Our church hosted the annual meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Missouri this past weekend. It was my privilege to translate for Roger Marquez from Guatemala at the annual missions banquet on Friday evening. He expressed gratitude to the BGCM for our ongoing partnership with Baptists in the western region of the country. He also challenged our churches to continue providing leadership training for pastors and leaders there. I accompanied Roger on Saturday afternoon to Farmington, MO, (a 5 hour, 300 mile trip) where he preached on Sunday morning at the First Baptist Church there. FBC Farmington sent a missions team last April to work with the FBC of Quetzaltenango where Roger pastors. He was able to thank the church for their support of his church's ministry and renew acquaintances with many of the team members who went to Guatemala last year.
One of the exciting things about the convention in addition to Roger's visit was the adoption of a new 5-year strategy plan entitled First Priority 2015. It builds upon our previous 5-year plan and also envisions some significant changes. Not the least of these is a name change for the BGCM to ChurchNet. We'll continue to be identified as the BGCM legally, but will operate under the name ChurchNet in the future. The name captures more of what we see ourselves being and doing--continuing to give first priority to serving churches but helping to do so by connecting churches and pastors to resources that can help them more effectively carry out their ministries. Our Mission Statement was only slightly tweaked and continues to express our reason for existence: "Our mission is serving churches as they fulfill the Great Commandment and the Great Commission."
One final blessing of the weekend was convening a meeting of our church's missions committee together with the BGCM's Missions Mobilization Team to hear the pastor who is working among the Lakota Indians on the Lower Brule Reservation in South Dakota. Our youth and several adults will be returning there this summer, and we're also encouraging BGCM churches to consider adopting this work as a national partnership, much like Guatemala is our international focus. Bakary, the pastor, is a native of the Ivory Coast and is doing an outstanding job of ministering to the needs of Native Americans on the Lower Brule.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Prison Prayer and Praise
We studied Acts 16 in prayer meeting/Bible study time tonight at church. I was struck again by the capacity of Paul and Silas to engage in a time of prayer and praise after having been severely beaten with rods, thrown into the inner part of a prison, and having their feet placed in stocks. I suspect most of us would have been bemoaning our lot and complaining to God about our unjust suffering. They on the other hand deemed it a cause for rejoicing and singing praises.
The passage says that the other prisoners were all listening to them. I'd suggest that they too were awestruck by the unusual behavior of these fellow inmates. I think that's in large part the explanation for why they didn't flee and escape when the earthquake rattled open the doors and loosened their chains.
We observed as well the evidence of the power of the gospel to change a life in the immediate behavior of the Philippian jailer who took Paul and Silas to his home, washed their wounds, and offered them food. While such radical transformation isn't always instantly visible, a genuine conversion experience will inevitably produce a changed life.
The passage says that the other prisoners were all listening to them. I'd suggest that they too were awestruck by the unusual behavior of these fellow inmates. I think that's in large part the explanation for why they didn't flee and escape when the earthquake rattled open the doors and loosened their chains.
We observed as well the evidence of the power of the gospel to change a life in the immediate behavior of the Philippian jailer who took Paul and Silas to his home, washed their wounds, and offered them food. While such radical transformation isn't always instantly visible, a genuine conversion experience will inevitably produce a changed life.
Monday, March 22, 2010
Great quote
I ran across a really good quote today in an article in Ethics Daily by Bill Wilson. He quotes Craig Van Gelder as follows: "It is not the church of God that has a mission in this world, but the God of mission that has a church in the world … . God is on the move and the church is always catching up with Him. We join His mission …"
The quote resonates strongly with me. God certainly is the One who is vitally concerned that the whole world hear the story of redemption that is made possible by the death of His Son on the cross. Many authors have highlighted the fact that God has always had the world on His heart and His desire is for His people to join Him on that mission of proclaiming the gospel and making disciples of all who will hear and believe. A couple of titles come to mind along those lines: Avery Willis' The Biblical Basis of Missions, and H. Cornell Goerner's book, All Nations in God's Purpose.
The quote resonates strongly with me. God certainly is the One who is vitally concerned that the whole world hear the story of redemption that is made possible by the death of His Son on the cross. Many authors have highlighted the fact that God has always had the world on His heart and His desire is for His people to join Him on that mission of proclaiming the gospel and making disciples of all who will hear and believe. A couple of titles come to mind along those lines: Avery Willis' The Biblical Basis of Missions, and H. Cornell Goerner's book, All Nations in God's Purpose.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
The Death of Cultural Christianity?
Baptists historically have distinguished themselves as champions of religious liberty and the separation of church and state. Some in more recent times have waffled on that commitment, especially those affiliated with the Religious Right. A kind of re-writing of history has taken place that recasts the Founding Fathers in a stance more amenable to evangelicals and extols them as a group thoroughly committed to establishing the U.S. on Judeo-Christian principles. Many undoubtedly did hold to a personal faith in God, but many as well were at best Deists--recognizing the existence of a Supreme Being but distancing themselves from a commitment to a personal Creator who has made man in His own image and who continues to actively exercise His sovereignty in the affairs of men.
As a student and former professor of Baptist history, I find it particularly distressing that many Baptists today are willing to sacrifice our forebears' marked commitment to religious liberty for all and the separation of church and state in an attempt to buttress up the role of religion in the public (and especially the political) arena. Early Baptists firmly resisted any attempt to institutionalize religion by the state, arguing that a coerced faith was no faith at all. They were more than willing to defend even the right of atheists to not believe and be free from a state-imposed religion.
Modern-day Baptists it seems are far more fearful of losing political clout in a post-denominational era and an age where the church's influence on society appears to be waning. I read an interesting quote yesterday in a daily devotional I receive online entitled A Slice of Infinity that's published by the Ravi Zacharias ministry. Jill Carattini, the managing editor and an outstanding writer, quotes John Stackhouse in Humble Apologetics: Defending the Faith Today (New York: Oxford University Press, 2002), 36. Stackhouse writes, "[M]ulticulturalism and extensive religious plurality can offer an opportunity for Christians to shed the baggage of cultural dominance that has often impeded or distorted the spread of the gospel. It may be, indeed, that the decline of Christian hegemony can offer the Church the occasion to adopt a new and more effective stance of humble service toward societies it no longer controls."
I think Stackhouse is on to something here. Why should the church (and Baptists in particular) rely on the state to assist them in proclaiming the gospel? What typically is heard from such a platform featuring a government-sponsored or supported religious entity is a distortion of the gospel and not the embodiment of Christ's message. If we can overcome the fear of losing cultural predominance, we just might learn anew and afresh to focus on the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. I'm convinced that a watching world would be far more blessed by that kind of lifestyle than political maneuvering to ensure that the 10 Commandments can be displayed in some government facility. The way of humble service that Stackhouse suggests reflects far better the stance of Jesus who reminds us that as the Son of Man He came not to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.
As a student and former professor of Baptist history, I find it particularly distressing that many Baptists today are willing to sacrifice our forebears' marked commitment to religious liberty for all and the separation of church and state in an attempt to buttress up the role of religion in the public (and especially the political) arena. Early Baptists firmly resisted any attempt to institutionalize religion by the state, arguing that a coerced faith was no faith at all. They were more than willing to defend even the right of atheists to not believe and be free from a state-imposed religion.
Modern-day Baptists it seems are far more fearful of losing political clout in a post-denominational era and an age where the church's influence on society appears to be waning. I read an interesting quote yesterday in a daily devotional I receive online entitled A Slice of Infinity that's published by the Ravi Zacharias ministry. Jill Carattini, the managing editor and an outstanding writer, quotes John Stackhouse in Humble Apologetics: Defending the Faith Today (New York: Oxford University Press, 2002), 36. Stackhouse writes, "[M]ulticulturalism and extensive religious plurality can offer an opportunity for Christians to shed the baggage of cultural dominance that has often impeded or distorted the spread of the gospel. It may be, indeed, that the decline of Christian hegemony can offer the Church the occasion to adopt a new and more effective stance of humble service toward societies it no longer controls."
I think Stackhouse is on to something here. Why should the church (and Baptists in particular) rely on the state to assist them in proclaiming the gospel? What typically is heard from such a platform featuring a government-sponsored or supported religious entity is a distortion of the gospel and not the embodiment of Christ's message. If we can overcome the fear of losing cultural predominance, we just might learn anew and afresh to focus on the Great Commission and the Great Commandment. I'm convinced that a watching world would be far more blessed by that kind of lifestyle than political maneuvering to ensure that the 10 Commandments can be displayed in some government facility. The way of humble service that Stackhouse suggests reflects far better the stance of Jesus who reminds us that as the Son of Man He came not to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Sermon Intro Follow-up
As promised, here are the pictures of the stars of the TV westerns that I used in the morning service today. See how well you can do in identifying the name of the series from the pictures supplied.
Friday, March 12, 2010
A Unique Sermon Introduction
Our pastor is taking advantage of the upcoming spring break to get away and visit family in Arkansas, so I have the opportunity to preach this coming Sunday. I'm introducing a new series that he is going to be doing over the next month on the general theme, "Fear Not." I'll be giving a general introduction to the series, hoping to help folks distinguish the concept of fear as reverence from fear as frightened and cringing. Specifically, the first message that I'll be sharing is entitled, "Why You Don't Need to Fear Apparent Dead Ends." I've chosen Exodus 14 as my text, referring to Moses' command to the Israelites to "fear not" as they face the Red Sea in front of them and the pursuing Egyptian army behind them.
I decided to have a little fun with the sermon introduction. I was thinking of examples of apparent dead ends and my mind wandered to the famous box canyons that were so much a part of TV westerns back in the 1960s. That in turn prompted me to devise a little contest as the sermon's introduction. I'm going to be showing a dozen pictures featuring the star or stars of TV westerns from that era and will ask folks to see how many of the shows they can identify by name from the photo. I think it will be fun and engaging, at least for those of us 50+ years of age. I suspect the youth are going to be a bit perplexed by the identity of the shows unless they've watched re-runs. I'm starting with some fairly obvious and popular shows before shifting to some lesser known series. I might post the pictures here after Sunday, but don't want to give an unfair advantage to any church members who might happen to read my blog over the next two days.
On Sunday evening I'll be looking at Gal. 5:13-26 and addressing the question of Law's Demands vs. Grace's Gift. I hope to effectively highlight the freedom that we have in Christ from the frustrating demands of legalism, while also stressing that our freedom isn't license to engage in immoral behavior as Paul notes, contrasting the manifestations of our old sinful nature and the fruit of the Spirit as we walk in Him.
I decided to have a little fun with the sermon introduction. I was thinking of examples of apparent dead ends and my mind wandered to the famous box canyons that were so much a part of TV westerns back in the 1960s. That in turn prompted me to devise a little contest as the sermon's introduction. I'm going to be showing a dozen pictures featuring the star or stars of TV westerns from that era and will ask folks to see how many of the shows they can identify by name from the photo. I think it will be fun and engaging, at least for those of us 50+ years of age. I suspect the youth are going to be a bit perplexed by the identity of the shows unless they've watched re-runs. I'm starting with some fairly obvious and popular shows before shifting to some lesser known series. I might post the pictures here after Sunday, but don't want to give an unfair advantage to any church members who might happen to read my blog over the next two days.
On Sunday evening I'll be looking at Gal. 5:13-26 and addressing the question of Law's Demands vs. Grace's Gift. I hope to effectively highlight the freedom that we have in Christ from the frustrating demands of legalism, while also stressing that our freedom isn't license to engage in immoral behavior as Paul notes, contrasting the manifestations of our old sinful nature and the fruit of the Spirit as we walk in Him.
Sunday, March 07, 2010
Guatemala Mission Trip Service
Tonight was a wonderful time as those of us who traveled to Guatemala the week before last had the opportunity to share a report with the church family about what was accomplished through their gifts and prayer support that made the trip possible. A couple of folks had a tough time choking back the tears as they shared about the impact that the trip made on their own lives. God was certainly gracious to us, allowing us to share the gospel in multiple settings including public schools, Vacation Bible Schools in 3 different churches, and many homes of needy families who also received a bag of food staples to help supply meals for a few days.
Our members were deeply touched as well by the pictures of the children in particular whom we worked with and who also were the recipients of the 303 dolls that our Women on Missions groups made with a great deal of love and care. The smiling faces of the children receiving those gifts will be indelibly etched in our minds.
This was our church's third missions trip to Guatemala and I anticipate others in the years ahead as our partnership with the western part of the country continues. Our church will also be hosting the annual meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Missouri at the end of this month, including a missions banquet on Friday night featuring the president of the pastors' association from the region in Guatemala where we've been working.
I shared with the congregation tonight that when we returned from serving with the IMB after so many years in Argentina and a short stint in Mexico, I wasn't sure what missions ministry I would find to fill the void I felt following our resignation as career missionaries. I'm happy to say that this ongoing partnership with Guatemalan Baptists which has taken me to that beautiful country some 13 or 14 times in the past 4 or 5 years has certainly become a passion for me. I dearly love the pastors and leaders with whom I'm privileged to work there and have come to greatly appreciate their service and commitment to the Lord.
Our members were deeply touched as well by the pictures of the children in particular whom we worked with and who also were the recipients of the 303 dolls that our Women on Missions groups made with a great deal of love and care. The smiling faces of the children receiving those gifts will be indelibly etched in our minds.
This was our church's third missions trip to Guatemala and I anticipate others in the years ahead as our partnership with the western part of the country continues. Our church will also be hosting the annual meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Missouri at the end of this month, including a missions banquet on Friday night featuring the president of the pastors' association from the region in Guatemala where we've been working.
I shared with the congregation tonight that when we returned from serving with the IMB after so many years in Argentina and a short stint in Mexico, I wasn't sure what missions ministry I would find to fill the void I felt following our resignation as career missionaries. I'm happy to say that this ongoing partnership with Guatemalan Baptists which has taken me to that beautiful country some 13 or 14 times in the past 4 or 5 years has certainly become a passion for me. I dearly love the pastors and leaders with whom I'm privileged to work there and have come to greatly appreciate their service and commitment to the Lord.
