Growing in Sebewaing

Wheres Your Faith?

2010-10-08T06:25:00.000-07:00

First I must apologize to those who pray for the work that is being done in Sebewaing on a regular basis. It is amazing how quickly time goes by and as I logged in to post today I realized that over 4 months have past since I last posted.
The reasons for that are numerous including various summer activities that did not allow me to get to Sebewaing and my internship which has reduced the number of hour I have available to get to Sebewaing. However the one element that has probably been the biggest factor in my failure to post is simply frustration.

Last spring our group in Sebewaing had grown in number and spirit. It was easy to be excited each week as we came together to learn and grow in the Word. When summer came with all the demands on my schedule and others in the group it really seemed like the momentum that we were experiencing came to a crashing halt. After canceling a week here and there over the summer because of scheduling conflicts it seemed like we could not regain the momentum we had enjoyed last spring as summer ended and fall began. I have talked to a number of Pastors whose experience this last summer seemed to be much the same in their local churches. I must admitted that I was beginning to doubt what we were doing and was thinking "alright should we be scrapping what we have been trying and go another direction." My faith in our growing in Sebewaing project was really beginning to wain.

Then a few weeks ago on a Thursday night when it was only John, Rhonda, and myself who were there, and I was not so sure that John and Rhonda would have been there except it was at their house, we decided that the best thing we could do was forget the planned learning and simply take the time to pray. So we spent time praying for the people who had been part of the group and for others who might become part of the group. As we finished that night I had a peace that came over me as I was reminded from Matthew 16 Jesus telling Peter "on this rock I will build my church".

Over these last few weeks God has shown His faithfulness. People began to filter back and last night not only was a large part of the group from last spring there but also some others who were new to the group. There seems to again be a growing momentum building, Praise be to God!

Again to those who have been faithfully praying I apologize for my lack of keeping you posted. One of the great difficulties in the human spirit and my own spirit is that we always want to share good news, but are less enthusiastic about sharing our concerns despite the fact that God calls us to do that. I realize that when my concerns were at their highest I was not sharing that with the body and that is my fault. We are seeking your prayers for wisdom as we go forward and encouragement when we are discouraged.
These days I am feeling a little like the father in Mark chapter 9 who brought his son to Jesus to be healed and the disciples failed to heal him. When Jesus shows up on the scene the man's response to Jesus is "I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!" I praise God for His faithfulness even when mine is weak

Your Servant in Christ

Brian

International connections in Sebewaing

2010-05-08T18:24:00.000-07:00

Thursday night I received a reminder of the surprises the Kingdom of God always has in store. Let me explain.
Normally on Thursday nights before the group gets together Deb and I have dinner with John and Rhonda. On this occasion John had two guys who were at his shop waiting on the finance company they were dealing with to finish the process of their loan so they could buy a truck. These guys had been stuck in Sebewaing for three days waiting on paper work. Since they were in town they went out to dinner with us.
During dinner I found out that these guys were originally from Kenya Africa. They were now living in Georgia. They were a real delight to visit with! Since they were stuck in Sebewaing we invited them to join our group that night. The lesson for that night centered around Jesus' 40 days in the wilderness and His temptation. We had a good conversation and time of learning together. We then spent an extended time in prayer. It was during that time that these two men surprised us by taking part in the prayer. One of the men prayed that he now understood why God had had them stay these extra days in Sebewaing.
It was obvious that these men both had an understand of scripture and loved God! I felt like these men may have at one time been involved in church on a regular basis and that our time together reignited a fire! What a great picture of how God uses all things for the good of those who love Him.

Your Servant in Christ

Brian

Praises
What God continues to do in our group! New opportunities!
Disciples are being made where once they were followers!

Prayer Concerns
The next few months as we look to the future What does
That God would continue to bring new people to the group
That God would pour out His wisdom in my life.

Living with Passion

2010-04-16T07:03:00.000-07:00

Recently in our Thursday night group we have we have had a guy join our group who had just been through an Emmaus Walk. During this three day spiritual retreat he rediscovered his passion for the Lord Jesus. In conversations with one of the members of our group Ron said something like "I need to find a place where I can really learn about Jesus." Dennis then told him of our group and invited him in. After a couple of weeks Ron opened up and told me how at first he was not sure about coming to this group because he didn't know as much about the Bible as some people, yet he was feeling real good about how we were going and I could see his excitement growing each week as we looked at the life of Jesus.
Last night he came in early to talk. his excitement just continues to grow. Ron reported that he had just had a conversation with his daughter and she had told him how proud she was of him for wanting to learn more about Jesus. He told us that he has been gathering the family each evening for times of sharing and praying. He said I just watched how we have been doing it each week and decided that my family could share and pray in the same way. That is what a disciple does! They learn, and then they do!
Later that night Ron shared about a friend who is going through some difficult personal times. we talked about the situation and then I encouraged him to walk beside this man. Ron told the group that he is going to maybe invite him along some time because as he shared "this is a time when I get my battery recharged."
Another of the couple who have been part of our group for a year or so, Frank and Margret, just took a job as house parents in Indiana. They begin on Monday. We will miss them but even in that God is at work. Yesterday I went to help Frank load some things. I met his neighbors a young couple who came to see what was going on and help load for a while. Last night Frank told the group that he talked to them more later in the day and there may be some interest on their part to become part of our group!

