The wisdom needed for leadership in the local church is plentiful and available if we will only seek His face and beg Him for it! I believe He will often allow us to expereince things that seem “impossible” just so we will continually learn that it is HIS church…and that we should seek HIS guidance!
  • Repentance must be taught…churches that do not preach and teach repentance are not being true to the call of God!!!
  • God wants the church to grow!!!
  • Vision that comes from the heart of God to the heart of a leader is what the church needs!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

HMMMMM...

Today's church prays for safety...the church in Acts prayed for boldness! Hmmmm....

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Turning Your Pain into Purpose

In his book, "Purpose Driven Life", Rick Warren made a statement that has helped my wife and me many times over. The statement is, "God never wastes a hurt". Stop and think about that. Reflect on it.

Everyone of us has had pain in our life and wondered what purpose it serves. Oftentimes in the midst of the pain we cannot see a point, but we are reminded of Romans 8:28 which states: "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them". God doesn't do or allow things haphazardly. He has a plan. We may not always see it, but we can be assured that something good will come from it - eventually.

Recently, I was changing our church sign in the pouring rain. The phrase I put up was: "There can be no rainbow without a cloud and a storm". After the rain stopped, someone snapped this incredible picture!

If you are experiencing pain or a cloud or even a storm right now, be encouraged. God is behind the scenes creating your rainbow. He is wanting to turn your burden into a blessing.

Wednesday, October 6, 2010

Combines, GPS, and God's Word

Yesterday I had the privilege of riding in a combine with one of our members. Upon driving out to his field to meet him, he told me that he would be three miles south and one mile west. (all directions are given that way in Nebraska). As I was trying to watch my odometer to see if I was getting close, it wasn't hard to spot him. I looked over to the west and all I could see was a huge cloud of dust moving about 6mph in the field. (It was a bit windy yesterday.) Sure enough, that was my friend. I parked my car and climbed aboard the big rig.

There are so many neat little gadgets in these things. Much of the equipment is computerized to tell you the yield per acre, how wet the beans are, etc. But the one gadget that was most needed that day was the GPS system. As we drove down the rows harvesting beans, the dust began to fly. It looked just like a blizzard only it wasn't snow that was flying - it was dust. (It reminded me of Kansas' song, "Dust in the Wind"). It was impossible to see where you were going. Thankfully, the GPS system was able to guide and direct the combine in a straight path until we got to the end of the row.

My friend said, "That would make a good sermon, wouldn't it?" I agreed. How often in life do we not know where we are going? Or we think we might know but we can't clearly see the path? Oftentimes, there is too much dust blowing in front of us and we don't know what dangers might lie ahead. Psalm 119:105 says, "God's Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path".

God's Word is our global positioning system. There will be numerous times in our life when we simply will not be able to see the path clearly. This verse says that God will guide us one step at a time. Our job is to rely on Him. Faith means moving ahead, trusting God when you can't see anything in front of you - kind of like my combine experience yesterday. (Thanks Barry)

Friday, October 1, 2010

Gifted for Greatness

Here at Bellwood, we are encouraged to use our S.H.A.P.E. to glorify God and serve others. (S-spiritual gifts, H-heart, A-abilities, P-personality, E-experiences in life). Pastor Erik Rees has written a book that talks about all of this. Here is a link to a recent article he wrote. If you struggle to know what spiritual gift God has given you, check out this list. http://erikrees.com/archives/126

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Not the Only One

Here is a link to an article entitled, "Loving Those Who Annoy You". I guess Jesus meant what He said - and yes, He's talking to me. I'm glad I'm not the only one who struggles with this.

http://www.themennonite.org/issues/13-10/articles/Loving_those_who_annoy_you

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

The four "F" words

Now that I have your attention, let me explain what I mean.

Suppose an alien were to visit Milford (or any Midwest town). Suppose this visitor were to spend a week observing the ordinary citizens of our towns. What do you think he would conclude about our average, everyday people? Would he be able to determine what is most important to us?

He would most likely notice the four "F's"- Football, Farming, Family and Faith.

My only question is - in what order of priority would he notice them?

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

The Pledge of Allegiance

I pledge allegiance to Jesus Christ, and to God's kingdom for which he died—one Spirit-led people the world over, indivisible, with love and justice for all.

The following article was written by Susan Mark Landis, Minister of Peace and Justice.

The Mennonite confession of faith states that first and foremost see the church as God's holy nation. "The only Christian nation is the church of Jesus Christ, made up of people from every tribe and nation, called to witness to God's glory."