Saturday, March 06, 2010
4-Year Anniversary of Blogging
As I was commenting on a former professor's blog and welcoming him to the world of blogging, I discovered that this coming Monday, March 8th, marks the four-year anniversary of my entry into this discipline. If there's one thing that probably hasn't characterized my adventures in blogdom, it's precisely discipline. There have been numerous long stretches of time in which my contributions or posts have been sparse. I think my mother would use the expression, "scarce as hens' teeth." While blogging is a great way to chronicle some of the ongoing events and experiences of life, the pace of life itself often dictates that my writing is rare or non-existent.
I'm happy to report though that the church history project appears to be well on track at the printer to be back in time for our church's 150th anniversary celebration. I'm supposed to be receiving the proofs back on Monday I think and have 2-3 days to look them over and return them with any corrections. The printer is shooting for a delivery date of April 4th, two weeks before we celebrate the big occasion on the 17th and 18th.
Tomorrow night our Guatemala team is in charge of the evening service and we'll be sharing pictures and testimonies from our recent trip to Totonicapán. Our official photographer brought me a CD today with close to 70 photos that I proceeded to put into a simple Powerpoint file to facilitate the task of our video guys.
This coming Sunday, March 14th, I'll have the privilege of preaching in both the morning and evening services. Our pastor is wrapping up a series tomorrow on Reckless Faith and I get to introduce the new series he's going to follow up with on the general theme "Fear Not." I'll be preaching next Sunday morning on the crossing of the Red Sea with the sermon title, "Why You Don't Have to Fear Apparent Dead-ends." On Sunday night I'll be doing the second in a series that he began last week on listening to God. I'm excited about having the opportunity to share with the church through preaching that day.
I'm hoping to find a bit more time in days ahead, now that the history project is done, to share some more thoughts on this blog. I realize that far too many of my entries have been mere recapitulations of my trips and ministry activities, and I hope to be able to share some more reflective pieces about life and ministry. How well I accomplish that goal remains to be seen.
I'm happy to report though that the church history project appears to be well on track at the printer to be back in time for our church's 150th anniversary celebration. I'm supposed to be receiving the proofs back on Monday I think and have 2-3 days to look them over and return them with any corrections. The printer is shooting for a delivery date of April 4th, two weeks before we celebrate the big occasion on the 17th and 18th.
Tomorrow night our Guatemala team is in charge of the evening service and we'll be sharing pictures and testimonies from our recent trip to Totonicapán. Our official photographer brought me a CD today with close to 70 photos that I proceeded to put into a simple Powerpoint file to facilitate the task of our video guys.
This coming Sunday, March 14th, I'll have the privilege of preaching in both the morning and evening services. Our pastor is wrapping up a series tomorrow on Reckless Faith and I get to introduce the new series he's going to follow up with on the general theme "Fear Not." I'll be preaching next Sunday morning on the crossing of the Red Sea with the sermon title, "Why You Don't Have to Fear Apparent Dead-ends." On Sunday night I'll be doing the second in a series that he began last week on listening to God. I'm excited about having the opportunity to share with the church through preaching that day.
I'm hoping to find a bit more time in days ahead, now that the history project is done, to share some more thoughts on this blog. I realize that far too many of my entries have been mere recapitulations of my trips and ministry activities, and I hope to be able to share some more reflective pieces about life and ministry. How well I accomplish that goal remains to be seen.
Friday, March 05, 2010
Off to Jeff City
Today my travels take me to Jefferson City, the capital of Missouri, for the quarterly board meeting of the Baptist General Convention of Missouri. While we do deal with some of the typical stuff that a convention handles, since we're a small organization, we have the freedom to not get bogged down in a lot of the traditional things that a Baptist state convention wrestles with. (Sorry about ending a sentence with a preposition. I know you're not supposed to do that).
Well, I didn't get this entry posted this morning so I'm just getting around to finishing it around 7:40 in the evening. The day and the meeting in Jeff City went very well. Had a good time with the Missions Mobilization Team, sharing about the recent Guatemala trips and also looking at the upcoming annual meeting and specifically the arrangements for the banquet. The pastor of FBC of Quetzaltenango will be with us as the missions banquet speaker. I'll be accompanying him on that Saturday down to SE Missouri to Farmington where he will preach on Sunday morning. FBC Farmington has established a partnership with his church.
I'm trying to woof down some supper as I type this so I think I'll wrap it up for now and hopefully do another update in the near future.
Well, I didn't get this entry posted this morning so I'm just getting around to finishing it around 7:40 in the evening. The day and the meeting in Jeff City went very well. Had a good time with the Missions Mobilization Team, sharing about the recent Guatemala trips and also looking at the upcoming annual meeting and specifically the arrangements for the banquet. The pastor of FBC of Quetzaltenango will be with us as the missions banquet speaker. I'll be accompanying him on that Saturday down to SE Missouri to Farmington where he will preach on Sunday morning. FBC Farmington has established a partnership with his church.
I'm trying to woof down some supper as I type this so I think I'll wrap it up for now and hopefully do another update in the near future.
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
Safely Home & a Reckless Offering
I've been trying to catch up with lots of loose ends the past few days since we returned from Guatemala so I haven't found time to post anything until now. The rest of the trip went very well. We had a great time on Wednesday with the home visits to deliver bags of food to needy families. Some of the homes were very isolated and required us to hike long distances over very narrow dirt paths (think 6" - 8" wide) that bordered corn fields and some rugged terrain. Carrying a bag of food weighing 20 lbs. or more up some of those steep hills at an altitude of 8000+ feet was quite a workout. Those who received the food were extremely grateful and many were moved to the point of tears. A few of the recipients were Christians, but the majority were not and we had a chance to share the gospel in each home, sometimes with multiple family members. Several made decisions to trust Christ while others expressed a desire to think the matter over some more.
The trip back to Guatemala City was uneventful, which is always a good thing when traveling through winding, mountainous roads. The highway to the west is greatly improved, with the entire stretch now being paved and much of it is a 4-lane, divided highway. That sure makes traveling quicker and easier than before. On Friday morning we had a chance to visit the Tabitha Ministry in Guatemala City that I've written about before. They're currently caring for about 80 kids--providing them 2 meals and 2 snacks a day plus some educational and early-learning activities.
We missed out on some excitement at church while we were gone to Guatemala. Our pastor had announced to the staff his intentions to give away a Sunday offering and asked me to contact several potential recipients to determine current needs. Even with a much smaller attendance due to icy roads on the 21st, the church contributed around $22,000 which was evenly distributed among four groups--City Union Mission in Kansas City that ministers to the homeless and provides a year-long recovery program; Forest Avenue Homeless Shelter that operates out of a small Baptist church and provides housing to homeless women and children; the Rachel House crisis pregnancy center; and a project on the Lower Brule Lakota Reservation in South Dakota where our youth went last summer and are returning again this year. After giving the entire Sunday offering of the 21st away, the pastor challenged folks to give a reckless offering this past weekend. (He's in the midst of a series on Reckless Faith). Our folks responded with overwhelming generosity, giving over $60,000 this past Sunday--about double a typical end of the month Sunday offering. God is faithful and we're enjoying His blessings in these days as a congregation.
This Sunday evening our Guatemala team will have charge of the evening service and share reports and testimonies about our experiences. I'm looking forward to the chance to share about what God accomplished this past week with those who prayed for us and gave to make the trip possible.
The trip back to Guatemala City was uneventful, which is always a good thing when traveling through winding, mountainous roads. The highway to the west is greatly improved, with the entire stretch now being paved and much of it is a 4-lane, divided highway. That sure makes traveling quicker and easier than before. On Friday morning we had a chance to visit the Tabitha Ministry in Guatemala City that I've written about before. They're currently caring for about 80 kids--providing them 2 meals and 2 snacks a day plus some educational and early-learning activities.
We missed out on some excitement at church while we were gone to Guatemala. Our pastor had announced to the staff his intentions to give away a Sunday offering and asked me to contact several potential recipients to determine current needs. Even with a much smaller attendance due to icy roads on the 21st, the church contributed around $22,000 which was evenly distributed among four groups--City Union Mission in Kansas City that ministers to the homeless and provides a year-long recovery program; Forest Avenue Homeless Shelter that operates out of a small Baptist church and provides housing to homeless women and children; the Rachel House crisis pregnancy center; and a project on the Lower Brule Lakota Reservation in South Dakota where our youth went last summer and are returning again this year. After giving the entire Sunday offering of the 21st away, the pastor challenged folks to give a reckless offering this past weekend. (He's in the midst of a series on Reckless Faith). Our folks responded with overwhelming generosity, giving over $60,000 this past Sunday--about double a typical end of the month Sunday offering. God is faithful and we're enjoying His blessings in these days as a congregation.
This Sunday evening our Guatemala team will have charge of the evening service and share reports and testimonies about our experiences. I'm looking forward to the chance to share about what God accomplished this past week with those who prayed for us and gave to make the trip possible.
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Guatemala Update
Things are going very well here on the missions trip. We had a bit of excitement yesterday with a tremor that was centered in southern Mexico that we felt about 5:00 a.m. and then a pretty strong one (5.4) that was located here in Guatemala.
We've had a great time so far with every aspect of the trip. The visits to the public schools and sharing with the kids has gone well. Yesterday we made about a 25 minute hike up a steep mountain to reach a school with about 185 kids. The director is a Christian and the kids were extremely well behaved--far more so than those the first day. Part of the issue that day was an ongoing teachers' strike here in Guatemala. Things were a bit chaotic there due to some emergency meetings of the teachers.
The afternoon VBS times have also gone well. The first day we had about 85 kids (some 50 of whom came from a nearby daycare). Yesterday I would estimate the number at about the same as we met at the mission of the Horeb Baptist Church.
The training sessions each evening have been well attended with good response and interaction from the participants.
This morning we're slated to deliver some more bags of food to needy families and then we have both a VBS and a visit to an institute with older youth (ages 13-20). We've only had one person of the 11 with a bit of a health problem one day with a touch of Montezuma's Revenge as they say in Mexico. Otherwise, all are well and even she felt good enough last night to lead her training session.
We've had a great time so far with every aspect of the trip. The visits to the public schools and sharing with the kids has gone well. Yesterday we made about a 25 minute hike up a steep mountain to reach a school with about 185 kids. The director is a Christian and the kids were extremely well behaved--far more so than those the first day. Part of the issue that day was an ongoing teachers' strike here in Guatemala. Things were a bit chaotic there due to some emergency meetings of the teachers.
The afternoon VBS times have also gone well. The first day we had about 85 kids (some 50 of whom came from a nearby daycare). Yesterday I would estimate the number at about the same as we met at the mission of the Horeb Baptist Church.
The training sessions each evening have been well attended with good response and interaction from the participants.
This morning we're slated to deliver some more bags of food to needy families and then we have both a VBS and a visit to an institute with older youth (ages 13-20). We've only had one person of the 11 with a bit of a health problem one day with a touch of Montezuma's Revenge as they say in Mexico. Otherwise, all are well and even she felt good enough last night to lead her training session.
Friday, February 19, 2010
Singing the Doxology Spontaneously
The title says it all. That's what I did yesterday afternoon as I drove away from the local downtown post office after having express mailed the hardcopy; CD's with text, photos, and jacket cover layout; shipping instructions; and a copy of the signed contract for the printing of our church's history to the printer. As I drove to the rehab center to visit my mom who's recovering from a fall that left her with a fractured vertebrae, I couldn't help but praise the Lord for the strength and stamina to wrap up this project that has consumed about the last 10 months or so of my life. If I had begun two or three years back on it as I discovered after the fact was a more appropriate time frame for tackling such an undertaking, I would have done a few things differently--more investigation of secondary source information, more interviews with long-time members, and more of an interpretive approach and less chronicling of the events themselves. Hindsight is always 20/20 they say and I'm determined not to allow those misgivings to rob me of the joy I felt yesterday as I left the post office singing a full-throated rendition of "Praise God from Whom all Blessings Flow." I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of my shoulders and the rare sunny afternoon in the pattern of cold, gray days of late further lifted my spirits.
Now it's time to shift focus as I prepare to leave early tomorrow morning with a team of 11 for Totonicapan, Guatemala. We'll be working with two churches in VBS and leadership training events as well as speaking in public schools and distributing bags of food to needy families. Our church gave a generous offering of almost $1450 for this cause during our annual Souper Bowl of Caring on Super Bowl Sunday. I've got a lot of loose ends to tie up today before leaving tomorrow, but I'll do so with a bit of an added spring in my step with the church history project in the rearview mirror.
Now it's time to shift focus as I prepare to leave early tomorrow morning with a team of 11 for Totonicapan, Guatemala. We'll be working with two churches in VBS and leadership training events as well as speaking in public schools and distributing bags of food to needy families. Our church gave a generous offering of almost $1450 for this cause during our annual Souper Bowl of Caring on Super Bowl Sunday. I've got a lot of loose ends to tie up today before leaving tomorrow, but I'll do so with a bit of an added spring in my step with the church history project in the rearview mirror.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
Busy-ness
I had great hopes of being a bit more consistent with my blogging, but life has a habit of continuing on with a mind of its own, ignoring my wishes for a more predictable and tranquil lifestyle. On the home front, my mom who lives with us suffered a broken vertebrae in a fall a couple of weeks ago and spent a week in the hospital before being transferred to a rehab center for strengthening exercises to promote healing and hopefully avoid another fall. This past weekend was spent hosting our third son and three buddies who departed early this morning for a five-month study abroad experience in China. I'm drinking lots of coffee to stay awake as we woke up at 3:00 a.m. to leave the house at 4:00 a.m. for the trip to the airport and a red-eye flight to Newark. The reason for flying east to travel west? A cheaper fare of course.
This afternoon at 1:00 I'll officiate at a funeral service for a friend who passed away suddenly at his home this past Thursday. He was only 48 years old. He faced a lot of challenges in life, with some mental handicaps as well as anxiety and depression. I've known and visited with him (mainly on the phone each week) for the past 5 or 6 years. I also call on his mother regularly in a local care center.
I'm trying to wrap up the history book today and get it sent to the printer before I fly out to Guatemala again this coming Saturday. A group of 11 of us will be spending 8 days there on a mission trip in Totonicapan in the western part of the country, helping two churches there with VBS, leadership training, feeding hungry folks, sharing the gospel, etc.
