I have a request.
Brian commented, "I'm not sure where you landed on this. Maybe you didn't land, but the ending felt like an abrupt landing. I'd really like to hear you say some more about this."
Well the last post may have pushed the deep thinking part of my brain past its limits, but I'll try to explain my thoughts (if that's possible).
I have always watched people from a distance, to watch how they act and react. To listen to their words, their passions. To read their body language, the volume of their voice and their swagger. But what I find most interesting is how people convey to others and how people respond to the truth.
If that truth is the Word of God, people respond differently. The parable of the sower is a good example of what people do with truth. They accept or reject.
Now let's just say for fun we want to change the truth.
Let's say we don't like what we hear, so we create our "truth". When told we are wrong we cry foul and say "there really isn't one truth" and "our truth is just as good as yours!"
But is it the truth?
Hitler was a master at creating and conveying his special "truth". He worked the podium and speaker in such a way that made people follow him to their ultimate defeat and destruction. I think these people wanted so badly to believe in what Hitler was saying, that they looked the other way and began to believe every word that he said.
Is truth, like beauty, in the eyes of the beholder?
Let's take something from today, like global warming. You can find a hundred scientist who say it exists, and you can find a hundred who say it doesn't. And while I'm sure they can all give us data to prove their points, I wonder, does how they see the world influence how the see global warming? Would a scientist who worked for Greenpeace see the data in the same way the Heritage Foundation scientist would? My guess is no.
The data would be the constant, or truth, yet these two very different groups would see the data or truth in a very different light. Each would promote their version of the truth to be the correct truth.
I guess maybe what I'm ultimately saying is that we have so many different views of the world and we now have so many ways of distributing our views that we have the ability to convince people of things, that may not be the truth.
Look at reality television.
While it claims to be "reality", I would contend that it is really the farthest thing from reality. Even shows that do a good work, like re-doing homes or the super nanny, are not reality. If you have brats for kids or need a home make over, chances are they are not going to pull up at your door. The real reality is your going to have to fix those things yourself. Waiting on the lottery? The truth is that the odds are so far out that you might have a better chance of being hit by lightning.
And yet.
Because people want to believe in something, a truth that really isn't truth, that they continue to hope their six numbers come up, or the super nanny just happens to hear the kids fighting and pops in.
Truth is sometimes what we want it to be, not what it really is.
Many people want to believe there isn't a hell, they want to believe that everybody goes to heaven with a harp and a new set of wings. That becomes their truth. They simply refuse to listen or believe anything else.
I hope as a people we never stop searching for the real truth, but when we find it we must set aside our feelings and judge the truth on its own, without an agenda.
This probably will not answer Brian's questions, and the truth is it may have him asking even more questions.
But for right now, my brain hurts.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Monday, February 20, 2006
The Truth
Is there anything more elusive?
It is something that everyone longs for, yet when confronted with it, the same people deny it. I have wanted to talk about it for so long, but I just couldn't find the words to express my feelings. I did today.
I was reading an article about the British right wing historian David Irving's contention that the holocaust did not happen. His point was that most of the millions of Jews that died at the concentration camps, died of diseases and not by the use of torture and the gas chambers.
His argument is not new, many people deny the holocaust for one reason or another, usually because it goes along with their hatred of the Jews. Now that David has been sentenced to 10 years for making these allegations, he has now stated that the holocaust did happen.
So truth is relative?
We all see the world in a different light. Conservatives see truth differently than liberals do. Pro choice people see truth differently than anti-abortion people do. The NRA people see truth differently than the gun control people do. This just goes on and on.
So is truth the truth or is truth just what we think it is?
The examples of relative truth is everywhere, many people think that Elvis is still alive, that all college and pro sports are fixed, the grassy knoll, and of course the denial of the holocaust.
And yet people can look at solid evidence to the contrary, but continue to believe their "truth".
This "relative" truth creeps into our lives. We establish a position, then we create truth around that position. We yell and scream, pound our fist on the table and hold our truth to be beyond question. Even when we are proven wrong we still cannot admit that perhaps our truth wasn't the truth after all. We then go to the name calling and fit throwing phase in hopes people won't dig to deeply into our truth.
I don't like gray areas, I want the truth. It is either right or it is wrong, black or white.
I went searching for the truth about the teachings of Calvin or in other words Calvinism. I wanted to hear both sides of the argument so I bought the book "Debating Calvinism" and in it two very intelligent Biblical scholars wrote letters back and forth to each other. Each man stated his point, the other man made a counterpoint, and on and on it went. It was interesting to read each mans passion for his "truth". I'm afraid that some Biblical truths will always be a point of conflict between believers, but it is interesting the way we use our Bibles to prove our 'truths". Here was two men reading the same truth, and yet seeing two different truths.
That has always interested me.
I want to look at truth as a rock, a solid foundation, unwavering no matter what storm is raging around it. As people we should either accept it or disagree with it, but don't try to change it just because you don't like it. It is what it is.
Which brings me to my last point. We are a spiritual people, but not everyone believes in our God. They hear the truth, but because it doesn't fit their lifestyle or whatever, they search for another god. One that fits their "truth". It happened in the Old Testament as the people of Israel chased after the gods of their neighbors. The truth they had been a witness to was simply not their "truth" anymore.
So are you searching for the real truth or do you think you know what the real truth is?
It can be a tough question,
and that's the truth.
It is something that everyone longs for, yet when confronted with it, the same people deny it. I have wanted to talk about it for so long, but I just couldn't find the words to express my feelings. I did today.
I was reading an article about the British right wing historian David Irving's contention that the holocaust did not happen. His point was that most of the millions of Jews that died at the concentration camps, died of diseases and not by the use of torture and the gas chambers.
His argument is not new, many people deny the holocaust for one reason or another, usually because it goes along with their hatred of the Jews. Now that David has been sentenced to 10 years for making these allegations, he has now stated that the holocaust did happen.
So truth is relative?
We all see the world in a different light. Conservatives see truth differently than liberals do. Pro choice people see truth differently than anti-abortion people do. The NRA people see truth differently than the gun control people do. This just goes on and on.
So is truth the truth or is truth just what we think it is?
The examples of relative truth is everywhere, many people think that Elvis is still alive, that all college and pro sports are fixed, the grassy knoll, and of course the denial of the holocaust.
And yet people can look at solid evidence to the contrary, but continue to believe their "truth".
This "relative" truth creeps into our lives. We establish a position, then we create truth around that position. We yell and scream, pound our fist on the table and hold our truth to be beyond question. Even when we are proven wrong we still cannot admit that perhaps our truth wasn't the truth after all. We then go to the name calling and fit throwing phase in hopes people won't dig to deeply into our truth.
I don't like gray areas, I want the truth. It is either right or it is wrong, black or white.
I went searching for the truth about the teachings of Calvin or in other words Calvinism. I wanted to hear both sides of the argument so I bought the book "Debating Calvinism" and in it two very intelligent Biblical scholars wrote letters back and forth to each other. Each man stated his point, the other man made a counterpoint, and on and on it went. It was interesting to read each mans passion for his "truth". I'm afraid that some Biblical truths will always be a point of conflict between believers, but it is interesting the way we use our Bibles to prove our 'truths". Here was two men reading the same truth, and yet seeing two different truths.
That has always interested me.
I want to look at truth as a rock, a solid foundation, unwavering no matter what storm is raging around it. As people we should either accept it or disagree with it, but don't try to change it just because you don't like it. It is what it is.
Which brings me to my last point. We are a spiritual people, but not everyone believes in our God. They hear the truth, but because it doesn't fit their lifestyle or whatever, they search for another god. One that fits their "truth". It happened in the Old Testament as the people of Israel chased after the gods of their neighbors. The truth they had been a witness to was simply not their "truth" anymore.
So are you searching for the real truth or do you think you know what the real truth is?
It can be a tough question,
and that's the truth.
Friday, February 17, 2006
Ode to Mr Doe.
You know who you are.
I want to talk about people that don't want to be talked about.
They attend our churches, but they are very quiet, and yet their handiwork is everywhere.
In my church we have several people who work behind the scenes, and they do a great job.
I thank the good Lord we have them.
But I'm thinking of one man, and I find that most churches have at least one, that can fix anything and is always ready to donate his time and money to the church. Now I know there can be several people who fit that mold, but what is so unique about this special person is he never wants the spotlight. He hates being recognized, he just wants to serve his God with his special talents.
Now because he wants to remain out of the spotlight I won't use his name, we will call him Mr. Doe.
Mr Doe is an artist with the hammer and saw, wiring and the hedge trimmer. The church needs a new VCR-DVD combo unit, amazingly one appears, and when he is asked about it he calmly says that "I saw one fall out of the back of a truck I was following, I stopped and picked it up and it still works", (I have to admit I fell for this at first, until he told me the same thing about a new bathroom sink the church needed).
I want so badly to tell you who he is, I love this guy and I think his work needs to be recognized, but I can't and I won't.
It is so neat that in this day and age of self gratification and ego stroking there are people who want just to serve without recognition.
So many will do things in the church, but they want the spotlight shined on them. Look what I did, look at what I have sacrificed. See how special and important I am. It becomes less Christ service and more self service.
So today Mr. Doe I want to shine a little light on you, both in my church and in the other churches your special kind attend all over the world. You may think that nobody knows what you do, but don't worry, God knows and He will reward you when it counts. I thank the Lord for you and your kind. You are an example of true servant hood, and my hope is that we all catch your kind and gentle spirit.
To coin a bad commercial slogan,
this blogs for you!
I want to talk about people that don't want to be talked about.
They attend our churches, but they are very quiet, and yet their handiwork is everywhere.
In my church we have several people who work behind the scenes, and they do a great job.
I thank the good Lord we have them.
But I'm thinking of one man, and I find that most churches have at least one, that can fix anything and is always ready to donate his time and money to the church. Now I know there can be several people who fit that mold, but what is so unique about this special person is he never wants the spotlight. He hates being recognized, he just wants to serve his God with his special talents.
Now because he wants to remain out of the spotlight I won't use his name, we will call him Mr. Doe.
Mr Doe is an artist with the hammer and saw, wiring and the hedge trimmer. The church needs a new VCR-DVD combo unit, amazingly one appears, and when he is asked about it he calmly says that "I saw one fall out of the back of a truck I was following, I stopped and picked it up and it still works", (I have to admit I fell for this at first, until he told me the same thing about a new bathroom sink the church needed).
I want so badly to tell you who he is, I love this guy and I think his work needs to be recognized, but I can't and I won't.
It is so neat that in this day and age of self gratification and ego stroking there are people who want just to serve without recognition.
So many will do things in the church, but they want the spotlight shined on them. Look what I did, look at what I have sacrificed. See how special and important I am. It becomes less Christ service and more self service.
So today Mr. Doe I want to shine a little light on you, both in my church and in the other churches your special kind attend all over the world. You may think that nobody knows what you do, but don't worry, God knows and He will reward you when it counts. I thank the Lord for you and your kind. You are an example of true servant hood, and my hope is that we all catch your kind and gentle spirit.
