This week Melanie gave me a copy of Leadership magazine. This issue happened to deal primarily with young adult ministry. There are a bunch of articles in there that I think will be very useful for my Extended Play leaders, so I made sure to make copies. I plan to give them a new article each week that we can discuss. Hopefully providing them with some good resources will help them lead EP once I leave.
One of the biggest things I have started to learn during my internship is the difference between doing ministry busy work and doing work that will have specific value. One of the articles I read was about multi-generational leadership and the growing gap between the various generations in the local church. It spoke of the difference between technical changes and social changes.
Technical changes deal with equipment and logistics. Switching from the organ to the piano to the electric guitar is a technical change. Likewise, changing from gathering at 9 am to 11 am is a technical change. Social changes on the other hand deal with who is the one making the technical changes. It is hard to make technical changes without also making social changes.
Usually, when you make a technical change, there is going to be someone who feels like they are becoming less influential within the local church. It all makes me think back to working at the Salvation Army church in Sussex. So often I tried so hard to make some necessary technical changes without thinking of who was affected by the subsequent social change.
Even when I return from my internship and return to that church, the question on my mind will be: How can I help make effective technical change that will help the congregation, without necessarily making social change that makes people feel like their influence has been diminished?
Saturday, July 25, 2009
The Good, the bad and the "it's not a big deal"
Tonight we had Worship on the Grand. Portland is known as “the city of two rivers” because the Grand River and the Looking Glass River merger together in Portland. Right where the two merge together there is a band shell that, during the summer months, hosts Thursday night music. Every Thursday a different band will play there and people can come and listen.
So tonight, Epic was able to get the band shell for the purpose of showcasing our musical style. The hope is that people will come listen to us and realize that worship music does not have to be old and boring. In addition, we have some bouncy houses for kids and free snow cones that we give out.
However, in order to perform at the band shell we had to tear down all of our sound equipment and haul it over. This is not usually a problem. In fact, most church plants have to tear down everything and set everything up every week. However, the drummer for our church worship band has also taken it upon himself to act as the chief sound technician. Every week, regardless of what he is supposed to be doing, he will be back at the sound board trying to run the sound board. This gets incredibly frustrating when I am supposed to be running the sound and cannot simply because the drummer keeps getting in the way.
While I recognize that he knows a lot about our specific sound system, it comes off and insulting when he does everything by himself and specifically gets in the way of what I am supposed to be doing. It feels like he has the attitude of “I know what I am doing and you obviously do not.”
It was especially frustrating because when it actually came time for me to run the sound system while they were playing on stage, since I had not set anything up, I had very little idea who had which microphone, which guitar was plugged in to which channel, or which monitor was which. So everything became a trial and error adjustment just to get things sounding decent.
It all makes me wonder if I should try to talk to him about the way he is acting. In some ways I feel like I could simply blow it off, since I rarely run sound and have plenty of other things on my plate. But it makes me wonder what possible damage he might be doing to other people, not to mention what that kind of mentality does to him.
But I guess that is the entire idea of sin. The reason sin is sinful is because it separates us from God, each other and ourselves. So the question becomes: If I genuinely care about our drummer as a brother in Christ, should I allow him to continue acting like this? While it is certainly “permissible” is it “beneficial”?
It reminds me of something I have started learning recently. It is rarely evil that keeps us from God. When confronted with a choice between true good and evil, most will obviously choose good. But instead it is the mediocre and the “not so bad” that keep us from God.
So tonight, Epic was able to get the band shell for the purpose of showcasing our musical style. The hope is that people will come listen to us and realize that worship music does not have to be old and boring. In addition, we have some bouncy houses for kids and free snow cones that we give out.
However, in order to perform at the band shell we had to tear down all of our sound equipment and haul it over. This is not usually a problem. In fact, most church plants have to tear down everything and set everything up every week. However, the drummer for our church worship band has also taken it upon himself to act as the chief sound technician. Every week, regardless of what he is supposed to be doing, he will be back at the sound board trying to run the sound board. This gets incredibly frustrating when I am supposed to be running the sound and cannot simply because the drummer keeps getting in the way.
