I feel like I have just come through one of those times in life where for months on end you feel like you are just snowed under, and you wonder if you will ever catch up. You also begin to wonder if anything you are doing is making any difference in the world. Fortunately God has been there and at just the right moment has given me just what I needed.
It all began back in October. With several trainings that were coming up in October and November that would take me out of town for days at a time, I began to feel overwhelmed. Add in my regular duties at New Life, the work in Sebewaing, and one really difficult Graduate level class, and I really began to question how I was going to get through the next two and a half months. Last week after I finished my class, gotten through all my trainings, and taken care of several events at the church, I felt a little worn out.
Then last Thursday night God gave me one of those moments that just encouraged me and made me look beyond self. In our Thursday night group we have been looking at Jesus' encounter with the women at the well (John 4). Our goal as we have studied this passage over the last 3 weeks is to learn how we can approach people who are putting up walls. As we ended our time of study, one of the ladies in our group (this couple has only been coming a couple of weeks) asked the group for prayer and direction with a situation in their life. After a time of discussion, I asked the couple if they would be comfortable if the group gathered around them and laid hands on them to pray. They agreed, and we had a time of prayer where I believe the entire group could feel the presence of the Holy Spirit in a mighty way.
In those moments I felt the weight of the world lift from my shoulders, and the Lord reminded me that He was in control. My job is to take care of what is in front of me each day and to give the future to Him. I was greatly encouraged by that time of prayer and the Lord's reassurance that I don't need to worry about "catching up" if I simply trust Him and take care of what I can each day.
Praises: God is good!
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Monday, December 14, 2009
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Opportunities
The last couple of weeks have afforded me some opportunities to share God's wisdom. Two different places and two totally different situations, yet the same truths. Let me share those with you.
The first opportunity to share God's truth came during my time with the alternative high school class I hang out with for a couple of hours each week. The class had watched the movie "August Rush," and Rudy started a conversation with the question; "Do you think we all have a unique calling in life?"
The conversation that followed for me pointed to the fact so often people simply live life from one day to the next without really catching the idea that what they do has an effect on the community, or larger body. The idea of community and how we are responsible for one another has been one of the issues that I have been spending a lot of time with lately. In a message I preached last month I pointed at the Trinity in Genesis as the first recorded community in the Bible when God said "Let US make man in OUR own image". God clearly is working in community here as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the three elements of the Trinity that will be revealed throughout the Bible.
Anyway since I had been spending a lot of time with the idea of community when Rudy asked me to share my thoughts, I was ready. I told the class that I believe they were each created for something that was meant to strengthen the community and if they chose not to use their gift the community would be weaker. I also was able to tell them that from my point of view each of us has the freedom to do with the gifts that we were created with as we choose, but that we would not know true happiness unless we responded to the creator in a positive way. (to have an opportunity to share God's truth in a public school classroom is always a good thing.)
This occurred a couple of weeks ago and since then I have been in that classroom a couple of times. More and more I feel like I am part of what goes on in there and today one of the students even commented that they looked forward to my coming to class and sharing. Praise God! Relationships are being built! Community is being created!
The second opportunity today came as I visited a friend. It has been a while since I stopped to visit this person, and when they saw me they were thrilled. The person told me that they had been praying for someone to come along whom they could share some thoughts with, and I showed up. I am convinced that God orchestrated all of that because in my original plans for the day I was not planning on visiting this person, but something told me to stop by. I am glad that I did not miss the opportunity! God does call us to be our brother's keeper!
Please be in prayer for the group that is meeting on Thursday nights. We are planning on beginning the Son Life Discipleship training materials right after the first of the year. We have asked several other people to join us on that journey and are waiting to hear responses.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
The first opportunity to share God's truth came during my time with the alternative high school class I hang out with for a couple of hours each week. The class had watched the movie "August Rush," and Rudy started a conversation with the question; "Do you think we all have a unique calling in life?"
The conversation that followed for me pointed to the fact so often people simply live life from one day to the next without really catching the idea that what they do has an effect on the community, or larger body. The idea of community and how we are responsible for one another has been one of the issues that I have been spending a lot of time with lately. In a message I preached last month I pointed at the Trinity in Genesis as the first recorded community in the Bible when God said "Let US make man in OUR own image". God clearly is working in community here as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the three elements of the Trinity that will be revealed throughout the Bible.
Anyway since I had been spending a lot of time with the idea of community when Rudy asked me to share my thoughts, I was ready. I told the class that I believe they were each created for something that was meant to strengthen the community and if they chose not to use their gift the community would be weaker. I also was able to tell them that from my point of view each of us has the freedom to do with the gifts that we were created with as we choose, but that we would not know true happiness unless we responded to the creator in a positive way. (to have an opportunity to share God's truth in a public school classroom is always a good thing.)
This occurred a couple of weeks ago and since then I have been in that classroom a couple of times. More and more I feel like I am part of what goes on in there and today one of the students even commented that they looked forward to my coming to class and sharing. Praise God! Relationships are being built! Community is being created!
The second opportunity today came as I visited a friend. It has been a while since I stopped to visit this person, and when they saw me they were thrilled. The person told me that they had been praying for someone to come along whom they could share some thoughts with, and I showed up. I am convinced that God orchestrated all of that because in my original plans for the day I was not planning on visiting this person, but something told me to stop by. I am glad that I did not miss the opportunity! God does call us to be our brother's keeper!
Please be in prayer for the group that is meeting on Thursday nights. We are planning on beginning the Son Life Discipleship training materials right after the first of the year. We have asked several other people to join us on that journey and are waiting to hear responses.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Friday, November 13, 2009
How Did We Get Here?
Yesterday while in Sebewaing, I visited with Scott, one of the few high school friends whom I have remained in contact with. Scott and I were best friends in high school and during our college years started Village Pizzeria in Sebewaing, a business that Scott continues to own and operate to this day.
Scott's family was one of the most solidly Christian families I knew when I was growing up. I recently had the opportunity to visit with his parents, and their faith has continued to grow. I was greatly encouraged by that visit.
Anyway, I had to visit Scott because he recently turned 50 years old. I have 6 months before I turn 50 so he is much older than I am. We began to talk about the years and how they have flown by but also how God has blessed us even though we have both had our times when we weren't as faithful to God as we should have been. We laughed about a number of things as we asked each other how did we get here?
Recently the idea of community has been a central thought in my heart and mind. God has had me looking at scripture about community, and I centered on the kind of community that existed between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit even before the creation of human kind. What love that must have been that the three elements of the Trinity wanted to share the joy they were having, and therefore created us, knowing that we would break community. Then of course God could share with us the gift of grace, and community could be established in even greater ways.
I say all that because in the life of the church I think every now and then we need to look back and ask ourselves how did we get where we are as a community? Are there changes that need to be made? Is God pleased with the way we have lived out community?
As we work in Sebewaing to establish a faith community that would be pleasing before God we need to continue to seek Him in prayer. Thanks for your prayer support.
Building the Kingdom Together,
Pastor Brian
Scott's family was one of the most solidly Christian families I knew when I was growing up. I recently had the opportunity to visit with his parents, and their faith has continued to grow. I was greatly encouraged by that visit.
Anyway, I had to visit Scott because he recently turned 50 years old. I have 6 months before I turn 50 so he is much older than I am. We began to talk about the years and how they have flown by but also how God has blessed us even though we have both had our times when we weren't as faithful to God as we should have been. We laughed about a number of things as we asked each other how did we get here?
Recently the idea of community has been a central thought in my heart and mind. God has had me looking at scripture about community, and I centered on the kind of community that existed between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit even before the creation of human kind. What love that must have been that the three elements of the Trinity wanted to share the joy they were having, and therefore created us, knowing that we would break community. Then of course God could share with us the gift of grace, and community could be established in even greater ways.
I say all that because in the life of the church I think every now and then we need to look back and ask ourselves how did we get where we are as a community? Are there changes that need to be made? Is God pleased with the way we have lived out community?
As we work in Sebewaing to establish a faith community that would be pleasing before God we need to continue to seek Him in prayer. Thanks for your prayer support.
Building the Kingdom Together,
Pastor Brian
Friday, November 6, 2009
Going it Alone
I have to begin this blog post by apologizing. It has been over two months since I last posted because I have simply not taken the time to communicate. (It's the old I have been too busy story.) What I have come to realize in the last few days is that by not posting I have not allowed those of you who are reading and following this blog the opportunity to pray and share in the ministry that we are building in Sebewaing. Going it alone is never God's intent. We are called to operate in community, first with God, then with each other. My not posting has left you out, and I seek your forgiveness.
Yesterday was my first day back in Sebewaing after a couple of weeks of being away. Two things really stood out yesterday, both I think illustrating how community is suppose to work.
The first occurred at the school. The alternative education class that I have been helping with was working on a team building exercise. It was a timely event because as I listened to the instructor it was obvious that the group had been having some internal conflicts. I was impressed how the instructor emphasized to them that each of them in one way or another had been marginalized by society. (I couldn't help but think of the church as he said those things.) He then pointed out that if they were going to succeed they must work together rather than the infighting and lack of participation that had been going on. (Again parallels to the church.) The group seemed to take it to heart, and the team building exercise that took place after was highly successful. (It also cost me my hat, but that is another story.)