Praises:
The weekly sharing and learning taking place in our group! God is good.
The recent additions in our group
The testimonies of several of the group members and the in roads that they are making in the lives of friends and family by following the examples of Jesus

Concerns
Frank and Margret as they begin this new job
John and Rhonda as they travel to Moldova to their son' wedding
The future as we consider other possibilities for meeting additional needs

Your Servant in Christ
Brian

Not there Yet

2010-03-12T06:18:00.000-08:00

How does a month go by so quickly? can't believe it has been over a month since I posted. Please forgive me and thank you for those of you who continue to pray for me, now on with the show.
Last Thursday I had one of those incidents in which I realized that I am not there yet when it comes to sharing Christ. Let me explain. I left for Sebewaing a little earlier than normal thinking I would stop and have coffee before I met Kevin for breakfast. About a mile from my house I saw a guy pushing his car. I pulled on to a side street and jump out to help him push. I assumed that he was pushing it on to that side street or maybe into a driveway. When I ask where we were going he said "to the gas station on the corner." So what started out as a quick help ended up in about a 5 minute "cardiac" exercise. When we pushed the car up to the gas station he thanked me for my help and I started walking back to my truck. After a couple of minutes, when I caught my breath and my heart rate slowed back to normal, I realized that I had not even really engage in a conversation with the man. God gave me a opportunity and I blew it!
As I reflected on why I missed the opportunity I came to the conclusion that while I am trying to be aware of the people God puts in front of me when I get tired or distracted I fall back into my old self. I am not where God would have me to be yet. I miss things around me because I sometimes first think of myself. As I have been studying Christ life more and more I see how He always had an eye and hear out for the situations around Him no matter what His circumstances were. I need to get there.
Speaking of studying the life of Jesus, I have some good reports from our Thursday night group in Sebewaing. As we have been studying Christ's life one of the big things that has come out is that Jesus suffered his entire life, not just in that final week. As we have been working on that reality, God is making us aware of things in our lives that need to be changed. One member of the group shared last night how God was revealing Himself in all new ways to him and the profound effect that was having. Another member of the group shared about some difficulty in her work place and sought the groups advise on how to handle some co-workers. After some discussion I believe she left understanding that these people were opportunities to "reveal" the gospel. Also one of the couple came and ask if it would be alright if another couple joined our group. Praise be to God for all He is doing and His grace and patients with me!

Praises
What God is doing in the lives of the members of the group in Sebewaing.
Possible new people joining our group.
Praises for the 35 people from 5 churches who took part in the Live 2:6 seminar in Elkton three weeks ago! Looking forward to what God will do in each of those churches as the people follow His lead.

Concerns
Over these next few weeks my schedule will not allow me to have some of the contacts in Sebewaing. Pray that God will empower those who are stepping up to lead.

That I would be open to the leading of the Holy Spirit as I consider the situations in front of me.

Thank you for your faithful service to Him as you pray for me.

Your Servant in Christ

Brian

From Agony to Elation

2010-01-29T05:58:00.000-08:00

I was pretty sure that the Lord was pulling a cruel joke on me. Two days before I was in Florida enjoying 70 degree weather while golfing and hanging out at the beach. Now on this morning it was 10 degrees with a wind chill below 0 as I was preparing to start my prayer walk time around Sebewaing. The mountain top experience of two weeks of vacation in Florida was over, and it was time to get back into the valley and do some ministry. But why did the valley have to be so cold!

As I walked I began to focus less on the cold and more on another thought. While I was on vacation I read through the book of Leviticus as part of my Life Transformation group. Now in the past when I have read through Leviticus it has almost been like my walk that morning started out, a struggle that I had to get through! But this time Leviticus seemed so different. God was showing me new things in this portion of scripture that were making sense in new ways, and shedding new light on the gospels. It was exciting and all of a sudden my walk became a pleasure.

Working through hard, difficult things seemed to be a theme for the day. Later when I was having a conversation with Rhonda she told me that an older gentleman whom she and John had taken under their wing had passed away while I was gone. This man, Frank, had gone to church with them off and on for the past several years, but never seemed to truly have the peace of the Lord in his life. Rhonda related to me how she had the opportunity to spend a good amount of time with Frank in his last days and to share again the truth of the gospel. She shared with me how maybe for the first time in his life Frank seemed to truly reconcile to Jesus and a peace came over him. Frank's concern seemed to switch from himself and dying, to getting his son to church. I could see the joy in Rhonda as she shared this story, and also I heard from both John and Rhonda how they will continue to reach out to Frank's son. What a great joy to hear and somehow again it seemed not so cold.

The day ended with all 12 members of our group together that night at the Elenbaum's. My wife could not be there but we had Anna there, as we continued our journey through the Live 2:6 materials they had started two weeks ago. I am just so excited about this group and hearing the interactions and the praises as we worked through lesson 2 in our Knowing Him manual.

When the evening ended and I stepped outside, the cold that had greeted me that morning was still there. But somehow it did not seem like agony. There was a heavenly elation in the air! Ministry in the valley has its rewards!

Praises:
Frank's home going with salvation assured!
The great start that our Live 2:6 group is off to
The growing and bonding of our group

Prayer opportunities:
Be in prayer for Jim, Frank's son, for comfort and salvation
Our upcoming Sonlife seminar at Elkton Missionary Church. Praying for a good showing of people. If you would like to attend let me know.
The possibility of starting another group with some younger couple

Your servant in Christ,

Brian

Good Day

2010-01-07T11:38:00.000-08:00

In my 18 years of full-time Christian ministry, there have been days that have not gone well. During those kind of days I have often had the feeling like maybe I should have stayed in the pizza business, where I was for 13 years before I started in ministry. I am convinced that God gives you those kind of days to test you and check your perseverance. Then there are days where the Lord just opens doors, and you feel like this is perfect. Today here in Sebewaing is one of those kinds of days, though it didn't start out that way.