To coin a bad commercial slogan,
this blogs for you!
Monday, February 13, 2006
Youth Night
I hate having this feeling.
Every so often my youth group has the Sunday evening service. They pick the music and the format. They pretty much have free reign. As with most teens they needed a little prodding from me to come up with something. All in all it went pretty well, they decided to do the same thing upstairs as we do downstairs when we are by ourselves.
The way we start our time together is spending about 10 minutes just talking. I bring some pop and sometimes I'll bring some chips. I let them talk about anything and everything that goes on in their life. So to emulate that I had the adults just take 5 minutes to meet and greet. They got up a walked around and talked to each other. I thought that was pretty cool. So far so good.
I had the girls lead us in a couple of worship songs. That was fine, I like it when they pick the music because it's something that's got a pretty good beat to it.
Then came game time.
I played a version of Hollywood squares, I picked a couple of ladies from the congregation and I had my teens be the squares. Everything was going fine, until...
one of the ladies picked a teen boy. Now this kid is a great kid, but he is one of the shy ones. He would do anything that I would ask him to do, as long as it wasn't anything that would shine the spotlight directly on him. I asked him a question, and then I realized what I had done. I put the spotlight on him. He stammered, answered the question with the wrong answer and then blurted out "I don't know". I instantly knew I had messed up.
After our game we did our lesson, which funny enough was on wisdom. Boy if anyone needed to hear that one it was me. As I did the lesson I couldn't help but feel horrible about what I had done. I should have picked a multiple choice question for him. I really blew it.
I remember back to my Campus Life days, I was doing a lesson on dating. I said something like "you go to her parents house and you discover that her mom is crazy". I said it really without thinking, I thought it was funny because that situation would NEVER happen, right? Well wrong, one of my kids mothers had some mental illness issues. He was hurt by what I had said. I didn't mean to hurt anyone and I didn't know about her illness, but yet I had hurt someone.
I hate that feeling.
It's times like these that make me want to crawl back to my pew and become a spectator. Just become a pew potato. Just sit and watch others do stuff. No risk of hurting anyone, no risk of making the wrong call. No risk at all.
Many people have told me that I would make a good pastor, I always smile and thank them for their comment, but I know in my heart that sooner or later my mouth would get me in trouble. I know pastors aren't perfect and I know I'm not perfect. But the reality is that many people think that they should be. Always say the right thing at the right time. I have never been able to do that. Much like my young friend, I stammer and when something does come out, it's never good enough in my eyes.
God uses imperfect people. I understand my role as a leader is to listen to God. To do the best that I can with what God has given me. I just wish that I could do that without messing up. I know that nobody does it without making mistakes, but when your a leader, messing up can hurt a lot of people.
And I just hate that feeling.
Every so often my youth group has the Sunday evening service. They pick the music and the format. They pretty much have free reign. As with most teens they needed a little prodding from me to come up with something. All in all it went pretty well, they decided to do the same thing upstairs as we do downstairs when we are by ourselves.
The way we start our time together is spending about 10 minutes just talking. I bring some pop and sometimes I'll bring some chips. I let them talk about anything and everything that goes on in their life. So to emulate that I had the adults just take 5 minutes to meet and greet. They got up a walked around and talked to each other. I thought that was pretty cool. So far so good.
I had the girls lead us in a couple of worship songs. That was fine, I like it when they pick the music because it's something that's got a pretty good beat to it.
Then came game time.
I played a version of Hollywood squares, I picked a couple of ladies from the congregation and I had my teens be the squares. Everything was going fine, until...
one of the ladies picked a teen boy. Now this kid is a great kid, but he is one of the shy ones. He would do anything that I would ask him to do, as long as it wasn't anything that would shine the spotlight directly on him. I asked him a question, and then I realized what I had done. I put the spotlight on him. He stammered, answered the question with the wrong answer and then blurted out "I don't know". I instantly knew I had messed up.
After our game we did our lesson, which funny enough was on wisdom. Boy if anyone needed to hear that one it was me. As I did the lesson I couldn't help but feel horrible about what I had done. I should have picked a multiple choice question for him. I really blew it.
I remember back to my Campus Life days, I was doing a lesson on dating. I said something like "you go to her parents house and you discover that her mom is crazy". I said it really without thinking, I thought it was funny because that situation would NEVER happen, right? Well wrong, one of my kids mothers had some mental illness issues. He was hurt by what I had said. I didn't mean to hurt anyone and I didn't know about her illness, but yet I had hurt someone.
I hate that feeling.
It's times like these that make me want to crawl back to my pew and become a spectator. Just become a pew potato. Just sit and watch others do stuff. No risk of hurting anyone, no risk of making the wrong call. No risk at all.
Many people have told me that I would make a good pastor, I always smile and thank them for their comment, but I know in my heart that sooner or later my mouth would get me in trouble. I know pastors aren't perfect and I know I'm not perfect. But the reality is that many people think that they should be. Always say the right thing at the right time. I have never been able to do that. Much like my young friend, I stammer and when something does come out, it's never good enough in my eyes.
God uses imperfect people. I understand my role as a leader is to listen to God. To do the best that I can with what God has given me. I just wish that I could do that without messing up. I know that nobody does it without making mistakes, but when your a leader, messing up can hurt a lot of people.
And I just hate that feeling.
Thursday, February 02, 2006
Turning 40
It really caught me off guard.
My father was leaving the hospital again, I was going to bring him home. Neither of us knew that in a few short months he would be gone.
He was dressed and ready to go, all but his shoes and socks. He got himself to the edge of the bed, looked down, and asked me something that he had never asked me before.
"Could you put them on for me buddy?"
I paused for a second, and began to put my dad's shoes and socks on his feet.
It's hard to explain what I felt. This was my father, the man I never could beat arm wrestling, the man who could lift anything and work from dawn to dusk with energy to spare. He had been growing weaker as time had past and I knew that, but I was jolted by his request. How many times had he put my shoes and socks on when I was a boy, and now I was doing it for him. It just seemed strange and foreign to me.
I have not looked at life the same since.
I guess as you get older you start to understand the life cycle more, as a Christian you begin to understand God's plan for a man's life. You really start understanding the "life is but a vapor" verse.
Now I'm not whacked out about turning 40, I'm not going to buy a sports car or anything like that. In fact I feel the same now as I did when I turned 30.
But there have been some changes.
My hair certainly is grayer, I have strange spots on my face and I have noticed a few more aches and pains, but other than that, I'm okay.
If anything is bothering me it's the speed at which time flies. My next 40 years, if the good Lord grants me that, probably will not be as much fun. Will the next 40 go as fast as the first?
Well enough of that, since I have become wiser in my years, I would like to make the following observations about life.
1. I have become content with who I am. I don't mean that in the "I'm perfect and don't need to improve" way. I mean that in the "I'm not sorry I wasn't a rock star" way. I made my life choices, for better or for worse, and I'm okay with where I have ended up. God has taken all of my questionable choices and turned them into blessings. God does that kind of stuff.
2. We are a people of extremes. Some might say that this is a recent thing, but I'm not so sure. As I study history I find that free people sometimes take extreme views. Freedom allows that.
If you think I'm wrong, think about the civil war. Talk about extremes. I think we just have more media outlets and talking heads who want to talk about their views.
3. People don't listen. Listening is a lost art. Everybody wants to talk, share what they think is right, but they refuse to listen to any other view. What's worse is that we don't even let people share their views because we have made our minds up that we are right and they are wrong. Let's have some conversation, and then decide how we feel about it.
4. I have become amused and saddened at the lengths men will go to find happiness.
5. I am neither Democrat or Republican. I vote for the man I feel will do the best job.
6. A bad day at the ocean is better than the best day at work.
7. A great wife and great sons bring their husband/father much joy.
(I'm starting to sound like King Solomon)
8. If you want to help your church, start by getting yourself closer to God.
9. I really don't think Phil Collins has that great of a voice, but he is one of my favorite singers.
10. I'm not an ultra conservative, but I have to admit I read Ann Coulter and Mike Adams.
11. I don't understand some pastors who think they have to use vulgar language to get their message out. Did Jesus do that?
12. While I'm on pastors, were does it say that all Christians will and should be healthy and wealthy?
13. The homosexual lifestyle is NOT pleasing to God. If you think it is, your reading the wrong Bible.
14. I am willing to admit I have made mistakes in my life that have hurt people.
15. Christians are not perfect, but somehow the rumor got started that we are.
16. The 69-70 Dodge Charger has got to be the coolest car ever built.
17. Life goes by so fast, but we continue to live like we will be here forever.
18. Never say crazy things that will get put into your class yearbook. Those things live forever.
19. I have only taken one good picture of myself in my whole life, and by the way what are those humps above my eyes?
20. I am one of the few people who can give Brian Miller the neck slash sign and live to talk about it.
Well that's all for now, look out big 50!
My father was leaving the hospital again, I was going to bring him home. Neither of us knew that in a few short months he would be gone.
He was dressed and ready to go, all but his shoes and socks. He got himself to the edge of the bed, looked down, and asked me something that he had never asked me before.
"Could you put them on for me buddy?"
I paused for a second, and began to put my dad's shoes and socks on his feet.
It's hard to explain what I felt. This was my father, the man I never could beat arm wrestling, the man who could lift anything and work from dawn to dusk with energy to spare. He had been growing weaker as time had past and I knew that, but I was jolted by his request. How many times had he put my shoes and socks on when I was a boy, and now I was doing it for him. It just seemed strange and foreign to me.
I have not looked at life the same since.
I guess as you get older you start to understand the life cycle more, as a Christian you begin to understand God's plan for a man's life. You really start understanding the "life is but a vapor" verse.
Now I'm not whacked out about turning 40, I'm not going to buy a sports car or anything like that. In fact I feel the same now as I did when I turned 30.
But there have been some changes.
My hair certainly is grayer, I have strange spots on my face and I have noticed a few more aches and pains, but other than that, I'm okay.
If anything is bothering me it's the speed at which time flies. My next 40 years, if the good Lord grants me that, probably will not be as much fun. Will the next 40 go as fast as the first?
Well enough of that, since I have become wiser in my years, I would like to make the following observations about life.
1. I have become content with who I am. I don't mean that in the "I'm perfect and don't need to improve" way. I mean that in the "I'm not sorry I wasn't a rock star" way. I made my life choices, for better or for worse, and I'm okay with where I have ended up. God has taken all of my questionable choices and turned them into blessings. God does that kind of stuff.
2. We are a people of extremes. Some might say that this is a recent thing, but I'm not so sure. As I study history I find that free people sometimes take extreme views. Freedom allows that.
If you think I'm wrong, think about the civil war. Talk about extremes. I think we just have more media outlets and talking heads who want to talk about their views.
3. People don't listen. Listening is a lost art. Everybody wants to talk, share what they think is right, but they refuse to listen to any other view. What's worse is that we don't even let people share their views because we have made our minds up that we are right and they are wrong. Let's have some conversation, and then decide how we feel about it.