The second event centered around the terrible tragedy that occurred in Fort Hood, Texas. One of John and Rhonda's sons works at the Fort Hood base and as the news of the shooting came out, there was great anxiety about Troy because they could not reach him for a while. By the time we met that night, they had heard from him and the fact that he was alright. I had planned for the learning time last night to listen and discuss a message on building a community and being there for one another. Part of the discussion that took place centered around how much easier it is to face crisis when you do have a faith community and the need to really pour into the lives of others. In the circumstances of that moment, we all understood that lesson at a deeper level.
Praises:
We are going to start a Sonlife Live26 discipling group in a few weeks, and we have gotten a couple of commitments from other people to join that.
God continues to show His faithfulness.
Concerns:
I seek your prayers as I am a little overwhelmed in these days with school (I am working on a Masters in Counseling) and a difficult situation at my home church.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Yesterday was my first day back in Sebewaing after a couple of weeks of being away. Two things really stood out yesterday, both I think illustrating how community is suppose to work.
The first occurred at the school. The alternative education class that I have been helping with was working on a team building exercise. It was a timely event because as I listened to the instructor it was obvious that the group had been having some internal conflicts. I was impressed how the instructor emphasized to them that each of them in one way or another had been marginalized by society. (I couldn't help but think of the church as he said those things.) He then pointed out that if they were going to succeed they must work together rather than the infighting and lack of participation that had been going on. (Again parallels to the church.) The group seemed to take it to heart, and the team building exercise that took place after was highly successful. (It also cost me my hat, but that is another story.)
The second event centered around the terrible tragedy that occurred in Fort Hood, Texas. One of John and Rhonda's sons works at the Fort Hood base and as the news of the shooting came out, there was great anxiety about Troy because they could not reach him for a while. By the time we met that night, they had heard from him and the fact that he was alright. I had planned for the learning time last night to listen and discuss a message on building a community and being there for one another. Part of the discussion that took place centered around how much easier it is to face crisis when you do have a faith community and the need to really pour into the lives of others. In the circumstances of that moment, we all understood that lesson at a deeper level.
Praises:
We are going to start a Sonlife Live26 discipling group in a few weeks, and we have gotten a couple of commitments from other people to join that.
God continues to show His faithfulness.
Concerns:
I seek your prayers as I am a little overwhelmed in these days with school (I am working on a Masters in Counseling) and a difficult situation at my home church.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Friday, August 28, 2009
Moving Forward
Last Sunday I had the privilege to share at the Elkton Missionary Church about what the Thumb area LEAD Team is trying to do in Sebewaing. I felt like the Holy Spirit moved, and I was blessed. After the service I had several very positive conversations with people from the congregation. One of the things I tried to challenge them with was to think of people they might know in Sebewaing who did not attend any church. I then asked them if they might be willing to come to Sebewaing on a Thursday night and bring them to our gathering as together we seek God through relationships.
Yesterday as I was in McDonalds talking with a couple, one of the people who attends the Elkton Church and works at the McDonalds in Sebewaing, approached me and asked if she and her husband could attend our gathering that night. I assured her that would be great. We gathered together that night and continued our journey through the book of John, talking about the relationships that are encountered in this gospel. (In 3 weeks we still have not gotten through the 1st chapter despite 3 hours of conversation.)
After the study we spent some time in prayer, and I asked the group to begin to list people who they knew in the area who either had no relationship with Christ or who had wandered away. By the time we were done, we had 9 people on our list who people in the room have some kind of contact with. We prayed for them last night and have made the commitment to pray for them each week and start looking for ways to invite them into our fellowship.
I left our time together last night feeling very uplifted! I continue to be amazed at how at just the right instant, God does something to encourage us when things seem not to be moving. The Lord continues to march toward eternity and continues to call us to follow, and, at times, to hold on!
Praises:
Our prayer list of people
My time in Elkton
The continued support of each of the LEAD Team churches
For a Spirit of excitement that seems to be growing, as well as our numbers, within the group meeting in Sebewaing
Concerns:
One of the guys I have been meeting with is going through a difficult time - keep Joe in prayer.
Wisdom on how to approach the people God has laid on our hearts
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Yesterday as I was in McDonalds talking with a couple, one of the people who attends the Elkton Church and works at the McDonalds in Sebewaing, approached me and asked if she and her husband could attend our gathering that night. I assured her that would be great. We gathered together that night and continued our journey through the book of John, talking about the relationships that are encountered in this gospel. (In 3 weeks we still have not gotten through the 1st chapter despite 3 hours of conversation.)
After the study we spent some time in prayer, and I asked the group to begin to list people who they knew in the area who either had no relationship with Christ or who had wandered away. By the time we were done, we had 9 people on our list who people in the room have some kind of contact with. We prayed for them last night and have made the commitment to pray for them each week and start looking for ways to invite them into our fellowship.
I left our time together last night feeling very uplifted! I continue to be amazed at how at just the right instant, God does something to encourage us when things seem not to be moving. The Lord continues to march toward eternity and continues to call us to follow, and, at times, to hold on!
Praises:
Our prayer list of people
My time in Elkton
The continued support of each of the LEAD Team churches
For a Spirit of excitement that seems to be growing, as well as our numbers, within the group meeting in Sebewaing
Concerns:
One of the guys I have been meeting with is going through a difficult time - keep Joe in prayer.
Wisdom on how to approach the people God has laid on our hearts
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Working in the Middle of Chaos August 19
I don't know about the rest of you, but for me summer this year seems to have been one chaotic blur. Between scheduled and unscheduled events, it seems like I have been constantly on the go. I shudder to say this, but I will almost be glad when summer is over so I can return to a routine. Yet even in the midst of all the chaos, God is at work. I want to take a minute to share just a couple of things from my life that occurred in the last week.
On Tuesday of last week I met with a former student of mine who has graduated from college this past spring and is in the process of starting a new job. Now that she is starting a new phase of her life, she is wrestling with how to do "church". As we sat talking and I heard the things she was dealing with, I made a suggestion to her. I said, "Why not start a church?"
The look on her face was one of pure amazement. She told me she had been thinking about just such an idea, but was worried that the established church and people like me might frown on the idea. I reassured her that as long as God was being honored and salvation through Jesus was being taught, I would have no problem theologically helping her get something started.
We talked about making sure there was an apostolic present in the group to help make sure that their theology did not waiver, and I assured her that if they wanted me to I would be that presence. I also gave her a book to read, Organic Church by Neal Cole and told her we would get together as soon as she had the first part read to talk about future direction. I walked away thinking "alright God I just want to be part."
The second event that showed me how God is at work even when I think only chaos is going on around occurred last Thursday during my visit to Sebewaing. One of the families who has been coming to our study on Thursday nights let me know they could not make it last Thursday. When I was thinking about how to proceed, a family came to my mind. The thought of this family was followed by a thought that one of the speakers at Brown City Camp had emphasized the week before. He said "people had more than enough Bible what they needed was to see the scripture lived out."
I trusted that God had brought those two thoughts together in my mind, and I called up John and Rhonda and asked them if it would be alright if rather than us meeting, we called this other family and offered to bring dinner to their house and to have a time of fellowship and sharing together. That is exactly what happened, and it was quite clear to me and the others that it was an appointment that pleased God.
What does all this mean? I am not sure but what it reinforced for me is that it is Jesus who builds the church. My job is to do what I am told to do through scripture and be willing to be obedient to the Holy Spirit.
This week I have one of those unscheduled events that will prevent me from getting to Sebewaing on Thursday. I will be traveling to Tampa, Florida to take part in a memorial service for my uncle who passed away. However I know God is still at work, and hopefully, I will again be able to join in as fall unfolds.
Praises:
God's faithfulness
New opportunities
Concerns:
Pray for Joe whom I have been meeting with in Sebewaing
This Sunday I will share in the Elkton Church
Pray for God's wisdom as I work with these young people about a possible church meeting in their home
Pray for me as I share at the memorial service for my uncle. There will be many in attendance who do not know Jesus as Lord and Saviour
On Tuesday of last week I met with a former student of mine who has graduated from college this past spring and is in the process of starting a new job. Now that she is starting a new phase of her life, she is wrestling with how to do "church". As we sat talking and I heard the things she was dealing with, I made a suggestion to her. I said, "Why not start a church?"
The look on her face was one of pure amazement. She told me she had been thinking about just such an idea, but was worried that the established church and people like me might frown on the idea. I reassured her that as long as God was being honored and salvation through Jesus was being taught, I would have no problem theologically helping her get something started.
We talked about making sure there was an apostolic present in the group to help make sure that their theology did not waiver, and I assured her that if they wanted me to I would be that presence. I also gave her a book to read, Organic Church by Neal Cole and told her we would get together as soon as she had the first part read to talk about future direction. I walked away thinking "alright God I just want to be part."
The second event that showed me how God is at work even when I think only chaos is going on around occurred last Thursday during my visit to Sebewaing. One of the families who has been coming to our study on Thursday nights let me know they could not make it last Thursday. When I was thinking about how to proceed, a family came to my mind. The thought of this family was followed by a thought that one of the speakers at Brown City Camp had emphasized the week before. He said "people had more than enough Bible what they needed was to see the scripture lived out."
I trusted that God had brought those two thoughts together in my mind, and I called up John and Rhonda and asked them if it would be alright if rather than us meeting, we called this other family and offered to bring dinner to their house and to have a time of fellowship and sharing together. That is exactly what happened, and it was quite clear to me and the others that it was an appointment that pleased God.
What does all this mean? I am not sure but what it reinforced for me is that it is Jesus who builds the church. My job is to do what I am told to do through scripture and be willing to be obedient to the Holy Spirit.
