Field Ministry Academy

Last week was one my favorites! I spent the week with eleven other pastors being coached by Daniel in how to think and live in this wild world of ministry. While I could write pages about what I learned, let me share just a couple of the highlights:

• Relationships, relationships, relationships. While structure, strategy, and theology are important, the laughter and joy that come from affectionate connection is vital! The picture that kept coming to me is how a skeleton is ugly and empty. So is structure without love and affection. On the other hand, a body without a skeleton won't make much progress! Both the structure and the heart are vital. My vulnerability is putting too much thought, effort, and trust in the structure.
  
  My hope and prayer is that the friendships that are being forged among us pastors will have a long-lasting impact on our Foursquare movement. Our hope and strength is not in any particular structure or strategy (these tend to come and go on a regular basis), but in vulnerable, affectionate, active, and lasting connection with each other. Friendships like these make Foursquare a movement rather than merely an organization / denomination (bylaws, procedures, theology, etc.).
  
  
• Preparation and flexibility. One of the things I've always admired about Daniel is how he is so prepared and yet so flexible! When I'm highly prepared, I sometimes get rigid in my plan. Last week, I felt so cared for by the immense amount Daniel had prepared for us to go through... and I felt so cared for in that he was willing to let it go (because he allowed us lots of time to interact with each other and also to answer our questions).
  
  
• Ministry is about raising people up to do more ministry. As a pastor, it's so easy to lose sight of the goal! Because there's so much work (logistics, administration, etc.) involved in church, it's easy for church to become the end rather than the means. We use church to grow and shape incredible people, and we reject anything that uses people to grow and shape an "incredible" church.
  

Repentance

Just this afternoon, a friend of mine emailed me and asked what repentance is... I felt so encouraged as I wrote out some thoughts for him, that I decided I would share them with you. Enjoy!

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Contrary to popular thinking, repentance is not an angry or judgmental word (picture the angry dude on the street corner yelling at people to "REPENT!"). It's God's promise that life can be different (and better) than it is right now. To "repent" simply means to have a change of mind, to turn around, to go another direction from where we were headed.

The essence of what repentance is all about is saying to God, "My way hasn't worked, I've tried as hard as I can, and I've come up short, so I'm going to stop what I'm doing and ask for Your help." Even our most noble and honorable efforts fall insanely short of how God thinks and acts (Isaiah 64:6, 55:9), so there is room for repentance all the time. That's why repentance isn't a sporadic event driven by guilt and shame, but an ongoing process of being instructed by God in how to live, think, and feel.

Religion twists repentance into a shameful ritual -- it's the “price” we must pay to earn favor with God. It’s often portrayed as a cowering, squirming admission of how bad we are, as if God would be happy if we would admit what miserable creatures we are. But God doesn’t need anything from us; it's for our sake, not His, that He offers us this incredible invitation into repentance (Psalm 50:9-15). Not because He’s angry, but because He wants to rescue us from where our natural thinking / living leads us, and teach us on a daily (and hourly) basis a better way.

Once we understand the power of His grace, we become hungry to confess and repent all the time! No longer are we driven by guilt and shame to prove our worth and defend ourselves, but we get to let our guard down with God and other people. We get to confess our faults freely because we don't need to fear punishment (1 John 4:18). Where we previously feared that opening up to God and others would cause them to push us away, we find that it actually opens the door for deeper, more intimate relationship than we had ever dreamed possible. In that love and grace we finally find the freedom to become the people God made us to be.

Look Up!

This weekend a group of our youngsters will be performing a musical during services. The script follows three characters on a journey full of laughter, surprises, and dangers as they search for the lost cookie jar and rescue a damsel in distress in order to save the day at the Giant Cookie Festival.

"Turtle", a shy little girl, "Little Man" a conquering young hero, and their fearful friend "Princess" encounter situations in their adventure that bring up anxiety, confusion, and loneliness. But in all of these situations, they are reminded to "look to the Lord." As they pray for help, the Lord delivers them and shows them a way through their current troubles. And after each difficult situation is overcome the choir sings praise to the Lord for His grace and His deliverance.

My hope is that through this simple, youthful production we'll be reminded that the Lord wants us to call out to Him in our times of trouble. There's something about the purity and innocence of children that can open our grown-up hearts to the truths of the Kingdom.

One generation shall praise Your works to another, and shall declare Your mighty acts. Psalm 145:4

This isn't just about older teaching younger. There are times when it goes the other direction, too! It's going to be a fantastic weekend! Come and enjoy it with us.

Easter Reflections

This pic is from our Easter Prep day that happened a few weeks back. 100+ volunteers came to weed, plant, trim, and mow our grounds to get ready for the Egg Hunt that we all enjoyed last Saturday morning.

It would be hard to underestimate how much work went into that event. Literally thousands of man-hours of planning and prep, not to mention all the work on the day itself.

You would think that such exertion would leave us drained, yes? But quite the opposite is true. When we are doing things with the right heart, the right motives, it's actually energizing.

It's impossible to out-give God. When we give or serve, He gives more (Luke 6:38). What's draining and exhausting is living for myself.

I am so proud of our church family for how we banded together and put together a wonderful weekend of lively fun for our community. While I don't want to shove it down anyone's throat, I hope the truth isn't lost amidst the festivities: this was far more than a fun event. It was a group of people laying down their lives so that others could be blessed.

The enemy lies to us saying that if we go for it with all we've got, that we will lose... our individuality, our time, our energy, our money.... whatever. But God promises that if we choose to lose our lives for His sake, we will find them in the end.

The Trial of Dismas and Gestas

A friend of mine recently wrote a parable that summarizes the gospel story. Just wanted to share it because I think it's pretty great stuff... The plot and imagery help clarify many important details of what our faith is all about. Enjoy!

Relying on Grace - Part 2

I've mentioned in several settings recently how stressful it is preparing for Easter. I want to deliver a humdinger of a sermon that will impact lives with hope. It's not a prideful thing, it's just I want to do a good job because I know that if we can grasp the truth, it will change our lives.

Each time I've shared about my stress, my friends have been encouraging me to trust that God will give me the words to speak. It was nice encouragement. But then last evening at our Council meeting, another of my friends spoke more directly to me. In his words, I heard the Lord gently correcting me, "It's so stressful, Todd, because you're trying to come up with a great sermon on your own. Just ask me what I want to say to people..."

Not only do I need God's grace to cover my mistakes, but I also need His grace to accomplish anything truly fruitful. My best efforts, noble intentions, and hard work will only distract people from hearing God if I'm not relying on His grace to speak through me. A few verses came to mind:

All our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment. Isaiah 64:6

Apart from Me you can do nothing. John 15:5

Without faith it is impossible to please Him. Hebrews 11:6

I can do all things through Him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13