4. I have become amused and saddened at the lengths men will go to find happiness.
5. I am neither Democrat or Republican. I vote for the man I feel will do the best job.
6. A bad day at the ocean is better than the best day at work.
7. A great wife and great sons bring their husband/father much joy.
(I'm starting to sound like King Solomon)
8. If you want to help your church, start by getting yourself closer to God.
9. I really don't think Phil Collins has that great of a voice, but he is one of my favorite singers.
10. I'm not an ultra conservative, but I have to admit I read Ann Coulter and Mike Adams.
11. I don't understand some pastors who think they have to use vulgar language to get their message out. Did Jesus do that?
12. While I'm on pastors, were does it say that all Christians will and should be healthy and wealthy?
13. The homosexual lifestyle is NOT pleasing to God. If you think it is, your reading the wrong Bible.
14. I am willing to admit I have made mistakes in my life that have hurt people.
15. Christians are not perfect, but somehow the rumor got started that we are.
16. The 69-70 Dodge Charger has got to be the coolest car ever built.
17. Life goes by so fast, but we continue to live like we will be here forever.
18. Never say crazy things that will get put into your class yearbook. Those things live forever.
19. I have only taken one good picture of myself in my whole life, and by the way what are those humps above my eyes?
20. I am one of the few people who can give Brian Miller the neck slash sign and live to talk about it.
Well that's all for now, look out big 50!
Tuesday, January 24, 2006
Is your church ISO9000?
I found myself in one of those meetings again.
Oh this wasn't a church meeting, it was several years ago at the company I used to work for.
They were starting a quality program, following in the footsteps of the Ford Motor company's "quality is job one" theme. In a nutshell it basically talked about doing your job better, documenting everything, and whammo, your doing better work.
Everybody is happy right?
We starting having what seemed like dozens of meetings monthly. We talked about how to do our job's better and how we could make the process smoother.
Sounds really good doesn't it.
One problem.
We didn't talk about our customers.
What was their needs, how could we serve them better.
In our meetings we focused on ourselves, and I began to wonder, was even all the time we were taking in these meetings, causing us to ignore our customers even more?
Which brings me to today's church landscape.
Somewhere the church adapted business ideas to church growth and development. It was reasoned that if it worked for Jack at GE, it will work for the church.
So we all sat down and ground out purpose statements, I guess for some reason we forgot why our church exists.
I can just see Paul talking to the elders at Cornith, "look your never going to get anywhere until you have a bunch of meetings and come up with a purpose statement".
I know I sound cynical, and I know the church needs reminded from time to time what it's supposed to be doing.
But I really dislike the purpose statement.
It would be fine if we really believed and practiced what we spent so much time writing. The truth is we write a beautiful statement, but then we just keep doing things the way we always did. The other thing is this, have we become so out of whack that we need to be constantly reminded what we are here for? If that's the case we have some serious problems anyway.
I guess I hate working on something, just for the sake of working on something. If we are going to do things better, then let's do it, all the way. If your going to take up my time and just talk about doing things better, then I can find better uses for my time.
In all of this I'm afraid we are missing the point of ministry, and gauging success on numbers alone. Numbers are nice, but moving people closer in their relationship with Jesus is even better. I find that when we do that, numbers don't become a problem.
I heard today that Ford is laying off. It's really sad that many people are losing their jobs.
Did Ford become more concerned with their profits than their customers? If Ford's culture was truly the best quality going, would they be in this mess?
Tough questions.
Maybe a better one is, which model is the church going to follow?
Ford or Jesus Christ?
Hmmmmm.
Oh this wasn't a church meeting, it was several years ago at the company I used to work for.
They were starting a quality program, following in the footsteps of the Ford Motor company's "quality is job one" theme. In a nutshell it basically talked about doing your job better, documenting everything, and whammo, your doing better work.
Everybody is happy right?
We starting having what seemed like dozens of meetings monthly. We talked about how to do our job's better and how we could make the process smoother.
Sounds really good doesn't it.
One problem.
We didn't talk about our customers.
What was their needs, how could we serve them better.
In our meetings we focused on ourselves, and I began to wonder, was even all the time we were taking in these meetings, causing us to ignore our customers even more?
Which brings me to today's church landscape.
Somewhere the church adapted business ideas to church growth and development. It was reasoned that if it worked for Jack at GE, it will work for the church.
So we all sat down and ground out purpose statements, I guess for some reason we forgot why our church exists.
I can just see Paul talking to the elders at Cornith, "look your never going to get anywhere until you have a bunch of meetings and come up with a purpose statement".
I know I sound cynical, and I know the church needs reminded from time to time what it's supposed to be doing.
But I really dislike the purpose statement.
It would be fine if we really believed and practiced what we spent so much time writing. The truth is we write a beautiful statement, but then we just keep doing things the way we always did. The other thing is this, have we become so out of whack that we need to be constantly reminded what we are here for? If that's the case we have some serious problems anyway.
I guess I hate working on something, just for the sake of working on something. If we are going to do things better, then let's do it, all the way. If your going to take up my time and just talk about doing things better, then I can find better uses for my time.
In all of this I'm afraid we are missing the point of ministry, and gauging success on numbers alone. Numbers are nice, but moving people closer in their relationship with Jesus is even better. I find that when we do that, numbers don't become a problem.
I heard today that Ford is laying off. It's really sad that many people are losing their jobs.
Did Ford become more concerned with their profits than their customers? If Ford's culture was truly the best quality going, would they be in this mess?
Tough questions.
Maybe a better one is, which model is the church going to follow?
Ford or Jesus Christ?
Hmmmmm.
Wednesday, January 18, 2006
Take care of things...
"Take care of things until I get back"
Those words still echo in my mind. I was all of 10 years old, the oldest child in my family and my Dad was leaving.
He had to leave a lot when I was young, he worked at a pipeline company and sooner or later a pipe somewhere would start leaking. It was usually far enough away that Dad would have to be gone for weeks at a time, coming home only on the weekends.
Being 10 I really didn't think about it that much, Dad always came home. When he would walk in the door Friday night my sisters and I would jump on him and hug him, just tickled to death to see him again. I will never forget that oil smell in his clothes. It didn't matter what he smelled like.
Dad was home.
As I grew older I began to realize what "take care of things while I'm gone" meant. Dad's job was dangerous, he would weld on pipes that only moments before had oil, gasoline or other flammables running through it. I watched them carry my dad home once, he had broken his foot. He had been on fire, had a ditch cave in on him, and eventually he was crushed by pipe rolling down a ditch on top of him. He survived but it damaged his back to the point he couldn't do his job anymore. I never thought for a moment he wouldn't come back.
On the weeks he was gone my job was to take care of the chores, mowing and keeping wood in the stove. When we lived in the country, I fed the chickens and slopped the pigs (thankfully we only had 7 pigs and it didn't last very long). Dad counted on me to keep things going while he was gone. To keep an eye on things, help Mom and look after my siblings. Mom did most of it herself but I helped where I could.
Now that my father is with the Lord I still hear his words, "take care of things". What that means to me is that my responsibilities are to my family. My wife, children, Mom and my brothers and sisters. Dad would want me to watch over things for him in his absence. It was taught to me in my youth and I take that very seriously.
I have thought about what Jesus said when He left earth. He was saying take care of things until I get back. Take care of my family, my children. I will return, but until I do I want you to continue the work I started. Love each other and care for each other.
If I had to sum up what the church needs to do, it's to take care of things until our Father comes back. We are the Jesus that people are going to see. We are his representatives in His absence. We are to follow in His footsteps, not because of our feeling of duty, but because we love our Lord so much, we want Him to return and be pleased with us.
Church isn't about membership, money or service times.
It's about taking care of things until He returns.
Those words still echo in my mind. I was all of 10 years old, the oldest child in my family and my Dad was leaving.
He had to leave a lot when I was young, he worked at a pipeline company and sooner or later a pipe somewhere would start leaking. It was usually far enough away that Dad would have to be gone for weeks at a time, coming home only on the weekends.
Being 10 I really didn't think about it that much, Dad always came home. When he would walk in the door Friday night my sisters and I would jump on him and hug him, just tickled to death to see him again. I will never forget that oil smell in his clothes. It didn't matter what he smelled like.
Dad was home.
As I grew older I began to realize what "take care of things while I'm gone" meant. Dad's job was dangerous, he would weld on pipes that only moments before had oil, gasoline or other flammables running through it. I watched them carry my dad home once, he had broken his foot. He had been on fire, had a ditch cave in on him, and eventually he was crushed by pipe rolling down a ditch on top of him. He survived but it damaged his back to the point he couldn't do his job anymore. I never thought for a moment he wouldn't come back.
On the weeks he was gone my job was to take care of the chores, mowing and keeping wood in the stove. When we lived in the country, I fed the chickens and slopped the pigs (thankfully we only had 7 pigs and it didn't last very long). Dad counted on me to keep things going while he was gone. To keep an eye on things, help Mom and look after my siblings. Mom did most of it herself but I helped where I could.
Now that my father is with the Lord I still hear his words, "take care of things". What that means to me is that my responsibilities are to my family. My wife, children, Mom and my brothers and sisters. Dad would want me to watch over things for him in his absence. It was taught to me in my youth and I take that very seriously.
I have thought about what Jesus said when He left earth. He was saying take care of things until I get back. Take care of my family, my children. I will return, but until I do I want you to continue the work I started. Love each other and care for each other.
If I had to sum up what the church needs to do, it's to take care of things until our Father comes back. We are the Jesus that people are going to see. We are his representatives in His absence. We are to follow in His footsteps, not because of our feeling of duty, but because we love our Lord so much, we want Him to return and be pleased with us.
Church isn't about membership, money or service times.
It's about taking care of things until He returns.
Thursday, January 12, 2006
What it's all about
The room was slightly dark as my mother in law walked into the room.
She went to the nursing home to visit an elderly lady who was not expected to make it through the night. The oxygen mask could not hide the smile she gave when my mother in law squeezed her hand.
"I'm going to see Jesus, maybe tonight"
As my mother in law shared that with the Bible study group, I couldn't help but say a few "amens" to myself, my eyes teared up.
And my load lightened.
I can get really wrapped up in life. My plans and ambitions. What I feel is important. I can get equally wrapped up in church leadership. Doing stuff. Go, go, go.
And, to quote Solomon in Ecclesiastes, it is meaningless.
I don't mean that we should just sit around and be depressed because of that, but we should remind ourselves about what life is really all about.
It isn't what you see on the commercials you watch. It isn't the latest church growth fad. It isn't wealth or a hottie on your arm.
Should we work in church? Of course, but are the things that we feel are important, REALLY important?
Are we showing love or are we just talking about showing love?
Are the church doors really open to anybody or is their people we would rather not see in "our" church?
Is the property of the church, it's money and it's buildings more important than it's mission?
You see when it's all over, is it really going to matter if we had a balanced budget?
Tough questions.
And answered, at least I feel, by a little old lady who was excited and looking forward to seeing her savior face to face.