My plate seems heaped to overflowing with stuff to do before I leave on Saturday, but by God's grace it will get done.
This afternoon at 1:00 I'll officiate at a funeral service for a friend who passed away suddenly at his home this past Thursday. He was only 48 years old. He faced a lot of challenges in life, with some mental handicaps as well as anxiety and depression. I've known and visited with him (mainly on the phone each week) for the past 5 or 6 years. I also call on his mother regularly in a local care center.
I'm trying to wrap up the history book today and get it sent to the printer before I fly out to Guatemala again this coming Saturday. A group of 11 of us will be spending 8 days there on a mission trip in Totonicapan in the western part of the country, helping two churches there with VBS, leadership training, feeding hungry folks, sharing the gospel, etc.
My plate seems heaped to overflowing with stuff to do before I leave on Saturday, but by God's grace it will get done.
Friday, February 05, 2010
Strategy Planning Meeting Postponed
Well, the weather won this round. I left Lee's Summit shortly after 7:00 this morning heading for Jeff City and had made it past Sedalia (about an hour and 15 minutes or so east) when our executive director called me on my cell to say that several folks had said they couldn't make it because of the weather and the strategy planning meeting was being postponed.
We're going to try and get it rescheduled still for this month so as to be able to present a strategic plan at the annual meeting in March.
I have to admit, the snow is beautiful today. Huge flakes falling steadily. We've gotten around 2" so far I guess.
We're going to try and get it rescheduled still for this month so as to be able to present a strategic plan at the annual meeting in March.
I have to admit, the snow is beautiful today. Huge flakes falling steadily. We've gotten around 2" so far I guess.
Thursday, February 04, 2010
BGCM Strategy Planning Continues
Weather permitting (2"-4" of snow is forecast for here in the Kansas City area), the BGCM strategy planning team will be meeting tomorrow at the First Baptist Church in Jefferson City to try and come closer to finalizing a strategic plan to guide the organization for the next 5 years. We hope to be able to make significant progress on it so as to be able to share it with the board members early next month and then with those attending the BGCM's annual meeting at our church (First Baptist of Lee's Summit) on March 26-27.
On a personal note, the church history project is nearing completion. The writing and editing is finished and I'm trying to wrap up the final details--jacket cover design and contents that a friend from church is helping with, selecting some appropriate photos for the final chapter, etc.
On a personal note, the church history project is nearing completion. The writing and editing is finished and I'm trying to wrap up the final details--jacket cover design and contents that a friend from church is helping with, selecting some appropriate photos for the final chapter, etc.
Tuesday, February 02, 2010
Aging
Well, Groundhog Day's arrival means another birthday for yours truly. I hit the big 57 today, so the gray hairs that are growing in number around my temples are legitimate I suppose. I've had lots of well-wishers contact me via email or Facebook and I'm grateful to each for their kind expressions and prayers. God has been good to me and I'm grateful to Him for His mercy and grace.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
New Pastor Officially Installed
Tonight our church took part in a special service to officially install our new pastor, Dr. Blake McKinney. Blake has been serving with us since January 1st, with his first official sermon delivered on January 7th. The service this evening was quite meaningful, with Blake's father sharing some insights and background from a dad's perspective about his son's ministry as a pastor and then reading some Old Testament passages. Blake's sons, ages 9 & 11, also read some scriptures from the New Testament. Our pastor emeritus, Dr. Wendell Page, who served First Baptist Church of Lee's Summit for 19 years before retiring in 2000, brought a charge to both Blake and the congregation. Blake's former minister of music at Lost Mountain Baptist in Powder Springs, Georgia, where he just came from was present as well to give a charge to Blake.
As a part of the service, we also read responsively a Pastor-Church Covenant in which both Blake and we as a congregation pledged to serve the Lord together, praying for one another, as well as fulfilling other Christian responsibilities as pastor and church. All of those present then filed by to sign a poster-sized copy of the covenant that Blake intends to frame and hang on his office wall. We had a great crowd tonight, which meant that the process of signing took a good while, even with four folks or so signing at a time. We had strongly encouraged the members to be present for this special service and our usual 150 or so Sunday night crowd swelled to I would estimate 500-550 or more.
The service concluded with the pastor search committee gathered round Blake and our chairman of deacons leading in a prayer commending him to God's care and leadership. It was a very meaningful service and a joyous occasion for our members.
As a part of the service, we also read responsively a Pastor-Church Covenant in which both Blake and we as a congregation pledged to serve the Lord together, praying for one another, as well as fulfilling other Christian responsibilities as pastor and church. All of those present then filed by to sign a poster-sized copy of the covenant that Blake intends to frame and hang on his office wall. We had a great crowd tonight, which meant that the process of signing took a good while, even with four folks or so signing at a time. We had strongly encouraged the members to be present for this special service and our usual 150 or so Sunday night crowd swelled to I would estimate 500-550 or more.
The service concluded with the pastor search committee gathered round Blake and our chairman of deacons leading in a prayer commending him to God's care and leadership. It was a very meaningful service and a joyous occasion for our members.
Monday, January 25, 2010
Back from Guatemala
I had another outstanding trip to Guatemala this past week for the seventh round of leadership training conferences that the BGCM has offered for pastors and leaders in the western region of the country. We had a great turnout with 81 present in all. The two conference leaders who accompanied me both did a wonderful job of communicating some important biblical truths to those attending. The spirit of unity among the pastors there continues to grow and they without hesitation trace the origin of this harmony to our gatherings every six months. A new board of directors for the regional pastors' association was elected and the make-up of the group offers great hope for continued collaboration.
Several church members asked about the 6.1 earthquake that Guatemala had experienced last Monday. We hadn't yet departed from Houston when that occurred, but the folks there in Guatemala City said they had felt it but that it hadn't caused any major damage.
We were able to pay a visit to the Tabitha Ministry on Thursday morning after we had returned to Guatemala City from Quetzaltenango. Carol Bercian and others continue to meet the needs of a growing number of children whose mothers scavenge through the trash in the city dump, looking for things they can recycle or sell. The kids receive two meals a day as well as 2 snacks. Carol also has a ministry with these mothers--having led many of them to Christ and attempting to disciple them. Her brother told us on Thursday as he drove us to Antigua for some sightseeing that there were close to 50 women who had attended a Bible study and worship time at the Tabitha Ministry house the previous evening.
Plans are taking shape for the trip this next month to Totonicapan. We'll have a total of 11 going (9 from our church and 2 from Wyatt Park Baptist in St. Joseph).
Several church members asked about the 6.1 earthquake that Guatemala had experienced last Monday. We hadn't yet departed from Houston when that occurred, but the folks there in Guatemala City said they had felt it but that it hadn't caused any major damage.
We were able to pay a visit to the Tabitha Ministry on Thursday morning after we had returned to Guatemala City from Quetzaltenango. Carol Bercian and others continue to meet the needs of a growing number of children whose mothers scavenge through the trash in the city dump, looking for things they can recycle or sell. The kids receive two meals a day as well as 2 snacks. Carol also has a ministry with these mothers--having led many of them to Christ and attempting to disciple them. Her brother told us on Thursday as he drove us to Antigua for some sightseeing that there were close to 50 women who had attended a Bible study and worship time at the Tabitha Ministry house the previous evening.
Plans are taking shape for the trip this next month to Totonicapan. We'll have a total of 11 going (9 from our church and 2 from Wyatt Park Baptist in St. Joseph).
Monday, January 11, 2010
Study the Playbook
Noted researcher and pollster George Barna has started blogging. You can find his blog here. He has already posted a couple of interesting and thought-provoking articles--one dealing with house churches and another talking about the leadership exemplified by Peyton Manning. The article on Manning describes what convinced the Indianapolis Colts to select Manning over another highly touted quarterback in the 1998 NFL draft.
Barna writes, "To figure out who might be the best selection for their team, Colts executives set up interviews with both young men. Both prospects discussed their desire to win and their positive feelings about the Colts. The turning point in the Colts’ decision was the answer they received to one particular question: If chosen by the Colts, what is the first thing you will do? Young Manning’s reply, supposedly offered without hesitation, was 'Study the playbook.' His competitor’s response? 'I’m booking the next flight to Vegas so I can celebrate with my buddies.'”
Barna concludes his article, asking the rhetorical question of which player demonstrated the mind and heart of the leader the Colts needed.
I think there's an even deeper spiritual application for believers in this story than the obvious commitment to excellence and leadership that Manning displayed. "Study the playbook" is outstanding counsel for Christians when we remember that God has given us wise instructions in the Bible on how to succeed in the game of life. As we come to know its Author more deeply each day through studying His written revelation to us, we'll find ourselves "equipped for every good work."
Barna writes, "To figure out who might be the best selection for their team, Colts executives set up interviews with both young men. Both prospects discussed their desire to win and their positive feelings about the Colts. The turning point in the Colts’ decision was the answer they received to one particular question: If chosen by the Colts, what is the first thing you will do? Young Manning’s reply, supposedly offered without hesitation, was 'Study the playbook.' His competitor’s response? 'I’m booking the next flight to Vegas so I can celebrate with my buddies.'”
Barna concludes his article, asking the rhetorical question of which player demonstrated the mind and heart of the leader the Colts needed.
I think there's an even deeper spiritual application for believers in this story than the obvious commitment to excellence and leadership that Manning displayed. "Study the playbook" is outstanding counsel for Christians when we remember that God has given us wise instructions in the Bible on how to succeed in the game of life. As we come to know its Author more deeply each day through studying His written revelation to us, we'll find ourselves "equipped for every good work."
Saturday, January 09, 2010
Upcoming Travels
This week I'll be gone a couple of days to Dallas for a joint meeting with some of the leadership of the Baptist General Convention of Texas, the Baptist General Association of Virginia, and the Baptist General Convention of Missouri. That sounds like a lot of generals when you say it or type it. The "generals" of the organizations will be present, but what I like about these folks is that they are very humble and down-to-earth. This will be the third meeting our conventions have held to share insights and best practices as well as discuss the challenges of living and serving in what many have termed a "post-denominational" era.
The following week, it's off once more to Guatemala. I'm as eager as always to go. The leaders whom we work with in the western region of the country have become good friends over the course of the past three and a half years or so that I've been making these trips. I'll have two guys accompanying me this time as conference leaders so I've opted to let them handle the five training sessions while I translate their presentations and the dialogue and interchanges that follow. For one of the guys, this will be his first trip. He's a pastor from the St. Louis area and I'm excited about his participating as I hope he will lead his church to become involved in a church-to-church partnership with a Guatemalan Baptist congregation.
Next month, I'll be leading a group of 11 on a missions trip to Totonicapan, a small department (their term for state or province) that's less than an hour from Quetzaltenango where we conduct our leadership training seminars. I'll be sharing more details about that trip in the future.
In the meanwhile, I did finish the rough draft of the church history project I'm writing and am busily trying to work through editing it. It's far too long I fear and I still have to find additional space for photos. I've enjoyed working on this, but will be greatly relieved and "de-stressed" when it's completed.
The following week, it's off once more to Guatemala. I'm as eager as always to go. The leaders whom we work with in the western region of the country have become good friends over the course of the past three and a half years or so that I've been making these trips. I'll have two guys accompanying me this time as conference leaders so I've opted to let them handle the five training sessions while I translate their presentations and the dialogue and interchanges that follow. For one of the guys, this will be his first trip. He's a pastor from the St. Louis area and I'm excited about his participating as I hope he will lead his church to become involved in a church-to-church partnership with a Guatemalan Baptist congregation.
Next month, I'll be leading a group of 11 on a missions trip to Totonicapan, a small department (their term for state or province) that's less than an hour from Quetzaltenango where we conduct our leadership training seminars. I'll be sharing more details about that trip in the future.
In the meanwhile, I did finish the rough draft of the church history project I'm writing and am busily trying to work through editing it. It's far too long I fear and I still have to find additional space for photos. I've enjoyed working on this, but will be greatly relieved and "de-stressed" when it's completed.
Friday, January 08, 2010
What Might Have Been ...
I'm utterly convinced (so it would be impossible to persuade me otherwise) that with a healthy Colt McCoy at the helm in last night's championship game, the outcome would have been totally different. UT was briskly marching toward a TD on their opening possession, following Alabama's failed fake punt attempt, when Colt was injured. Had he remained in the game, I have no doubt that they would have scored not just a field goal but a touchdown on that opening drive. The botched ensuing kickoff by Alabama positioned UT for another quick touchdown with the ball at Alabama's 40 or so. With two TD's under their belt, there's no way UT's defense allows Alabama back in the game.
As it was, Alabama struggled mightily in the second half after Muschamp made some defensive halftime adjustments. At one point well into the half, they had managed only 3 yards of total offense in the half.
Yes, Colt's absence was sorely felt. You can't lose the winningest quarterback in the history of college football and not suffer the effects. Gilbreath played pretty valiantly for a kid who's only taken some snaps during mop up operations in the second half when the game was safely iced away. The two touchdowns to Shipley were nicely executed. I think his baptism by fire will stand him in good stead for his future with the Horns.
Alabama played a decent game, but they didn't dominate at all like they did against Florida. Texas actually had 13 more total yards than Alabama in a losing effort without its star quarterback. Yep, no question in my mind that with Colt in the game, UT wins it easily.
As it was, Alabama struggled mightily in the second half after Muschamp made some defensive halftime adjustments. At one point well into the half, they had managed only 3 yards of total offense in the half.
Yes, Colt's absence was sorely felt. You can't lose the winningest quarterback in the history of college football and not suffer the effects. Gilbreath played pretty valiantly for a kid who's only taken some snaps during mop up operations in the second half when the game was safely iced away. The two touchdowns to Shipley were nicely executed. I think his baptism by fire will stand him in good stead for his future with the Horns.
Alabama played a decent game, but they didn't dominate at all like they did against Florida. Texas actually had 13 more total yards than Alabama in a losing effort without its star quarterback. Yep, no question in my mind that with Colt in the game, UT wins it easily.