While I recognize that he knows a lot about our specific sound system, it comes off and insulting when he does everything by himself and specifically gets in the way of what I am supposed to be doing. It feels like he has the attitude of “I know what I am doing and you obviously do not.”
It was especially frustrating because when it actually came time for me to run the sound system while they were playing on stage, since I had not set anything up, I had very little idea who had which microphone, which guitar was plugged in to which channel, or which monitor was which. So everything became a trial and error adjustment just to get things sounding decent.
It all makes me wonder if I should try to talk to him about the way he is acting. In some ways I feel like I could simply blow it off, since I rarely run sound and have plenty of other things on my plate. But it makes me wonder what possible damage he might be doing to other people, not to mention what that kind of mentality does to him.
But I guess that is the entire idea of sin. The reason sin is sinful is because it separates us from God, each other and ourselves. So the question becomes: If I genuinely care about our drummer as a brother in Christ, should I allow him to continue acting like this? While it is certainly “permissible” is it “beneficial”?
It reminds me of something I have started learning recently. It is rarely evil that keeps us from God. When confronted with a choice between true good and evil, most will obviously choose good. But instead it is the mediocre and the “not so bad” that keep us from God.
The Water Glass
Tonight Extended Play ran a little bit different. While I do not necessarily want to say it went bad, in a lot of ways I did not have the results I wanted. Tomorrow night we have Worship on the Grand, and tonight the band needed to practice, which meant we did not have a place to meet for EP. However, for a few weeks we have been talking about possibly going over to the new building and helping with the construction work over there.
So tonight for EP we decided to meet at our current building and then go over to the new space and help Randy in whatever way he needed help. I thought that this would be a great for our group to bond, lend a hand, and over all grow in Christ by focusing less on consuming and more helping others. In some ways, I think we accomplished those goals, but at the same time I feel like we did not.
In some ways I feel like the church in Corinth. I feel like, although we have a few strong, mature Christians, for the most part we are made up of people that have very little idea who Jesus is, let alone what it means to follow him. For example, we have a girl that comes to EP who is married, yet her husband almost never comes. But then there is another guy that comes to EP who is obviously infatuated with this girl, despite the fact that she is married. So he always wants to be around her, help her, talk with her, and whatever else. Except this girl does nothing to try and discourage his behavior, and in some ways it seems like she almost encourages it.
Then we have some others that, although they come to EP, have no desire to pour into the lives of others yet. Which, in some ways I am not expecting them to yet. But in a way, I guess I am expecting them to be able to pour into others, because I am leading a project where we go and help other people.
Over all, maybe it would be a good idea to hold off on outreach and projects where I expect people to give selflessly for now. Perhaps for now it would be a better idea to simply continue to teach the people that come to EP. After a while, I might be able to get them to a point where they understand it is not all about them. In which case, at that point we can start outreach again.
So tonight for EP we decided to meet at our current building and then go over to the new space and help Randy in whatever way he needed help. I thought that this would be a great for our group to bond, lend a hand, and over all grow in Christ by focusing less on consuming and more helping others. In some ways, I think we accomplished those goals, but at the same time I feel like we did not.
In some ways I feel like the church in Corinth. I feel like, although we have a few strong, mature Christians, for the most part we are made up of people that have very little idea who Jesus is, let alone what it means to follow him. For example, we have a girl that comes to EP who is married, yet her husband almost never comes. But then there is another guy that comes to EP who is obviously infatuated with this girl, despite the fact that she is married. So he always wants to be around her, help her, talk with her, and whatever else. Except this girl does nothing to try and discourage his behavior, and in some ways it seems like she almost encourages it.
Then we have some others that, although they come to EP, have no desire to pour into the lives of others yet. Which, in some ways I am not expecting them to yet. But in a way, I guess I am expecting them to be able to pour into others, because I am leading a project where we go and help other people.