This week I have one of those unscheduled events that will prevent me from getting to Sebewaing on Thursday. I will be traveling to Tampa, Florida to take part in a memorial service for my uncle who passed away. However I know God is still at work, and hopefully, I will again be able to join in as fall unfolds.
Praises:
God's faithfulness
New opportunities
Concerns:
Pray for Joe whom I have been meeting with in Sebewaing
This Sunday I will share in the Elkton Church
Pray for God's wisdom as I work with these young people about a possible church meeting in their home
Pray for me as I share at the memorial service for my uncle. There will be many in attendance who do not know Jesus as Lord and Saviour
Thursday, July 2, 2009
SHOW
Wow! I didn't realize that it has been a little over a month since I have posted! Between a week at Happy Time Camp and some other things, I have just been on the run a lot lately. Knowing that next week I will be on vacation, it was important that I share a few things.
The Gabrielsons, Elenbaums and Reinhardts have been together a few times in the last month including a time of fellowship with our families. God is working in our midst, and we have been enjoying getting to know each other . We are scheduled to again get together on July 13 and are hoping to have some others join us. Kent gave me an idea when he, John and I met today. He suggested that we use the acronym:
Sebewaing
Home
Outreach &
Worship
to describe what we are doing. I like the idea, and so I think we are going to begin inviting people to the SHOW!
Last week I had the privilege of speaking at the Cass City Missionary Church and continue to cast a vision of what we believe God is up to. Pastor Bob and the church were very gracious.
I would ask that you keep me in prayer these days. I had a blackout episode a little over a week ago that we are still trying to test and figure out the cause.
As I mentioned earlier, I am on vacation next week and am looking forward to it.
Your servant in Christ,
Brian
The Gabrielsons, Elenbaums and Reinhardts have been together a few times in the last month including a time of fellowship with our families. God is working in our midst, and we have been enjoying getting to know each other . We are scheduled to again get together on July 13 and are hoping to have some others join us. Kent gave me an idea when he, John and I met today. He suggested that we use the acronym:
Sebewaing
Home
Outreach &
Worship
to describe what we are doing. I like the idea, and so I think we are going to begin inviting people to the SHOW!
Last week I had the privilege of speaking at the Cass City Missionary Church and continue to cast a vision of what we believe God is up to. Pastor Bob and the church were very gracious.
I would ask that you keep me in prayer these days. I had a blackout episode a little over a week ago that we are still trying to test and figure out the cause.
As I mentioned earlier, I am on vacation next week and am looking forward to it.
Your servant in Christ,
Brian
Friday, May 22, 2009
Community
Then God said, "Let us make man in our image." Genesis 1:26 (my emphasis added on us.)
The Lord God said, "It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." Genesis 2:18
Community -- more and more I am learning that God has set it up and intends us to be in community. Last evening for four hours or so as three couples gathered to really begin the process of discerning God's will for a ministry of some kind in Sebewaing, there was among us a deep sense of that kind of community.
We began with dinner together. It was simply a time to get to know one another, and there was much laughter. In recent days I have been reading and listening to teachings on the early church. One of the things that has stood out is how their times together often started or included the "common meal". I felt very much the presence of the Holy Spirit working.
After dinner we shared a little of our own spiritual journeys and began a conversation on what a disciple making movement might look like with our present situations and resources. I was excited because there seemed to be an attitude of "let's get started". After a time of prayer, we set up a plan to meet again next week.
We decided that next week we would each share our salvation story and a little about our spiritual journeys. After that we are going to begin to formulate a plan to draw people in. (We kicked around a couple of service project ideas last night.) We understand that traditional summer may not be the best time to start some of these things, but we are going to take an attitude "let's keep starting something until we finally get started."
Please keep the Gabrielsons, Elenbaums, and Reinhardts in prayer as we work to discern God's calling and also enjoy and invite others in the community we have experienced.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
The Lord God said, "It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him." Genesis 2:18
Community -- more and more I am learning that God has set it up and intends us to be in community. Last evening for four hours or so as three couples gathered to really begin the process of discerning God's will for a ministry of some kind in Sebewaing, there was among us a deep sense of that kind of community.
We began with dinner together. It was simply a time to get to know one another, and there was much laughter. In recent days I have been reading and listening to teachings on the early church. One of the things that has stood out is how their times together often started or included the "common meal". I felt very much the presence of the Holy Spirit working.
After dinner we shared a little of our own spiritual journeys and began a conversation on what a disciple making movement might look like with our present situations and resources. I was excited because there seemed to be an attitude of "let's get started". After a time of prayer, we set up a plan to meet again next week.
We decided that next week we would each share our salvation story and a little about our spiritual journeys. After that we are going to begin to formulate a plan to draw people in. (We kicked around a couple of service project ideas last night.) We understand that traditional summer may not be the best time to start some of these things, but we are going to take an attitude "let's keep starting something until we finally get started."
Please keep the Gabrielsons, Elenbaums, and Reinhardts in prayer as we work to discern God's calling and also enjoy and invite others in the community we have experienced.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Monday, May 11, 2009
They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers. Everyone around was in awe--all those wonders and signs done through the apostles! And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common.
They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met.
They followed a daily discipline of worship in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved. (Acts 2:42-47 from The Message).
Over the last couple of weeks I have "run into" this verse a number of times. From a Sunday morning message, to a study with a friend, to a discussion with a group of people, this passage of scripture has been on my mind a lot lately. Perhaps that explains why in a couple of encounters I had last week, it seemed like the spirit of the passage came into play.
Thursday, when I was at the school in the afternoon, because of some changes in the junior high schedule, I had some free time. I ended up sitting with the teacher of the alternative education program whose class I had been helping out with since last October. He was thanking me for the support I had given them in this first year of the program. We got into a conversation about things of the scripture and how God sometimes uses teaching and/or circumstances outside our comfort zone to help us see things in new ways.
Rudy's son was killed in an accident a couple of years ago, and he was describing to me some of the things that he had experienced and how even in the midst of that tragedy that God worked. Rudy shared how they had ended up using the Matthew video from the Nooma series at Kyle's funeral as an alternative form of sharing the gospel. As we shared, there seemed to be a real sense of the kind of community that is described in Acts 2:24-47. There we were two believers sharing views and helping to bear one another's burdens. That is the kind of community that God intends us to live in.
Later that day Deb and I had dinner with John and Rhonda as we have gotten in the practice of doing. Afterwords I suggested that we go for a walk and talk about the scriptures -- things that we were to focus on -- in a more casual setting. We had a great time walking and talking and sharing from the scripture. After some time in prayer together, we started to walk back to where we were parked and Rhonda brought up a concern she has about her children. Before we parted company, we stopped where we were and held up the situation in prayer. Again I could not help but think about the passages from Acts.
More and more I am learning that to be true disciples and to create a real disciple making movement, we need to be in community and to be fully living out the things God instructs. We have to stop playing church and become The Church. It is a journey we are all on.
They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person's need was met.
They followed a daily discipline of worship in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved. (Acts 2:42-47 from The Message).
Over the last couple of weeks I have "run into" this verse a number of times. From a Sunday morning message, to a study with a friend, to a discussion with a group of people, this passage of scripture has been on my mind a lot lately. Perhaps that explains why in a couple of encounters I had last week, it seemed like the spirit of the passage came into play.
Thursday, when I was at the school in the afternoon, because of some changes in the junior high schedule, I had some free time. I ended up sitting with the teacher of the alternative education program whose class I had been helping out with since last October. He was thanking me for the support I had given them in this first year of the program. We got into a conversation about things of the scripture and how God sometimes uses teaching and/or circumstances outside our comfort zone to help us see things in new ways.
Rudy's son was killed in an accident a couple of years ago, and he was describing to me some of the things that he had experienced and how even in the midst of that tragedy that God worked. Rudy shared how they had ended up using the Matthew video from the Nooma series at Kyle's funeral as an alternative form of sharing the gospel. As we shared, there seemed to be a real sense of the kind of community that is described in Acts 2:24-47. There we were two believers sharing views and helping to bear one another's burdens. That is the kind of community that God intends us to live in.
Later that day Deb and I had dinner with John and Rhonda as we have gotten in the practice of doing. Afterwords I suggested that we go for a walk and talk about the scriptures -- things that we were to focus on -- in a more casual setting. We had a great time walking and talking and sharing from the scripture. After some time in prayer together, we started to walk back to where we were parked and Rhonda brought up a concern she has about her children. Before we parted company, we stopped where we were and held up the situation in prayer. Again I could not help but think about the passages from Acts.
More and more I am learning that to be true disciples and to create a real disciple making movement, we need to be in community and to be fully living out the things God instructs. We have to stop playing church and become The Church. It is a journey we are all on.
Friday, May 1, 2009
"Lord, Can You Let Me in on the Plan?"
This is my second attempt at posting on the blog this week. I just erased my first page, which I had spent about half an hour on, because I decided I need to be very careful with the information I am posting today. I do not want to run ahead of God, something that I am often guilty of. Yet, I do want to communicate that I had a very good day yesterday and felt like God is showing me some new things. Let me quickly tell you about two meetings I had yesterday.
The first meeting took place with a former student. We spent some time together talking about her future. Then after a while we spent some time talking about the years that I served as her pastor. As we laughed about some of the memories from youth group trips and such, Olivia ended our time with a statement that I didn't give much thought to at the moment but later considered. She told me "I never saw or heard of another youth ministry like yours." Her statement caught me by surprise, and there are still levels of it that I need to consider. But to shorten up the thought process for you, let me just say that I was reminded that any success that I have been fortunate enough to experience in ministry never came while I was following a formula, but rather during the times I was tuned in to the Holy Spirit.