Thursday, January 07, 2010
National Championship Tonight
Well, this is the big one. The Longhorns are competing for their second national championship in football in the last 4 years, having won with Vince Young and company over USC in 2006. I'm wearing my burnt orange sweatshirt today. I'm a lot more underdressed than typical when I'm working at church, but with 10 inches or so of snow on the ground, 2 degree temperatures and wind chills of minus 20 degrees, I thought it was appropriate. Plus it's an excuse to show my team spirit.
Alabama promises to be tough and certainly deserve to be considered the favorite. I'm hoping that UT can hang with them for 3 quarters and that Colt and Shipley can work their magic in the 4th quarter.
Hook 'em Horns!
Alabama promises to be tough and certainly deserve to be considered the favorite. I'm hoping that UT can hang with them for 3 quarters and that Colt and Shipley can work their magic in the 4th quarter.
Hook 'em Horns!
Wednesday, January 06, 2010
Living in the Deep Freeze
Like most of the mid-section of the country, and I suppose even beyond according to the news reports, we here in the Kansas City area have been feeling the effects of old man winter's icy blast. He hasn't exactly wanted to relax his grip on us either. The snow that fell on Christmas Eve hasn't even begun to think about melting as the temperatures haven't risen above freezing since then, and there's no real relief in sight. We're expecting a fresh 3-6 inches of snow today, prompting the decision to cancel our Wednesday evening services tonight along with just about every other church in the area it looks like.
I'm slated to assist with another memorial service on Friday morning, but in this case, the burial will have taken place on Thursday in Jefferson City. I'm grateful not to be leading in another graveside service like last Saturday, but feel for those who will be doing so tomorrow in Jeff City. I'll be doing the eulogy on Friday and the memorial service is planned for the chapel at John Knox Village, a retirement center here in Lee's Summit. The deceased was a member of our church for the past four years, having moved here after the death of her husband, a long-time pastor in Missouri. She had a beautiful singing voice and taught voice lessons along the way to many students, also serving as choir and music director at several of the churches where her husband pastored. She will be missed.
I'm hoping for a break in the weather by next week when I'm slated to travel to Dallas with the rest of the leadership team of the BGCM for a joint meeting with our peers from the BGCT and BGAV. After that, it's off to Guatemala the following week for another round of leadership training classes with the pastors and leaders in the western region.
I'm slated to assist with another memorial service on Friday morning, but in this case, the burial will have taken place on Thursday in Jefferson City. I'm grateful not to be leading in another graveside service like last Saturday, but feel for those who will be doing so tomorrow in Jeff City. I'll be doing the eulogy on Friday and the memorial service is planned for the chapel at John Knox Village, a retirement center here in Lee's Summit. The deceased was a member of our church for the past four years, having moved here after the death of her husband, a long-time pastor in Missouri. She had a beautiful singing voice and taught voice lessons along the way to many students, also serving as choir and music director at several of the churches where her husband pastored. She will be missed.
I'm hoping for a break in the weather by next week when I'm slated to travel to Dallas with the rest of the leadership team of the BGCM for a joint meeting with our peers from the BGCT and BGAV. After that, it's off to Guatemala the following week for another round of leadership training classes with the pastors and leaders in the western region.
Tuesday, January 05, 2010
Humor and Humility
Three years ago at this time, our nation’s flag flew at half-mast to honor the memory of former president Gerald Ford, the only man to occupy the Oval Office without having been elected as either president or vice-president. President Ford died the day after Christmas in 2006. Keenly aware of the fact that Americans had not elected him to office and possessing the wonderful ability to laugh at his own frequent blunders, Ford was fond of saying, “I’m a Ford, not a Lincoln.”
Despite his shortcomings, historians credit Ford with restoring dignity to the White House and bringing national healing in the wake of the Watergate scandal. My prayer is that God might use each of us in this coming year, in spite of our own weaknesses and imperfections, to significantly impact our community, state, nation, and world with the Good News. A dose of humor and a strong measure of humility in the spirit of former president Gerald Ford will serve us well in this quest.
Despite his shortcomings, historians credit Ford with restoring dignity to the White House and bringing national healing in the wake of the Watergate scandal. My prayer is that God might use each of us in this coming year, in spite of our own weaknesses and imperfections, to significantly impact our community, state, nation, and world with the Good News. A dose of humor and a strong measure of humility in the spirit of former president Gerald Ford will serve us well in this quest.
Monday, January 04, 2010
Sharing the Gospel in the New Year
On January 1, 1946, a lone U.S. soldier recording information about the deaths of U.S. infantrymen on the island of Corregidor suddenly found himself confronted by 20 Japanese soldiers, waving a white flag and announcing their surrender. One of them had ventured forth from the cave where they were hiding to find water and discovered a newspaper announcing Japan’s surrender some four and a half months earlier. The old saying is that “good news travels fast.” Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case. The gospel (which means good news) will only be shared and heard where we take the time and effort to go and proclaim it. As we begin a new year, will you purpose by God’s grace to allow Him to use you to reach friends, family members, work associates, casual acquaintances, or even strangers with the message of God’s love for them? That’s information too important to keep to ourselves. Let’s share it!
Saturday, January 02, 2010
A Long Silence Explained
It's been almost a month I realize since I last posted anything on my blog. Part of the reason has been dealing with some family health issues of my mom who lives with us and my mother-in-law who lives in the area in Kansas City. My mother-in-law had hip replacement surgery about 3 weeks ago, about the same time that my mom began experiencing painful inflammation and swelling in her joints. A trip to the doctor for her brought the recommendation of some physical and occupational therapy and prescriptions for pain relievers and anti-inflammatory medications but no real relief.
After our oldest son, a doctor, saw her during Christmas, he helped get the ball rolling for some lab work that wound up being done in the ER of a local hospital on New Year's Eve. She was admitted and additional tests were run and other specialists consulted. Yesterday (New Years' Day) she was diagnosed with rheumatoid athritis and was begun on a regimen of steroids. Thankfully, she was already feeling somewhat better today. She's slated to be released to come home tomorrow. I hate to get her out in the cold to bring her home (the official morning low here today was 5 below zero), but I'm glad that she'll be back under our roof.
My mother-in-law is doing well with the hip replacement but has had some other complications along the way. She's been doing rehab at one of the local care centers and should be released on Wednesday.
On a brighter note and as a further explanation of my lack of posting, I managed yesterday to finally finish the initial draft of the church history I've been working on for many months in preparation for celebrating our 150th anniversary in April. My plans are to finish the revisions and editing this month and have it ready to go to the printer by February 1st. That will be a challenge as I will be gone a week to Guatemala for a leadership training event and two days to Dallas for a joint meeting with the leaders of the BGCT, BGCM, and BGAV. I also have to decide about which pictures to select and how many to include in the history book.
Hopefully I'll be able to post a bit more frequently in the coming days. As I've been working through my notes from the church minutes as well as information from our church's newsletter, I've been tempted to share some of the reflections here that I write for our church. Some of them at least I think are thought-provoking and prayerfully they're also inspirational. I'll probably be posting some of those in the interim while I'm finishing up the history project.
Thanks to those of you who still manage to check in periodically on my blog, even when I've been pretty lax about writing.
After our oldest son, a doctor, saw her during Christmas, he helped get the ball rolling for some lab work that wound up being done in the ER of a local hospital on New Year's Eve. She was admitted and additional tests were run and other specialists consulted. Yesterday (New Years' Day) she was diagnosed with rheumatoid athritis and was begun on a regimen of steroids. Thankfully, she was already feeling somewhat better today. She's slated to be released to come home tomorrow. I hate to get her out in the cold to bring her home (the official morning low here today was 5 below zero), but I'm glad that she'll be back under our roof.
My mother-in-law is doing well with the hip replacement but has had some other complications along the way. She's been doing rehab at one of the local care centers and should be released on Wednesday.
On a brighter note and as a further explanation of my lack of posting, I managed yesterday to finally finish the initial draft of the church history I've been working on for many months in preparation for celebrating our 150th anniversary in April. My plans are to finish the revisions and editing this month and have it ready to go to the printer by February 1st. That will be a challenge as I will be gone a week to Guatemala for a leadership training event and two days to Dallas for a joint meeting with the leaders of the BGCT, BGCM, and BGAV. I also have to decide about which pictures to select and how many to include in the history book.
Hopefully I'll be able to post a bit more frequently in the coming days. As I've been working through my notes from the church minutes as well as information from our church's newsletter, I've been tempted to share some of the reflections here that I write for our church. Some of them at least I think are thought-provoking and prayerfully they're also inspirational. I'll probably be posting some of those in the interim while I'm finishing up the history project.
Thanks to those of you who still manage to check in periodically on my blog, even when I've been pretty lax about writing.
Tuesday, December 08, 2009
Good article at Ethics Daily
As one who taught a basic course in Christian ethics at the International Baptist Theological Seminary in Buenos Aires for about a decade, I try to stay abreast of developments and related themes as they pertain to theological education. In an excellent article today from Ethics Daily, William Brackney poses the critical question, "Do Theological Schools Serve as Ethical Communities?" He asks some very pointed questions and provides some thoughtful analysis along the way.
I'd like to quote one section of the article in particular in which he asks, "What exactly does it mean to be a practicing ethical community?" His response follows: "One can take a cue from the school of character ethics. Certain traits are valued and undergird all decisions and behavior. These include: equality of persons; freedom of conscience; voluntary assent to confessional statements; democratic decision-making; shared governance; healthy collegial interaction; transparency in administration; pastoral concern within the community; protection of human rights; the practice of grace and civility; and an overall allegiance to the lordship of Christ. The Christian ethicist understands that all of these characteristics have their root in Scripture."
While one cannot issue a blanket condemnation of the existing Southern Baptist seminaries with regard to their failure to exhibit the character qualities that Brackney references in this paragraph, it's clear nonetheless that many of these basic ethical qualities have been woefully absent or under-represented in the administration of some Baptist seminaries in recent years.
I'd suggest that it's high time that concern for theological orthodoxy which has occupied center stage among Baptists be accompanied by a sound measure of ethical praxis in which our walk indeed matches our talk. A good place to begin that recovery would be to return to the writings of one of Southern Baptists finest ethics professors, T. B. Maston, who espoused that simple truth in one of his books entitled, To Walk as He Walked. It seems that the apostle Paul would concur with the need to do just that (Gal. 5:16, 25; Eph. 4:1, Eph. 5:2,8; Col. 1:10, 2:6).
I'd like to quote one section of the article in particular in which he asks, "What exactly does it mean to be a practicing ethical community?" His response follows: "One can take a cue from the school of character ethics. Certain traits are valued and undergird all decisions and behavior. These include: equality of persons; freedom of conscience; voluntary assent to confessional statements; democratic decision-making; shared governance; healthy collegial interaction; transparency in administration; pastoral concern within the community; protection of human rights; the practice of grace and civility; and an overall allegiance to the lordship of Christ. The Christian ethicist understands that all of these characteristics have their root in Scripture."
While one cannot issue a blanket condemnation of the existing Southern Baptist seminaries with regard to their failure to exhibit the character qualities that Brackney references in this paragraph, it's clear nonetheless that many of these basic ethical qualities have been woefully absent or under-represented in the administration of some Baptist seminaries in recent years.
I'd suggest that it's high time that concern for theological orthodoxy which has occupied center stage among Baptists be accompanied by a sound measure of ethical praxis in which our walk indeed matches our talk. A good place to begin that recovery would be to return to the writings of one of Southern Baptists finest ethics professors, T. B. Maston, who espoused that simple truth in one of his books entitled, To Walk as He Walked. It seems that the apostle Paul would concur with the need to do just that (Gal. 5:16, 25; Eph. 4:1, Eph. 5:2,8; Col. 1:10, 2:6).
Sunday, December 06, 2009
Horns Win by the Slimmest of Margins
I thought about the line that Fred Samford always used to utter on the TV series "Samford and Son" while watching the closing seconds of the Univ. of Texas - Nebraska Big 12 Conference Championship game last night. Feigning a heart attack, he'd holler "It's the big one." The last second (literally) field goal by UT's Hunter Lawrence was a clutch kick if there ever was one. I was certainly glad for the win that preserved the undefeated season, and my respect for Nebraska's defense and for the play of Suh in particular grew by leaps and bounds last night.
McCoy and Shipley have pretty much had their way all season, hooking up (pardon the pun) for some incredible passes and catches. When Shipley has been doubled, Colt has always managed to find someone else open as he's checked down on the other receivers. Last night he never had the time to follow the progression as he was pressured constantly by the rush. In addition, Nebraska's secondary did an excellent job of bottling up all of UT's receivers throughout the game.
On the positive side of the ledger, UT's defense rebounded after a poor outing against A&M on Thanksgiving Day and effectively shut down the Nebraska offense. One could argue of course that they didn't have much of an offense to shut down, but allowing just 106 total yards was a strong statement. In addition, they kept Nebraska out of the end zone even when UT coughed up the ball deep in their own territory a couple of times.
Here's hoping common sense prevails and UT retains its #2 ranking to face Alabama for the national championship. Alabama looked great against Florida so Greg Davis and Muschamp have their work cut out for them as they work on the offensive and defensive schemes to match up effectively against the Crimson Tide. We'll see how all of that happens.
On a related note, I still hold out hope for Colt winning the Heisman. While he was off of his game yesterday due to the pressure, he's had a remarkable career and an outstanding season overall and I can't see anyone else who's more deserving.
McCoy and Shipley have pretty much had their way all season, hooking up (pardon the pun) for some incredible passes and catches. When Shipley has been doubled, Colt has always managed to find someone else open as he's checked down on the other receivers. Last night he never had the time to follow the progression as he was pressured constantly by the rush. In addition, Nebraska's secondary did an excellent job of bottling up all of UT's receivers throughout the game.
On the positive side of the ledger, UT's defense rebounded after a poor outing against A&M on Thanksgiving Day and effectively shut down the Nebraska offense. One could argue of course that they didn't have much of an offense to shut down, but allowing just 106 total yards was a strong statement. In addition, they kept Nebraska out of the end zone even when UT coughed up the ball deep in their own territory a couple of times.
Here's hoping common sense prevails and UT retains its #2 ranking to face Alabama for the national championship. Alabama looked great against Florida so Greg Davis and Muschamp have their work cut out for them as they work on the offensive and defensive schemes to match up effectively against the Crimson Tide. We'll see how all of that happens.