As I was driving up this morning I got pulled over by the police because the officer felt like a turn I made was a dangerous one. He let me off, but I was late for my Life Transformation group and I hate to be late. My group time with Kevin went so well! We attempted to read 30 chapters a week for group. We are starting over in the Bible planning on reading through the Bible, and both of us had actually read more than 30 chapters.I finished Genesis, and Kevin was right behind me. We both commented how we just wanted to keep going. We had a great time talking about the things God was revealing to us in Genesis even though the book is so familiar to both of us. I felt like God had turned my day around!

After that I spent time doing my prayer walk. I needed to make a phone call to the local YFC chapter and I needed a number, so as I passed the village offices I decided to go in and ask for a phone book. Ya, I know it was an old fashion way of doing it. Any way the clerk was glad to help me. It was someone I knew. After that we started a conversation, and she asked me about my ministry. I told her I had been ordained and was working in Sebewaing on a disciple building/church plant. I also told her how that I was working on a Masters in Counseling these day and reaching the end of that. She asked me if I counseled with families and children. I told her that I had some experience in that area, and we ended up setting up a time for me to get together with her daughter and grandson to deal with issues from a divorce. I had an opportunity to pray with her there, and then I was on to my next appointment. I was growing more excited about what God was showing me!

I next met with a former student of mine who had Face booked me asking if we could get together. In our contact time before we met today I asked her if she has been in the Word at all. She confessed that she had not, and I told her I was starting a read through the Bible and invited her to do the same. When we met she had started that process. God blessed our time together, and we are going to set up a time to regularly meet to help her stay on track. Again I felt like, wow God, this is why I love ministry!

All of these encounters before noon! I still have tonight when we are going to kick off our Sonlife Live 2:6 group. The idea behind the 2:6 groups comes from 1 John 2:6 which say "Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did." The study is designed to take place over a two year time period and to really study Jesus' life. I am excited about this group and study! Thanks for your prayers.

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian

Looking Forward

2010-01-04T06:32:00.000-08:00

Since I have not posted in the last couple of weeks because of the holidays, let me just give two quick encounters that I had during that time during visits to Sebewaing.

The first came the week before Christmas. I went in to visit the Alternative Ed class that I help in each week, and they were having a Christmas party. Students were hauling in all kinds of food, and it really began to look like a church potluck. While they were waiting for the last of the students to arrive, the high school principal came down to talk to the teacher about some things. As they finished up, one of the students declared it was time to eat. The teacher, who had introduced me to the principal as the class pastor, told the students that since this was a Christmas party as long as it was alright with everyone he was going to ask me to pray. So in this public school with an administrator present, I had the privilege to pray for, and with this group of students. Thanks be to God!

The second encounter I want to share happened during my Life Transformation group meeting. One of the guys was talking about 2010 being the year that we will turn fifty. We started to talk about what that meant in the scheme of things. I then had the opportunity to share with him a recent encounter I had with the parents of one of my best friends growing up.

Even though I did not grow up in a Christian home, God gave me the opportunity to know what that should look like through this family. They lived out the scriptures everyday and there was always a faith displayed that at times was hard for me to grasp like when their daughter passed away from cancer. Anyway when I visited them a couple of months ago, he is now 82 and she is 80, I was again amazed at their faith. They talked about having their grandson killed in a car accident earlier this year. Yet in the middle of all they have seen and been through, they talked of the faith of God and always looking to the future with great anticipation about what God would do next.

As I shared these thoughts in my group, each of us began to talk about the faithfulness that we have seen God display in our lives. We also came to the conclusion that no matter how old we are we need to continue to look forward to what God will do and how He will show himself.

Please keep our Live 26 group in prayer. I ordered materials today for 5 couples to begin this Sonlife study through the life of Christ.

Also keep in prayer the Sonlife seminar the Thumb LEAD Team will be conducting with Don Roscoe as facilitator February 26-27.

Brian

Catching Up

2009-12-14T09:09:00.000-08:00

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

Opportunities

2009-12-03T10:53:00.000-08:00

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

How Did We Get Here?

2009-11-13T08:35:00.001-08:00

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

Going it Alone

2009-11-06T05:10:00.000-08:00

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

Moving Forward

2009-08-28T05:36:00.000-07:00

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

Working in the Middle of Chaos August 19

2009-08-19T11:58:00.000-07:00

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

SHOW

2009-07-02T12:37:00.000-07:00

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

Community

2009-05-22T07:15:00.000-07:00

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

2009-05-11T05:53:00.000-07:00

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.

"Lord, Can You Let Me in on the Plan?"

2009-05-01T09:54:00.000-07:00

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.

Finding the Right Fit

2009-04-28T05:52:00.000-07:00

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

Accountability

2009-04-17T09:36:00.000-07:00

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

Putting Education into Practice

2009-03-27T10:09:00.000-07:00

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

The Great Commission

2009-03-19T18:14:00.000-07:00

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

Prayer & Partnering

2009-03-11T12:16:00.000-07:00

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

Being Patient

2009-03-02T08:16:00.000-08:00

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

How to Prove God

2009-02-23T06:06:00.000-08:00

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

Encouraging Others in Ministry

2009-02-16T10:10:00.000-08:00

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

Building a Roller Coaster

2009-02-09T08:26:00.001-08:00

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.

"Man is it Cold!"

2009-01-15T09:24:00.000-08:00

"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

Discipling Little Ones

2009-01-09T08:48:00.000-08:00

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

Unless You Become Like a Little Child....