Because Mennonites put their citizenship and allegiance to God far ahead of citizenship of any earthly nation, they have often been persecuted during times of war when they refuse to join the military. Because we know that God's church is made up of people from every nation, we believe that God blesses each nation and doesn't play favorites. This is why some Mennonites hesitate to sing "God bless America." They want God to bless all nations.

Mennonites began this denomination on the run from the government and many times through the years have found themselves opposed to their earthly government. Sometimes they have had good relations with their host country, but always there is an unease about how long this will last. Often the relationship sours over the issue of conscientious objection to war: when Mennonites weren't given this right, they often moved to another country.

Other parts of this section of the confession of faith talk about the respect due to our governing authorities and how important it is that we pray for them.

Because Mennonites give their primary allegiance to God, some choose to not say the Pledge of Allegiance. They claim the pledge does not allow them to first be citizens of God's kingdom. This issue has been so important to Mennonites over the years that many Mennonite communities built and staffed their own Mennonite schools, so their children did not have to say the pledge. Mennonites have often been persecuted in the United States for refusing to fly the flag.

One reason some Mennonites see the flag as a symbol of violence is because a primary purpose of a flag is to identify a nation during war. Back when the Revolutionary War was fought, the flag was created so that it could be carried into battle. As soon as territory is taken over during a war, the nation's flag is raised over it. Our national anthem was a poem written during a battle, glorifying war. That's the reason many Mennonites don't sing it.

Patriotism means different things to different people, but feelings often run deep and passionate on this topic. Mennonites have widely divergent views usually influenced by their life experiences. The main points in this type of discussion are:

  • focus as much as you can on the underlying personal relationship you have with each other as well as on the issue.
  • Take time to hear about the experiences which have brought people to their present attitudes.
  • Reflect on both the good and the bad of the necessity of being a citizen of an earthly kingdom.
  • Read "Agreeing and Disagreeing in Love" for a strong foundation to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace during these emotional times.
  • For further reading, check out Mennonites and Allegiance, The American Flag, and I Pledge Allegiance to Jesus.

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Are You Full of It?

I've been told that I am "full of it" many times, but what exactly am I full of? Great question to ask ourselves. The apostle Paul writes in Ephesians that we are to be "filled with the Spirit."

What are you filled with? Anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, fear, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, ego?

OR filled with: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, grace, mercy, hope, humility, generosity, compassion, faith, self-control? It's your choice.

Ever feel like you missed the boat?

How Dinosaurs became extinct...

Friday, September 3, 2010

Beside the Night Stand

These are list of the books I am currently reading.

Actually I just finished this one entitled, "Christian America and the Kingdom of God" by Richard Hughes. The premise is that too often America views itself as being God's, holy, chosen nation. With this type of mentality, it is easy to take an Old Testament approach to how we treat all other countries. Hughes' question is, "How does this square up with Jesus' Sermon on the Mount where he says we are to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute you?".

Many fundamentalists feel that it is the their job to bring all other peoples and countries into line with "American" thinking. The problem with this mentality is that the United States is NOT the kingdom of God (nor is any other country for that matter). Only the Church is God's holy, chosen nation. It's an easy read on a hard topic.


"The People's History of the United States:1492 - Present" by Howard Zinn. I am typically not a huge fan of history, but I have to say I'm getting into this book. It starts with the horrendous acts that were done to the Native Americans when the Spaniards and Europeans came over to settle. Diaries written at the time of Christopher Columbus detail the sad atrocities that were done to the original inhabitants of this land. It is a 700 page book. I am only about a third of the way through.

Along with Zinn' s book, I am reading "Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong" by James Loewen. Loewen reviewed 18 of the most commonly used high school textbooks and found that most (if not all) leave out important facts about the founding of this country, slavery and who actually owned slaves (this will surprise you), racism, the Civil War, Lincoln and his struggle with emancipation, as well as other issues in U.S. History. Loewen emphasizes the "dark side" of U.S. history, to help balance out the part that's missing from our education system. This is a real eye-opening book.

The final book I am reading is called, "Jesus and Empire: The Kingdom of God and the New World Disorder" by Richard Horsley. This gives an account of what Rome was like in the days of Jesus. Everything revolved around the empire and its Caesars. Statutes and coins paid homage to the great political and military leaders. In fact, they went so far as to call them "savior" (a term given to Jesus also). I am 1/4 of the way through this but my guess is that Horsley is going to make parallels between the social, political, and cultural parallels of imperial Rome with those of the empirical United States today. If you wish to be challenged intellectually and spiritually, this is a good book to read. If you wish to be disturbed and forced to think, read this book.

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

How to Respond?


Change is happening all around us. The culture seems to be changing at a rapid pace. Facebook, Twitter, the Droid, Kindle, iPods, iPhones, iPads...I can't keep up!