On a related note, I still hold out hope for Colt winning the Heisman. While he was off of his game yesterday due to the pressure, he's had a remarkable career and an outstanding season overall and I can't see anyone else who's more deserving.
Wednesday, December 02, 2009
The God Who Came Down
In a plea for God to display His glory and majesty on the earth, the prophet Isaiah prayed in Isa. 64:1, “Oh, that You would rend the heavens and come down, that the mountains might quake at Your presence.” There are times that the biblical writers earnestly desired to observe God in all His majestic greatness, shaking the foundations of the earth, akin to the experience of Isaiah himself and his vision of God in the temple described in Isaiah 6.
As Elijah learned, however, God doesn’t always come down from heaven in a whirlwind or in an earthquake. For Elijah, God drew near in a still, small voice. For all of us this Christmas, we’re reminded that God has indeed come down to earth-—not with ear-shattering thunder that rent the heavens as Isaiah pleaded—-but with the cry of a baby born in a stable. “And the Word became flesh, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (Jn. 1:14).
As Elijah learned, however, God doesn’t always come down from heaven in a whirlwind or in an earthquake. For Elijah, God drew near in a still, small voice. For all of us this Christmas, we’re reminded that God has indeed come down to earth-—not with ear-shattering thunder that rent the heavens as Isaiah pleaded—-but with the cry of a baby born in a stable. “And the Word became flesh, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (Jn. 1:14).
Tuesday, December 01, 2009
Let There be Light
One of my favorite Christmas songs of recent years is an arrangement done by Point of Grace called “Let There be Light.” There’s a verse in it that speaks so powerfully to my heart about the mystery of the incarnation and the glorious truth that God chose to become a man in the person of Jesus Christ. The verse says,
"He spoke after centuries of silence
In the midst of a still, starry night.
And Immanuel came down among us
And the Father said, “Let there be light!”
Two or three things jump out at me from this beautiful song. First, God broke His silence of approximately four hundred years since the time of the final Old Testament prophet Malachi when He sent His angels to announce the birth of His Son to some common shepherds tending their flocks on a hillside near Bethlehem. The writer of Hebrews puts it this way, “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son.” Surely the nation of Israel was longing for a fresh word from God after four centuries of silence, and God answered their hearts’ plea with a definitive word by sending them His Son.
Secondly, the word Immanuel is highly instructive. As the angel appeared to Joseph to assure him that Mary hadn’t been unfaithful to him but rather that the baby she carried was a miraculous gift of God, he told Joseph that the baby was to be called Immanuel, meaning “God with us.” The God of the universe invaded planet Earth in the person of Jesus to reveal God to us and to redeem us from our sins.
Finally, the text of the song imaginatively records God the Father saying once again, even as He had at the dawn of creation, “Let there be light!” While perhaps those very words weren’t uttered by the angelic hosts, the message certainly was present. Writing in the prologue to his gospel in John 1:4-5, the beloved apostle penned these words, “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” I’m so grateful at this Christmas season as we observe the beautiful decorative lights, that God sent the true Light, His Son, into the world to show us His love.
"He spoke after centuries of silence
In the midst of a still, starry night.
And Immanuel came down among us
And the Father said, “Let there be light!”
Two or three things jump out at me from this beautiful song. First, God broke His silence of approximately four hundred years since the time of the final Old Testament prophet Malachi when He sent His angels to announce the birth of His Son to some common shepherds tending their flocks on a hillside near Bethlehem. The writer of Hebrews puts it this way, “God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son.” Surely the nation of Israel was longing for a fresh word from God after four centuries of silence, and God answered their hearts’ plea with a definitive word by sending them His Son.
Secondly, the word Immanuel is highly instructive. As the angel appeared to Joseph to assure him that Mary hadn’t been unfaithful to him but rather that the baby she carried was a miraculous gift of God, he told Joseph that the baby was to be called Immanuel, meaning “God with us.” The God of the universe invaded planet Earth in the person of Jesus to reveal God to us and to redeem us from our sins.
Finally, the text of the song imaginatively records God the Father saying once again, even as He had at the dawn of creation, “Let there be light!” While perhaps those very words weren’t uttered by the angelic hosts, the message certainly was present. Writing in the prologue to his gospel in John 1:4-5, the beloved apostle penned these words, “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” I’m so grateful at this Christmas season as we observe the beautiful decorative lights, that God sent the true Light, His Son, into the world to show us His love.
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Volunteer Hospital Chaplaincy
I don't think I've ever written previously about one thing that I've been involved in for the last two or three years--serving as a volunteer hospital chaplain. When the St. Luke's Hospital chain opened a local hospital here in Lee's Summit a few years back, they hired a former IMB missionary as a chaplain. John Murphy and his wife served in Venezuela before working in the home office in the area of support and scheduling for missionaries on stateside assignment (if memory serves me correctly). Two or three years ago, John contacted several local pastors and staff members to ask if we would be willing to serve as volunteer chaplains to help pick up the slack when he isn't there. Since John typically works "normal hours," the calls for assistance usually come in the wee hours of the morning.
I sleep with my cellphone nearby and it's not unusual to get a call at 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning when there's been a life-threatening accident or a patient has been admitted who's near death and the family requests a chaplain. I received another one of those calls this past Thursday morning just before 2:00 a.m. and went to meet with the family. Their mom/grandmother had been hospitalized for a few days but had taken a sudden turn for the worse and they wanted some prayer support. I was able to spend some time visiting with them, offering some comfort and had prayer with them before leaving. I stopped back by the next morning and she was still lingering, though breathing much more shallowly. I stopped by and gave John an update and he followed up and visited with them during that day before she passed away in the afternoon.
I received a call yesterday and was asked if I would be willing to officiate at the funeral for the woman and I gladly consented. This is the second time I believe that one of these volunteer chaplain's visits has resulted in the additional opportunity to minister to a family in the time of their loss by conducting a funeral service. While the calls in the middle of the night can sometimes startle me awake and cost me some sleep, I appreciate the chance to demonstrate the love of Christ to someone who requests a chaplain to come and hold a hand, offer a shoulder to cry on, or say a prayer on behalf of a family member. I'm convinced that this is one further way that I can seek to be the presence of Christ in the midst of a hurting world.
I sleep with my cellphone nearby and it's not unusual to get a call at 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning when there's been a life-threatening accident or a patient has been admitted who's near death and the family requests a chaplain. I received another one of those calls this past Thursday morning just before 2:00 a.m. and went to meet with the family. Their mom/grandmother had been hospitalized for a few days but had taken a sudden turn for the worse and they wanted some prayer support. I was able to spend some time visiting with them, offering some comfort and had prayer with them before leaving. I stopped back by the next morning and she was still lingering, though breathing much more shallowly. I stopped by and gave John an update and he followed up and visited with them during that day before she passed away in the afternoon.
I received a call yesterday and was asked if I would be willing to officiate at the funeral for the woman and I gladly consented. This is the second time I believe that one of these volunteer chaplain's visits has resulted in the additional opportunity to minister to a family in the time of their loss by conducting a funeral service. While the calls in the middle of the night can sometimes startle me awake and cost me some sleep, I appreciate the chance to demonstrate the love of Christ to someone who requests a chaplain to come and hold a hand, offer a shoulder to cry on, or say a prayer on behalf of a family member. I'm convinced that this is one further way that I can seek to be the presence of Christ in the midst of a hurting world.
Monday, November 16, 2009
A New Pastor for our Church
This weekend was an exciting time in the life of our church. We hosted our prospective new pastor, Dr. Blake McKinney, in a series of get acquainted meetings with different age groups in the church on Friday and Saturday and then heard him preach yesterday morning. He chose 1 Samuel 17 as his text, using the familiar story of David and Goliath to stress the basic message that God is bigger than our problems and our challenges. It was a good, biblically-centered sermon that was engaging. What I appreciated the most was his introduction to the sermon, saying that while it was a bit awkward with the sermon in a sense being part of a job interview, he wanted us to lay aside those concerns and hear what God had to say through the Scriptures.
We had good turnouts for the different age-group meetings and a great crowd in each of the morning services yesterday and again last night for the vote. The church clearly was overwhelmingly convinced that God had led our pastor search committee to Blake and the vote indicated that. 98% of those present voted to call him as our new senior pastor. He will move his family here after the Christmas holidays and begin his ministry in January. His first sermon (other than the yesterday's trial message) will be January 10th.
I think our entire church body is excited about this new page in our church's history and looking forward to the challenge that comes with new leadership. It promises to be an exciting new year for the congregation as we welcome a new pastor and gear up for our 150th anniversary celebration in April.
We had good turnouts for the different age-group meetings and a great crowd in each of the morning services yesterday and again last night for the vote. The church clearly was overwhelmingly convinced that God had led our pastor search committee to Blake and the vote indicated that. 98% of those present voted to call him as our new senior pastor. He will move his family here after the Christmas holidays and begin his ministry in January. His first sermon (other than the yesterday's trial message) will be January 10th.
I think our entire church body is excited about this new page in our church's history and looking forward to the challenge that comes with new leadership. It promises to be an exciting new year for the congregation as we welcome a new pastor and gear up for our 150th anniversary celebration in April.
Friday, November 13, 2009
A Big Weekend for our Church
After being without a pastor for a year now, our church is hosting a prospective new senior pastor this weekend. He's got a busy line-up of activities ahead of him for the next three days, beginning with a meeting with the staff this morning as a group and then with us individually afterwards. After lunch, he will meet with our wonderful senior adults among whom I have the privilege to minister. Tonight it will be the youth and their parents and collegiates. Tomorrow morning he will meet with the children and their parents, followed by deacons and their wives in the early afternoon. Tomorrow in the late afternoon is a chance for anyone who missed one of the earlier sessions to meet with him and ask questions, etc. Sunday he will preach in both morning services and then we will vote in the evening service on whether or not to call him as our new pastor.
The pastor search committee has been diligently working for many months now and feel convinced that this is the man that God would have to lead our congregation into the future. We've been praying much for them in this entire process and a good-sized group gathered last night for about an hour and a half to pray for the weekend's events. I'd be very grateful for your prayers for us as well as we seek the Lord's will together concerning our future pastor. I'll try and share an update late Sunday evening after the vote has been taken.
The pastor search committee has been diligently working for many months now and feel convinced that this is the man that God would have to lead our congregation into the future. We've been praying much for them in this entire process and a good-sized group gathered last night for about an hour and a half to pray for the weekend's events. I'd be very grateful for your prayers for us as well as we seek the Lord's will together concerning our future pastor. I'll try and share an update late Sunday evening after the vote has been taken.
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Progress on History Project
I've not been cranking out the production too quickly on the history of our church in preparation for next spring's 150th anniversary celebration, but I have been making steady if slow progress. I'm up to 1975 in the writing of the first draft. That was the year that the church's longest tenured pastor announced his retirement after 27.5 years. He led the church through the Baptist heyday that so many experienced in the 1950s and 1960s. I'm also still doing some further checking on printing options and have a couple of good possibilities I believe.
This really needs to be a fulltime job almost, given the extensive nature of the research and writing, but I don't have that luxury. Life and church ministry both go on, including a funeral this past Tuesday for the 102-year old mother of one of our church members whom I had visited on several occasions in one of the local care centers. I'm also staying fairly busy with my part-time job with the BGCM as we've been working on a strategy planning process for a new strategic focus for the next five years. I've also got trips to Guatemala coming up in January and February, so there's the preparation for those as well. I'm still targeting February 1st or so as the target date to have the history finished by so as to have it available in time for our anniversary in mid-April.
The other big event on the horizon is the visit of a new prospective senior pastor for our church. We've been without a pastor for a year now and are looking forward to his coming in view of a call the weekend of November 13-15. There's a lot of excitement and interest needless to say. I'll have more details following that weekend.
This really needs to be a fulltime job almost, given the extensive nature of the research and writing, but I don't have that luxury. Life and church ministry both go on, including a funeral this past Tuesday for the 102-year old mother of one of our church members whom I had visited on several occasions in one of the local care centers. I'm also staying fairly busy with my part-time job with the BGCM as we've been working on a strategy planning process for a new strategic focus for the next five years. I've also got trips to Guatemala coming up in January and February, so there's the preparation for those as well. I'm still targeting February 1st or so as the target date to have the history finished by so as to have it available in time for our anniversary in mid-April.
The other big event on the horizon is the visit of a new prospective senior pastor for our church. We've been without a pastor for a year now and are looking forward to his coming in view of a call the weekend of November 13-15. There's a lot of excitement and interest needless to say. I'll have more details following that weekend.
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Tony Campolo Interview
This afternoon I had the privilege to spend about 20 minutes on the phone with Tony Campolo. The Baptist General Convention of Missouri is in the midst of a several month study process to devise a new strategy plan for the next five years for the organization. A part of that process involves interviewing key leaders engaged in innovative ministries. I requested the opportunity of interviewing Dr. Campolo and he was gracious enough to take time out of his busy schedule to answer several questions regarding leadership and ministry. I've long been an admirer of Dr. Campolo since I first heard him in person at the International Baptist Theological Seminary in Buenos Aires where I served on the faculty. Dr. Campolo came as the keynote speaker for our annual conferences. During his visit, my wife and I had the opportunity of hosting him in our home one morning for breakfast. He obviously is a fascinating man with a deep passion for holistic ministry to the poor and needy.
While all of his answers were insightful and will prove helpful in our strategy planning process, one response in particular stood out. When asked to identify risks or dangers confronting his organization's ministry, he replied that he worries about the tendency toward secularization. That is, with his organization involved in a wide variety of social ministries aimed at meeting the needs of the poor and oppressed, he fears and fights against the temptation to get sucked into the purely secular side of that effort, given that the biblically prescribed holistic mission they attempt to fulfill also demands a focus on evangelism and sharing the gospel to meet the spiritual needs of the lost. I commented in response that I suspected he had received a lot of criticism from the religious right about not being evangelistic enough, and he graciously replied that he was grateful for that emphasis and those who would hold him and his organization accountable to the task of evangelism.