The second encounter I had yesterday, that really spoke to me, was not one that I set up. Kent, who is part of my prayer support from the Elkton church, emailed me early last week and told me he would like to sit down and talk. Kent and I had a brief conversation last fall when I first started in Sebewaing but nothing came out of it then. In his email Kent told me he felt like God was up to something, and he wanted to be obedient to whatever that was.
As Kent and I shared while sitting in the McDonalds in Sebewaing, there really seemed to be a unity that only would make sense if it was from the Holy Spirit. It was not like a plan or a blueprint for success came out of the meeting, but it seemed like God gave us a glimpse of some things and simply said be obedient to the next step.
So that is what we are doing. We are going to compare calendars with some other people and start to see if we can bring some of those groups together and continue this process of seeing what God may have planned. I will keep you informed. In the mean time, pray for the Grbrielsons, the Elenbaums, and the Reinhardts as we meet to discuss the possibility of bringing some things together for the glory of God.
The first meeting took place with a former student. We spent some time together talking about her future. Then after a while we spent some time talking about the years that I served as her pastor. As we laughed about some of the memories from youth group trips and such, Olivia ended our time with a statement that I didn't give much thought to at the moment but later considered. She told me "I never saw or heard of another youth ministry like yours." Her statement caught me by surprise, and there are still levels of it that I need to consider. But to shorten up the thought process for you, let me just say that I was reminded that any success that I have been fortunate enough to experience in ministry never came while I was following a formula, but rather during the times I was tuned in to the Holy Spirit.
The second encounter I had yesterday, that really spoke to me, was not one that I set up. Kent, who is part of my prayer support from the Elkton church, emailed me early last week and told me he would like to sit down and talk. Kent and I had a brief conversation last fall when I first started in Sebewaing but nothing came out of it then. In his email Kent told me he felt like God was up to something, and he wanted to be obedient to whatever that was.
As Kent and I shared while sitting in the McDonalds in Sebewaing, there really seemed to be a unity that only would make sense if it was from the Holy Spirit. It was not like a plan or a blueprint for success came out of the meeting, but it seemed like God gave us a glimpse of some things and simply said be obedient to the next step.
So that is what we are doing. We are going to compare calendars with some other people and start to see if we can bring some of those groups together and continue this process of seeing what God may have planned. I will keep you informed. In the mean time, pray for the Grbrielsons, the Elenbaums, and the Reinhardts as we meet to discuss the possibility of bringing some things together for the glory of God.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Finding the Right Fit
In the past on this blog spot, I have written about the group of middle school boys whom I have been helping out with once a week. These guys are probably pretty typical of a number of young men at that age level; and when it comes to class room stuff and discipline, they just need a little more attention. The work has not always been successful. At times we have had to work hard at keeping these guys on task, and we have had to work hard at times to keep the peace between them when we have worked on projects. Yet over the last couple of weeks during my travels to Sebewaing, I have learned something from these young men that the church needs to remember and put into practice more. Let me explain.
Two weeks ago when I went to the school I found out that to help out the drama group from the high school, these middle schoolers were going to help build some of the props. I have to tell you that when I found out that we were going to start by making wooden swords, I was more than a little skeptical about the outcome. Yet these young men really took to the job. After the swords were cut out, they began to sand and shape the swords and each of them was really working hard. Over the course of that class and the next couple, there was a real sense of accomplishment and pride among these young men as they perfected the props they were working on. During the four months I had been working with them, I had never seen this level of concentration and work. It seems like this task was a perfect fit for the gifts they had. This was an avenue for these young men to "work" and to take education out of the class room and into practice more.
These concepts and ideas were a big part of the disciple making training that I went through last month. Over and over again it was emphasized that we must get our faith out of the class room and into the world much more through service to others. As we read in Philippians, we must "continue to work out our salvation with fear and trembling". Loving God and showing that love by serving others is what we were created for. It will only be through finding the task that God has created us for that we will find real happiness in the Lord.
Please pray for a young man whom I met last week. He is out of school, and we had a brief conversation about getting him involved in one of the Life Transformation groups somehow here in the near future. Also continue to pray for the groups that are meeting -- that God would give clarity about what the future will look like.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Two weeks ago when I went to the school I found out that to help out the drama group from the high school, these middle schoolers were going to help build some of the props. I have to tell you that when I found out that we were going to start by making wooden swords, I was more than a little skeptical about the outcome. Yet these young men really took to the job. After the swords were cut out, they began to sand and shape the swords and each of them was really working hard. Over the course of that class and the next couple, there was a real sense of accomplishment and pride among these young men as they perfected the props they were working on. During the four months I had been working with them, I had never seen this level of concentration and work. It seems like this task was a perfect fit for the gifts they had. This was an avenue for these young men to "work" and to take education out of the class room and into practice more.
These concepts and ideas were a big part of the disciple making training that I went through last month. Over and over again it was emphasized that we must get our faith out of the class room and into the world much more through service to others. As we read in Philippians, we must "continue to work out our salvation with fear and trembling". Loving God and showing that love by serving others is what we were created for. It will only be through finding the task that God has created us for that we will find real happiness in the Lord.
Please pray for a young man whom I met last week. He is out of school, and we had a brief conversation about getting him involved in one of the Life Transformation groups somehow here in the near future. Also continue to pray for the groups that are meeting -- that God would give clarity about what the future will look like.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Friday, April 17, 2009
Accountability
This last month has taught me a lesson about how easy it is to slip away from a healthy, biblical routine which involves spending time in God's word which helps us grow in our relationship to Christ, and settling for quick IM type messages with the Master, which at best maintains a relationship, but more likely allows a relationship to deteriorate. Let me explain.
From mid-October through the first week in March, I had a commitment with Joe and Kevin to read somewhere around 30 chapters of scripture each week. This commitment for reading in the Bible was suppose to be in addition to any study I was doing for preparing lessons and such. Other than a week or two, I had been fairly faithful in getting that reading done and taking the time to also go through a series of accountability questions with the guys each week.
Then on March 11, I left for Texas for a few days of personal business. During those days I read a little but quickly fell behind the 30 chapters a week pace.
When I returned to Michigan, I went directly to the Keystone training for the next 10 days. Those days were filled with eight plus hours each day in the classroom focusing on biblical principles and were well worth my time. However in the evenings when I should have been doing my scripture readings, I found myself justifying how I had been in the "word" all day and it was alright not to do the reading. I further justified my practices by telling myself since I was not going to meet with the guys for two weeks it was alright.
After Keystone I was home 3 nights before I left for Kentucky with my youth group for a week of mission work. Ironically both Kevin and Joe went with me on that trip as part of the service side of discipleship that is often overlooked. During the week we were in Kentucky I read every day in the scriptures, but it was always to prepare for the teaching of that week.
When I arrived home that first week I did not travel to Sebewaing because school was out there and many of the contacts that I usually make were not going to be around. In my mind I reasoned that I had been very busy and that it was alright if I waited one more week to get back to my reading schedule. In the middle of that week Kevin called me and told me he was coming to Bay City and that we should meet. When we did meet he asked me about my reading, and I had to confess that I had not done it. He also asked me about another subject that I had asked him to hold me accountable for; and I had to confess that I had not been to the gym in three weeks.
These events in my life caused me to reflect on how easy it is to fall out of a routine that had been very healthy and relationship-building into simply trying to maintain. Needless to say that yesterday when I met with Kevin and Joe I could tell them that I had done my reading again and that I was following through on the other parts of our agreement.
The scriptures have a lot to tell us about the Christian life. One of the themes that is echoed over and over again is that the Christian life is not meant to be lived out alone. Yet so often that is exactly how we attempt to do it. As disciples of Christ we need to work to set examples and as I have learned, one of those examples needs to be to have people who hold you accountable.
In the area of prayer concerns, I would really appreciate those of you who are really following this blog to join me in praying that God's will would come into focus for the LEAD Team, people I am meeting with in Sebewaing and myself over these next few weeks as we look at next steps.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
From mid-October through the first week in March, I had a commitment with Joe and Kevin to read somewhere around 30 chapters of scripture each week. This commitment for reading in the Bible was suppose to be in addition to any study I was doing for preparing lessons and such. Other than a week or two, I had been fairly faithful in getting that reading done and taking the time to also go through a series of accountability questions with the guys each week.
Then on March 11, I left for Texas for a few days of personal business. During those days I read a little but quickly fell behind the 30 chapters a week pace.
When I returned to Michigan, I went directly to the Keystone training for the next 10 days. Those days were filled with eight plus hours each day in the classroom focusing on biblical principles and were well worth my time. However in the evenings when I should have been doing my scripture readings, I found myself justifying how I had been in the "word" all day and it was alright not to do the reading. I further justified my practices by telling myself since I was not going to meet with the guys for two weeks it was alright.
After Keystone I was home 3 nights before I left for Kentucky with my youth group for a week of mission work. Ironically both Kevin and Joe went with me on that trip as part of the service side of discipleship that is often overlooked. During the week we were in Kentucky I read every day in the scriptures, but it was always to prepare for the teaching of that week.
When I arrived home that first week I did not travel to Sebewaing because school was out there and many of the contacts that I usually make were not going to be around. In my mind I reasoned that I had been very busy and that it was alright if I waited one more week to get back to my reading schedule. In the middle of that week Kevin called me and told me he was coming to Bay City and that we should meet. When we did meet he asked me about my reading, and I had to confess that I had not done it. He also asked me about another subject that I had asked him to hold me accountable for; and I had to confess that I had not been to the gym in three weeks.