Don't get me wrong. I like technology. I loved it when the first arcade game of Space Invaders came out in the late 70's. Now you can bring the arcade home with your PlayStation, Game Cube, Wii, or Xbox. I've tried to keep up with audio-visual technology. I adjusted from LP's to 8-tracks to cassettes to CD's, and now it's mp3's. I've also gone from VHS tape to DVD to BluRay disc.

I am a fan of innovation but oftentimes I get to a point where I am comfortable with what I know and so I don't bother to try and keep up. I say it's "good enough" and I stay the same. This is a mentality that many churches have. We find false security in always staying the same. We bow to the altar of tradition and think we are doing things the way God wants. We think we are doing things right. But my question is - "Are we doing the right things?"

Part of our problem is that we assume that God stopped creating after the sixth day. The Bible says that He "rested", not that He quit being creative or innovative. God is constantly doing new things. Our mindset should be to find out where God is at work and join Him, but too often we get it backwards. We want God to bless what we are doing and it might not even be in His will.

The church is not called to maintain the status quo. Think about it - if we are, Jesus would not have said things like: "You have heard it said...but I say unto you..." (Matthew 5:38-48). Jesus also said in Luke 5:37, that no one pours new wine into old wineskins because they will break.

The definition of insanity is to always keep doing the same things you've always done and expect different results. As the culture around us continues to change, Christians should be in prayer to see where the spirit of God might be hovering and wanting us to join Him.

Thursday, August 19, 2010

A Band of Brothers

One of the abundant blessings God has given me is the friendship of fellow pastors in Milford. Once a month, we gather to share what' s going on in our lives and ministry and we pray for one another. It is amazing how well we get along. There is definitely a spirit of unity present. We are all passionate about serving God and the church. We also have many of the same struggles and frustrations.

Today as we were praying, the Holy Spirit lead me to pray, "God, love your people through me." This really convicted me for some reason. Do the people of Bellwood experience God's love through me? Do others see God's love flowing from me? Am I allowing God's Spirit to fill me up so that I am overflowing and able to share His love with others? I can't fully explain it except to say it was a God-thing of self-examination.

"Thank you God for brothers in Christ whose hearts are turned toward You. Amen."

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

10 Characteristics of a Growing Church

This comes from a fellow pastor, Perry Noble. http://www.perrynoble.com/

#1 – They have leaders that lead!

“For God so loved the world that He did not send a committee!” Not sure where I heard that…but its true!

#2 – A desperation for God’s power!

Prayer isn’t a good luck charm that is attached at the beginning or at the end of something…people are legitimately desperate for the power of God. They pray Habakkuk 3:2 prayers every day and…

#3 – They believe that greater things are in store.

They don’t just pray big prayers…but they have a sense of anticipation that is contagious! They don’t read Acts 2 and think “those were the good ‘ole days” but rather they think, “that’s where God STARTED this thing…we should be WAY ahead of this!!!”

#4 – They are full of ordinary people.

God always uses ordinary people to accomplish extraordinary things. Jesus didn’t choose one scribe or Pharisee when He launched the church…and Acts 4:13 talks about how He used ordinary people to absolutely turn the world upside down.

Respect for tradition
Desperation for God’s power
Use of technology
Passion filled leaders
Belief that greater things are in store.
Ownership of the church – staff would actually attend if they were not on staff.

#5 – They leverage technology.

They don’t view technology as of the devil but rather as a tool given by God to reach as many people as possible for Jesus. (Btw…isn’t it funny that some churches are against the use of technology yet all of them rode to their church in a car and their church building has air conditioner?)

#6 – The church is full of passion.

People in the church actually LOVE the church and do not attend because they feel like they have to! (The only reason people get angry with the fact that you love your church is probably because they have no idea what it is like to actually love their church!)

#7 – They take ownership of the great commission.

They REFUSE to be “keepers of the aquarium” and instead embrace the COMMAND of Jesus to reach the world for HIM!

#8 – There is a willingness to change and adapt, even when it means they have to go against the very “innovative” ideas that they themselves once established!

Anyone can change the traditions of the past…but true innovation occurs when we’re willing to change the ideas that we once thought were innovative and ground breaking!

#9 – Generosity is embraced.

The world has never been impacted in a positive way by people that were greedy.

#10 – The people in the church are OWNERS, not merely “members.”

Members have rights, owners have responsibilities. The people in these churches understand that it is not the pastors job to minister to the people but rather the body's job to minister to the body! And as a result people serve Jesus by serving others instead of sitting on their “blessed assurance” and expecting to be waited on hand and foot.