2008-12-12T06:22:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I had a new adventure. Working with the Alternative Education program, I traveled to the elementary school to work with a 3rd grade class on some team building skills. The four high school students had worked on some games and other kinds of team building skill exercises, and now they were seeing how difficult it is to take something from the drawing board to actual implementation. It was a lot of fun.

I enjoyed helping keep these 3rd graders inside the parameters of the game. What was really fun though was seeing their excitement. I could not help but think of how much more effective we would be in the discipling process if we brought the same kind of excitement to the table about our Lord and Savior. Once again I am amazed at how God uses children to teach me.

I recently corresponded with someone and was telling them that I think I have learned more about true theology from elementary students than from seminary professors. Jesus was so right when He told us that "unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven."

The other exciting thing for me this week is that things seem to be coming together to host a Son Life Seminar at Bayshore Camp in April. This 8-hour seminar over two days, April 10-11, is designed to emphasize the Strategy of Jesus and how He went about putting together a team that would plant THE Church. We are hoping to gather people from the LEAD Team Churches as well as from the Sebewaing area to learn these concepts and then put them into practice as we build disciples in Sebewaing and throughout the Thumb.

Praises:
The three discipling contacts that I have going on now
How out of those contacts people are reaching out to minister/disciple other people
The way this Son Life Seminar is seeming to come together

Concerns:
A couple whom I have had contact with who are struggling. Pray for them and the people I have asked to meet with them
The details for the Seminar
That momentum will not be lost as I lose a couple of Thursdays to Christmas and New Years

Pastor Brian

Engaging the Culture

2008-12-06T09:47:00.000-08:00

After missing a week in Sebewaing because of the Thanksgiving holiday, this past Thursday I was back at it. My morning prayer walk around Sebewaing was a little chilly with the 16 degree temperature and the north wind blowing. However, this time continues to be very special to me as I simply listen for God's voice. (I also found out later through casual contact with a couple of people that they noticed me out there.)

At lunch time I went out to the school because there were a couple of students that I wanted to interact with. I was a little overwhelmed because a number of students kept coming up to me, and so the conversations that I was hoping to have were detoured to another path. So I simply jumped on that path and went with it.

The conversation now included the huge movie that came out last weekend. I believe it is entitled "Twilight." It is based on a series of books that have become very popular especially, it seems, with teenage girls. These young ladies told me a little about this love story which involves vampires and werewolves and such. They also told me that some of their parents didn't like them reading it. I asked them what it was about the books and the movie that drew them to it. They told me it was the love story that was taking place and the romance of it. Now a number of things went through my head. The first was about how in so many instances today things that were once considered evil now are cast in a friendly light and the dangers that exist because of that. Somehow I felt like that was not the right information to keep this conversation going. So instead I took another tact.

I told them I understood why they might be drawn to that kind of story. After all, the world is so void of love and romance today. After that thought I began to talk about what real love looks like and the importance of seeing that idea from a Biblical perspective. I encouraged them to stay plugged into their youth groups and churches and the scriptures and to interpret everything through the scriptures.

Since that time I have done some more research on the Twilight series, and I sat down with a Christian who read the book and who gave me some insights to it. I am looking forward to my next conversation with these young ladies. (I told them we would talk again in a couple of weeks.) More and more I am learning that if we want to create disciples, we need to engage the culture of today and then look for opportunities to share the truth of the gospel.

Praises:
One of the guys whom I have been working with has started a discipling relationship with a another guy! Pray for John.
Kevin and I have been meeting, and through some of the materials we have been talking about, he realizes that he needs to change some of the places he has been placing emphasis.
The couples' discipleship thing that Deb and I have been involved in seems to be taking some exciting new directions.

Prayer Concerns:
Wisdom for me as I begin to attempt to "partner" some people up in disciple-making relationships.
For direction as we consider some ways to engage the community and the LEAD churches in creating a greater emphasis on the disciple-making process.
The momentum will not be lost as we go through the holiday season.

Your Servant in Christ,

Pastor Brian

The Excitement of the Moment

2008-11-21T06:52:00.000-08:00

Thursday I left home at around 8:00 a.m. I was scheduled to meet with a couple of different people at the school and so I wanted to arrive there before 9:00. When I pulled into USA High School, there was no one around. Upon driving into town I learned that school had been canceled for the day because the girls' volleyball team was playing in the state semi-finals that day in Battle Creek.

For those of you who have never been part of a small town, there is always an excitement that sweeps through a community when a team advances that far into the state playoffs. Every business had a sign out to congratulate and encourage the team. It is one of those times when, if you are part of that community, there is a closeness that is so encouraging.

I called the other people I was scheduled to meet to see if they were still in town. They were, but it still left me with a lot of open time because obviously the time I would normally spend at the school was now empty.
It was good though to sit at a couple of different locations in town and catch up on some reading and simply talked to the people who were still left around town about the possibility of another State Championship.

No question, there is something special about a small town. Wouldn't it be great if we could capture that kind of excitement in our spiritual lives. (I did learn later that day that the USA ladies had lost, but to make it that far is always special.)

Praises:
The three active discipling opportunities that I have going at the moment
God's faithfulness
Thanksgiving and the time to remember

Concerns:
That some doors would open
For the factory workers at the plant that just closed in Sebewaing
For safety as the crop harvest concludes
For workers as the soul harvest continues

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian

The Enemy of the Best

2008-11-14T08:11:00.000-08:00

November 13
I started my weekly visit to Sebewaing this week by checking in with Casey at his home in Pigeon. I have not had the opportunity, because of conflicting schedules, to sit down with him since early in September. Just to remind you the reader, Casey has been trying to be obedient to God as God leads him down a path in which the idea of church and disciple-making really will look different than it has in the past. Last summer Casey and I have kind of made the commitment to one another to visit from time to time just to bounce ideas off each other and see what God is doing in our lives.