These events in my life caused me to reflect on how easy it is to fall out of a routine that had been very healthy and relationship-building into simply trying to maintain. Needless to say that yesterday when I met with Kevin and Joe I could tell them that I had done my reading again and that I was following through on the other parts of our agreement.
The scriptures have a lot to tell us about the Christian life. One of the themes that is echoed over and over again is that the Christian life is not meant to be lived out alone. Yet so often that is exactly how we attempt to do it. As disciples of Christ we need to work to set examples and as I have learned, one of those examples needs to be to have people who hold you accountable.
In the area of prayer concerns, I would really appreciate those of you who are really following this blog to join me in praying that God's will would come into focus for the LEAD Team, people I am meeting with in Sebewaing and myself over these next few weeks as we look at next steps.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Friday, March 27, 2009
Putting Education into Practice
After 10 days of Keystone training (March 16-25), yesterday I was finally back in the field to begin the process of taking all that we had talked about and putting it into practice. One of the things that was talked about a lot in the Keystone training was to make sure that the discipleship process that you use is highly missional. In other words, the idea is to spend less time in study situations looking at what the scriptures teach us about discipleship and more time living it out.
Years ago when I was working at my youth ministry degree from Fuller Seminary, one of my professors had taught us the same thing when he instructed us that we should never go any where alone, that we should always have a youth with us so they could see what it meant to be a follower of Jesus. Over the years I have done this often with youth, but not enough with adults.
My opportunity arose to start this yesterday with one of the guys I have been working with. While I was at Keystone, Kevin emailed me and told me he had been laid off from his job. For him this was devastating. There is the obvious economic problem of loss of work, but there is also the problem for Kevin that he, as many of us do, put his personal value on going to work each day and doing a job. So between us, we decided it would be a good thing for him to travel with me on this Thursday and take part in the ministry that I do at the schools.
Now it was a different kind of a day, and we did not end up helping at the schools in the manner I usually do, but it was still time well spent as we had conversations with various administrators and other people. As our day ended together I suggested to Kevin that he look for ways to serve at the school and in his community while looking for a job. He agreed, and we parted ways.
This morning I got a call from Kevin. One of his sons, who had traveled to Red Bird Mission with me on a number of occasions had contacted Kevin and told him he should ask me about going to Red Bird with me next week. To make a long story short, I had had the same thought. And when Kevin called me, I took it as a confirmation from God. And so tomorrow Kevin will leave with our group for a week in Kentucky re-roofing an elderly lady's home.
This is a start. I have become more and more aware of the need to do missional things outside the church. This encounter has reinforced that idea in my life and I pray in Kevin's also.
I will be in Kentucky next week so expect to hear from me again in a couple of weeks. Thanks for all your prayers.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Years ago when I was working at my youth ministry degree from Fuller Seminary, one of my professors had taught us the same thing when he instructed us that we should never go any where alone, that we should always have a youth with us so they could see what it meant to be a follower of Jesus. Over the years I have done this often with youth, but not enough with adults.
My opportunity arose to start this yesterday with one of the guys I have been working with. While I was at Keystone, Kevin emailed me and told me he had been laid off from his job. For him this was devastating. There is the obvious economic problem of loss of work, but there is also the problem for Kevin that he, as many of us do, put his personal value on going to work each day and doing a job. So between us, we decided it would be a good thing for him to travel with me on this Thursday and take part in the ministry that I do at the schools.
Now it was a different kind of a day, and we did not end up helping at the schools in the manner I usually do, but it was still time well spent as we had conversations with various administrators and other people. As our day ended together I suggested to Kevin that he look for ways to serve at the school and in his community while looking for a job. He agreed, and we parted ways.
This morning I got a call from Kevin. One of his sons, who had traveled to Red Bird Mission with me on a number of occasions had contacted Kevin and told him he should ask me about going to Red Bird with me next week. To make a long story short, I had had the same thought. And when Kevin called me, I took it as a confirmation from God. And so tomorrow Kevin will leave with our group for a week in Kentucky re-roofing an elderly lady's home.
This is a start. I have become more and more aware of the need to do missional things outside the church. This encounter has reinforced that idea in my life and I pray in Kevin's also.
I will be in Kentucky next week so expect to hear from me again in a couple of weeks. Thanks for all your prayers.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Thursday, March 19, 2009
The Great Commission
Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." Matt. 28:18-20
This week finds me not in Sebewaing, but at Camp Michindoh. I am here with 11 other guys going through 10 days of disciple making training. The days have been long as we are logging between 8 and 9 hours a day in the class room. Then the conversations that are taking place around the meal tables and on walks around the grounds are all centering on a disciple making process that is meant to take discipleship out to the fourth generation.
Richard Greene, our presenter, has been very passionate about telling us that times are changing and that he believes that the church needs to change to become more effective at fulfilling the Great Commission as found in Matthew 28. As someone who has been in youth ministry for 17 years, I have been a witness to what Richard is talking about when it comes to changing times. My experience in youth ministry has shown me that things are changing rapidly and in many cases things that worked last year don't work any more.
Most of the people sitting in on our class are senior pastors, and there have been some real issues that have come up as Richard points out the things he sees as flaws in the present church system. There have even been some difficult conversations around these topics. I have listened to these conversations trying to figure out what God would have me to learn through them. Several of the guys keep asking about where is there a model of what Richard is proposing that is up and working in the U.S. (There is no question how well these Keystone/ first century principles are working in third world countries.)
At this point there seems to be no real answer for that question but for me there is one truth that keeps coming up. The Great Commission is suppose to be for all believers, yet as the church we have not been very good at carrying it out. Maybe one of the reasons we are arguing so much against these things is because even though what we have is not working we are afraid to let it go because it is all we have ever known. I am ready to look for new wine skins.
Please keep me in prayer these next days as we continue to unpack the Keystone materials.
Also pray for Richard Greene as he presents. I am afraid that the interaction today has dampened some of his passion.
I expect to be back in Sebewaing next week and should post a blog about that next Friday before I leave for Kentucky with my youth group next Saturday.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
This week finds me not in Sebewaing, but at Camp Michindoh. I am here with 11 other guys going through 10 days of disciple making training. The days have been long as we are logging between 8 and 9 hours a day in the class room. Then the conversations that are taking place around the meal tables and on walks around the grounds are all centering on a disciple making process that is meant to take discipleship out to the fourth generation.
Richard Greene, our presenter, has been very passionate about telling us that times are changing and that he believes that the church needs to change to become more effective at fulfilling the Great Commission as found in Matthew 28. As someone who has been in youth ministry for 17 years, I have been a witness to what Richard is talking about when it comes to changing times. My experience in youth ministry has shown me that things are changing rapidly and in many cases things that worked last year don't work any more.
Most of the people sitting in on our class are senior pastors, and there have been some real issues that have come up as Richard points out the things he sees as flaws in the present church system. There have even been some difficult conversations around these topics. I have listened to these conversations trying to figure out what God would have me to learn through them. Several of the guys keep asking about where is there a model of what Richard is proposing that is up and working in the U.S. (There is no question how well these Keystone/ first century principles are working in third world countries.)
At this point there seems to be no real answer for that question but for me there is one truth that keeps coming up. The Great Commission is suppose to be for all believers, yet as the church we have not been very good at carrying it out. Maybe one of the reasons we are arguing so much against these things is because even though what we have is not working we are afraid to let it go because it is all we have ever known. I am ready to look for new wine skins.
Please keep me in prayer these next days as we continue to unpack the Keystone materials.
Also pray for Richard Greene as he presents. I am afraid that the interaction today has dampened some of his passion.
I expect to be back in Sebewaing next week and should post a blog about that next Friday before I leave for Kentucky with my youth group next Saturday.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Prayer & Partnering
The last two weeks because of a hectic schedule I have traveled to Sebewaing on a Tuesday and this past Saturday. I would like to use my blog posting to recount a couple of things from those visits.
The last two weeks that Deb and I have been with John and Rhonda Elenbaum we have decided that God is calling us to use our time in extended times of prayer. Our prayer focuses have been on concerns in our own families and what God wants for the next steps in the disciple making ministry in Sebewaing. These times together in prayer have been very special. It has been a privilege to hold up one another in prayer and to really be seeking God on gathering a group together in Sebewaing to advance the kingdom.
I believe that with some of the more personal issues we have been holding up in prayer we have already seen God moving and laying ground work for healing in relationships. In the area of expanding what we are doing in Sebewaing, there also seems to be a growing sense that God is going to provide additional opportunities to expand the disciple making ministry. We are not sure what this will look like, but we have sensed a moving of the Spirit.
In the area of partnering, two separate things have arose. The first is fairly concrete, but a good example of the possibilities. On March 28, I will be leading my Youth Group to Red Bird Mission in South East Kentucky. It is a trip that I have made many times and look forward to how God will move. This year Joe, whom I met with in a Life Transformation Group on Thursdays, and his son are going to join us. I am excited about that because for me this is a picture of the Kingdom --different groups coming together to do the work of God.
The second possible example of ministries working together to advance the Kingdom arose out of a meeting I had with Mike Sweciki, the Pastor at Salem United Methodist Church in Pigeon. Mike is being called by the United Methodist Church to move to the Midland area to plant a church. We had a great conversation, and I told him I would love to get together when I get back to talk about how we can support one another.