You see everything in life needs to prepare us for that meeting. I think we get so busy sometimes we wouldn't have enough time to meet with Him.
Think I'm kidding?
How much time do you spend each day talking to Him?
Don't have the time? Hmmmm.
I wish anyone who reads this success and happiness.
Just make sure in the end you can smile and say...
I'm going to see Jesus, maybe tonight!!
She went to the nursing home to visit an elderly lady who was not expected to make it through the night. The oxygen mask could not hide the smile she gave when my mother in law squeezed her hand.
"I'm going to see Jesus, maybe tonight"
As my mother in law shared that with the Bible study group, I couldn't help but say a few "amens" to myself, my eyes teared up.
And my load lightened.
I can get really wrapped up in life. My plans and ambitions. What I feel is important. I can get equally wrapped up in church leadership. Doing stuff. Go, go, go.
And, to quote Solomon in Ecclesiastes, it is meaningless.
I don't mean that we should just sit around and be depressed because of that, but we should remind ourselves about what life is really all about.
It isn't what you see on the commercials you watch. It isn't the latest church growth fad. It isn't wealth or a hottie on your arm.
Should we work in church? Of course, but are the things that we feel are important, REALLY important?
Are we showing love or are we just talking about showing love?
Are the church doors really open to anybody or is their people we would rather not see in "our" church?
Is the property of the church, it's money and it's buildings more important than it's mission?
You see when it's all over, is it really going to matter if we had a balanced budget?
Tough questions.
And answered, at least I feel, by a little old lady who was excited and looking forward to seeing her savior face to face.
You see everything in life needs to prepare us for that meeting. I think we get so busy sometimes we wouldn't have enough time to meet with Him.
Think I'm kidding?
How much time do you spend each day talking to Him?
Don't have the time? Hmmmm.
I wish anyone who reads this success and happiness.
Just make sure in the end you can smile and say...
I'm going to see Jesus, maybe tonight!!
Wednesday, January 04, 2006
Keep on keeping on
I had forgotten I had it.
In 2000 a brother in Christ had given me a devotional, it was neat, but I had packed it away into one of the many piles of books I have.
Being the new year I thought I would try to get myself back into some serious devotions.
Why had I stopped?
Well that is an interesting question.
Before my father passed away I was doing a devotional, keeping a spiritual journal, and even walking on a treadmill!!
And then my world crashed, my Dad died.
This may sound weird but even the town seemed like a different place because he was not in it anymore.
I know this may seem like a strange reason to stop doing devotions, I wasn't mad at God, my Dad had made the bad choices. It just seemed like my stride had been broken.
This brings us to today.
Being the new year I thought it was time to get back into it. Some serious time into God's word and some serious prayer time.
I opened my 6 year old devotional and guess what the first topic was about.
Perseverance.
You know, going strong even when the tough times come. Working even when the end is no where in sight.
Paul likened our journey to a race, a really long race. Which got me thinking.
I hate to run.
Running long distances is not my thing. When I was younger I would have much rather run the 50 yard dash instead of a long distance run. Face it, running a long race takes endurance, endurance comes from running, did I mention I hate to run?
You see if we are going to run in this race called life, and run it in a way that reflects Christ, it will take endurance. It will take training our hearts and minds to think in a new way, it means devoting time to our Savior and His words. Only then can we be prepared to handle all the stuff that gets thrown at us while we are running on the track.
But it means taking the time. Personal study, prayer and corporate worship are the means by which we gain endurance. We have to make these things our number one priority, even when we lose our stride, even when we just don't feel like it. We will have rest one day, but until then we must keep training.
So I have committed myself to get back into the word everyday and spend some serious one on one time with God everyday. I have to say it has made a difference already.
Now if I can just get back on the treadmill...
In 2000 a brother in Christ had given me a devotional, it was neat, but I had packed it away into one of the many piles of books I have.
Being the new year I thought I would try to get myself back into some serious devotions.
Why had I stopped?
Well that is an interesting question.
Before my father passed away I was doing a devotional, keeping a spiritual journal, and even walking on a treadmill!!
And then my world crashed, my Dad died.
This may sound weird but even the town seemed like a different place because he was not in it anymore.
I know this may seem like a strange reason to stop doing devotions, I wasn't mad at God, my Dad had made the bad choices. It just seemed like my stride had been broken.
This brings us to today.
Being the new year I thought it was time to get back into it. Some serious time into God's word and some serious prayer time.
I opened my 6 year old devotional and guess what the first topic was about.
Perseverance.
You know, going strong even when the tough times come. Working even when the end is no where in sight.
Paul likened our journey to a race, a really long race. Which got me thinking.
I hate to run.
Running long distances is not my thing. When I was younger I would have much rather run the 50 yard dash instead of a long distance run. Face it, running a long race takes endurance, endurance comes from running, did I mention I hate to run?
You see if we are going to run in this race called life, and run it in a way that reflects Christ, it will take endurance. It will take training our hearts and minds to think in a new way, it means devoting time to our Savior and His words. Only then can we be prepared to handle all the stuff that gets thrown at us while we are running on the track.
But it means taking the time. Personal study, prayer and corporate worship are the means by which we gain endurance. We have to make these things our number one priority, even when we lose our stride, even when we just don't feel like it. We will have rest one day, but until then we must keep training.
So I have committed myself to get back into the word everyday and spend some serious one on one time with God everyday. I have to say it has made a difference already.
Now if I can just get back on the treadmill...
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Church on Christmas?!?
That doesn't sound like a bad thing.
But I guess there are churches that simply dismiss services on one of the two most important Christian holidays of the year.
You might think I'm baffled by this, well I'm not.
It's really an indicator of the state of some of the churches and Christians in our country.
Before I throw any stones however, let's be honest.
Church attendance on the other Sunday mornings, and for some churches Sunday nights and Wednesday nights, is becoming more of an option than a requirement for many believers. They seem to be saying I could care less.
Many churches see that their membership rolls are a lot higher than their weekly average attendance. I have heard it said in my own church, "if we could just get everybody here, we would have 300 people".
First let me say I'm guilty. When I was younger and less spiritually mature, I would miss Sunday nights and Wednesday nights because, if I'm honest, I wanted to spend that time doing my own thing. Nothing against church, I just felt like there was better uses for my time, (like watching TV). And remember folks, I was and still am an Elder of the church.
It required another Christian to hold me accountable, and bluntly told me "how can you be a leader of the church and not be here?".
Good question.
Through that other Christian, and a heavy dose of conviction by the Holy Spirit, I realized that if I am going to lead others in a committed Christian walk, I had better be willing to model that walk. I will use this time to urge any Christian leader out there who is reading this to be honest with themselves and ask themselves how important attendance is to their ministry. Are you saying "people need to be in church" but living "I'll go to church when I want and when I have nothing better to do". Pray about this.
Now what about Christians who are not leaders. Is Church attendance important or even a requirement?
In my view..Yes.
Why?
Well the Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:25 that we should not give up meeting together. Why?
Well if we read on it tells us that we need to encourage one another.
Bottom line is that we feed off of each other. That's a good thing.
The reason we don't want to come to church, or we don't want the church to change, or we don't like it when someone is sitting in "our pew", or blah blah blah, is because church is about us.
When is it convenient for us to come to church, where can I park or sit where it is more comfortable. My time and activities are far more important than anything we are doing at church.
What happened to sacrifice? What happened to carrying our cross? What happened to following Jesus no matter the cost?
We all need to remember the cost of our salvation, the agony and death of an innocent man, just so we could have the opportunity to spend eternity in a perfect place. Can you put a price tag on that? How much money and time is that worth to you? What is more important, your comfort or Jesus Christ?
Yes Virginia, we will be having service Sunday morning.
But I guess there are churches that simply dismiss services on one of the two most important Christian holidays of the year.
You might think I'm baffled by this, well I'm not.
It's really an indicator of the state of some of the churches and Christians in our country.
Before I throw any stones however, let's be honest.
Church attendance on the other Sunday mornings, and for some churches Sunday nights and Wednesday nights, is becoming more of an option than a requirement for many believers. They seem to be saying I could care less.
Many churches see that their membership rolls are a lot higher than their weekly average attendance. I have heard it said in my own church, "if we could just get everybody here, we would have 300 people".
First let me say I'm guilty. When I was younger and less spiritually mature, I would miss Sunday nights and Wednesday nights because, if I'm honest, I wanted to spend that time doing my own thing. Nothing against church, I just felt like there was better uses for my time, (like watching TV). And remember folks, I was and still am an Elder of the church.
It required another Christian to hold me accountable, and bluntly told me "how can you be a leader of the church and not be here?".
Good question.
Through that other Christian, and a heavy dose of conviction by the Holy Spirit, I realized that if I am going to lead others in a committed Christian walk, I had better be willing to model that walk. I will use this time to urge any Christian leader out there who is reading this to be honest with themselves and ask themselves how important attendance is to their ministry. Are you saying "people need to be in church" but living "I'll go to church when I want and when I have nothing better to do". Pray about this.
Now what about Christians who are not leaders. Is Church attendance important or even a requirement?
In my view..Yes.
Why?
Well the Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:25 that we should not give up meeting together. Why?
Well if we read on it tells us that we need to encourage one another.
Bottom line is that we feed off of each other. That's a good thing.
The reason we don't want to come to church, or we don't want the church to change, or we don't like it when someone is sitting in "our pew", or blah blah blah, is because church is about us.
When is it convenient for us to come to church, where can I park or sit where it is more comfortable. My time and activities are far more important than anything we are doing at church.
What happened to sacrifice? What happened to carrying our cross? What happened to following Jesus no matter the cost?
We all need to remember the cost of our salvation, the agony and death of an innocent man, just so we could have the opportunity to spend eternity in a perfect place. Can you put a price tag on that? How much money and time is that worth to you? What is more important, your comfort or Jesus Christ?
Yes Virginia, we will be having service Sunday morning.
Friday, December 16, 2005
Closet Drummer
To this day I don't know why.
When I was in High School, I decided I wanted to join the band. I wanted to play the drums.
"No" was my Dad's answer.
Now in some houses "no" means just keep bugging Dad until he gives in. The house I grew up in when Dad said "no", it meant the discussion ended.
Period.
So I picked the trombone, which I must say is not nearly as cool as being a drummer. My heart really wasn't in it. I played for a couple of years until basketball became my focus. Then I quit the trombone.
I wonder why Dad said "no". Was he worried about the noise? Did he think I would end up in some rock band with long hair and ear rings?
I mean I really enjoy the rhythms of songs. My taste in music can range across a lot of different styles. Forget the lyrics, how cool is the rhythm.
Growing up in a VERY conservative church, all that we sang was hymns. There was nothing called contemporary worship. You had your song book. That's it.
During my teen years there wasn't a lot of cool Christian bands, in fact I think there was just a handful. None of which interested me in the least.
Christian teens today can enjoy a wide range of bands and styles that have a Christian message, shoot I've found that I even enjoy some of them.