Thursday, August 12, 2010

The Giving Pledge - Why wait?

Warren Buffett says he and Bill Gates have pledges from 40 of America's wealthiest individuals and families to give away at least half their fortunes to charity.

Buffett and Bill Gates, who have a combined wealth of about $90 billion, officially launched The Giving Pledge this year to urge wealthy individuals to give the majority of their money to charities of their choice either during their lifetime or after their death.

The latest list of 40 billionaires includes, among others, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, media mogul Ted Turner, film director George Lucas and energy magnate T. Boone Pickens.

"We've really just started, but already we've had a terrific response," Buffett, co-founder, chairman and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, said in a statement. "At its core, the Giving Pledge is about asking wealthy families to have important conversations about their wealth and how it will be used.

"We're delighted that so many people are doing just that – and that so many have decided to not only take this pledge but also to commit to sums far greater than the 50% minimum level."

This intrigues me. First, it is nice to see that the wealthy are concerned about making a difference in the world. They hope the money will benefit medical advancements, global crises, poverty, etc. I'm sure it will have a big impact for the good. The one thing that bothers me, though is Buffet said in an interview with Charlie Rose that the reason he was doing this was because he's always had everything he needed so it was time to give back. This is a mentality that many of us have when it comes to money - take care of me first, making sure I get what I want AND THEN I will help you after I'm dead and gone.

I'm not sure that is how Christians are called to live. Remember the story in the Bible where Jesus and some of his disciples were watching people go in and out of the temple dropping in their money? Then this poor, destitute widow drops in a measly two cents and Jesus says she gave more than anyone. Why? Because everyone else gave out of their abundance, but she gave from her poverty (and she was still alive)!

Don't get me wrong. I am not judging the hearts of the wealthy who have pledged 50% of their estates. May God bless them. My question is - why wait until you are wealthy and dead before you start to give it away and help others? The New Testament church in Acts 2 didn't wait to give their stuff away. It says that they sold their possessions and distributed to anyone in need. They were so excited by the new thing God was doing that they were totally trusting God to provide. They were filled with such love and compassion for others that material things did not much matter.

How can we recapture this type of sacrificial giving while we are still alive?

I'm done writing because I think the Spirit is convicting me too much...

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

The Pardon of Billy the Kid

This appeared on Timothy Merrill's blog. Thought I would share it:

New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson is thinking about granting a posthumous pardon to notorious outlaw, Billy the Kid, who died with his boots on when shot down at the age of 21 by Pat Garrett more than 125 years ago. Richardson's doing this for God knows why.

Actually, I’m not sure God knows why.

And so this is my question: What compelling reason (and he may have one; I just don’t know what it is—I do know about the amnesty thing and “what if” history) moves Richardson to even ponder this pardon? Have pardons already been granted to Jesse James, the Dalton boys or the Clanton gang?

The relatives of Pat Garrett are urging Richardson not to grant the pardon. The Kid killed people, and not even the passing of time erases the calumny of those deeds.

So—Gov’nor? What’s moving you to consider this?

We might also ask the same question of God re the pardon God has extended toward us. God must have a compelling reason, but in this case I know what it is: God loves us and justice has been satisfied.

We’re no more worthy of consideration of a pardon than Billy the Kid, but God’s done it anyway.

http://tmerril.blogs.com/timothy_merrill/2010/08/the-pardon-of-billy-the-kid.html

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

The Life of a Pastor

August 2 marks three years since becoming a pastor. I am in the process of doing a pastor-congregational review to gauge how it's going. In three years, one thing I have learned is that pastoring is certainly not for the faint at heart. I have to rely on the verse that says, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me". I definitely cannot do this on my own power (although I forget that sometimes). Here is something I came across last week that describes how pastors oftentimes feel:


"He must generate group enthusiasm as does a cheerleader of a disappointingly slow ballgame.

He feels the pressure to produce a winning team, as does the ball coach.

He is given the responsibility of leading but always from a servant position.

He must give three or more speeches each week to the same general group.

He must not be repetitious or boring. He must have fresh, up to-date materials and data. He must do it without a speechwriter or research team.

He must be approachable at all times regardless of his own personal desire to be left alone.

He must teach from a book studied and read by his students, yet must be fresh and informative.

He is a walking, talking, loving man of God, man of men, man of a family who is called “Pastor.”

He is trained to preach, to pastor, to administrate, but somewhere someone failed to give him the magic word, which changes him into “Captain Marvel.”

He is a man, a good man, but just a man. Without the grace of God his load would be too great and he would break…"


Sometimes the load feels too great, but just like God reminded Paul, "My grace is sufficient for you". Praise God for the power and daily renewal of grace.