I was really encouraged by our visit on a number of levels. First I was excited to hear what God has been doing in Casey's life. Over these last several months God has led him to write a book on his experiences in his skate park ministry. (I am looking forward to reading it.). As he explained it to me, he identifies three areas in the church today. The traditional church, the new emerging church and its various forms, and the people who will be the bridge between the two. This is where he and I kind of find ourselves these day, as bridge builders.

Secondly, I was excited to see a new enthusiasm in Casey for a ministry in Bad Axe. He knows that God has something for him there, and he is working to discern what his role might look like while still honoring his commitments to family and friends.

The third thing that I was encouraged about was Casey checking my spirit. One of the real problems I have is that I am always looking for the formula to get done what I am suppose to do. As I have been working on this discipling process in Sebewaing, I have been tempted at times to just use a program and get started. Every time that I meet with Casey he encourages me not to settle for something that might be good, but to wait for God's best. Thanks, Casey.

Praises:
For people like Casey who just want to follow God
For the discipling relationship that I have started in Sebewaing
For the relationships that I continue to build with the group of young men in the alternative ed program
For long term relationships that continue to grow strong

Concerns:
For more workers
For an openness with the churches of the Sebewaing area
For wisdom as we try to wait on the Lord and discern his will
For Casey as he tries to interpret the things God has in front of him

From the Drawing Board to the Real World

2008-11-07T06:07:00.000-08:00

Thursday, November 6 became the day that I began to put into practice some of the stuff that I have been learning about over these last couple of months. Let me explain.

Back in September I was given two books to read: Cultivating a Life for God and Organic Church Growing Faith where Life Happens. These are books written by Neil Cole. Both books encourage multiplying disciples of Christ. The cultivating book advocates the multiplying of disciples through Life Transformation Groups. A Life Transformation group is a group of between 2 and 4 same gender people who meet on a regular basis. The content of those meetings includes going through some accountability questions each week and reading 30 chapters of scripture. If one or more of the members does not finish the scripture reading, then the entire group rereads the same 30 chapters. The idea of the 30 chapters is that God's word has the power to change lives more than any book. Also the idea is that the entire group rereads the 30 chapters if one member does not complete them because perhaps there is something more that God wants to reveal to the group from that scripture.

Joe and I took the first steps to starting one of these kinds of groups yesterday. We had met previously but had not gone over the guidelines very well, and for yesterday's meeting Joe had not finished the reading. I assured him that was alright, and we would stick with the same chapters for next week.

I also had an idea that came out of the Pastor's Retreat I had attended in October. The idea involved doing discipling in the context of married couples. (Thanks, Kaye.) Last evening my wife and I started that process. We are attempting to work with some friends of ours from the Sebewaing area on creating a model that will allow this type of discipling to work. We had talked last week and assigned some scripture reading, and then we sat and talked about them over dinner last night. Our conversations were over 3 hours in length as we focused on 3 scripture verses we had looked at and the implications of those verses in the life of a disciple. We are excited about the possibilities of this ministry.

The other event that I am trying to figure out from yesterday is something that I cannot share in a public manner yet because it was shared in confidence. As I listened to this information from two different people, I had a distinct impression that what seems like a bad situation at the moment, God may well be able to use in a new way. Some of the ideas from the Organic Church book leaped out at me, and I am praying that we can come along side some people in a way that will minister to them and advance the Kingdom.

Praises:
These new ministry opportunities and groups
For fall harvest which are nearing completion
For the opportunity to involve my wife in a much more direct way in this ministry
For the continued support of the church

Concerns:
For hurting people in Sebewaing with the loss of jobs from the closing of a factory
For God's protection on Joe as he steps out into this LTG (life transformation group)
For John, Rhonda, Deb, and I as we try to put into practice the idea of couples discipling
For my appointment next week with a pastor from a church in the area
For new workers for the harvest (Matt. 9:37-38)

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian

Running too Fast

2008-11-05T07:32:00.000-08:00

The last few weeks have been pretty busy. I have run from one thing to the next, and I have not gotten to posting about the work in Sebewaing even though I was there two out of the last three weeks. I have felt a little like the 6 point buck I saw running the streets of Sebewaing last Thursday-- (true story ask me about it some time) -- a little hurried, but just as he finally got to the right spot, I too am getting settled in.

Rather than trying to catch up on all the things that happened over my last two visits, I am simply going to take a moment to inform you on a couple of things happening this week as I prepare to go to Sebewaing tomorrow.

Tomorrow morning as I prayer walk around Sebewaing, I will be taking part in my first life transformation group opportunity that has shown itself. I will be walking and praying with an old friend of mine. We have each committed to reading the book of Matthew for tomorrow and to go through the accountability questions. This is one of the tools that we are looking at to create a disciple making movement. So please pray for Joe and me.

Also tomorrow evening my wife and I will be meeting with another couple to begin the process of building a model that we can use for discipling married couples. I am excited about both of these possibilities and ask you to pray for them. At this point I think I should be able to get back to a regular schedule and post my encounters each week.

Thanks for praying.

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian Reinhardt

Old Friends, New Needs

2008-10-12T11:00:00.000-07:00

As I traveled to Sebewaing today, it was one of those fall days that you dream about. The sun was shining, the temperatures were very pleasant, and the evidence of God was all around. Fall colors and fields full of crops ready to be harvested were proof of the blessing of God.