Growing up I tried my hand at writing music, playing the guitar, and of course playing the drums. I played the drums for my friend Brian who played the guitar and sang. Lets just say our band never got off the ground, although I really enjoyed playing the drums for Brian.
That brings us to today.
Being the leader of a Jr-Sr high youth group I have rediscovered how important music is to the younger generation. What they like and don't like. I can tell you this, and don't get upset about this, but they have a really hard time with traditional worship music.
Why?
I think first it is a generational issue. Look I'm sure somebody's Grandma started breaking somebody's Elvis albums. Young people think older people are out of touch. This is not new, as a kid I thought older people were out of touch. Young people think they have most of the answers, although they find out when they get older that older people were sharper than they thought.
The second, and I think more important, issue is that young people are not blind. They see adults sing hymns with about as much passion as a sit in a doctors office waiting room. They watch people worship God in a hollow, perhaps zombie type way. Young people, for the most part, are about life. They are looking for a real, genuine worship experience. That means the music has to be a little more upbeat.
At my church we try to mix hymns with more contemporary music. I know Barna says not to, but I think it is a good thing. It makes the church grow by stretching some of the older folks and letting the younger ones feel more comfortable in worship. We try to make worship better for everyone, which has worked for us, your results may vary.
I have a confession however. Every once and awhile the church turns the Sunday evening service over to my youth group. They have the freedom to do whatever they want in the service. Their music 100%.
Guess what.
I find myself tapping my foot and really enjoying the worship music they pick. Is there any hope for me?
I wonder if they will let me play the drums for them?
Hmmmmm.
When I was in High School, I decided I wanted to join the band. I wanted to play the drums.
"No" was my Dad's answer.
Now in some houses "no" means just keep bugging Dad until he gives in. The house I grew up in when Dad said "no", it meant the discussion ended.
Period.
So I picked the trombone, which I must say is not nearly as cool as being a drummer. My heart really wasn't in it. I played for a couple of years until basketball became my focus. Then I quit the trombone.
I wonder why Dad said "no". Was he worried about the noise? Did he think I would end up in some rock band with long hair and ear rings?
I mean I really enjoy the rhythms of songs. My taste in music can range across a lot of different styles. Forget the lyrics, how cool is the rhythm.
Growing up in a VERY conservative church, all that we sang was hymns. There was nothing called contemporary worship. You had your song book. That's it.
During my teen years there wasn't a lot of cool Christian bands, in fact I think there was just a handful. None of which interested me in the least.
Christian teens today can enjoy a wide range of bands and styles that have a Christian message, shoot I've found that I even enjoy some of them.
Growing up I tried my hand at writing music, playing the guitar, and of course playing the drums. I played the drums for my friend Brian who played the guitar and sang. Lets just say our band never got off the ground, although I really enjoyed playing the drums for Brian.
That brings us to today.
Being the leader of a Jr-Sr high youth group I have rediscovered how important music is to the younger generation. What they like and don't like. I can tell you this, and don't get upset about this, but they have a really hard time with traditional worship music.
Why?
I think first it is a generational issue. Look I'm sure somebody's Grandma started breaking somebody's Elvis albums. Young people think older people are out of touch. This is not new, as a kid I thought older people were out of touch. Young people think they have most of the answers, although they find out when they get older that older people were sharper than they thought.
The second, and I think more important, issue is that young people are not blind. They see adults sing hymns with about as much passion as a sit in a doctors office waiting room. They watch people worship God in a hollow, perhaps zombie type way. Young people, for the most part, are about life. They are looking for a real, genuine worship experience. That means the music has to be a little more upbeat.
At my church we try to mix hymns with more contemporary music. I know Barna says not to, but I think it is a good thing. It makes the church grow by stretching some of the older folks and letting the younger ones feel more comfortable in worship. We try to make worship better for everyone, which has worked for us, your results may vary.
I have a confession however. Every once and awhile the church turns the Sunday evening service over to my youth group. They have the freedom to do whatever they want in the service. Their music 100%.
Guess what.
I find myself tapping my foot and really enjoying the worship music they pick. Is there any hope for me?
I wonder if they will let me play the drums for them?
Hmmmmm.
Thursday, December 15, 2005
Holiday Tree?
"Let me ask you a question".
Frank usually didn't start our conversations like that, I was kind of worried about what the question was going to be.
"Sure", I said.
"At your house do you have a Christmas tree or a holiday tree?"
Frank obviously doesn't know I'm a Christian. "I have a Christmas tree", I replied in the nice but firm voice I'm famous for.
"See, that's what I say, but my wife wants to call it a holiday tree."
"Wow", was about all I could get out.
I have heard about this "holiday tree" garbage, the stores saying "happy holidays" instead of "merry Christmas". But I never thought I would actually talk to anyone who even knew anybody who bought into this stuff.
Maybe that's a problem.
I have to admit that I can really get steamed at the minority in this country, who, through shear intimidation, can ruin one of the greatest holidays there is.
I'm not usually one to scream the sky is falling every time some nut in this country tries to change how we handle God. I actually respect the rights of people who don't want anything to do with God. Why? Because God gives people the opportunity to live their life without Him. It is a simple choice and God loves you enough to let you decide. Heck, live your whole life that way and guess what, God will let you spend eternity without him, but that really won't be a pleasant experience.
But mess with Christmas?
I guess what gets me steamed is that the same minority that wants God out of their lives wants me to put God out of mine. If you don't want to celebrate Christmas the way I do, fine. Call your tree whatever you want, erase Christmas from your calendar all together if you like. That's what living in a free country is all about, you can decide how you want to live your life.
But don't mess with mine.
Why are people so afraid of Christ? Why are we so scared of the Ten Commandments? We don't keep them anyway. Why do some homosexuals try to push acceptance of their lifestyle choice on others? You can do whatever you want, just don't think that just because it's you that God is going to be okay with it.
Maybe the problem is right there.
To many people, to many churches try to create God in their image. We want a God to be okay with us, instead of us being okay with God. It is a lot easier that way.
Jesus said something that really caught my eye, Luke 6 verse 46, He said "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?". This cuts both ways, it warns Christians to be following the teachings of Jesus, and if we are going to be followers of Christ, we must obey ALL of His teachings. Not just the ones we like. What is the use of saying that Jesus is the lord of our life when we simply live life the way we want to?
In reading this some may say that I am uncaring, a homophobe, self righteous or, gasp, even conservative. But I submit I'm none of the above.
I am simply a Christian man, that fails his Lord every day. The difference is that I am trying to conform my life to what God expects, not making God see things my way.
Jesus said that if we love Him, we must obey him. Everybody runs around saying they love Jesus, but do they love Him enough to deny themselves and their desires to follow Him? It is a question we all must be brave enough to ask.
In the last times we are told not to be surprised at the events we witness, yet I can't help but be surprised at the direction we have taken as a country. At one time being a Christian was a positive thing, now it is something to be feared. Is hate that far off?
I want everyone to accept Christ as their savior, I don't want anyone to suffer hell. The Bible tells us that the road to hell is wide. The majority of people will choose to live without God.
And God loves them enough to let them.
Frank usually didn't start our conversations like that, I was kind of worried about what the question was going to be.
"Sure", I said.
"At your house do you have a Christmas tree or a holiday tree?"
Frank obviously doesn't know I'm a Christian. "I have a Christmas tree", I replied in the nice but firm voice I'm famous for.
"See, that's what I say, but my wife wants to call it a holiday tree."
"Wow", was about all I could get out.
I have heard about this "holiday tree" garbage, the stores saying "happy holidays" instead of "merry Christmas". But I never thought I would actually talk to anyone who even knew anybody who bought into this stuff.
Maybe that's a problem.
I have to admit that I can really get steamed at the minority in this country, who, through shear intimidation, can ruin one of the greatest holidays there is.
I'm not usually one to scream the sky is falling every time some nut in this country tries to change how we handle God. I actually respect the rights of people who don't want anything to do with God. Why? Because God gives people the opportunity to live their life without Him. It is a simple choice and God loves you enough to let you decide. Heck, live your whole life that way and guess what, God will let you spend eternity without him, but that really won't be a pleasant experience.
But mess with Christmas?
I guess what gets me steamed is that the same minority that wants God out of their lives wants me to put God out of mine. If you don't want to celebrate Christmas the way I do, fine. Call your tree whatever you want, erase Christmas from your calendar all together if you like. That's what living in a free country is all about, you can decide how you want to live your life.
But don't mess with mine.
Why are people so afraid of Christ? Why are we so scared of the Ten Commandments? We don't keep them anyway. Why do some homosexuals try to push acceptance of their lifestyle choice on others? You can do whatever you want, just don't think that just because it's you that God is going to be okay with it.
Maybe the problem is right there.
To many people, to many churches try to create God in their image. We want a God to be okay with us, instead of us being okay with God. It is a lot easier that way.
Jesus said something that really caught my eye, Luke 6 verse 46, He said "Why do you call me, 'Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?". This cuts both ways, it warns Christians to be following the teachings of Jesus, and if we are going to be followers of Christ, we must obey ALL of His teachings. Not just the ones we like. What is the use of saying that Jesus is the lord of our life when we simply live life the way we want to?
In reading this some may say that I am uncaring, a homophobe, self righteous or, gasp, even conservative. But I submit I'm none of the above.
I am simply a Christian man, that fails his Lord every day. The difference is that I am trying to conform my life to what God expects, not making God see things my way.
Jesus said that if we love Him, we must obey him. Everybody runs around saying they love Jesus, but do they love Him enough to deny themselves and their desires to follow Him? It is a question we all must be brave enough to ask.
In the last times we are told not to be surprised at the events we witness, yet I can't help but be surprised at the direction we have taken as a country. At one time being a Christian was a positive thing, now it is something to be feared. Is hate that far off?
I want everyone to accept Christ as their savior, I don't want anyone to suffer hell. The Bible tells us that the road to hell is wide. The majority of people will choose to live without God.
And God loves them enough to let them.
Wednesday, November 30, 2005
Where have all the good times gone?
That's an old Van Halen song, that has a message.
Many people think that the church was so much better than it is today. I'm always hearing about the good ol' days. If you think that way, read this;
In other words, he wished to see Christians doing the things that Christ did, and using, in matters of the church, the same business sense which they brought to bear upon their own affairs. He thought of the poverty, squalor and wretchedness of some for whom Christ died, and of the costly luxuries of the church into whose hands the Master had given the care of these. He thought of the doors to places of sin, swinging wide before the young, while the doors of the church were often closed against them. He thought of the secret societies and orders, doing the work that the church was meant to do,and of the honest, moral men, who refused to identify themselves with the church, though professing belief in Jesus Christ; and, thinking of these things and more like them, he was forced to say that the church must change her methods; that she must talk less and do more;that she must rest her claims to the love of mankind where Christ rested his; upon the works that He did. He saw that the church was proving false to the Christ; that her service was a service of the lips only; that her worship was form and ceremony--not of the heart--a hollow mockery. He saw that she was not touching the great problems of life; and that, while men were dying for want of spiritual bread, she was offering them only the stones of ecclesiastical pride and denominational egotism. He saw all this, and yet,--because he was a strong man--remained full of love for Christ and taught that those things were not Christianity but the lack of it;and placed the blame where it justly belonged, upon the teaching and doctrines of men, and not upon the principles of Christ; but upon the shepherds, who fattened themselves, while the starving sheep grew thin and lean; and not upon Him who came to seek and save that which was lost.
