In Sickness and In Health

The last couple days have been wonderful, yet trying. I have been more sick than I have been in quite a few years. In the midst of that, I find God's creation amazing! God created our bodies to be able to fight off sickness and come back to a fully functioning form! While I am not personally back to that fully functioning point, I am up enough to be seated at a computer having just checked my neglected e-mail. God is awesome! I sit amazed at the complexity of the human body to be able to fix itself with such simple remedies as sleep, rest and lots of liquids! I wish the computer would be so easily fixed. Just turn it off for a day, pour some water into it, and poof! All fixed! See, man's best technology can't keep up with something God designed thousands of years ago! Praise the Lord!

Thanking God!

I talked to my brother this morning to wish him Happy Thanksgiving, after family stuff, we began talking about all the great things God is doing in our churches! It was wonderful to hear how God is working not only here in Easley, SC but halfway across the country in Neosho, MO. He shared how the church has been growing to the point where the pews are all full and they have chairs out in the isles. He has lost track of how many men have gotten saved in the last month! God has healed the sick and even a sick dog. I had to laugh at the dog story, but it just goes to show how God cares about our needs even when they might not seem all that important to the rest of the world. There were many stories of healings, but the cool one for me was a lady who hasn't been able to tie her own shoes due to a hip problem. Her teenage daughter has helped her get dressed every morning tying her shoes, putting on her socks etc. because she couldn't bend down. After God's healing, she is able to dress herself completely! I am sure that for a mom, that must be a great thing! Hearing about kids who have come to the Lord through the children's ministry and now their Dads are getting saved! It was a wonderful uplifting conversation! Thank you Lord for all that you are and all that you do in our lives! Today is truly an awesome day of Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving week!

Like most people, heading into Thanksgiving week makes me extra aware of all the things I am thankful for. I am most thankful that our Almighty God chose to save a sorry sinner like myself and give me a chance to work for Him! He blessed me with a wonderful wife who loves me in spite of my faults. He has seen fit to give me not just one, but two absolutly wonderful jobs that I absolutly love! For those of you who dread getting up in the morning to go to work, you can surely see why I am so thankful for that part of my life! I have my dream car. Before you get visions of a Lambourguini, my dream car is a 1995 Mustang. It has over 200,000 miles on it, but I still love driving it. God lets me take people on Mission trips to places like Mexico and Honduras! My life is so blessed that just one day of thanksgiving isn't enough time for me to tell of all the ways God has blessed me!
Recently, my wife and I were discussing the idea of children. We have been married for about 19 months now, so I guess this is a natural topic of conversation for people at our stage in the marital life. She gave as a reason for wanting kids that she wanted to leave a legacy like my parents had left. Not her own parents, she was talking about mine! That would be her mother and father in law...the people that american society is sure she is supposed to not get along with. Anyway, she talked about how my parents had raised two boys, my brother and I, in a Christian home where we both grew up to love and serve our Lord Jesus. That is the legacy she wants to leave on this planet. I couldn't be happier! God is awesome!

Christmas before Thanksgiving...

Today at the church, I and a bunch of volunteers were putting up the massive Christmas tree that goes on the stage. I almost felt like a hypocrite putting up Christmas decorations on the Monday before Thanksgiving. The great news is that the guys who showed up to help worked hard and that leaves very little for my wife and I to do before Sunday's service in the decorating arena. (She loves to decorate, but hates carrying all the heavy boxes from the attic to the sanctuary.) Have an awesome day!

Courageous Cowardice

This morning, I was reading about Gideon in the book of Judges. We all know the part about Gideon going out under the power of God and defeating the Midianites. This morning however, the part that really stuck out to me and challenged me was that he cut down the Asherah pole and the altar to Baal that belonged to his father! (Judges 6:25) It is one thing to challenge the world for something when God tells you to. It is quite another to go against ones own father! He did so, following the Lord's command. We see later in verses 30-31 that his father must have loved his son very much even though he had destroyed his altar, for he gave a great short speech to the crowd about Baal not needing the crowd to defend him from Gideon.
I wonder what I would have done in the same situation. As an American, there is such an emphasis on personal property. Destroying someone else's property is so ingrained into us as wrong that even if it is evil, we have trouble destroying it. I am reminded of a man in Springfield, MO who went into an abortion clinic and shot up the machinery and the office. He took no lives, but did damage thousands of dollars in equipment. I think God protected him. He was never apprehended that I know of. Today's blog is just my own thinking out loud. I don't expect anyone to form their theology around it. I do welcome your comments though.