Over all, maybe it would be a good idea to hold off on outreach and projects where I expect people to give selflessly for now. Perhaps for now it would be a better idea to simply continue to teach the people that come to EP. After a while, I might be able to get them to a point where they understand it is not all about them. In which case, at that point we can start outreach again.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
One Person at aTime...
Today Ed, Lee and I got together at Biggby’s Coffee. Last week Ed and I decided that it would be a good idea to start getting together at a specified time each week, instead of just finding time within our schedule. Furthermore we decided that we should start including Lee in our conversations as well. I think from Ed’s perspective it might be an attempt at disciplining Lee and me, which I would definitely be okay with.
Currently Ed, Melanie, Lee and me get together on Wednesday’s as the “Journey Team” but we are always reading various books and discussing the ministry implications of those books. I love doing that, but this new Tuesday meeting that we are doing will also be great. In this meeting there is no set schedule of what we need to talk about. It is really just a time for us to discuss what it is that we are working through in our different areas of ministry.
Today we talked a lot about the concept of being missional and how that applies to each ministry. Lee mentioned that meeting with people individually would be very effective for running the youth group. In his mind, had he started meeting with each just one family a week he could have built a great rapport with the kids already attending and with their parents as well.
I think I could easily transfer that over into Extended Play. There are a few guys in EP that I know that I could develop deeper relationships with. Furthermore, I know that if I did develop those relationships, that those guys would be more eager to come to EP every week. Plus, I think I could get a better understanding of what they want in a young adult group, which might in turn help me understand how to reach the young adults in Portland that are not yet connected with a church.
Currently Ed, Melanie, Lee and me get together on Wednesday’s as the “Journey Team” but we are always reading various books and discussing the ministry implications of those books. I love doing that, but this new Tuesday meeting that we are doing will also be great. In this meeting there is no set schedule of what we need to talk about. It is really just a time for us to discuss what it is that we are working through in our different areas of ministry.
Today we talked a lot about the concept of being missional and how that applies to each ministry. Lee mentioned that meeting with people individually would be very effective for running the youth group. In his mind, had he started meeting with each just one family a week he could have built a great rapport with the kids already attending and with their parents as well.
I think I could easily transfer that over into Extended Play. There are a few guys in EP that I know that I could develop deeper relationships with. Furthermore, I know that if I did develop those relationships, that those guys would be more eager to come to EP every week. Plus, I think I could get a better understanding of what they want in a young adult group, which might in turn help me understand how to reach the young adults in Portland that are not yet connected with a church.
Lay Leaders
It is difficult to know what to do with lay leaders sometimes. Specifically one of the ladies that helps lead Extended Play is a mystery. Kristy is one of those people that feels like she should be leading, but never really shows leadership initiative, nor does she want to take leadership of things even when I suggest them to her.
For example, Kristy keeps saying that she really feels like God wants her to lead EP. Except she does not feel comfortable talking to new people, she does not want to organize events, she does not feel like teaching is specifically her gift, and she does not really want to come up with anything for us to do. So in a lot of ways I am extremely baffled as to how she is “leading” anything at all.
Furthermore, EP is a group for young adults. But the parameters of the group seem to be somewhat ill defined. We know that “young adulthood” starts at 18 years old. But at what point are you no longer considered a young adult? According to our group info, EP is for people aged 18-30. The problem with that is that most of our congregation is between the ages of 18-30. So I feel like there should be some further criteria for what constitutes a young adult. In my mind, once you have children you are no longer a young adult.
But Kristy has kids as well. Which makes me think, maybe I could try to talk her into running a program for young parents, or parents with young children. Both of her kids are getting older, in that they are no longer toddlers. But we have a lot of parents of toddlers in the church. So maybe I can see if she wants to start up a small group for young parents. Or possibly we could even make that a part of EP. I could still teach a lesson, and then we would break off into small groups within EP where she facilitates one group and I run the other.