Sound like today's church?
Well it isn't.
This was written by a man that lived from 1872 to 1944, Harold Bell Wright, and this is an excerpt from his book,"That Printer of Udell's".
What does this tell us?
That no matter what generation you want to talk about, the church has always dealt with the same problems that we deal with today.
The prescription to fix the problem is the same today as it was then. It cannot become content.
We cannot be content as a church while people are in need. We cannot be content as a church to the point we really don't want anyone else to join our club. We cannot be content as a church when people are dying and going to an eternal hell. When we do become content about these things, God simply stops using us.
Think about the church in Revelation, the one in Ephesus, that lost its first love. In other words they became content. Jesus tells them to remember the height from which they had fallen. To repent and do the things they had done before. You can argue that this letter was for the church in Ephesus or it was symbolic for every church, but the meaning is clear either way, the church can become very content with itself and God does not dig that.
In the end the question is simple for us as leaders, either we lead by example and encourage strongly our congregation to mature enough to see what church is really all about, or...
we become hospice providers for a dying church.
Many people think that the church was so much better than it is today. I'm always hearing about the good ol' days. If you think that way, read this;
In other words, he wished to see Christians doing the things that Christ did, and using, in matters of the church, the same business sense which they brought to bear upon their own affairs. He thought of the poverty, squalor and wretchedness of some for whom Christ died, and of the costly luxuries of the church into whose hands the Master had given the care of these. He thought of the doors to places of sin, swinging wide before the young, while the doors of the church were often closed against them. He thought of the secret societies and orders, doing the work that the church was meant to do,and of the honest, moral men, who refused to identify themselves with the church, though professing belief in Jesus Christ; and, thinking of these things and more like them, he was forced to say that the church must change her methods; that she must talk less and do more;that she must rest her claims to the love of mankind where Christ rested his; upon the works that He did. He saw that the church was proving false to the Christ; that her service was a service of the lips only; that her worship was form and ceremony--not of the heart--a hollow mockery. He saw that she was not touching the great problems of life; and that, while men were dying for want of spiritual bread, she was offering them only the stones of ecclesiastical pride and denominational egotism. He saw all this, and yet,--because he was a strong man--remained full of love for Christ and taught that those things were not Christianity but the lack of it;and placed the blame where it justly belonged, upon the teaching and doctrines of men, and not upon the principles of Christ; but upon the shepherds, who fattened themselves, while the starving sheep grew thin and lean; and not upon Him who came to seek and save that which was lost.
Sound like today's church?
Well it isn't.
This was written by a man that lived from 1872 to 1944, Harold Bell Wright, and this is an excerpt from his book,"That Printer of Udell's".
What does this tell us?
That no matter what generation you want to talk about, the church has always dealt with the same problems that we deal with today.
The prescription to fix the problem is the same today as it was then. It cannot become content.
We cannot be content as a church while people are in need. We cannot be content as a church to the point we really don't want anyone else to join our club. We cannot be content as a church when people are dying and going to an eternal hell. When we do become content about these things, God simply stops using us.
Think about the church in Revelation, the one in Ephesus, that lost its first love. In other words they became content. Jesus tells them to remember the height from which they had fallen. To repent and do the things they had done before. You can argue that this letter was for the church in Ephesus or it was symbolic for every church, but the meaning is clear either way, the church can become very content with itself and God does not dig that.
In the end the question is simple for us as leaders, either we lead by example and encourage strongly our congregation to mature enough to see what church is really all about, or...
we become hospice providers for a dying church.
Wednesday, November 23, 2005
What I'm thankful for...
Man this could get long.
First I'm thankful for God and my savior Jesus Christ. Why God would ever use someone like me goes way beyond my understanding. I fail my Lord so many times He has to be up there slapping his head.
I'm thankful for my wife of 17 years. She has had to put up with me and my wild ideas for a long time. While we have had our disagreements, I always knew she still loved me (even when she threw my stuff) and for some reason she still loves me. I didn't think I would ever get the pretty girl, but I sure did!
I am thankful for my dad, who has been with the Lord for a few years now. He was my idol and later in my life, my friend. I miss talking to him and gleaning his wisdom. He was the first one to take me to church and his fear of God was ever present. His humor was unique and there was usually laughter in our home. God really blessed me with such a great father. He wasn't perfect, and I had to watch as lung cancer slowly killed him. He had made some bad choices in his life, but in the end he made the best choice, accepting God's grace.
I am thankful for my mother, who always has been tough when she needed to be and also had a sense of humor. Many nights she was by herself when Dad worked out of town. When Dad got hurt and couldn't work, she picked up the slack. She put up with Dad and stayed with him during a tough time in their relationship. She always wanted a big family and a big house, something you don't hear women say much anymore. She became a Christian while I was a child and always made sure I was in church. My morals and attitudes come from her. She is a special lady.
I am thankful for my brothers and sisters, two of each. It was fun growing up with them and watching them grow. We are a very close group, something else you don't see a lot of. Now this group has turned out brother and sister in laws, nephews and nieces. All of which bring me joy and lots of laughs. I am blessed with a great family.
I am thankful for some great friends, all of whom I know I can count on no matter what. They have been very special to me and they can make me laugh until my head hurts.
I am thankful for my in-laws. I'm sure at times they have shook their heads at some of my stunts, but they always let us feel our way through things. They are wonderful grandparents and I try to seek their wisdom when I can.
I am thankful for my sons. I remember becoming a father for the first time and thinking about the awesome responsibility that God had given me. My boys are growing faster than I would like and I know my time with them is limited. They have been a joy to me and I can't help feeling very proud of them. I am told by many people how well behaved and smart they are, I have to say more like their mother than their dad.
I am thankful for everything that God has blessed me with, far more than I deserve. A good job, a nice home, and my new addition, a shop! It doesn't get any better than that!
I am thankful for my church, my brothers and sisters in Christ, and my pastors and leadership team. When I married my wife I gained a church home. God knows what He's doing.
Finally I'm thankful for life. There is a lot of things in this world I don't like. I hate the direction we are headed as a country when I see God being removed from every part of our culture. We have become too smart and too wealthy as a people to remember our humble beginnings and who we owe for our prosperity. No matter how bad it gets however, I am thankful I am right here, right now. I am able to walk and get around and besides being a tad overweight I'm in pretty good shape for a guy knocking on the old 40 door.
I am a blessed man.
First I'm thankful for God and my savior Jesus Christ. Why God would ever use someone like me goes way beyond my understanding. I fail my Lord so many times He has to be up there slapping his head.
I'm thankful for my wife of 17 years. She has had to put up with me and my wild ideas for a long time. While we have had our disagreements, I always knew she still loved me (even when she threw my stuff) and for some reason she still loves me. I didn't think I would ever get the pretty girl, but I sure did!
I am thankful for my dad, who has been with the Lord for a few years now. He was my idol and later in my life, my friend. I miss talking to him and gleaning his wisdom. He was the first one to take me to church and his fear of God was ever present. His humor was unique and there was usually laughter in our home. God really blessed me with such a great father. He wasn't perfect, and I had to watch as lung cancer slowly killed him. He had made some bad choices in his life, but in the end he made the best choice, accepting God's grace.
I am thankful for my mother, who always has been tough when she needed to be and also had a sense of humor. Many nights she was by herself when Dad worked out of town. When Dad got hurt and couldn't work, she picked up the slack. She put up with Dad and stayed with him during a tough time in their relationship. She always wanted a big family and a big house, something you don't hear women say much anymore. She became a Christian while I was a child and always made sure I was in church. My morals and attitudes come from her. She is a special lady.
I am thankful for my brothers and sisters, two of each. It was fun growing up with them and watching them grow. We are a very close group, something else you don't see a lot of. Now this group has turned out brother and sister in laws, nephews and nieces. All of which bring me joy and lots of laughs. I am blessed with a great family.
I am thankful for some great friends, all of whom I know I can count on no matter what. They have been very special to me and they can make me laugh until my head hurts.
I am thankful for my in-laws. I'm sure at times they have shook their heads at some of my stunts, but they always let us feel our way through things. They are wonderful grandparents and I try to seek their wisdom when I can.
I am thankful for my sons. I remember becoming a father for the first time and thinking about the awesome responsibility that God had given me. My boys are growing faster than I would like and I know my time with them is limited. They have been a joy to me and I can't help feeling very proud of them. I am told by many people how well behaved and smart they are, I have to say more like their mother than their dad.
I am thankful for everything that God has blessed me with, far more than I deserve. A good job, a nice home, and my new addition, a shop! It doesn't get any better than that!
I am thankful for my church, my brothers and sisters in Christ, and my pastors and leadership team. When I married my wife I gained a church home. God knows what He's doing.
Finally I'm thankful for life. There is a lot of things in this world I don't like. I hate the direction we are headed as a country when I see God being removed from every part of our culture. We have become too smart and too wealthy as a people to remember our humble beginnings and who we owe for our prosperity. No matter how bad it gets however, I am thankful I am right here, right now. I am able to walk and get around and besides being a tad overweight I'm in pretty good shape for a guy knocking on the old 40 door.
I am a blessed man.
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Money
Cue the Pink Floyd.
I never cared for the song or the group, but I must admit, it has a message.
Stay on a church board long enough, and you will have to deal with the wonderful and at times terrible subject of money.
First we have to understand that the church HAS to spend money. I know that sounds kind of simple, but you would be surprised at the people that don't get that.
There is where the problem lies.
God is so cool that He made us all different. We all look at things from a different point of view. It's no wonder many marriages fall apart, usually there is a saver and a spender, and unless we are willing to work together and compromise, we are in for some huge battles.
Those attitudes come with us when we enter the council meeting room. There are savers and spenders. The fuel is present for some nasty explosions and unfortunately, like some marriages, churches split.
How do we avoid this?
First we must realize that the church is NOT a business and it is NOT like our home finances. The goals need to be different.
In our homes we try to save some for retirement, or maybe a home or a car. In a business you save to upgrade, and perhaps keep a little in case business gets slow.
What does the church save for? What is its goals?
I never really thought about it until I was reading Erwin McManus' book "An Unstoppable Force". It hit me. We are worried about our survival.
When we become more interested in our church surviving than we are about its mission, we have reached a dangerous point in our church history.
It turns itself inward, hoarding its resources, afraid to step out and spend a little to do the work. Maybe what we really ought to call it is unfaithfulness.
I really tried to think of a Biblical story of God rewarding people who lacked faith in His ability to provide. The only one I can think of is when the Hebrew people were wondering in the desert (because they lacked faith, hmmm) and God provided them with manna.
I wonder how many churches are wandering in the "desert" because they didn't think God was big enough to handle a mission project, or whatever else we NEED to be doing in our churches.