I think I might have mentioned previously after hearing Dr. Campolo again this past spring at the Baptist Border Crossing event in Kansas City that he excels in the art of prophetic preaching that is designed to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. He surely has a gift for the latter. I'm very grateful for the chance to have spent a few minutes with him on the phone this afternoon and count it a blessing from the Lord.
While all of his answers were insightful and will prove helpful in our strategy planning process, one response in particular stood out. When asked to identify risks or dangers confronting his organization's ministry, he replied that he worries about the tendency toward secularization. That is, with his organization involved in a wide variety of social ministries aimed at meeting the needs of the poor and oppressed, he fears and fights against the temptation to get sucked into the purely secular side of that effort, given that the biblically prescribed holistic mission they attempt to fulfill also demands a focus on evangelism and sharing the gospel to meet the spiritual needs of the lost. I commented in response that I suspected he had received a lot of criticism from the religious right about not being evangelistic enough, and he graciously replied that he was grateful for that emphasis and those who would hold him and his organization accountable to the task of evangelism.
I think I might have mentioned previously after hearing Dr. Campolo again this past spring at the Baptist Border Crossing event in Kansas City that he excels in the art of prophetic preaching that is designed to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. He surely has a gift for the latter. I'm very grateful for the chance to have spent a few minutes with him on the phone this afternoon and count it a blessing from the Lord.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Rick Warren quote
I received an email from a church member with a portion of a transcript of an interview with Rick Warren, conducted by Paul Bradshaw. There was a quote in it that really resonated with me. Warren said this:
"When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better. God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I am than what I do. That's why we're called human beings, not human doings."
When I used to teach Christian ethics in Argentina at the International Baptist Theological Seminary, in one of the introductory classes I would always do a little exercise with the students about the relationship between being and doing. It's based on the age-old debate or question, does who I am determine what I do, or does what I do determine who I am? I would put the two options to a vote before any discussion to see how many students favored which of the two options. After giving some examples of cases that seemed to support each of the alternatives and some lively discussions, the consensus reached by the class generally was that the two questions represent a false dichotomy. The truth is probably somewhere in between the two extremes and represents a dynamic tension between them.
I can both argue that I do what I do because of who I am, and that I am who I am because of a history or pattern of doing what I do. Warren's quote above emphasizes a bit more the need to focus on who I am in relationship to God. It's not about impressing God by what I attempt to do in His service as much as it is delighting myself in His person and presence. That's a good reminder in the middle of a busy week of ministry.
"When I get up in the morning, I sit on the side of my bed and say, God, if I don't get anything else done today, I want to know You more and love You better. God didn't put me on earth just to fulfill a to-do list. He's more interested in what I am than what I do. That's why we're called human beings, not human doings."
When I used to teach Christian ethics in Argentina at the International Baptist Theological Seminary, in one of the introductory classes I would always do a little exercise with the students about the relationship between being and doing. It's based on the age-old debate or question, does who I am determine what I do, or does what I do determine who I am? I would put the two options to a vote before any discussion to see how many students favored which of the two options. After giving some examples of cases that seemed to support each of the alternatives and some lively discussions, the consensus reached by the class generally was that the two questions represent a false dichotomy. The truth is probably somewhere in between the two extremes and represents a dynamic tension between them.
I can both argue that I do what I do because of who I am, and that I am who I am because of a history or pattern of doing what I do. Warren's quote above emphasizes a bit more the need to focus on who I am in relationship to God. It's not about impressing God by what I attempt to do in His service as much as it is delighting myself in His person and presence. That's a good reminder in the middle of a busy week of ministry.
Bob Roberts
I mentioned a while back having attended an outstanding missions conference at Frederick Blvd. Baptist Church in St. Joseph, MO entitled Forum One-21. One of the really top-notch speakers featured was Bob Roberts. His message at the conference is now available on-line here. Thanks, Micah and crew, for making that available.
Dr. Roberts will also be the featured speaker at the annual meeting of the Blue River-Kansas City Baptist Association on Sunday evening, October 11th, at FBC Raytown, MO. More information about the gathering is available at the association's website.
Dr. Roberts will also be the featured speaker at the annual meeting of the Blue River-Kansas City Baptist Association on Sunday evening, October 11th, at FBC Raytown, MO. More information about the gathering is available at the association's website.
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Writing History
I realized I hadn't shared an update in quite some time about the status of my major ongoing project which is trying to get a history of our church written in time for its 150th anniversary celebration next April. I've found a different possibility for a printer than the one I was originally considering using that will give me a couple of more months of writing and editing time than I had first anticipated. I'm grateful for that and will certainly need the extra time I'm sure. As it is, I have finished reading all 150 years worth of the minutes (minus the 10 years that are missing because they were stored in a church clerk's home and were destroyed in a house fire) and am writing a first draft. I'm up to 1917 and in my fourth chapter in my chronological approach, so I am making progress. It does take a lot of time which at times can be a scarce commodity with my other pastoral responsibilities and my part-time job with the Baptist General Convention of Missouri.
Speaking of the latter, we had an excellent quarterly board meeting of the BGCM yesterday in Jefferson City at the FBC there. I was privileged to share a brief report, including a Powerpoint presentation, about the most recent trip to Guatemala at the end of July. There's a great deal of interest among our board in the ongoing partnership with Guatemalan Baptists. I took advantage as well of the time to twist the arm of one of the pastors from the St. Louis area and encourage him to join us for the next trip in January to Guatemala to conduct leadership training conferences.
Today I'm trying to catch up on a little cleaning around the house, hope to catch a bit of the game between UT and Wyoming this afternoon, and then will go and see my wife's production of "Cheaper by the Dozen" at her school tonight. She said the two previous shows have gone well. I missed them because of other commitments, including going to the youngest son's homecoming game last night. He's the junior drum major in the marching band.
Speaking of the latter, we had an excellent quarterly board meeting of the BGCM yesterday in Jefferson City at the FBC there. I was privileged to share a brief report, including a Powerpoint presentation, about the most recent trip to Guatemala at the end of July. There's a great deal of interest among our board in the ongoing partnership with Guatemalan Baptists. I took advantage as well of the time to twist the arm of one of the pastors from the St. Louis area and encourage him to join us for the next trip in January to Guatemala to conduct leadership training conferences.
Today I'm trying to catch up on a little cleaning around the house, hope to catch a bit of the game between UT and Wyoming this afternoon, and then will go and see my wife's production of "Cheaper by the Dozen" at her school tonight. She said the two previous shows have gone well. I missed them because of other commitments, including going to the youngest son's homecoming game last night. He's the junior drum major in the marching band.
Tuesday, September 08, 2009
Finishing Well
The following is my latest article for our senior adult newsletter, the Joyful Tidings.
Is there an upper age limit for being a disciple? By that I mean is there a time that we reach in our lives when we’ve either gotten sufficiently old or been a Christian long enough that we can somehow unplug and coast for the rest of the way home? These questions are of such a nature that by merely asking them, one automatically knows the right response. We’re never so old and certainly never so spiritually mature that we can rest on our laurels as Christians and cease striving to know Him better and live for Him more fully. While all of us would undoubtedly agree with the truths of those statements, somehow in actual practice we’re tempted at times to do just that. Perhaps you’ve been an active church member for most or all of your life and you’ve rationalized in your mind that it’s now someone else’s turn to serve, to give, to teach, or whatever other ministry you’ve been doing.
I’m not saying of course that we as a congregation don’t need to develop and utilize younger folks in leadership roles, for certainly we must do that. What I am insisting is that I cannot find a single example in the pages of Scripture of an individual who decided that it was time for him or her to kick back and relax and leave the responsibilities for worship and service to someone else. Rather, it seems that advancing age only solidified and strengthened the resolve of these folks to utilize whatever time they had left to serve God and advance His Kingdom’s causes. This isn’t to say of course that one should never engage in recreation and relaxation, for we know that these are beneficial for our bodies which are the temple of the Holy Spirit. What I do believe we find in the Bible though is that individuals in their later years who had walked with God for a long time never seemed to wane in their level of commitment to Him. They seem to have taken to heart the words of Jesus in Matt. 6:33 where He said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
It’s a question of priorities in the final analysis, and I trust that each of you will desire that your life count for the Lord right up until the time He calls you home or when Jesus returns for His church. Jesus said, “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.” Keep serving Him faithfully!
Is there an upper age limit for being a disciple? By that I mean is there a time that we reach in our lives when we’ve either gotten sufficiently old or been a Christian long enough that we can somehow unplug and coast for the rest of the way home? These questions are of such a nature that by merely asking them, one automatically knows the right response. We’re never so old and certainly never so spiritually mature that we can rest on our laurels as Christians and cease striving to know Him better and live for Him more fully. While all of us would undoubtedly agree with the truths of those statements, somehow in actual practice we’re tempted at times to do just that. Perhaps you’ve been an active church member for most or all of your life and you’ve rationalized in your mind that it’s now someone else’s turn to serve, to give, to teach, or whatever other ministry you’ve been doing.
I’m not saying of course that we as a congregation don’t need to develop and utilize younger folks in leadership roles, for certainly we must do that. What I am insisting is that I cannot find a single example in the pages of Scripture of an individual who decided that it was time for him or her to kick back and relax and leave the responsibilities for worship and service to someone else. Rather, it seems that advancing age only solidified and strengthened the resolve of these folks to utilize whatever time they had left to serve God and advance His Kingdom’s causes. This isn’t to say of course that one should never engage in recreation and relaxation, for we know that these are beneficial for our bodies which are the temple of the Holy Spirit. What I do believe we find in the Bible though is that individuals in their later years who had walked with God for a long time never seemed to wane in their level of commitment to Him. They seem to have taken to heart the words of Jesus in Matt. 6:33 where He said, “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
It’s a question of priorities in the final analysis, and I trust that each of you will desire that your life count for the Lord right up until the time He calls you home or when Jesus returns for His church. Jesus said, “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.” Keep serving Him faithfully!
Monday, August 31, 2009
Follow-up to Forum 121 Gathering
In re-reading my own post (something I don't do very often), I was struck by the fact that one comment I made might easily lend itself to misinterpretation and I wanted to clarify it. I had remarked that I didn't feel that it was necessary for Dr. Reid to sing the praises once more of the Conservative Resurgence and comment on the fact that there will always be a battle to be fought for the Bible. My concluding sentence in that paragraph states, "Angry and argumentative Baptists who excoriate fellow believers with hate-filled words simply aren't fulfilling the command of Jesus to love one another, no matter how much they insist that they're merely defending sound biblical doctrine." As I thought about it, I realized that some might take those words as a criticism of Dr. Reid's own demeanor or presentation at the conference. He in no way was guilty of such an attitude or action from my perspective. His words were gracious and his illustrations clearly indicated a man who shares the love of Christ with a heart of compassion for others. My comment stands though in the sense that his tribute to the Resurgence did nothing in my opinion to strengthen his presentation. It was more like the perfunctory bone tossed to the dogs to keep them hungry and wanting more. I encounter numerous commenters on the Baptist blogsites in particular who can't even conceive of a moderate Baptist as belonging to the family of God and are quick to lash out with accusations of liberal, etc. whenever someone dares to question one of their interpretations. There seemingly exists an utter inability in the fundamentalist mindset to be able to separate the action of questioning their interpretation of a passage with rejecting the Bible itself.
My apologies to Dr. Reid and the forum organizers if my comments somehow indicated that he was guilty of angry or hate-filled speech toward fellow Christians, for he most certainly was not.
My apologies to Dr. Reid and the forum organizers if my comments somehow indicated that he was guilty of angry or hate-filled speech toward fellow Christians, for he most certainly was not.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Forum 121 Gathering
I very much enjoyed the Forum 121 gathering this weekend that was held at Frederick Blvd. Baptist Church in St. Joseph. The 121 stands for First Century Mission, 21st Century Practices. The most challenging speaker for me of the entire conference was Bob Roberts whom I had heard a number of years ago but not in recent times. Bob is the pastor of the Northwood Church in Keller, TX and they've been instrumental in starting something like 90 different churches. They have a major focus internationally in Hanoi, North Vietnam, and Bob meets with leaders from across the world, including many Muslims, to seek ways to partner in bettering the living conditions of many living in poverty. He truly has a Kingdom focus, despite his Southern Baptist upbringing in East Texas. He alluded to the cosmic nature of Jesus' role where Paul says in Colossians 1 that Jesus came to redeem all things. He spoke extensively about discipleship and made one statement that really struck me. His comment was that we have to push evangelism in our churches because we don't have disciples. Speaking of missional living, he also posed the question, "What if God gave people their jobs not to make a living but to make a difference?"
Rodney Reeves, professor at Southwest Bapt. Univ. in Bolivar, MO also did a great job with his conference on First Century Missional Practices. His introduction followed Bob Roberts' thoughts about the Kingdom, saying that the church is not an end in itself but the means to an end which is the Kingdom of God. Taking the model of Paul, he suggesting our ministry must be prophetic, incarnational, and community-focused.
The other conference leader whose presentation I really enjoyed was Allan Karr, a missions professor at the Denver campus of Golden Gate Seminary. One of his statements that grabbed me was this--"If you make disciples, church happens." He then proceeded to outline a series of shifts needed to achieve a viable 21st Century ecclesiology and expressed them in terms of respiration, breathing in and out.
1. Breathe in - From extrabiblical traditions to biblical minimums. This echoed strongly what Wade Burleson and others have been encouraging Baptists to do in not going beyond the Scriptures themselves in our demands for conformity around non-essentials.