It is possible that she has a much different calling then leading EP, but because we do not yet have the program she does not recognize it. This is definitely something I might want to explore with her. Next Monday at our meeting we will be looking at our Ministry Match Profiles and it is possible that that might reveal more about her personality.
For example, Kristy keeps saying that she really feels like God wants her to lead EP. Except she does not feel comfortable talking to new people, she does not want to organize events, she does not feel like teaching is specifically her gift, and she does not really want to come up with anything for us to do. So in a lot of ways I am extremely baffled as to how she is “leading” anything at all.
Furthermore, EP is a group for young adults. But the parameters of the group seem to be somewhat ill defined. We know that “young adulthood” starts at 18 years old. But at what point are you no longer considered a young adult? According to our group info, EP is for people aged 18-30. The problem with that is that most of our congregation is between the ages of 18-30. So I feel like there should be some further criteria for what constitutes a young adult. In my mind, once you have children you are no longer a young adult.
But Kristy has kids as well. Which makes me think, maybe I could try to talk her into running a program for young parents, or parents with young children. Both of her kids are getting older, in that they are no longer toddlers. But we have a lot of parents of toddlers in the church. So maybe I can see if she wants to start up a small group for young parents. Or possibly we could even make that a part of EP. I could still teach a lesson, and then we would break off into small groups within EP where she facilitates one group and I run the other.
It is possible that she has a much different calling then leading EP, but because we do not yet have the program she does not recognize it. This is definitely something I might want to explore with her. Next Monday at our meeting we will be looking at our Ministry Match Profiles and it is possible that that might reveal more about her personality.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Calgary Church Planting
I think it is because I have been specifically reading a book on Church Planting, but I have been thinking a lot recently about what it will be like to plant churches in Calgary. The more I read the more I feel like The Summit, which was the church plant up there from 2003-2006, did things completely wrong. While I do not think there location itself was a bad decision, I wonder if their methods were faulty.
For starters, they planted the church in the northwest part of the city. Up there are a lot of new homes being constructed and lots of new families moving in. Naturally, it makes sense to plant of church in an area like that. Studies have shown that during times of extreme change people are much more likely to seek spiritual guidance and consider going to church. Moving to a new area is one of those times when people are more open to the possibility of church.
However, I remember during the trip I took up there, we did a lot of outreach events in other parts of the city. Specifically, we went downtown and put change in expired parking meters, washed people’s windshields and surveyed people. The problem is that in city of over a million people, the mentality of the people downtown will be drastically different than those living in a suburban area. Not to mention, it is ludicrous to think people living downtown would spend a significant amount of time commuting to a church far away.
While that mentality might be acceptable in a more rural setting, where people are accustomed to driving 15 minutes or more to get anyway, in an urban setting people will not do it. Instead, I think we need to live in the areas that we plant our churches. If I plant a church in a neighborhood, people need to see me in that neighborhood every day. I need to shop at their grocery stores, get gas at their gas stations, and get coffee at their Tim Horton’s. I need to become indigenous to that area and get to know those people, instead of living somewhere else.
For starters, they planted the church in the northwest part of the city. Up there are a lot of new homes being constructed and lots of new families moving in. Naturally, it makes sense to plant of church in an area like that. Studies have shown that during times of extreme change people are much more likely to seek spiritual guidance and consider going to church. Moving to a new area is one of those times when people are more open to the possibility of church.
However, I remember during the trip I took up there, we did a lot of outreach events in other parts of the city. Specifically, we went downtown and put change in expired parking meters, washed people’s windshields and surveyed people. The problem is that in city of over a million people, the mentality of the people downtown will be drastically different than those living in a suburban area. Not to mention, it is ludicrous to think people living downtown would spend a significant amount of time commuting to a church far away.