The Bible says we cannot serve two masters. We cannot say we are doing everything we can to reach people when we are unwilling to spend our money for ministry. We cannot serve the god of money and the one true God.
Now I'm not saying the church shouldn't have a little put away for a roof or something like that, our buildings need upkeep, and of course the church should always pay its bills, but don't always think that being a good steward means hoarding your money while people in your community are going hungry and needing clothes.
The church in Acts, according to the Bible, sold what they had and gave it away. You will notice they did not put it away for a rainy day, into a CD or a building fund. The "church" was not worried about their survival, just doing the work of their Lord.
No wonder it grew.
I never cared for the song or the group, but I must admit, it has a message.
Stay on a church board long enough, and you will have to deal with the wonderful and at times terrible subject of money.
First we have to understand that the church HAS to spend money. I know that sounds kind of simple, but you would be surprised at the people that don't get that.
There is where the problem lies.
God is so cool that He made us all different. We all look at things from a different point of view. It's no wonder many marriages fall apart, usually there is a saver and a spender, and unless we are willing to work together and compromise, we are in for some huge battles.
Those attitudes come with us when we enter the council meeting room. There are savers and spenders. The fuel is present for some nasty explosions and unfortunately, like some marriages, churches split.
How do we avoid this?
First we must realize that the church is NOT a business and it is NOT like our home finances. The goals need to be different.
In our homes we try to save some for retirement, or maybe a home or a car. In a business you save to upgrade, and perhaps keep a little in case business gets slow.
What does the church save for? What is its goals?
I never really thought about it until I was reading Erwin McManus' book "An Unstoppable Force". It hit me. We are worried about our survival.
When we become more interested in our church surviving than we are about its mission, we have reached a dangerous point in our church history.
It turns itself inward, hoarding its resources, afraid to step out and spend a little to do the work. Maybe what we really ought to call it is unfaithfulness.
I really tried to think of a Biblical story of God rewarding people who lacked faith in His ability to provide. The only one I can think of is when the Hebrew people were wondering in the desert (because they lacked faith, hmmm) and God provided them with manna.
I wonder how many churches are wandering in the "desert" because they didn't think God was big enough to handle a mission project, or whatever else we NEED to be doing in our churches.
The Bible says we cannot serve two masters. We cannot say we are doing everything we can to reach people when we are unwilling to spend our money for ministry. We cannot serve the god of money and the one true God.
Now I'm not saying the church shouldn't have a little put away for a roof or something like that, our buildings need upkeep, and of course the church should always pay its bills, but don't always think that being a good steward means hoarding your money while people in your community are going hungry and needing clothes.
The church in Acts, according to the Bible, sold what they had and gave it away. You will notice they did not put it away for a rainy day, into a CD or a building fund. The "church" was not worried about their survival, just doing the work of their Lord.
No wonder it grew.
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
My youth group, leader lesson mini-sized
Somebody was going to get wet.
In my quest to find an activity for my Jr.-Sr. High youth group I came across this little game which would be fun for the youth and, more importantly, entertaining for the leader. I split the group into two groups, boys vs girls. Each group had to lay on their backs in a circle with their feet in the air, their heals touching the person on each side of them. With their feet forming a platform, I placed a small bucket of water on the bottom of their feet and instructed them, one at a time, to take one shoe off and then the other shoe. The object was for the rest of the group to keep the water from spilling while each person removed a shoe.
Got it?
Well it was a lot of fun, I laughed so hard my head hurt and of course people got wet. But something that happened during the game got me thinking.
One group (I won't tell you which one) seemed very afraid of getting wet. As shoes were being removed the bucket began to slosh water, panic ensued, and the group members bailed out leaving everyone to fend for themselves. The bucket spilled it's entire contents and people got wet.
The other group had a much better experience. The water was placed on their feet and it did slosh a little water out as shoes were being removed. But the pail didn't spill.
Why?
The second group had a leader, someone who had taken charge, coached and encouraged the group not to give up and to work together.
I found true leadership in a simple game. Even at the risk of getting wet, the leader didn't yell, panic, or blame the team. The leader knew the objective, got the team to the goal and didn't brag or swagger. It was a team effort.
Many leaders try to push their agenda down the throats of the people their suppose to be leading. Maybe sometimes it works, but I submit it rarely does. What happens most of the time is they leave a trail of destruction in their wake. They become frustrated, the people become frustrated, and bad things happen.
The lesson I learned in that silly game is that, as leaders, we need to sell the vision to the people we lead. We need to encourage and coach, not get mad when things don't move at the speed we would like. People are watching us all the time. We cannot panic or blame others when things go bad and we shouldn't brag and take all the credit when we have positive moments. We can do so much more when we work together than we can do when we try to do it alone.
If we don't work together, we are going to get wet.
In my quest to find an activity for my Jr.-Sr. High youth group I came across this little game which would be fun for the youth and, more importantly, entertaining for the leader. I split the group into two groups, boys vs girls. Each group had to lay on their backs in a circle with their feet in the air, their heals touching the person on each side of them. With their feet forming a platform, I placed a small bucket of water on the bottom of their feet and instructed them, one at a time, to take one shoe off and then the other shoe. The object was for the rest of the group to keep the water from spilling while each person removed a shoe.
Got it?
Well it was a lot of fun, I laughed so hard my head hurt and of course people got wet. But something that happened during the game got me thinking.
One group (I won't tell you which one) seemed very afraid of getting wet. As shoes were being removed the bucket began to slosh water, panic ensued, and the group members bailed out leaving everyone to fend for themselves. The bucket spilled it's entire contents and people got wet.
The other group had a much better experience. The water was placed on their feet and it did slosh a little water out as shoes were being removed. But the pail didn't spill.
Why?
The second group had a leader, someone who had taken charge, coached and encouraged the group not to give up and to work together.
I found true leadership in a simple game. Even at the risk of getting wet, the leader didn't yell, panic, or blame the team. The leader knew the objective, got the team to the goal and didn't brag or swagger. It was a team effort.
Many leaders try to push their agenda down the throats of the people their suppose to be leading. Maybe sometimes it works, but I submit it rarely does. What happens most of the time is they leave a trail of destruction in their wake. They become frustrated, the people become frustrated, and bad things happen.
The lesson I learned in that silly game is that, as leaders, we need to sell the vision to the people we lead. We need to encourage and coach, not get mad when things don't move at the speed we would like. People are watching us all the time. We cannot panic or blame others when things go bad and we shouldn't brag and take all the credit when we have positive moments. We can do so much more when we work together than we can do when we try to do it alone.
If we don't work together, we are going to get wet.
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Dear _ _ _,
I know that look.
Those tired eyes give it away.
I was invited to your council meeting to see if I could help you and your church, but I remained silent. You may be wondering why.
You see before I came to your meeting I prayed that God would hold my tongue, and He did.
I came to listen to the noise. You have been through so much with the dismissal of your pastor, the reduction of your attendance and then of course your income. The search for a new pastor is always one of the toughest choices a church body has to make. It seems that lines have formed, those who support the young youth director who is full of life and wants to take the church in a direction your just not sure about, and another man who comes from a different denomination but offers a slightly more traditional background.
As with most meetings you have the onlookers who want to offer their advice, the two young men who spoke in favor of the youth director taking the senior pastor role were very convincing, although what I thought I heard them say was that if the youth director was not given the position (or someone like him, I thought that was a nice touch) they would have to look at another church.
Interesting.
I will tell you a story from my youth. There was a corner lot we used to play football. We, being young men, of course played tackle football, and it got rough at times. One of my friends had a new Nerf football. Now today that seems like no big deal, but for the poor area I grew up in a Nerf football was something new. Now my friend had this habit of getting upset when he played and before long his anger would grow until he grabbed the football, went home to his front porch and rocked in his rocking chair for all of us to see, the Nerf football safely placed on his porch.
My point is this, what it sounds like to me is if you don't hire the guy I want (or someone like him) I'm taking my bright orange football home and you will have to live with the fact I'm at some other church blessing them with my attendance.
I heard some voices of reason, I heard some voices of fear, I heard pain. I wanted just to listen and watch as that meeting ground along.
But what really caught my eye was your face. That tired expression and those eyes. Those very tired eyes.
After the meeting I made it a point to speak to you. I wanted to encourage you and I wish to do that again now.
Keep your head up. Keep smiling. There will be happiness again. Do NOT hire anyone without some serious prayer time and more meetings with your leaders. Meet away from the church and away from any candidates. Speak open and honestly with each other about the direction you feel God moving the church. Then and only then can you select the right candidate.
Don't let anyone who threatens to leave bother you. You are NEVER going to make everybody happy so don't even try. If they leave, they leave. Send them away with love and move on. They will be happier and you will be happier for it.
_ _ _, I have sat in your chair and I know how you feel. You just want it to end. Hire somebody, anybody, just take this load off of me. Don't give in to that feeling. Be patient, have faith, and watch God work.
There is light at the end of the tunnel.
Tom
Those tired eyes give it away.
I was invited to your council meeting to see if I could help you and your church, but I remained silent. You may be wondering why.
You see before I came to your meeting I prayed that God would hold my tongue, and He did.
I came to listen to the noise. You have been through so much with the dismissal of your pastor, the reduction of your attendance and then of course your income. The search for a new pastor is always one of the toughest choices a church body has to make. It seems that lines have formed, those who support the young youth director who is full of life and wants to take the church in a direction your just not sure about, and another man who comes from a different denomination but offers a slightly more traditional background.
As with most meetings you have the onlookers who want to offer their advice, the two young men who spoke in favor of the youth director taking the senior pastor role were very convincing, although what I thought I heard them say was that if the youth director was not given the position (or someone like him, I thought that was a nice touch) they would have to look at another church.
Interesting.
I will tell you a story from my youth. There was a corner lot we used to play football. We, being young men, of course played tackle football, and it got rough at times. One of my friends had a new Nerf football. Now today that seems like no big deal, but for the poor area I grew up in a Nerf football was something new. Now my friend had this habit of getting upset when he played and before long his anger would grow until he grabbed the football, went home to his front porch and rocked in his rocking chair for all of us to see, the Nerf football safely placed on his porch.
My point is this, what it sounds like to me is if you don't hire the guy I want (or someone like him) I'm taking my bright orange football home and you will have to live with the fact I'm at some other church blessing them with my attendance.
I heard some voices of reason, I heard some voices of fear, I heard pain. I wanted just to listen and watch as that meeting ground along.
But what really caught my eye was your face. That tired expression and those eyes. Those very tired eyes.
After the meeting I made it a point to speak to you. I wanted to encourage you and I wish to do that again now.
Keep your head up. Keep smiling. There will be happiness again. Do NOT hire anyone without some serious prayer time and more meetings with your leaders. Meet away from the church and away from any candidates. Speak open and honestly with each other about the direction you feel God moving the church. Then and only then can you select the right candidate.
Don't let anyone who threatens to leave bother you. You are NEVER going to make everybody happy so don't even try. If they leave, they leave. Send them away with love and move on. They will be happier and you will be happier for it.