God's Intervention

So, do you believe in "Divine Coincidences"? Lately it seems that God has been working through so many "coincidental" events in my life that it has my brain spinning. Just one simple example. God asked me clearly to give a man a certain sum of money. I asked my wife if it was OK, and she asked, "Where will the money come from?" My response was simple, "I don't know. But I know that God has never let us down yet, and He isn't going to stop providing for us because we obey Him." She immediately gave her blessing on the decision and I gave the man the money. Within a day, not only had God "replaced" the amount I gave through a series of "circumstances", but I was told I am going to receive an unexpected raise that amounts to more than ten times the amount given! God is awesome! I am constantly reminded of how God our Father wants to bless us, but we must first be obedient to His will!

Thoughts from Sunday!

This last Sunday, we talked about some great stuff...SEX! The sermon was soundly biblical, yet for some reason, people were a little on edge that the church would talk about such an important subject. Are there certain subjects that the church just isn't supposed to talk about? God showed up in an amazing way in the song portion of the service. As people sang out worshiping God, He was there! It was incredible! Now I am sure He wasn't there to find out about sex, after all, He created it. He was there because His people were shouting out praises to Him!
As I have mentioned, our church here in Easley, SC is hitting that awkward stage of between about 500-600 people. That is incredible for a 4 year old church, especially where most of the growth is from new Christians, not transplant growth. The reason it is awkward is that we find ourselves struggling to find leaders! One would think that with almost six hundred people, surely a few hundred would be fine leadership material. And, that is true, but they aren't yet there. Many of the people have been Christians less than two years. So, this convoluted blog is a request. Any ideas on how to help people realize their leadership potential in a very short amount of time? What is working in your church?

Happy Birthday!

This morning came, and I turned 36. It is looking to be the best year of my life! God is doing amazing things here in Pickens County, SC! The church I attend is having wonderful growing pains! The college where I teach is still growing amidst the national trend of downsizing. Life is good!
I come to goals each year at my birthday. Last year, one of my goals was to read through the Bible once, and the New Testament twice. It was the first year for that goal, and God used it to teach me many things! This blog has been something new from this last year. The surprising thing to me still is that some people actually read it! I have really enjoyed the feedback from y'all, and enjoyed that it isn't just people from my own church! Another goal, which those of you trying to lose weight will want to kill me for,was to get back up to 180Lbs. About three weeks ago, I got there! It is the first time since my sophomore year of college that I have weighed this much. (It is a good thing, If you don't know me, I am a tall skinny guy who could use a few more pounds.) This year, God allowed me to pray with someone to lead them to Him! That was an incredible experience!
My goals for next year are to read through the Bible twice and pray that God will let me lead someone to the Lord. My work goals are to present at at least one conference - University job. And at the church, I want to help take the Home TEAM ministry of 5 Point Fellowship to the point where at least 50% of the church are actively involved! Have an awesome day, and thanks for helping me celebrate my birthday by reading my blog...and maybe leaving a comment!

Church Leadership

Monday Night, we had a bunch of the leaders in our church get together with the pastor for a time of fellowship and letting the pastor do some vision casting. We as a church must have a purpose! If we just say, "Well, we want to be a church." What does that mean? Why should God bless a church if it has no purpose for being? Here in South Carolina, you almost can't throw a rock without breaking a stained glass window. There are at least four churches within a quick stroll of my office. We each have a ministry working as part of the Body of Christ! As pastors and leaders who read this blog, remember that the congregation needs leadership. If you are a leader who isn't the senior pastor, remember to support the leadership of your pastor! If he can't count on the trust of his associate pastors and lay leadership, he will be hamstrung in his ability to lead the church. Does that mean that you must agree with every move he makes? No! But, it does mean that you trust him to be hearing from God, and if you think he is hearing wrong, you will confront him directly and privately, not talk about his "bad decision" behind his back. (Remember that I am not a senior pastor and am not speaking out of anger here.) God will do great things with a church that is showing people his love and leading souls to Jesus Christ, but my personal belief is that He doesn't have much reason to bless churches that are really just clubs that sing nice songs together. It is also hard to lead a church that is fighting internally. Sorry for the rant...the point is to support your pastor and leadership. Have an incredible day! God is AWESOME!

This Morning...

Last night, I started reading a great book by Robert Morris entitled, The Blessed Life. This morning, I woke up at a little before five. For some, that may be normal, but I don't usually drag myself out of bed until about six. I went ahead and got up to spend some extra time in prayer and reading God's word. So why share? It was incredible! The getting up earlier isn't spiritual at all, but the uninterrupted time with God was AWESOME! Honestly, I never before understood people who said things like, "I got up at 4:30 this morning and spent time with God." I always figured they were just bragging or wanted me to feel sorry for them for getting up so early! Now I understand! Sorry to all those who I had bad feelings toward in the past!
Back to the book, when I finished praying and reading the Bible, I still had a little extra time before having to leave for work, so I picked the book back up and read a couple more chapters. It is challenging me in some incredible new ways! I don't know Robert Morris, and have never heard him speak, but he has written a wonderful, yet easy to read book! I highly recommend it, not just to pastors but to all Christians!