While that mentality might be acceptable in a more rural setting, where people are accustomed to driving 15 minutes or more to get anyway, in an urban setting people will not do it. Instead, I think we need to live in the areas that we plant our churches. If I plant a church in a neighborhood, people need to see me in that neighborhood every day. I need to shop at their grocery stores, get gas at their gas stations, and get coffee at their Tim Horton’s. I need to become indigenous to that area and get to know those people, instead of living somewhere else.
Saddleback Sam
Recently I have been reading Planting New Churches in a Postmodern Age by Ed Stetzer. There was a chapter on figuring out your focus group and what all that took. The concept of a focus group is that you will choose the peripherals and superficial aspects of your church based on the group you are trying to reach. For example, why you focus group will not determine whether you teach about sin or not, your focus group will give you a better idea of whether to hold your weekly gathering on Sunday or Wednesday; whether to play hymns, contemporary music or hardcore rock music. Knowing who you are trying to reach helps you understand how best to reach them.
While this might seem exclusionary, it is not. An example Stetzer gives in his book is that of missionaries to West Africa. If missionaries moved to West Africa, they would preach the gospel in the native language, hold gatherings at times that seem appropriate to the African, and act like Africans. This does not mean that people outside of that focus group will not also be attracted to the church and come join in.
Since I have been leading Extended Play I have been attempting to do the same thing in Portland. Obviously my focus group is young adults in the Portland area. However, I still have very little idea about who that includes. What kind of music do they like? What are their dreams and goals? Are they politically active? Do they vote Republican or Democrat?
All of this reminds me of Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Church, where he attempts to describe “Saddleback Sam,” a composite of all the people in the immediate area around the church. Finding out what “Saddleback Sam” is all about has helped Rick to focus their ministry towards those people, and thus be more effective.
With all of this information, I have been trying to figure out how I can discover who the “Saddleback Sam” of EP would be. So far my plan is to compile a survey that I can use, then I will have to start going around to places in Portland and talking to people that look to be in the 18-30 age range. Hopefully with all the information I can construct a decent composite of the average Portland young adult.
While this might seem exclusionary, it is not. An example Stetzer gives in his book is that of missionaries to West Africa. If missionaries moved to West Africa, they would preach the gospel in the native language, hold gatherings at times that seem appropriate to the African, and act like Africans. This does not mean that people outside of that focus group will not also be attracted to the church and come join in.
Since I have been leading Extended Play I have been attempting to do the same thing in Portland. Obviously my focus group is young adults in the Portland area. However, I still have very little idea about who that includes. What kind of music do they like? What are their dreams and goals? Are they politically active? Do they vote Republican or Democrat?
All of this reminds me of Rick Warren’s Purpose Driven Church, where he attempts to describe “Saddleback Sam,” a composite of all the people in the immediate area around the church. Finding out what “Saddleback Sam” is all about has helped Rick to focus their ministry towards those people, and thus be more effective.
With all of this information, I have been trying to figure out how I can discover who the “Saddleback Sam” of EP would be. So far my plan is to compile a survey that I can use, then I will have to start going around to places in Portland and talking to people that look to be in the 18-30 age range. Hopefully with all the information I can construct a decent composite of the average Portland young adult.
Dependability
Tonight we were supposed to have Extended Play. However, no one showed up. I was expecting it to be a smaller crowd since some of our regulars were going to be gone. Lee and Lindsey were in New York City, Josh and Theo both went to Kentucky for a conference, which meant that Kristy could not come because she would have the kids. Furthermore, Christina was not able to come either, although I am uncertain why.
So Kristy and Christina were telling everyone that EP was cancelled because all those people were not going to be there. But I feel like the purpose of EP is not to reach all those people that were out of town doing other things. In many ways they are the spiritually strong one of the group. My concern is for Keith, Tyler, Andrew and Miranda. None of them have really made faith commitments to Christ yet, and they are the ones we are trying to reach.
When Kristy, Christina and I met on Monday I told them I planned on still having EP tonight and they were okay with it. But then Christina did not send out an announcement for it until yesterday afternoon. So up until almost 24 hours before the event, no one thought it was going to happen. Well, naturally no one is going to show up now.