2. Breathe out - From institutional church-based to Kingdom of God based ecclesiology.
3. Breathe in - From a regional focus to a neighborsphere/local community focus.
4. Breathe out - From an organizational maintenance focus to an incarnational community transformation focus.
5. Breathe in - From hierarchical structure to shared leadership.
6. Breathe out - From "going to church" to "being the church."
7. Breathe in - From a focus on a main gathering to "doing life together."
8. Breathe out - From "right belief" to living out sound biblical doctrine holistically.
9. Breathe in - From efficiency-driven strategies to collaborative relational efforts.
10. Breathe out - From strategies of the flesh to a reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit.
Alvin Reid of Southeastern Seminary also did a very good job of highlighting 8 keys for missional living. His main focus, not surprisingly given his role as an evangelism professor, was to focus on evangelism and sharing, using Paul's example in 1 & 2 Thessalonians for his text and point of departure. My only criticism comes from my own admittedly moderate viewpoint. I just didn't see the need for him to extol the virtues of the Conservative Resurgence and stress that there will always be a battle to be fought for the Bible. Moderate or historical Baptists don't have a problem affirming the truth and authority of the Scriptures whatsoever. Allan Karr's comments regarding his 8th point about the shift from right belief to living out sound biblical doctrine holistically resonates much stronger with me. He said that for far too long we've emphasized knowledge and content rather than transformed living. Angry and argumentative Baptists who excoriate fellow believers with hate-filled words simply aren't fulfilling the command of Jesus to love one another, no matter how much they insist that they're merely defending sound biblical doctrine.
Finally, to end on a more positive note, I was strongly encouraged by the great turnout of college students and 20-somethings who were clearly passionate about what was being shared. There weren't a lot of folks my age there, but the millenials and Gen-X'rs are certainly tuning in to the theme of living missionally. That gives me hope.
Rodney Reeves, professor at Southwest Bapt. Univ. in Bolivar, MO also did a great job with his conference on First Century Missional Practices. His introduction followed Bob Roberts' thoughts about the Kingdom, saying that the church is not an end in itself but the means to an end which is the Kingdom of God. Taking the model of Paul, he suggesting our ministry must be prophetic, incarnational, and community-focused.
The other conference leader whose presentation I really enjoyed was Allan Karr, a missions professor at the Denver campus of Golden Gate Seminary. One of his statements that grabbed me was this--"If you make disciples, church happens." He then proceeded to outline a series of shifts needed to achieve a viable 21st Century ecclesiology and expressed them in terms of respiration, breathing in and out.
1. Breathe in - From extrabiblical traditions to biblical minimums. This echoed strongly what Wade Burleson and others have been encouraging Baptists to do in not going beyond the Scriptures themselves in our demands for conformity around non-essentials.
2. Breathe out - From institutional church-based to Kingdom of God based ecclesiology.
3. Breathe in - From a regional focus to a neighborsphere/local community focus.
4. Breathe out - From an organizational maintenance focus to an incarnational community transformation focus.
5. Breathe in - From hierarchical structure to shared leadership.
6. Breathe out - From "going to church" to "being the church."
7. Breathe in - From a focus on a main gathering to "doing life together."
8. Breathe out - From "right belief" to living out sound biblical doctrine holistically.
9. Breathe in - From efficiency-driven strategies to collaborative relational efforts.
10. Breathe out - From strategies of the flesh to a reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit.
Alvin Reid of Southeastern Seminary also did a very good job of highlighting 8 keys for missional living. His main focus, not surprisingly given his role as an evangelism professor, was to focus on evangelism and sharing, using Paul's example in 1 & 2 Thessalonians for his text and point of departure. My only criticism comes from my own admittedly moderate viewpoint. I just didn't see the need for him to extol the virtues of the Conservative Resurgence and stress that there will always be a battle to be fought for the Bible. Moderate or historical Baptists don't have a problem affirming the truth and authority of the Scriptures whatsoever. Allan Karr's comments regarding his 8th point about the shift from right belief to living out sound biblical doctrine holistically resonates much stronger with me. He said that for far too long we've emphasized knowledge and content rather than transformed living. Angry and argumentative Baptists who excoriate fellow believers with hate-filled words simply aren't fulfilling the command of Jesus to love one another, no matter how much they insist that they're merely defending sound biblical doctrine.
Finally, to end on a more positive note, I was strongly encouraged by the great turnout of college students and 20-somethings who were clearly passionate about what was being shared. There weren't a lot of folks my age there, but the millenials and Gen-X'rs are certainly tuning in to the theme of living missionally. That gives me hope.
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Last night in our Wednesday evening prayer meeting and Bible study time, we were looking at the healing of the lame beggar as Luke describes the account in Acts 3:1-10 and a portion of Peter's sermon that follows, beginning in v. 12. As I was preparing for the study this past week, a phrase jumped out and grabbed me and I've wrestled with it all week. It's not that it's difficult to understand. It's the impact of the words themselves and the irony they portray. While not an oxymoron as such, the phrase strikes with the force of one. I'm referring to Peter's words in v. 15 where he says of the Jewish leaders who demanded Barabbas' release and Jesus' crucifixion that they had "put to death the Prince of life." The word translated as Prince is the same one translated as author in Heb. 2:10 and as author or pioneer in Heb. 12:2. The notion of having put to death the author or source of life gripped me and I've not been able to shake that verbal image from my mind.
As I pondered that a bit more last evening after the study, it brought to mind another one of those biblical statements that exemplifies this same irony. This one is found in Paul's 2nd letter to the church at Corinth - 2 Cor. 5:21 - where we read, "He (God) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin our our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." The sinless One became sin for us so that we might taste and experience His righteousness.
I suspect that there are many other affirmations in the Bible that possess this same ironic, or oxymoronic type of an impact. Anyone care to suggest another that you've encountered?
As I pondered that a bit more last evening after the study, it brought to mind another one of those biblical statements that exemplifies this same irony. This one is found in Paul's 2nd letter to the church at Corinth - 2 Cor. 5:21 - where we read, "He (God) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin our our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him." The sinless One became sin for us so that we might taste and experience His righteousness.
I suspect that there are many other affirmations in the Bible that possess this same ironic, or oxymoronic type of an impact. Anyone care to suggest another that you've encountered?
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Great Quote
One of the blessings I enjoy each day is receiving in my email inbox a daily devotion from the Ravi Zacharias ministry. The devotional series is called "A Slice of Infinity" and is written by a number of different writers on their team. The author who never fails to disappoint with an extremely-well written and thought-provoking devotional is the managing editor, Jill Carratini. In today's piece, Carratini included a quote from Walter Brueggemann in his book, Awed to Heaven, Rooted in Earth . Brueggemann's statement is worth pondering as we think of our tendency to create God in our own image.
We are your people and mostly we don't mind,
except that you do not fit any of our categories.
We keep pushing and pulling and twisting and turning,
trying to make you fit the God we would rather have
and every time we distort you that way
we end up with an idol more congenial to us.
In Isaiah 44:6-10 and following, the prophet records the words of God Himself as He reminds Israel that He has no rivals, for He alone is God. All attempts to replace Him with an idol are doomed to failure and merely reveal the folly of those who look elsewhere for strength and guidance.
We are your people and mostly we don't mind,
except that you do not fit any of our categories.
We keep pushing and pulling and twisting and turning,
trying to make you fit the God we would rather have
and every time we distort you that way
we end up with an idol more congenial to us.
In Isaiah 44:6-10 and following, the prophet records the words of God Himself as He reminds Israel that He has no rivals, for He alone is God. All attempts to replace Him with an idol are doomed to failure and merely reveal the folly of those who look elsewhere for strength and guidance.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Missions emphasis this coming Sunday evening
At times it’s difficult to keep track of all that our church is doing in the area of missions. There is such a wide variety of ongoing missions projects in which we’re engaged in addition to the special emphases we participate in either be sending volunteers or providing financial support to enable others to go or to undergird their ministries. This coming Sunday night will focus on missions as Janis Mansker (our children's minister) and I share a brief report regarding our trip to Guatemala at the end of July and the team of 9 that went to the motorcycle rally in Sturgis, South Dakota will share pictures and testimonies of their experiences of sharing the gospel with the bikers there. Furthermore, we’ll have the privilege as well to hear a brief update from Eduardo Soto Padín, the pastor of the Evangelical Baptist Church of the Word in Fajardo, Puerto Rico that our church partnered with for several years to assist them in building their worship center.
We are blessed by the Lord in order for us in turn to bless others, and our ongoing missions program is one great way of sharing that blessing. Our church actively suppoprt a number of groups and organizations-—Lee’s Summit Social Services, City Union Mission, Hope House, Rachel House, Hillcrest Ministries, Harvesters, KidsHeart Africa, and the Special Care Home at Peculiar to name just a few-—in addition to our regular budget offerings that support missionaries in the U.S. and around the world. It's exciting to be a part of a church that seeks concrete ways to be involved in and support the work of missions both locally, nationally, and internationally.
We are blessed by the Lord in order for us in turn to bless others, and our ongoing missions program is one great way of sharing that blessing. Our church actively suppoprt a number of groups and organizations-—Lee’s Summit Social Services, City Union Mission, Hope House, Rachel House, Hillcrest Ministries, Harvesters, KidsHeart Africa, and the Special Care Home at Peculiar to name just a few-—in addition to our regular budget offerings that support missionaries in the U.S. and around the world. It's exciting to be a part of a church that seeks concrete ways to be involved in and support the work of missions both locally, nationally, and internationally.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Strategic Planning
I attended the initial meeting in a series of four projected gatherings whose purpose is to enable the Baptist General Convention of Missouri to formulate a new strategic plan and initiatives for the next five years. One of the blessings of working with such a young convention is that we're not bound by lots of tradition and bureaucracy. That provides a great deal of freedom to engage in some creative thinking and searching about where God would have us be five years from now. Today we basically looked at three different methodologies to help us assess the current realities and challenges we face as well as identifying a large number of groups (most of them being para-church organizations) that are engaging in some creative ministries. The plan calls for us to interview key leaders in these organizations in addition to conducting some listening sessions in churches and encouraging lots of folks to complete an on-line survey to help us assess what they sense the most pressing needs are in their congregations.
It was a productive day with some good fellowship and dialogue as the group worked to develop some exploratory questions for both the listening sessions and the online survey after we had dialogued exensively about the groups we knew of that we doing some "out of the box" things in ministry.
It was a productive day with some good fellowship and dialogue as the group worked to develop some exploratory questions for both the listening sessions and the online survey after we had dialogued exensively about the groups we knew of that we doing some "out of the box" things in ministry.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Famous Quotes on Missions
I was deeply moved last night by our church's drama ministry (entitled First Acts) and its presentation in a readers' theatre format of “Bridge of Blood”--the story of Jim Elliott and his colleagues' efforts to evangelize the Aucas of Ecuador. I had first been exposed to the life of Jim Elliott back in seminary days and his famous quote, “He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose,” has challenged my life for the past 30 years or more. In that same vein, I thought I’d share a few other memorable quotes from missionaries and Christian statesmen on the subject of missions.
“Christ alone can save the world, but Christ cannot save the world alone” - David Livingstone.
“I have but one candle of life to burn, and I would rather burn it out in a land filled with darkness than in a land flooded with light” - John Keith Falconer.
“God isn't looking for people of great faith, but for individuals ready to follow Him” - Hudson Taylor.
“Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell; I wish to run a rescue mission within a yard of hell” - C.T. Studd.
“Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God” - William Carey.
“If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him” - C.T. Studd.
“No one has the right to hear the gospel twice, while there remains someone who has not heard it once” - Oswald J. Smith.
“We talk of the Second Coming; half the world has never heard of the first” - Oswald J. Smith.
“The mark of a great church is not its seating capacity, but its sending capacity” - Mike Stachura.
When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, “You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages.” To that, Calvert replied, “We died before we came here.”
“Christ alone can save the world, but Christ cannot save the world alone” - David Livingstone.
“I have but one candle of life to burn, and I would rather burn it out in a land filled with darkness than in a land flooded with light” - John Keith Falconer.
“God isn't looking for people of great faith, but for individuals ready to follow Him” - Hudson Taylor.
“Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell; I wish to run a rescue mission within a yard of hell” - C.T. Studd.
“Expect great things from God; attempt great things for God” - William Carey.
“If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him” - C.T. Studd.
“No one has the right to hear the gospel twice, while there remains someone who has not heard it once” - Oswald J. Smith.
“We talk of the Second Coming; half the world has never heard of the first” - Oswald J. Smith.
“The mark of a great church is not its seating capacity, but its sending capacity” - Mike Stachura.
When James Calvert went out as a missionary to the cannibals of the Fiji Islands, the ship captain tried to turn him back, saying, “You will lose your life and the lives of those with you if you go among such savages.” To that, Calvert replied, “We died before we came here.”
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Guatemala Update
We had an outstanding time in Quetzaltenango with the leadership training conferences on Tuesday and Wednesday, returning to Guatemala City late in the afternoon yesterday. Both Verlyn and Janis did a wonderful job with their teaching times and the contents of their talks were very well received. As always, there were a large number of questions and comments by the workshop participants. They really do enjoy interacting with the conference leaders on these trips.
I didn't verify an actual number of participants at this event, but I would judge we were right at the number of 80 which is upper limit that we've placed on the conferences--mainly from the standpoint of budget concerns. In addition to covering the cost of lodging, food, and the conference room space itself, we also provide some books each time to help these pastors and lay leaders expand their libraries with some good materials that will help them in their ministries.
I never cease to be moved by the expressions of gratitude and appreciation that our Guatemalan brethren share with us for having provided these training events. We've actually done 6 of these to this point (I think I mistakenly said 7 in an earlier post), and each time has been a tremendous blessing. Most of the pastors and leaders have attended all 6 of the sessions though we do pick up a new church or group of leaders from time to time, or a church opts to send some different leaders to accompany their pastor for the training.
The hugs, kisses, etc. as we leave are always part of an emotional farewell until we get together again six months down the road. I'm extremely grateful for the BGCM and the Baptist churches in Missouri that make these trips and training events possible. I don't think that perhaps we'll know this side of heaven just what all has been accomplished through these conferences. I do know that I consistently hear testimonies from the pastors and leaders who attend that the topics and themes that we cover have always been timely and apropos to the situation in which their congregation finds itself, so they've been able to implement the teachings in their local setting.
Today we're off to Antigua for some sightseeing before flying home early tomorrow morning. We'll probably be up around 4:00 a.m. to get to the airport in time for a 7:00 flight out, assuming it's on time. The other thing we're doing this morning before heading to Antigua is visiting the Tabitha Ministry that Carol, our partnership liaison has with the women and their children who live near the city dump here in Guatemala City. We have brought a couple of suitcases stuffed with children's and baby clothes for the ministry and will have a chance to deliver that to them.