Next week I will be going through 10 days of Disciple Making training through the Keystone project so I will not be traveling to Sebewaing. Please keep me in prayer during that time that God would show me new opportunities and train me in new ways over that time.
Your servant in Christ,
Brian
The last two weeks that Deb and I have been with John and Rhonda Elenbaum we have decided that God is calling us to use our time in extended times of prayer. Our prayer focuses have been on concerns in our own families and what God wants for the next steps in the disciple making ministry in Sebewaing. These times together in prayer have been very special. It has been a privilege to hold up one another in prayer and to really be seeking God on gathering a group together in Sebewaing to advance the kingdom.
I believe that with some of the more personal issues we have been holding up in prayer we have already seen God moving and laying ground work for healing in relationships. In the area of expanding what we are doing in Sebewaing, there also seems to be a growing sense that God is going to provide additional opportunities to expand the disciple making ministry. We are not sure what this will look like, but we have sensed a moving of the Spirit.
In the area of partnering, two separate things have arose. The first is fairly concrete, but a good example of the possibilities. On March 28, I will be leading my Youth Group to Red Bird Mission in South East Kentucky. It is a trip that I have made many times and look forward to how God will move. This year Joe, whom I met with in a Life Transformation Group on Thursdays, and his son are going to join us. I am excited about that because for me this is a picture of the Kingdom --different groups coming together to do the work of God.
The second possible example of ministries working together to advance the Kingdom arose out of a meeting I had with Mike Sweciki, the Pastor at Salem United Methodist Church in Pigeon. Mike is being called by the United Methodist Church to move to the Midland area to plant a church. We had a great conversation, and I told him I would love to get together when I get back to talk about how we can support one another.
Next week I will be going through 10 days of Disciple Making training through the Keystone project so I will not be traveling to Sebewaing. Please keep me in prayer during that time that God would show me new opportunities and train me in new ways over that time.
Your servant in Christ,
Brian
Monday, March 2, 2009
Being Patient
Truth be known, being patient has not always been one of my greatest characteristics. I usually like to charge ahead trying to get to a destination. The problem is that more than once in my life I have arrived at my destination only to find out that that is not where God really intended me to be. This last week I was blessed to be reminded that God is in control, and we need to be faithful to the small things in front of us; and He will be faithful to guiding us to His destination. Let me give you three encounters from my week to illustrate this point.
On this Thursday I started by traveling to Caro to meet with Bob Sweeney. For those of you who don't know Bob, he is the Pastor at the Cass City Missionary Church and the head coach for the Thumb Area LEAD Team. Bob and I were meeting to discuss some of the issues that had been raised at our last LEAD Team meeting. At that meeting there were some discussions that perhaps our efforts in Sebewaing were not as far along as they should be, and that maybe we needed to change directions a little. The conversations, which I felt like were productive and needed to take place, had caused some division among the LEAD Team, and I appreciated the leadership Bob was showing in the matter through his emails and personal contacts.
During our time together Bob shared with me from a book on discipling, the amount of time Jesus had spent with the 12 over the three plus years. In the end the conclusion by the author said that if we used that same time line with people we are discipling, we would need around seven years based on the number of hours of contact with the individual. Now I don't anticipate that we will have seven years in the Sebewaing project before we really start seeing a lot of fruit, but it was encouraging to hear that time is not as urgent as we sometimes make it.
For me, Bob's and my meeting was a confirmation of what I had heard earlier in the week at a meeting talking about restructuring some things in the Missionary Church. The meeting which was conducted by Bill Hossler, our denomination President; Jim Keller, Michigan DS; and Steve Jones, Central DS, centered on how the Missionary Church might more effectively reach its goals of planting more churches and winning the lost to Christ. For me some of the main points of the meeting reflected an attitude change about what churches were suppose to look like and how we are going about creating those churches. It seemed to me that many of the things the leadership were talking about, we have been trying to do with our Thumb Area LEAD Team. Again, even though progress has seemed to be slow, God has been working and the foundation that is being laid will help us to build a stronger structure to reach the lost in the future.
The third event which for me showed that you need to stick to the disciplines that God has in front of you to accomplish longer term goals, was my encounter with Kevin on Thursday. When I called Kevin to confirm our meeting time for our Life Transformation group, he started by talking about being too busy to meet today. I was almost tempted to let him off the hook but something in me suggested that we really needed to meet, and so I simply told him I would meet him over lunch like we had originally planned. When we did meet that day, it was clear that God intended our time to be a real encouragement to one another. Both Kevin and I learned that the urgency of the moment needed to be put aside for the time of fellowship and prayer before God.
So this week let's work on the things God has set before us and not worry about the things that we have no control over. If we take care of the things God asks us to, He will lead us to the right destination.
Praises:
The encouragement of Believers
The continued opportunities to serve in the USA schools
For a growing awareness of the presence of the Missionary Church in the Sebewaing area
Concerns:
My schedule in the next month which takes me from Texas to KeyStone training to Kentucky, a total of 21 days
My friend Joe who continues to battle illness
What direction God would have us move in not only in Sebewaing but perhaps in other communities in the Thumb
Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Brian
On this Thursday I started by traveling to Caro to meet with Bob Sweeney. For those of you who don't know Bob, he is the Pastor at the Cass City Missionary Church and the head coach for the Thumb Area LEAD Team. Bob and I were meeting to discuss some of the issues that had been raised at our last LEAD Team meeting. At that meeting there were some discussions that perhaps our efforts in Sebewaing were not as far along as they should be, and that maybe we needed to change directions a little. The conversations, which I felt like were productive and needed to take place, had caused some division among the LEAD Team, and I appreciated the leadership Bob was showing in the matter through his emails and personal contacts.
During our time together Bob shared with me from a book on discipling, the amount of time Jesus had spent with the 12 over the three plus years. In the end the conclusion by the author said that if we used that same time line with people we are discipling, we would need around seven years based on the number of hours of contact with the individual. Now I don't anticipate that we will have seven years in the Sebewaing project before we really start seeing a lot of fruit, but it was encouraging to hear that time is not as urgent as we sometimes make it.
For me, Bob's and my meeting was a confirmation of what I had heard earlier in the week at a meeting talking about restructuring some things in the Missionary Church. The meeting which was conducted by Bill Hossler, our denomination President; Jim Keller, Michigan DS; and Steve Jones, Central DS, centered on how the Missionary Church might more effectively reach its goals of planting more churches and winning the lost to Christ. For me some of the main points of the meeting reflected an attitude change about what churches were suppose to look like and how we are going about creating those churches. It seemed to me that many of the things the leadership were talking about, we have been trying to do with our Thumb Area LEAD Team. Again, even though progress has seemed to be slow, God has been working and the foundation that is being laid will help us to build a stronger structure to reach the lost in the future.
The third event which for me showed that you need to stick to the disciplines that God has in front of you to accomplish longer term goals, was my encounter with Kevin on Thursday. When I called Kevin to confirm our meeting time for our Life Transformation group, he started by talking about being too busy to meet today. I was almost tempted to let him off the hook but something in me suggested that we really needed to meet, and so I simply told him I would meet him over lunch like we had originally planned. When we did meet that day, it was clear that God intended our time to be a real encouragement to one another. Both Kevin and I learned that the urgency of the moment needed to be put aside for the time of fellowship and prayer before God.
So this week let's work on the things God has set before us and not worry about the things that we have no control over. If we take care of the things God asks us to, He will lead us to the right destination.
Praises:
The encouragement of Believers
The continued opportunities to serve in the USA schools
For a growing awareness of the presence of the Missionary Church in the Sebewaing area
Concerns:
My schedule in the next month which takes me from Texas to KeyStone training to Kentucky, a total of 21 days
My friend Joe who continues to battle illness
What direction God would have us move in not only in Sebewaing but perhaps in other communities in the Thumb
Your Servant in Christ,
Pastor Brian
Monday, February 23, 2009
How to Prove God
On Thursday, February 19 I found myself sitting between two fifth graders trying to help them get caught up with some homework. I was at USA Middle School with my alternative education guys from the high school, and we were helping out. I was working with them on some math, when one of the the fifth grade students asked me where I was from. I told him I lived in Bay City, but on Thursdays I came up to Sebewaing to visit with friends and help where I could. I explained that I had been helping with these high school guys all year, and since they were now working in the middle school that is where I was as well.
He then asked me where I worked. I told him that I worked at a church. He then asked me a curious question. This fifth grade boy said, "Does that mean you believe in God?" I assured him I did, and his response was "I don't believe in God because there is no way to prove that God exists." I simply told him that I thought you could prove God existed, and our conversation came to an end because our time was up.
Since that time I have been considering the things this young man said. How sad is it that this young man had never seen proof that God exists. Acts 1:8 tells us; (Jesus speaking) "You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the uttermost parts of the world." You see if we as Christians are living out the love that God first showed us through His Son Jesus to others, they should be seeing God in us. That is what Jesus meant when he said "you will be my witnesses". A witness should be the one who brings the proof.
This encounter reminded me of another one that I had had earlier in the week when someone was sharing with me about not being able to witness very effectively to another person. I asked them "Did you share a moment from your life when you knew that God was right there making a difference?" They said they had not, and I encouraged them to be ready to do that the next time they had an encounter with that person.
I believe that it is critical to our witness that we know our testimony well enough that we can share with someone a moment when our life was invaded by God. That is what people want to hear. Even more importantly, that is what they want to see. St. Francis of Assisi once said "Preach the gospel daily, and when necessary use words." As Disciples of Jesus we should be the proof the world needs for the existence of the Father.