_ _ _, I have sat in your chair and I know how you feel. You just want it to end. Hire somebody, anybody, just take this load off of me. Don't give in to that feeling. Be patient, have faith, and watch God work.
There is light at the end of the tunnel.
Tom
Friday, November 11, 2005
CHANGE
I liked my old computer.
I have had it since I was moved upstairs at work. It had all my bookmarks, old e-mails that were special, I knew my way around it. It was a little slow, and had been crashing some lately but I was comfortable with it. I was running Windows 98, which I know is old school, but it was pretty simple to run.
My boss was having all the computers at work updated to XP. They were not going to give me a new computer, just slap in some more memory and put XP on. I was okay with it I guess, there was not a lot I could do about it.
Then it happened.
The guy who was doing the upgrades suggested giving me a brand new computer, a short time later my old computer was gone. How sad it was that something I had spent so much time with, got comfortable with, had used a lot, was gone.
You think I'm making to big a deal about my old computer?
Careful.
I have found that changing things in churches become MUCH bigger deals. Change a service time, or order of service. Change worship music or leader, go to two services, cancel a service or add a service, and you might find yourself in the worst fight of your life.
Why?
I think that a lot of it is the generation we deal with. They have seen so much change in their lives (and I'm afraid not a lot of good changes) that the last thing they want changed is the church they attend. That is one aspect of their life they can control, and heaven help whoever messes with it.
Comfort has a lot to do with it also. We get used to things the way they are, and we know at 9:30 service will start, we will do this and that, we will sing some songs, the preacher will talk and then we will go home to eat.
Now repeat that for about three thousand times. No wonder our worship life gets a little stale.
Now before I go any farther I want to state something very plainly. I DO NOT believe in changing something just for the sake of change. That's just asking for trouble. But we do need to look at every aspect of our time together and ask, can we do it better?
Maybe we should ask a better question. What has become sacred in our churches? Our traditions and service schedule or the savior we came to worship?
My new computer is really fast and I kind of like it.
Who would of thought?
I have had it since I was moved upstairs at work. It had all my bookmarks, old e-mails that were special, I knew my way around it. It was a little slow, and had been crashing some lately but I was comfortable with it. I was running Windows 98, which I know is old school, but it was pretty simple to run.
My boss was having all the computers at work updated to XP. They were not going to give me a new computer, just slap in some more memory and put XP on. I was okay with it I guess, there was not a lot I could do about it.
Then it happened.
The guy who was doing the upgrades suggested giving me a brand new computer, a short time later my old computer was gone. How sad it was that something I had spent so much time with, got comfortable with, had used a lot, was gone.
You think I'm making to big a deal about my old computer?
Careful.
I have found that changing things in churches become MUCH bigger deals. Change a service time, or order of service. Change worship music or leader, go to two services, cancel a service or add a service, and you might find yourself in the worst fight of your life.
Why?
I think that a lot of it is the generation we deal with. They have seen so much change in their lives (and I'm afraid not a lot of good changes) that the last thing they want changed is the church they attend. That is one aspect of their life they can control, and heaven help whoever messes with it.
Comfort has a lot to do with it also. We get used to things the way they are, and we know at 9:30 service will start, we will do this and that, we will sing some songs, the preacher will talk and then we will go home to eat.
Now repeat that for about three thousand times. No wonder our worship life gets a little stale.
Now before I go any farther I want to state something very plainly. I DO NOT believe in changing something just for the sake of change. That's just asking for trouble. But we do need to look at every aspect of our time together and ask, can we do it better?
Maybe we should ask a better question. What has become sacred in our churches? Our traditions and service schedule or the savior we came to worship?
My new computer is really fast and I kind of like it.
Who would of thought?
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
The Tom Brady syndrome
What an interview.
Here is a guy who has everything. I mean look at what he has, 3 Super Bowl rings, dating some model, tons of money.
And he his empty.
I give Tom a lot of credit to admit something that the vast majority just doesn't get. It will never be enough.
The world tells us that we must be wealthy (tons of money), successful career (3 Super Bowl rings), and a hottie by our side (the model). By the worlds definition Tom Brady should be the happiest guy on the planet.
But he isn't.
In this rich country of ours it is very easy to obtain many things that we just know will make us happy, make us complete.
We pile the stuff up until we have to go rent a storage building to hold the rest of it. We want our bodies to be ripped and perfect, we want money so badly that we are willing to send our wives into the workplace, our children to the sitters, just to obtain more. We should be happy.
But we are not.
In fact I would say that in today's world we are as empty as we have ever been. Drug use is on the rise, we marry and divorce, have affairs and file bankruptcy. Always searching for that key
ingredient that we think will make everything better.
The answer of course is Jesus, but the world isn't buying that. I wonder if it's because the world sees Christians falling into the same traps.
We tell the world that "all you need is Jesus" and then run to the store to buy lottery tickets. What does that convey? I have faith that Jesus will supply all of my needs, but just in case He doesn't I'll play powerball. How about "all you need is Jesus", but my wife doesn't understand me so I found a "friend" on the side that does. "All you need is Jesus", but the bass boat I can't afford would look great on the lake. "All you need is Jesus", but I'm addicted to drugs, alcohol, or porn because I need it to get by. I wonder sometimes, do we really need Jesus, or just more money, sex or power.
It's a good question for all of us. I'm not saying nice things are bad, but what are we willing to give up to have them. What is our priority?
Jesus talked with a nice rich young man one time. The gentleman wanted eternal life and had obeyed the "rules" in his life. Jesus pointed out that there was something between this rich man and true happiness. The "things" in life got in the way. He left empty, coming so close to true wealth, but yet so far away.
I wonder if Tom will leave this earth the same way.
Here is a guy who has everything. I mean look at what he has, 3 Super Bowl rings, dating some model, tons of money.
And he his empty.
I give Tom a lot of credit to admit something that the vast majority just doesn't get. It will never be enough.
The world tells us that we must be wealthy (tons of money), successful career (3 Super Bowl rings), and a hottie by our side (the model). By the worlds definition Tom Brady should be the happiest guy on the planet.
But he isn't.
In this rich country of ours it is very easy to obtain many things that we just know will make us happy, make us complete.
We pile the stuff up until we have to go rent a storage building to hold the rest of it. We want our bodies to be ripped and perfect, we want money so badly that we are willing to send our wives into the workplace, our children to the sitters, just to obtain more. We should be happy.
But we are not.
In fact I would say that in today's world we are as empty as we have ever been. Drug use is on the rise, we marry and divorce, have affairs and file bankruptcy. Always searching for that key
ingredient that we think will make everything better.
The answer of course is Jesus, but the world isn't buying that. I wonder if it's because the world sees Christians falling into the same traps.
We tell the world that "all you need is Jesus" and then run to the store to buy lottery tickets. What does that convey? I have faith that Jesus will supply all of my needs, but just in case He doesn't I'll play powerball. How about "all you need is Jesus", but my wife doesn't understand me so I found a "friend" on the side that does. "All you need is Jesus", but the bass boat I can't afford would look great on the lake. "All you need is Jesus", but I'm addicted to drugs, alcohol, or porn because I need it to get by. I wonder sometimes, do we really need Jesus, or just more money, sex or power.
It's a good question for all of us. I'm not saying nice things are bad, but what are we willing to give up to have them. What is our priority?
Jesus talked with a nice rich young man one time. The gentleman wanted eternal life and had obeyed the "rules" in his life. Jesus pointed out that there was something between this rich man and true happiness. The "things" in life got in the way. He left empty, coming so close to true wealth, but yet so far away.
I wonder if Tom will leave this earth the same way.
Friday, November 04, 2005
Loner
I've always been a loner.
I'm not sure how it happened, maybe the fact that my parents were not in the social circles and that they over protected me as a child.
I just didn't need anyone else.
I was the only one I knew I could trust for a long time, I would walk to and from school, my mind always engaged with thought or day dreaming. The friends I did have were close. I didn't make close friends easily, it was something that took a lot of time. They had to earn my trust before I would let them into my world.
I was a stick in the mud so to speak, I loved being home, doing my thing. I could care less about the school dances or the events. I was shy around people, usually because I figured I would say something stupid, so I just avoided most people. Even to this day, more people know who I am in my small town, than I know who they are.
I was tall growing up, but pretty skinny. Because of that people just thought I should play basketball. I tried it and found out I really enjoyed the game. That was probably the best thing for me as it drug me out of my shell a little and it kept me busy.
What has that got to do with the church?
Well in some ways we all are loners. We don't let people into our lives very much. We don't let our Christian brothers and sisters in very close either. We guard our lives and our time like a pit bull standing over a T-bone. We have so much stuff and activities to do we just don't have time to develop relationships. We each have our own world and were comfortable with that. Church becomes an extension of our world but really nothing more.
I say this for two reasons. First, we miss out on genuine fellowship, not just eating together, but really getting to know people. This is hard for me still. But when I have done it, I have found it to be a blessing. I have grown as a person and a Christian when I let my guard down and let people in.
The second reason is the toughest. We need to develop relationships with people who are lost. I'm not talking about smacking them over the head with a coffee table KJV. I mean a genuine concern for people. They have to see our beliefs in action before they will ever consider joining you on your journey. Most people have heard it all before. Their not looking for someone to preach to them. Their looking for a friend.
We need to be tearing down fences instead of building them.
I'm not sure how it happened, maybe the fact that my parents were not in the social circles and that they over protected me as a child.
I just didn't need anyone else.
I was the only one I knew I could trust for a long time, I would walk to and from school, my mind always engaged with thought or day dreaming. The friends I did have were close. I didn't make close friends easily, it was something that took a lot of time. They had to earn my trust before I would let them into my world.
I was a stick in the mud so to speak, I loved being home, doing my thing. I could care less about the school dances or the events. I was shy around people, usually because I figured I would say something stupid, so I just avoided most people. Even to this day, more people know who I am in my small town, than I know who they are.
I was tall growing up, but pretty skinny. Because of that people just thought I should play basketball. I tried it and found out I really enjoyed the game. That was probably the best thing for me as it drug me out of my shell a little and it kept me busy.
What has that got to do with the church?
Well in some ways we all are loners. We don't let people into our lives very much. We don't let our Christian brothers and sisters in very close either. We guard our lives and our time like a pit bull standing over a T-bone. We have so much stuff and activities to do we just don't have time to develop relationships. We each have our own world and were comfortable with that. Church becomes an extension of our world but really nothing more.
I say this for two reasons. First, we miss out on genuine fellowship, not just eating together, but really getting to know people. This is hard for me still. But when I have done it, I have found it to be a blessing. I have grown as a person and a Christian when I let my guard down and let people in.
The second reason is the toughest. We need to develop relationships with people who are lost. I'm not talking about smacking them over the head with a coffee table KJV. I mean a genuine concern for people. They have to see our beliefs in action before they will ever consider joining you on your journey. Most people have heard it all before. Their not looking for someone to preach to them. Their looking for a friend.
We need to be tearing down fences instead of building them.
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