I didn't verify an actual number of participants at this event, but I would judge we were right at the number of 80 which is upper limit that we've placed on the conferences--mainly from the standpoint of budget concerns. In addition to covering the cost of lodging, food, and the conference room space itself, we also provide some books each time to help these pastors and lay leaders expand their libraries with some good materials that will help them in their ministries.
I never cease to be moved by the expressions of gratitude and appreciation that our Guatemalan brethren share with us for having provided these training events. We've actually done 6 of these to this point (I think I mistakenly said 7 in an earlier post), and each time has been a tremendous blessing. Most of the pastors and leaders have attended all 6 of the sessions though we do pick up a new church or group of leaders from time to time, or a church opts to send some different leaders to accompany their pastor for the training.
The hugs, kisses, etc. as we leave are always part of an emotional farewell until we get together again six months down the road. I'm extremely grateful for the BGCM and the Baptist churches in Missouri that make these trips and training events possible. I don't think that perhaps we'll know this side of heaven just what all has been accomplished through these conferences. I do know that I consistently hear testimonies from the pastors and leaders who attend that the topics and themes that we cover have always been timely and apropos to the situation in which their congregation finds itself, so they've been able to implement the teachings in their local setting.
Today we're off to Antigua for some sightseeing before flying home early tomorrow morning. We'll probably be up around 4:00 a.m. to get to the airport in time for a 7:00 flight out, assuming it's on time. The other thing we're doing this morning before heading to Antigua is visiting the Tabitha Ministry that Carol, our partnership liaison has with the women and their children who live near the city dump here in Guatemala City. We have brought a couple of suitcases stuffed with children's and baby clothes for the ministry and will have a chance to deliver that to them.
Friday, July 24, 2009
Guatemala Bound
Monday afternoon I'll be heading southward again for the latest round of leadership training conferences with Guatemalan pastors and lay leaders. We anticipate a good crowd of close to 80 to be in attendance this time. Accompanying me will be the children's minister from our church, Janis Mansker, and a BGCM colleague, Verlyn Bergen. Both bring a lot of expertise in their fields and undoubtedly will make a significant contribution as conference leaders. For this occasion, I'm going to just fill the role of translator for their workshops. Janis has been to Guatemala previously when we went in February 2008 for a week-long missions trip to Cantel and did VBS, spoke in public schools, and conducted leadership conferences for four area churches. This will be Verlyn's first trip with us to Guatemala.
It will be a quick trip this time--down on Monday, driving out to Quetzaltenango on Tuesday morning in order to arrive in time for lunch and then 3 sessions that day. Wednesday we wrap up with two more sessions and will be heading back to Guatemala City late that afternoon. We'll do some sightseeing in Antigua on Thursday before winging our way home on Friday. These are kind of whirlwind trips, but it enables church staff members to make a meaningful contribution as a conference leader while not having to miss out on services and responsibilities in their own churches. If you stumble by the blog and have read down this far, please remember us in prayer this coming week as we minister in Guatemala. Thanks!
It will be a quick trip this time--down on Monday, driving out to Quetzaltenango on Tuesday morning in order to arrive in time for lunch and then 3 sessions that day. Wednesday we wrap up with two more sessions and will be heading back to Guatemala City late that afternoon. We'll do some sightseeing in Antigua on Thursday before winging our way home on Friday. These are kind of whirlwind trips, but it enables church staff members to make a meaningful contribution as a conference leader while not having to miss out on services and responsibilities in their own churches. If you stumble by the blog and have read down this far, please remember us in prayer this coming week as we minister in Guatemala. Thanks!
Thursday, July 23, 2009
Getting Your Goat
I can’t attest 100% to the accuracy of the following, but I ran across an interesting explanation of the phrase “to get someone’s goat.” You’ve probably heard or maybe even used that phrase before, though it seems to be fading out of common usage today. The phrase supposedly originated from the practice of the owners of racehorses keeping a goat as a stable companion for their horse. With both being herd animals, the goat presumably had a calming influence on the racehorse and kept him from being excessively jittery. If you owned a competing horse and wanted to improve your odds of winning, you would steal the competitor’s goat so as to upset the horse and make it run a poor race. From this practice, the phrase came to describe the action of doing something to upset another person—to get their goat.
What is it that most frequently “gets your goat?” What is the usual source of irritation that provokes you to become upset? The answer to those questions will of course vary from person to person, but it’s worth asking ourselves what it is that we allow to disturb and disrupt our peace of mind. Sometimes the provocation is something over which we have absolutely no control. At other times, perhaps we can identify the source of the conflict and thus not put ourselves in the same situation so as to experience those distressing feelings.
While we may not always be able to control the source of the irritation, we still can choose how we will respond to the irritant. We read in Prov. 15:1, “a gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.” That’s great advice if the source of conflict is another person’s words. But what about when it’s just the circumstances of life that upset us? It’s then that we claim the promise of Jesus when He said, “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; do not let your heart be troubled” (Jn. 14:27). His supernatural peace can be ours as we daily trust in Him.
(The above post comes from an article I wrote for our Senior Adults' monthly newsletter).
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Summer Adult Bible Study Series
This summer I resurrected an event that I had conducted my first 4 summers on staff here. For whatever reason, last summer I failed to lead what at that time we were promoting as an Adult Vacation Bible School. I was scolded by some of my senior adults (very nicely of course) for not having offered it because they told me they really missed it. I have to confess that I missed it as well. Each summer it's been one of the highlights of the entire year to get together each evening of one week (actually we go Monday through Thursday night) and study a book of the Bible.
I suppose the format is similar to the days when January Bible studies were common in Southern Baptist life, only we choose to do it in the summer. In the past years we've studied Romans, Colossians, James, and 2nd Timothy. I have to confess that Romans was a real challenge to cover in four nights. I much prefer taking a shorter book where you can at least spend one evening looking at a chapter or so. In previous years, we split the evening in two parts with either a missionary report from a team that had recently gone on a missions trip, a musical program, or other speaker, followed by refreshments, followed by the Bible study time.
This year I've decided with the name change to simplify the format as well. We are studying 1 John this year and my plans are to take about 45-50 minutes each night to cover the Bible study portion and then being good Baptists, we have to have some refreshments and fellowship time afterwards. Last night it was cookies and brownies. Ice cream is on the agenda for this evening and then cakes and pies on Wednesday night. By Thursday, we'll try to both wrap up the study of chapter 5 and finish off whatever leftover desserts there are by that time.
We had a good group of about 80 in attendance last night. That number down just a bit from previous years, but it's still a wonderful group to show up mid-summer to study the Scriptures together. I am energized by the teaching opportunity as well as the gift of teaching is the one that God seems to have most blessed me with to serve His church.
Next week it's off to Guatemala once more for another round of leadership training classes with pastors and lay leaders in the western region. Our children's minister will be joining me as a conference leader as well as a colleague with the BGCM who leads out in the area of church relations. It should be another exciting week of ministry and fellowship with these pastors whom I've come to love deeply.
I suppose the format is similar to the days when January Bible studies were common in Southern Baptist life, only we choose to do it in the summer. In the past years we've studied Romans, Colossians, James, and 2nd Timothy. I have to confess that Romans was a real challenge to cover in four nights. I much prefer taking a shorter book where you can at least spend one evening looking at a chapter or so. In previous years, we split the evening in two parts with either a missionary report from a team that had recently gone on a missions trip, a musical program, or other speaker, followed by refreshments, followed by the Bible study time.
This year I've decided with the name change to simplify the format as well. We are studying 1 John this year and my plans are to take about 45-50 minutes each night to cover the Bible study portion and then being good Baptists, we have to have some refreshments and fellowship time afterwards. Last night it was cookies and brownies. Ice cream is on the agenda for this evening and then cakes and pies on Wednesday night. By Thursday, we'll try to both wrap up the study of chapter 5 and finish off whatever leftover desserts there are by that time.
We had a good group of about 80 in attendance last night. That number down just a bit from previous years, but it's still a wonderful group to show up mid-summer to study the Scriptures together. I am energized by the teaching opportunity as well as the gift of teaching is the one that God seems to have most blessed me with to serve His church.
Next week it's off to Guatemala once more for another round of leadership training classes with pastors and lay leaders in the western region. Our children's minister will be joining me as a conference leader as well as a colleague with the BGCM who leads out in the area of church relations. It should be another exciting week of ministry and fellowship with these pastors whom I've come to love deeply.
Saturday, July 04, 2009
Projects
I've been pretty remiss about posting anything on my blog for the past few weeks. Life has been pretty busy and I've been working on several projects simultaneously. With summer, my wife isn't teaching and has had a rather lengthy honey-do list to do. I'm also trying to get prepared for a week-long summer adult Bible study series on the book of 1 John. Last year I didn't do one of these for the first time since I've been on staff here and there was a clamor to resume the activity this year. I've also been translating the outlines for the conference leaders for the next trip to Guatemala which is scheduled for July 27-31.
Finally, the biggest time-consumer has been working on the church history project in an attempt to write a church history and get it published in time for our 150th anniversary celebration next spring. Reading through and taking notes on 150 years of minutes when the church met monthly for business meetings represents a huge undertaking and a lot of time invested. It's been an interesting process and I've still get a ways to go. I'm up to 1981 in the minutes now. When I finish the minutes, there are still other sources to research including our church's newsletter which has been published since the 1940s or so.
I'm afraid my posting is still likely to be sporadic due to these projects, but I'll try to do a brief update from time to time. Thanks to those who stop by occasionally or frequently to check on updates.
Finally, the biggest time-consumer has been working on the church history project in an attempt to write a church history and get it published in time for our 150th anniversary celebration next spring. Reading through and taking notes on 150 years of minutes when the church met monthly for business meetings represents a huge undertaking and a lot of time invested. It's been an interesting process and I've still get a ways to go. I'm up to 1981 in the minutes now. When I finish the minutes, there are still other sources to research including our church's newsletter which has been published since the 1940s or so.
I'm afraid my posting is still likely to be sporadic due to these projects, but I'll try to do a brief update from time to time. Thanks to those who stop by occasionally or frequently to check on updates.
Monday, June 15, 2009
Racism and the Power of the Gospel
As a denomination, Southern Baptists haven’t always been at their best in the area of race relations. Southern Baptists were born out of the slavery controversy in the years leading up to the Civil War, and many preachers used biblical texts to justify the continuation of the South’s “peculiar institution.” Even after freedom for African Americans was declared, the general population’s prejudice continued to display itself.
I read recently an article about the first African American graduate of West Point Academy. Henry Ossian Flipper, born in 1856 as a slave in Thomasville, GA, became the first African American to graduate from the U.S. Military Academy on June 15, 1877. Flipper was appointed a second lieutenant in the all-African American 10th Cavalry and was assigned to Fort Sill in what was then Indian Territory. The amazing thing about the article was its report that not one white cadet ever spoke to Flipper in his entire four-year period of study at West Point. That someone would treat a fellow soldier and fellow human being with such disdain and contempt boggles the imagination.
Racial prejudice and hatred can be deep-seated, but the power of the gospel is capable of radically transforming the human heart and bringing love and acceptance where these destructive emotions once reigned. Paul’s words to the church at Ephesus about Jesus being our peace and abolishing in His flesh the hatred between Jew and Gentile surely apply equally to the lingering expressions of racism and prejudice in our day as well (Eph. 2:14-16). Paul says that both groups have been reconciled in one body (the church) to God through the cross. No wonder Paul’s message was Jesus and Him crucified. May that be our theme as well.
I read recently an article about the first African American graduate of West Point Academy. Henry Ossian Flipper, born in 1856 as a slave in Thomasville, GA, became the first African American to graduate from the U.S. Military Academy on June 15, 1877. Flipper was appointed a second lieutenant in the all-African American 10th Cavalry and was assigned to Fort Sill in what was then Indian Territory. The amazing thing about the article was its report that not one white cadet ever spoke to Flipper in his entire four-year period of study at West Point. That someone would treat a fellow soldier and fellow human being with such disdain and contempt boggles the imagination.
Racial prejudice and hatred can be deep-seated, but the power of the gospel is capable of radically transforming the human heart and bringing love and acceptance where these destructive emotions once reigned. Paul’s words to the church at Ephesus about Jesus being our peace and abolishing in His flesh the hatred between Jew and Gentile surely apply equally to the lingering expressions of racism and prejudice in our day as well (Eph. 2:14-16). Paul says that both groups have been reconciled in one body (the church) to God through the cross. No wonder Paul’s message was Jesus and Him crucified. May that be our theme as well.
Monday, June 01, 2009
Responding to change
Sociologists have studied the differences in the rates at which groups of people respond to new information and ideas and have devised classification schemes based to describe this behavior. One such scheme speaks of innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, and laggards—with the innovators being the quickest to accept change and the laggards being the last to respond. I thought about that when I ran across a reference to the fact that this past weekend marked the 74th anniversary of the first night game in Major League Baseball history. The Cincinnati Reds played the Philadelphia Phillies on May 24, 1935 under the lights at Crosley Field. Other teams rapidly followed suit and night games became the norm rather than the exception. The last holdout to this trend was the Chicago Cubs. They didn’t play their first night game at Wrigley Field until Aug. 9, 1988, 53 years after the first MLB night game.
Laggards tend to be so tradition-bound that when they finally accept a new behavior or idea, it may well have been rendered obsolete by the innovators who have pushed on to newer frontiers. While we serve a risen Lord who is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8), and while the truths of the Gospel are unchanging, our methodologies and programs must be flexible and adaptive to respond to the ever-changing world in which we live. Time-honored traditions enrich our heritage, but if we’re not careful they can become prisons that entrap us in the past. Let’s not lag behind to the point that we’re left out in the dark.
Laggards tend to be so tradition-bound that when they finally accept a new behavior or idea, it may well have been rendered obsolete by the innovators who have pushed on to newer frontiers. While we serve a risen Lord who is the same yesterday, today, and forever (Hebrews 13:8), and while the truths of the Gospel are unchanging, our methodologies and programs must be flexible and adaptive to respond to the ever-changing world in which we live. Time-honored traditions enrich our heritage, but if we’re not careful they can become prisons that entrap us in the past. Let’s not lag behind to the point that we’re left out in the dark.
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