Concerns:
My friend Joe who has been sick and unable to meet the last couple of weeks
Leadership to come forward
Unity for the LEAD Team
Praises:
People's continued interest in what God is doing through the LEAD Team
A wonderful time of prayer and support last week in one of my group meetings
The doors that God continues to open
He then asked me where I worked. I told him that I worked at a church. He then asked me a curious question. This fifth grade boy said, "Does that mean you believe in God?" I assured him I did, and his response was "I don't believe in God because there is no way to prove that God exists." I simply told him that I thought you could prove God existed, and our conversation came to an end because our time was up.
Since that time I have been considering the things this young man said. How sad is it that this young man had never seen proof that God exists. Acts 1:8 tells us; (Jesus speaking) "You will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the uttermost parts of the world." You see if we as Christians are living out the love that God first showed us through His Son Jesus to others, they should be seeing God in us. That is what Jesus meant when he said "you will be my witnesses". A witness should be the one who brings the proof.
This encounter reminded me of another one that I had had earlier in the week when someone was sharing with me about not being able to witness very effectively to another person. I asked them "Did you share a moment from your life when you knew that God was right there making a difference?" They said they had not, and I encouraged them to be ready to do that the next time they had an encounter with that person.
I believe that it is critical to our witness that we know our testimony well enough that we can share with someone a moment when our life was invaded by God. That is what people want to hear. Even more importantly, that is what they want to see. St. Francis of Assisi once said "Preach the gospel daily, and when necessary use words." As Disciples of Jesus we should be the proof the world needs for the existence of the Father.
Concerns:
My friend Joe who has been sick and unable to meet the last couple of weeks
Leadership to come forward
Unity for the LEAD Team
Praises:
People's continued interest in what God is doing through the LEAD Team
A wonderful time of prayer and support last week in one of my group meetings
The doors that God continues to open
Monday, February 16, 2009
Encouraging Others in Ministry
One of the things that always amazes me about my weekly visits to Sebewaing is that God always seems to speak to me or use a different one of my encounters to accomplish something. This week it was my visit with Kevin. Kevin and I have known each other a long time. Fifteen years ago we were in a small group together that met for a couple of years. Since that time we have been there to help lift each other up and encourage each other during difficult times in our lives.
When Kevin and I started meeting last November, he was in the middle of one of those tough times in his spiritual walk. With all of his four sons now out of the house, the youngest went off to college this fall. Kevin was not sure what God wanted next from him. As we began to meet, we decided to do some reading in the Old Testament. The last couple of weeks have taken us through the book of Job and into Psalms. As we read through Job, Kevin was led to read through it again in another translation. So I did the same.
It was interesting that God seemed to be giving each of us a different understanding of Job than we have experienced in past readings. Through this process Kevin has gained some insight into a situation with another person in his life. He also feels like God is calling him to teach through some relationship materials that he has used in the past in his Sunday School class. There is a new excitement, a re- ignition, growing in his faith journey that I am pleased to see.
The other part of this is that Kevin is a member at my former church, and I am excited to hear the things that God is doing there. My prayer is that God will continue to work with Kevin to help people in his church refocus on Jesus. That is one of the great things about what the Thumb area LEAD Team is doing in Sebewaing is the fact that if the Kingdom is strengthened, then we are being faithful to the call.
Praises:
New opportunities in the schools
Life Transformation groups going well
Possible new people coming into groups
Concerns:
For a clear vision of purpose as a LEAD Team
That we would be as one
To bring together some opportunities in the community rather than everyone working in different directions
When Kevin and I started meeting last November, he was in the middle of one of those tough times in his spiritual walk. With all of his four sons now out of the house, the youngest went off to college this fall. Kevin was not sure what God wanted next from him. As we began to meet, we decided to do some reading in the Old Testament. The last couple of weeks have taken us through the book of Job and into Psalms. As we read through Job, Kevin was led to read through it again in another translation. So I did the same.
It was interesting that God seemed to be giving each of us a different understanding of Job than we have experienced in past readings. Through this process Kevin has gained some insight into a situation with another person in his life. He also feels like God is calling him to teach through some relationship materials that he has used in the past in his Sunday School class. There is a new excitement, a re- ignition, growing in his faith journey that I am pleased to see.
The other part of this is that Kevin is a member at my former church, and I am excited to hear the things that God is doing there. My prayer is that God will continue to work with Kevin to help people in his church refocus on Jesus. That is one of the great things about what the Thumb area LEAD Team is doing in Sebewaing is the fact that if the Kingdom is strengthened, then we are being faithful to the call.
Praises:
New opportunities in the schools
Life Transformation groups going well
Possible new people coming into groups
Concerns:
For a clear vision of purpose as a LEAD Team
That we would be as one
To bring together some opportunities in the community rather than everyone working in different directions
Monday, February 9, 2009
Building a Roller Coaster
Have you ever designed and built a roller coaster? Last Thursday (February 5), I had the opportunity to work with a group of middle school students on exactly that project. Let me explain.
As you know, if you have been following this blog at all, one of the things I do on the Thursdays that I spend in Sebewaing is to spend some time volunteering at the high school with the Alternative Education Program. Because of a snow day and my two weeks of vacation in Florida, it has been a while since I visited these students and I had kind of fallen out of the loop.
As I was checking in on Thursday I found out that a couple of the guys were helping with a group of middle school students, and they invited me along. Our job was to help the teacher in charge to assist the students through a team-building exercise. The goal of this exercise was to help the students learn to work together to name a fictional theme park. From there they were to name and design the roller coaster for that park. The coaster had to have at least two hills and a loop.
This was not the first time I had been through this process. A number of years ago I worked with, and then judged, a group of high school freshmen on this same project. The neat thing about helping this time was that I got to go on line with the group to a web site designed to walk us through the project. The interesting thing about this project for me was watching the students interact. (This is, of course, the real purpose of the exercise.) There was one student who insisted on his way and thought everyone else's ideas were stupid. There was another student who was trying to keep peace and keep the project moving forward. Then there was a third student who seemed to have some great ideas but was too quiet to share them.
I couldn't help but think about the parallels between this exercise and what we see in the church. You see part of my vacation was spent at a Church Planters' Retreat, and because that was on my mind it caused me to be tuned in to the similarities.
The first student seemed to be a picture of what God was telling the group of church planters during the first portion of our retreat. During an extended time of prayer, the idea of humbling ourselves and listening for God really took center stage. Always as we work for the Lord we need to put self interest behind. As Paul said we need to "die to self daily."
The second student was no doubt the peacemaker and the one trying to accommodate all the ideas and plans. One of the things that I learned during the retreat is that sometimes we need to be careful in this role because if we begin to elevate people over the purpose, they will be doing the will of the people and not the will of God. The two can be very different.
The third young man really was the one that intrigued me. One of the things that occurred to me was how many times we might struggle for answers because we don't include everyone. God often uses people who would not seem to have the right stuff to accomplish his purposes, and maybe we need to make sure to listen to everyone.
Praises:
Two weeks of vacation that have really energized me again
To be back doing ministry
The fruit I am seeing from my Life Transformation Groups
Concerns:
Direction as the LEAD Team and I decide if we are going where God wants us to go in this disciple making process
New ways to reach others and begin getting them plugged in
For the health of some: John and Rhonda, they were sick and we did not meet last week.
As you know, if you have been following this blog at all, one of the things I do on the Thursdays that I spend in Sebewaing is to spend some time volunteering at the high school with the Alternative Education Program. Because of a snow day and my two weeks of vacation in Florida, it has been a while since I visited these students and I had kind of fallen out of the loop.
As I was checking in on Thursday I found out that a couple of the guys were helping with a group of middle school students, and they invited me along. Our job was to help the teacher in charge to assist the students through a team-building exercise. The goal of this exercise was to help the students learn to work together to name a fictional theme park. From there they were to name and design the roller coaster for that park. The coaster had to have at least two hills and a loop.
This was not the first time I had been through this process. A number of years ago I worked with, and then judged, a group of high school freshmen on this same project. The neat thing about helping this time was that I got to go on line with the group to a web site designed to walk us through the project. The interesting thing about this project for me was watching the students interact. (This is, of course, the real purpose of the exercise.) There was one student who insisted on his way and thought everyone else's ideas were stupid. There was another student who was trying to keep peace and keep the project moving forward. Then there was a third student who seemed to have some great ideas but was too quiet to share them.
I couldn't help but think about the parallels between this exercise and what we see in the church. You see part of my vacation was spent at a Church Planters' Retreat, and because that was on my mind it caused me to be tuned in to the similarities.
The first student seemed to be a picture of what God was telling the group of church planters during the first portion of our retreat. During an extended time of prayer, the idea of humbling ourselves and listening for God really took center stage. Always as we work for the Lord we need to put self interest behind. As Paul said we need to "die to self daily."
The second student was no doubt the peacemaker and the one trying to accommodate all the ideas and plans. One of the things that I learned during the retreat is that sometimes we need to be careful in this role because if we begin to elevate people over the purpose, they will be doing the will of the people and not the will of God. The two can be very different.
The third young man really was the one that intrigued me. One of the things that occurred to me was how many times we might struggle for answers because we don't include everyone. God often uses people who would not seem to have the right stuff to accomplish his purposes, and maybe we need to make sure to listen to everyone.
Praises:
Two weeks of vacation that have really energized me again
To be back doing ministry
The fruit I am seeing from my Life Transformation Groups
Concerns:
Direction as the LEAD Team and I decide if we are going where God wants us to go in this disciple making process
New ways to reach others and begin getting them plugged in
For the health of some: John and Rhonda, they were sick and we did not meet last week.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
"Man is it Cold!"