I started the day by visiting some old friends. I was glad to be able to sit and visit with them and kind of update them on what I am doing in Sebewaing. I was also glad to hear how God is working in their church and several of the new ministries that have started in their church. Part of what God has been teaching me is to celebrate His work where ever it is happening.

Later that day as I was doing my prayer walk, God again allowed me to come in contact with people. My first encounter that day was with a former student of mine. She introduced me to her boy friend, and we spent some time talking about what each of us was doing now days. I asked her if she was going to church, and she admitted that she was not. I told her that I would love to have her and her boy friend join a group. While I got no firm commitment from her, the door was left open. During my conversation with her and some others that I bumped into that day, there is a fair size group of young people in the Sebewaing area whom I know have a relationship with Christ, but who are presently not involved in any ministry of any kind on regular basis.

One of my other encounters that day was with a young man who in many ways was one of my favorite students I ever had in youth ministry. He even joked that he was the greatest student I ever had in youth group. He presently lives in the Vegas area so I considered it a blessing to have the opportunity to visit as he was only home for a short while. It was good to catch up with him and hear about what was going on in his life. As I listened to him I was proud of his accomplishments, but I also knew that I had failed him in some ways. It was clear to me that he was a follower of Christ but probably not a disciple. I was convicted that I need to make discipleship a much higher priority in my relationships with people.

Earlier in the week I had the opportunity to take part in the District Pastor's retreat. The three days were focused on times of prayer and also the process of disciple making. There were several great ideas that were talked about and some of them I felt like were God helping to confirm for me the process that we are trying to use in Sebewaing. Over the next few weeks I will be working to discern how God might want me to put some of these things into practice.

Over the next couple of weeks I will only be getting to Sebewaing briefly as I will be taking some vacation. As a result I will not be posting for a couple of weeks. Thanks for taking the time to praise God for the following blessings and to raise up in prayer the concerns. Talk to you again in a couple of weeks.

Praises:
Old friends
The successful ministries going on in Sebewaing
The fields being ready to harvest (both in the real and spiritual realm)
The emphasis on disciple making that is taking place in the District
The time that I will get to spend with my dad up north hunting

Concerns:
Reaching the many who just appear to be unplugged from church
That God will give a vision of the process that He wants to use in this ministry
For God to raise up a couple of people to help with leadership
For the Life Transformation Group I will be starting over the next couple of weeks
For the Sebewaing area with all the economic problems

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian

The Living among the Dead

2008-10-04T07:49:00.000-07:00

On this day I started my prayer walk not really sure which direction I was going to head. As I was walking, I felt a call to go toward the cemetery to visit the grave of one of my former students who had died at 19 in an automobile accident. I felt like this was a little strange because the cemetery is on the edge of town, and I just didn't think about running into anyone on my way there.

However having learned over the last few weeks that God always has an appointment for me, I went. As I approached the cemetery all seemed quiet, and I proceeded to the area where Dale was buried. When I got there I noticed one car parked in the area, and I began to look around to see who it belonged to. There was a lady just a short distance from where I was going. I approached her to say hi because I did not want to startle her. I recognized her and learned she was tending to the grave of her son.

We began a conversation, and it became obvious to me very quickly that this was going to be one of my divine appointments today. I know that this lady was a woman of faith but on this day her faith was shaken. We spent some time together there in conversation and then prayed. As she left, it seemed like a huge weight had been lifted. While she realized that the problems of her life were not suddenly gone, she also realized that she did not have to carry them alone.

When she left, I went to the grave of the young man I had intended to visit. As I looked around I was struck by the number of graves in that portion of the cemetery of people who had died at a young age. I was reminded again of the importance of always being prepared to share the Gospel because none of us are guaranteed tomorrow.

The rest of the day felt like it was mostly about just being with people. I had lunch with an old friend and prayed with him for his wife who was having surgery the next day. I worked with the Alternative Education class on a community service project at Bay Shore. I had a great time there, and we shared some pizza at the end of the day.

I then spent some time working with the Rotary Club on their Moon Light Madness sale fundraiser. I don't have time to explain that, but it was great to again be delivering bean soup to the people of Sebewaing.

That evening we gathered together, four of us, to talk about the disciple making movement. The numbers were not as high as I had hoped because of the community event and some sporting events; but I was greatly encouraged. I shared a 20 minute segment of the Keystone project video, and we had a great discussion of what that might look like in Sebewaing. I encouraged the others there to be in prayer and that if God through the Holy Spirit gave them ideas, to be ready to share them. I finally got home around 10:30 that night feeling again like God had blessed me!

Praises:
God is continuing to give me opportunities to share
People are asking questions
The relationships I am building with the students and staff of the alternative ed program
The meeting and the sharing of the vision as it continues to be defined

Prayer concerns:
To continue to bring people in who will add to and help develop the vision for this disciple making movement
For discernment for me as to where to invest time.
God will bring forth workers for the harvest
For two meetings I am hoping to have next week with people I consider to be spiritual leaders

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian

One Day at the Time

2008-09-26T12:08:00.000-07:00

I started today by meeting with Bob Sweeney. Bob is the Pastor of the Cass City Missionary Church and also the leader of the Thumb Area LEAD Team. For me, it was an encouraging visit as we talked about the first 3 weeks and then spent some time discussing and praying about what the future for this Disciple Making Movement might look like. We came to the conclusion that we are sort of breaking new ground, and that there is not a pattern to follow. Bob also suggested to me to continue to be patient and to be seeking the Holy Spirit for direction.