Great Days!

We had our baptism service for this month yesterday! There were six people baptized, but that isn't the point of this blog. Yesterday, there was a lady named Jenny who got baptized, while I had nothing to do with bringing her to church or even leading her to the Lord, she and her mother have been attending a new believer's class that I teach. Jenny is a grandmother herself, and has been an inspiration to me as I have gotten to know her over the last 4 weeks. One week after giving her heart to the Lord, she was out helping during the "Family Fun Fall Festival" that our church puts on for the community. When we went over what having a quiet time is in the New Believers class, she has begun reading her Bible in earnest and coming in with questions each week! Being around new believers is the best part of my job! Church people can at times, though I am sure not at your church, be a little tough to get along with. New believers remind us of the incredible change that God works in a person's life when they give themselves wholly and completely to Him! I am also thrilled that Jenny's daughter will be in the next New Believers class! Praise the Lord!!

Part Time Pastors

This blog is for all of you out there who are "Part Time" pastors. As we all soon learn, there is no such thing as "part time" when one is in any area of ministry. My "full time" job is as a Spanish instructor, however, I often find myself working on ministry stuff during office hours, or even getting a great idea in the middle of class that is for the "part time" job, not the full time one. I am sure if you are in this situation that you completely understand.
The thought that goes through my mind is that there is no such thing as a "Part Time" Christian, so why should any of us be "Part Time" pastors. In truth, we aren't! OK, so our salary from the congregation wouldn't keep a dog in dog food, so we work another job to be able to afford our ministry habit. You are a full time Christian even when you work in a "secular" job. Isn't that what we teach our congregation? So you are a full time pastor even when you work that secular job too! Paul made tents so he could preach the gospel. Have fun and enjoy the ministry God has given you! Remember that he counted it all JOY to be able to suffer for Christ. Chances are that if you are a pastor reading this in the United States, you aren't truly suffering. Police aren't hauling us out in the streets and beating us for being a Christian as they are in some countries. Have fun this Sunday with your congregation! As your church grows, you never know. You might end up "Full Time"!

New Days Ahead

At my church, we just hit that 600 mark. A little background, we are a four year old church plant in a rented theater building. Our space is far from optimal though the location is good in the downtown area of our big town/small city. While we have space in the main theater(sanctuary) for the adults in the two services, the kids side of the church is overflowing! It is a good problem to have!
Creative solutions is becoming the name of the game around here. We have a New Believer's class meeting in the pastor's office,there is another group meeting in the lobby, of course in the sanctuary, and then the upstairs, downstairs and classroom space is being used on the "children's" side on Sunday nights! God is Awesome! We are praying for God's guidance,(and funding), for a new location or some other creative way to handle the growth. It is incredible to see people coming to the Lord and seeing people's lives changed.
This is more of a testimony than a great blog to help your church, but hopefully it will encourage you if you are a pastor out there who feels like your church is handicapped by your facilities. God can do amazing things with very little! Think a few loaves of bread and some fish!

Day After Elections

Today, half of you are upset, the other half are thrilled. Such is life the day after elections. Now that things are over, I as a teacher can talk about my voting. I am most closely aligned with the Libertarian party however in the primaries, I voted for Mike Huckabee because I thought he was the best choice of candidate to represent me. As we now know, he not only lost in my state of South Carolina, but he did not get the Republican nomination for presidential candidate. Then I had a choice to make again. When I realized that Bob Barr was the Libertarian Candidate, I knew I could not vote for him and began looking more seriously at John McCain and Barack Obama. To be honest, neither of then thrilled me. When John McCain took Sarah Palin as his running mate, that sealed the deal for me and I ended up voting for the McCain/Palin ticket. Guess what? I lost! So now, I, and all those who voted for someone other than Barack Obama have a serious choice to make. When Barack Obama is sworn in as our new President, we can either gripe about him for 4 years or we can decide that he is now our President and learn to be proud of the things he will do right and deal with the things he will do that we don't agree with. Most of all, as Christians, we will pray for him.
The last 16 years of my life, I have heard Republicans and Libertarians bust on/attack/slander/impeach/and tear down Bill Clinton and then when George Bush was elected I heard Democrats bust on/attack/slander/ cry for impeachment/and tear down the current president. We have a choice to make now. Continue fighting or work together.
Have an awesome day!