"And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." (Matt. 16:18)
That is the scripture that kept going through my head this morning as I tried to get myself out the door and begin my day. The thermometer was well below zero, and all I could think about was leaving for vacation in a few days to Florida. Couple that with the fact that I had already seen on TV that USA schools were closed because of the weather, which meant I would have a couple of open hours. And all I kept thinking was "Man it would be nice just to stay home today".
That is when the above scripture kept echoing in my head. "The gates of Hades". Today those gates in my mind were the weather, and I knew that I could not allow the conditions to distract me from what God would have me do today. So I left the house and headed to Sebewaing. As I drove there, at one point the thermometer in my truck registered 11 degrees below zero and was still 8 below when I reached Sebewaing.
As I set out on my prayer walk the Scripture from Matthew was ringing in my head as well as portions of Psalm 25. The version of the Bible I am reading right now records Psalm 25:1 this way: "Lord, I give myself to you; my God I trust you." (NCV) I must confess that as I set out walking with this verse in mind as well as Psalm 25:14: "The Lord tells his secrets to those who respect him; he tells them about his agreement," I sort of expected God to bless this effort. After all I was "suffering" for him. An hour an a half later, which included a 20 minute stop at McDonald's for coffee, I returned to my truck. I was cold and nothing extraordinary had taken place.
As I considered all this, a message came back to me that I heard Dr. Larry Crabb give a number of years ago at the National Youth Workers Convention. One of the lines stood out to me when he made the statement that there are times when God will ask you to be faithful in the "absence of blessings". As I reviewed my morning I realized that this was one of those times.
Now don't get me wrong there is always a blessing spending time in prayer and solitude with the Lord, but I was sort of expecting some kind of divine appointment like I have experienced on many of these prayer walks before. Yet none seemed to materialize.
As I considered this it occurred to me that a true disciple of Jesus always is willing to be faithful in the absence of apparent blessing because a disciple has a kingdom mindset. A kingdom mindset allows us to know that we need to be faithful to God and let him handle the details of the moment. I am so glad that I did not give in to the temptation of allowing the weather to be the "gates of Hades". I was reminded on my walk on this day that as we work to build disciples, who reflect Christ, it will be Jesus who builds the church, in His time and in His way. That is good enough for me!
As I mentioned earlier I leave for a couple of weeks vacation next week. Over that time I really covet your prayers that Deb and I might be refreshed and renewed. I also ask that you would keep the work we are trying to do in Sebewaing in prayer as we consider how to expand some of the groups and opportunities. Talk to you again in three weeks.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
That is the scripture that kept going through my head this morning as I tried to get myself out the door and begin my day. The thermometer was well below zero, and all I could think about was leaving for vacation in a few days to Florida. Couple that with the fact that I had already seen on TV that USA schools were closed because of the weather, which meant I would have a couple of open hours. And all I kept thinking was "Man it would be nice just to stay home today".
That is when the above scripture kept echoing in my head. "The gates of Hades". Today those gates in my mind were the weather, and I knew that I could not allow the conditions to distract me from what God would have me do today. So I left the house and headed to Sebewaing. As I drove there, at one point the thermometer in my truck registered 11 degrees below zero and was still 8 below when I reached Sebewaing.
As I set out on my prayer walk the Scripture from Matthew was ringing in my head as well as portions of Psalm 25. The version of the Bible I am reading right now records Psalm 25:1 this way: "Lord, I give myself to you; my God I trust you." (NCV) I must confess that as I set out walking with this verse in mind as well as Psalm 25:14: "The Lord tells his secrets to those who respect him; he tells them about his agreement," I sort of expected God to bless this effort. After all I was "suffering" for him. An hour an a half later, which included a 20 minute stop at McDonald's for coffee, I returned to my truck. I was cold and nothing extraordinary had taken place.
As I considered all this, a message came back to me that I heard Dr. Larry Crabb give a number of years ago at the National Youth Workers Convention. One of the lines stood out to me when he made the statement that there are times when God will ask you to be faithful in the "absence of blessings". As I reviewed my morning I realized that this was one of those times.
Now don't get me wrong there is always a blessing spending time in prayer and solitude with the Lord, but I was sort of expecting some kind of divine appointment like I have experienced on many of these prayer walks before. Yet none seemed to materialize.
As I considered this it occurred to me that a true disciple of Jesus always is willing to be faithful in the absence of apparent blessing because a disciple has a kingdom mindset. A kingdom mindset allows us to know that we need to be faithful to God and let him handle the details of the moment. I am so glad that I did not give in to the temptation of allowing the weather to be the "gates of Hades". I was reminded on my walk on this day that as we work to build disciples, who reflect Christ, it will be Jesus who builds the church, in His time and in His way. That is good enough for me!
As I mentioned earlier I leave for a couple of weeks vacation next week. Over that time I really covet your prayers that Deb and I might be refreshed and renewed. I also ask that you would keep the work we are trying to do in Sebewaing in prayer as we consider how to expand some of the groups and opportunities. Talk to you again in three weeks.
Your Servant in Christ,
Brian
Friday, January 9, 2009
Discipling Little Ones
After a couple of weeks of not traveling to Sebewaing on Thursdays because of the holidays, yesterday I got back in the swing. I started my day in Caro meeting with Bob Sweeney. For those of you who don't know, Bob is the pastor at Cass City Missionary Church and the head coach for the Thumb Area LEAD team. Bob and I spent a little over an hour together talking about the progress that was being made in Sebewaing and trying to define the direction of this disciple-making effort. I always appreciate Bob because he has a real heart for the gospel and is willing to challenge people to have them look at ministry in new ways.
After meeting with Bob, I traveled up to meet with one of the guys that I meet with each week. We decided to meet over his lunch time because of some commitments he had later in the day. During our conversation we talked about how easy it is to kind of fall into a sort of post Christmas "depression." Our reading assignment over the previous week had us reading the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. We talked about the overwhelming odds that seemed against the work of the two of these men and the parallels that exist today as we try to make disciples in a world where there seems to be more bad news than good. We talked about the need for believers to encourage one another on a daily basis with stories of the places that God's work is showing through.
Later that day I visited with a former student of mine. She has a young son, and the two of them live in income-assisted apartments. I asked her to share with me the attitude of the people she came in contact with in her neighborhood. She shared with me about some of the young children from her building, who often come to her apartment to play with her son. She was telling me that the first time one of these young boys was at her house and and they were going to eat, they had a time of prayer. This amazed this little boy because he didn't understand that you could talk with God. She told me that now any time when he comes, and they are already eating he always ask; did you pray? Apparently there was also a time when she told this little boy it was time to go home because her son had to get ready for bed and then say his prayers. This boy was amazed at the thought of praying more than once a day and including God in things.
The reason this story was so interesting to me is that a couple of the books I have been reading on disciple-making point to areas that society often marginalizes, such as low-income apartments, and talks about how fertile a place they can be for a disciple-making movement. The question that needs to be asked is how can the church do a better job of reaching into these areas and groups of people to build relationships and begin disciple-making movements. Sometimes it can start with things as little as demonstrating prayer to a child.
Praises:
People like Bob and the other LEAD team members who encourage me
The privilege of seeing God in the little things
The joy of spending time with friends and family and supporting one another
Concerns:
Schedules this next quarter as I have a number of things that will take me out of my normal visits
More leadership to rise up to help expand the circle in Sebewaing
Discernment for the LEAD Team as we continue to define our mission in Sebewaing
Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Brian
After meeting with Bob, I traveled up to meet with one of the guys that I meet with each week. We decided to meet over his lunch time because of some commitments he had later in the day. During our conversation we talked about how easy it is to kind of fall into a sort of post Christmas "depression." Our reading assignment over the previous week had us reading the books of Ezra and Nehemiah. We talked about the overwhelming odds that seemed against the work of the two of these men and the parallels that exist today as we try to make disciples in a world where there seems to be more bad news than good. We talked about the need for believers to encourage one another on a daily basis with stories of the places that God's work is showing through.
Later that day I visited with a former student of mine. She has a young son, and the two of them live in income-assisted apartments. I asked her to share with me the attitude of the people she came in contact with in her neighborhood. She shared with me about some of the young children from her building, who often come to her apartment to play with her son. She was telling me that the first time one of these young boys was at her house and and they were going to eat, they had a time of prayer. This amazed this little boy because he didn't understand that you could talk with God. She told me that now any time when he comes, and they are already eating he always ask; did you pray? Apparently there was also a time when she told this little boy it was time to go home because her son had to get ready for bed and then say his prayers. This boy was amazed at the thought of praying more than once a day and including God in things.
The reason this story was so interesting to me is that a couple of the books I have been reading on disciple-making point to areas that society often marginalizes, such as low-income apartments, and talks about how fertile a place they can be for a disciple-making movement. The question that needs to be asked is how can the church do a better job of reaching into these areas and groups of people to build relationships and begin disciple-making movements. Sometimes it can start with things as little as demonstrating prayer to a child.
Praises:
People like Bob and the other LEAD team members who encourage me
The privilege of seeing God in the little things
The joy of spending time with friends and family and supporting one another
Concerns:
Schedules this next quarter as I have a number of things that will take me out of my normal visits
More leadership to rise up to help expand the circle in Sebewaing
Discernment for the LEAD Team as we continue to define our mission in Sebewaing
Your servant in Christ,
Pastor Brian
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