Later that morning I met with a man in Sebewaing to ask him to consider being part of one of the first disciple groups that I would like to start. We had a good conversation, and he promised me he would consider the idea. One of the things I am trying to get used to is planting ideas and then allowing God to work through the Holy Spirit. ( 1 Cor. 3:5-9)

I also had a conversation with a man from the Elkton Missionary Church who lives over in the Sebewaing area. I invited him to meet with a small group on Thursday, October 2 as we talk about and begin to cast a vision for this Disciple Making Movement. He is interested and was going to have a conversation with his wife also. I am waiting to hear back from them.

As I did the previous week, I spent some time in a prayer walk around Sebewaing just trying to be sensitive for the leading of the Holy Spirit. Near the end of the walk I ran into a friend of mine from the Rotary Club. We started to talk, and I let her know what I was doing in the area on Thursdays. We talked about the Rotary Club and how they might need help with one of their fundraising projects that is coming up. The time fit into my schedule next week so I volunteered to help out. Two prayer walks, two good opportunities to share, in two different ways. God is faithful!

That afternoon I again spent a couple of hours at the school. As I had the previous week, I accompanied the Alternative Education group from USA High School to several more churches offering our help with any community service type projects. Again the reception was good. It seems like God has just given me an opportunity to be present in the lives of these young people who are trying to overcome some past mistakes.

The leader of this group, Rudy (Don Rudolph) is a solid Christian man, and he spent some time asking me about the project that we are attempting in the Sebewaing area. As I explained to him what we were trying to do, he asked me if Jim Keller was still in the Missionary Church. I told him that Jim was our D.S. Rudy told me that he was a big Jim Keller fan ( He knew Jim from his years at Lamotte), and that connection seemed to bring added validity to this Disciple Making Movement in Rudy's mind.

I had conversations with a couple more people that day. As I was driving home thinking about the day, it seemed like one of those days that you have on the job where nothing really out of the ordinary happens; but somehow you feel good about the day.

Praises:
The word seems to be getting out that I am in town ministering.
Everyone whom I have had conversations with seems positive and open.
For the relationships I am building through my work in the school

Prayer concerns:
We are trying to gather some people Thursday, October 2 to dream a little. Pray for a good attendance.
Pray for the young people involved in the Alternative Education Program as well as the program itself. Pray for acceptance and that all red tape would be sorted through.
Pray that as I take part in this Rotary fundraiser that God would use that time to make some new contacts.
Continue to pray for wisdom for myself and the other LEAD Team members as we listen for the Holy Spirit to give direction in this Disciple Making Program

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian

Answered prayer

2008-09-19T07:12:00.000-07:00

As I drove to Sebewaing on Thursday September 18, I must admit that I was not sure what the day would hold. I knew I was going to spend a couple of hours helping out at the school, but I had a couple of appointments that had called to cancel for this week and so I was unsure what I would do with my morning. I decided to park downtown and simply start with a prayer walk. As I was walking and just asking God to give me direction, I passed a house just as a car was pulling in the driveway. A young man jump out, who I knew, and asked me what I was doing in town. He then invited me in for a cup of coffee, and we began to talk about the difference between making people converts to Christ as opposed to creating disciples of Christ. It was a very uplifting time for me because I really felt like God orchestrated the meeting. It was an answer to prayer. This young man asked if he could attend a meeting that I referenced on October 2 to begin the process of casting a vision. I told him that would be great. I gave him my card and he email me before the day was out to confirm his interest. Praise God!

After visiting a couple of other families that morning, the afternoon took me to the school where I have decided to volunteer for a couple of hours a week with the alternative education program which is just kicking off. I am going to help the group as they go out into the community to do volunteer projects. The agenda for the day included visiting some of the local churches to tell them what we were planning and to offer our services. It was a great privilege for me to go with this group of young people to 3 different churches and Bayshore Camp sharing our desire to simply be of service. I also had the opportunity to share in a couple of those places with some people about the idea of a Disciple Making movement and arranged at least one appointment for the following week.

Overall it was a great day, and I was encouraged in many ways. I am learning that I need to make sure not to simply try to get things going for the sake of doing things. As I get more into the Key Stone training, God continues to show me that I need to be aware of something bigger than the vision I had. I am trusting that God will continue to be faithful as I wait upon Him.

Praises:
The way God used the time set aside last week simply for prayer.
The Lord's encouragement at just the right moments
For the openness of the USA School
The vision of the Thumb area LEAD Team to look beyond planting a church and instead to work to create a disciple making movement.

Prayer concerns:
That God will continue to open the right doors
That God would make it clear to me how much to pursue doors that seem to be closed
That God would continue to give direction to the Alternative Education Program at USA as they reach out to these students who have fallen through the cracks.
That the Lord will continue to show me grace as I wait upon Him

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian

Growing pains

2008-09-13T07:36:00.000-07:00

Thursday, September 11, was my second week working in Sebewaing. I am continuing to work on the process of getting some people into groups to begin the process of creating Disciples who create Disciples.

I have to admit that this week did not go quite as well as last week in some respects. On my first stop as I was explaining why I was going to be in Sebewaing on Thursdays, the lady told me that her pastor's wife had commented on the Missionary Church's efforts in the area. (This was based on the letter that I had sent to churches back in June telling them we were going to be trying to create a Disciple making movement.) The comments were not positive and reflected a fear that we were out to steal people from their churches for a new church plant. I heard that same sentiment in a couple of other conversations. It is obvious that there is a lot of work to do in creating unity and casting the vision of a disciple making movement.

My second appointment of the day was more promising. I am trying to create a group of men who can meet during the day to begin a discipling process. I have my first yes and have appointments next Thursday (Sept 18) to talk to two others with the plans to start that group on September 25. I also have a commitment from another man to begin a group when the soccer season ends.

Because of a counseling situation I did not get to the school today, but did meet with the person who I will be working with there. And she was going to help get a clearer picture of what we will do there. Next week we will clarify some of that.

In my other meetings of the day I got some interest, but no commitments. I spent some time hanging out reading in the local McDonalds and simply shared what I would be doing also with several people who just stopped in. God has laid it on my heart that I need to spend some time each week simply walking around Sebewaing and praying. So beginning next week I will include that in my daily work there.

This was a difficult week for me because of some things going on in my ministry at New Life. I ended up investing a lot of time in a situation that is not going well, and to tell you the truth I went into my visits this week a little beat up. I need to learn that God is in charge and control and there comes a time I need to let go. I praise God because in my studying on Friday He reminded me of that; and so, once again, I am feeling a little more optimistic. Praise God for that.

Praises for the week:
God's grace and mercy in my own life!
That some people are beginning to commit to disciple making groups!

Prayer concerns for the week:
For the appointments I have this week to share the vision of Disciple making
For church leadership to be open
For a couple of other people who have been asked to offer some leadership to the project that God will give them clarity as they consider His call ( I am hoping to get a group of 5 to go to the Disciple making seminar with me in Port Huron November 7 and 8. I have three presently committed.)
Pray that God would not allow this spirit of fear of losing people from a local church that I have run into to grow, but instead that there will be a spirit of unity
Please pray for me. Also that I will not be burdened with the lies of Satan telling me that any time something fails it is my fault.

Your Servant in Christ,
Brian

Prayer concerns for September

Day one on the ground

2008-09-08T07:18:00.000-07:00

This last Thursday, September 4 was the first day on the ground in Sebewaing as we work to create a Disciple making movement. I had several encounters which I am praising God for.
I started my day by visiting a friend of mine, Fred Wilson, a retired Assembly of God Pastor. I shared with Fred the vision that we believe God has placed on our hearts for creating a Disciple Making movement. Fred was excited about it and very supportive.

Next I visited the school. During my 10 years of ministry in the Sebewaing area I did many things in school. Even though I did not know many students I was warmly greeted by the high school staff and given several ideas and possibilities to help serve in the school and some contact information. Since the schools in small towns are really the heart of the community, I was excited about the things that came out of those three meetings.

I had lunch with Casey Turner. Casey has been working through some of the possibilities of what the Organic Church should look like and how God wants him to be involved. I was greatly encouraged with our visit because Casey shared that he has been in conversation with Pastors from several different areas in the Thumb, and there seems to be a spirit of change that God is orchestrating. Casey shared that when he visited with several of these churches 10 years ago when he first came to the Thumb, he got very negative input to some of his ideas of the churches working together. Now there seems to be a more open environment.

In the afternoon I visited with one of the Pastors from the Fair haven Mennonite Church located a few miles north of Sebewaing He had gotten the letter that I mailed out in June and was wondering about how his church might benefit from a Disciple making movement. I invited him to be part of our first group this fall but his schedule won't allow it. Michael is a bi-vocational pastor and his two other jobs are keeping him pretty tied up this fall. He asked if we might be open to people from his congregation attending some of our studies and of course we are.
I also visited with a couple of men I know who work second shift. I am hoping to start a men's group that will meet late morning.

I closed the day meeting with John and Rhonda Elenbaum. They are open to us using their home to meet in. I also asked them if they might be willing to attend some training seminars on disciple making, and they are. Overall many things to praise God for!
As I face this week's visits my prayer concerns are as follows.

I was given contact information for two pastors. Pray they will be as open to meeting as the people I talked to last week seemed to think they would be.

Pray for wisdom as I figure out the best way to be involved in the school system. They seem to be incredibly open, and I would be working with the alternative high school students who really need God.

Pray that this week as I meet with two men about a discipling possibility that they would be open to it.

I am hoping to meet with a man who Casey felt would be critical in starting a disciple making movement in Sebewaing. Pray that I get that meeting and that we will be open to what the Holy Spirit wants.

Continue to pray for Casey. I am impressed on that God intends to use him in this process.

Pray for this new relationship with Pastor Michael from the Fair Haven Mennonite Church. I believe there is something God wants to do there.

Continue to pray for a Spirit of unity -- that any issues from the past would not become major stumbling blocks for people.

Your Servant in Christ,

Brian

Getting Started

2008-09-03T13:44:00.000-07:00

Last night around 20 people gathered at New Life Missionary Church to pray for the launching of a movement which will start in Sebewaing tomorrow. The plan is to create a movement where we will work to create disciples of Jesus who make disciples, who make disciples, who make disciples. Following the idea that God intends for all living things to reproduce (Genesis 1:27-28) we want to help people in their journey to "be like Christ" so that they can produce disciples of Christ. Mark chapter 4 will lend itself as our model. It is our desire to make sure that we are "good soil" that produces a good crop. Please be in prayer that:

There will be unity among the Churches in the Sebewaing area
That the core group of people God would have come together for this movement will be open to His leading
For the LEAD team that God has used to implant this vision
For an openness among God's people for a new vision of what church can be
For wisdom for the LEAD Team as we communicate the vision for this disciple making movement
For the blessing of the churches who are involved

I will be in Sebewaing each Thursday meeting people and inviting them to join in this vision God has given the Thumb area LEAD Team Michigan District Missionary Church