I think part of the problem is that I need to communicate to Kristy and Christina a lot more about my intentions and expectations in them. In Community of Kindness by Steve Sjogren, he talks about the importance of never cancelling an event. While he was specifically referring to large scale events, I can see it transferring to small groups as well. People need to have the sense that we are going to be here week after week. If we cancel EP one week, then what about next week? If they did not get any information about it, is it still going on?
I suppose I am concerned with dependability. I want people to know and trust that we are dependable leaders and that they can count on us. So, now I have to figure out how I can communicate that better to both my leaders and the group overall.
So Kristy and Christina were telling everyone that EP was cancelled because all those people were not going to be there. But I feel like the purpose of EP is not to reach all those people that were out of town doing other things. In many ways they are the spiritually strong one of the group. My concern is for Keith, Tyler, Andrew and Miranda. None of them have really made faith commitments to Christ yet, and they are the ones we are trying to reach.
When Kristy, Christina and I met on Monday I told them I planned on still having EP tonight and they were okay with it. But then Christina did not send out an announcement for it until yesterday afternoon. So up until almost 24 hours before the event, no one thought it was going to happen. Well, naturally no one is going to show up now.
I think part of the problem is that I need to communicate to Kristy and Christina a lot more about my intentions and expectations in them. In Community of Kindness by Steve Sjogren, he talks about the importance of never cancelling an event. While he was specifically referring to large scale events, I can see it transferring to small groups as well. People need to have the sense that we are going to be here week after week. If we cancel EP one week, then what about next week? If they did not get any information about it, is it still going on?
I suppose I am concerned with dependability. I want people to know and trust that we are dependable leaders and that they can count on us. So, now I have to figure out how I can communicate that better to both my leaders and the group overall.
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
EP Logo
On an added note, here are two new Extended Play logos I designed. One of them (or maybe neither) will be put on our new promo material. Comments would be appreciated.
Version 1
Version 1
Version 2
Christian Universalism
Today Ed and I met for our weekly get-together where we discuss the books I am reading, the thoughts I am processing and struggles I am having. When I first got in this morning, I had an e-mail from him with a few links to various websites. Apparently this morning we were going to also discuss heaven and hell, specifically based on the opinions of Rob Bell, Brian McLaren and Spencer Burke.
The articles I read all had a common thesis: These three men are Christian Universalists that do not believe in hell. The arguments were very compelling, and it is entirely possible that all three of them are in fact Universalists. However, the thing that disturbed me the most in the articles were how angry the authors seemed to be. Each of the articles seemed to mock Bell, McLaren and Burke for their supposed beliefs.
As I read, the only thing I could think of was, “How are these authors acting in the Spirit of Christ?” While Bell, McLaren and Burke may be Universalists, I just cannot think of a single example in the Bible where Jesus mocked, belittled, or outright insulted someone for their theological beliefs. However, I can think of multiple examples of Jesus getting angry at the religious leaders who felt that they had a corner on the God market.
Overall it seems that the people who are actively trying to explore their faith in Jesus are the ones that look the most like him. While those who act like they already have Jesus figured out (and we should simply agree 100% with them) look significantly less like Jesus.
It all makes me wonder about the importance of right and wrong. While I do not believe in the concept of “relative truth” I sometimes wonder if we get too focused on right and wrong, and forget all about good and evil. Could those that are blasting Bell, McLaren and Burke be “technically” right and yet not good in their actions? Furthermore, could Bell, McLaren and Burke be wrong in their theological position, and yet acting more like Jesus? Where is the line? Do we need to have all the correct theological doctrine down? Or is it more important to act good with the knowledge we have, while continually seeking Jesus for more?
The articles I read all had a common thesis: These three men are Christian Universalists that do not believe in hell. The arguments were very compelling, and it is entirely possible that all three of them are in fact Universalists. However, the thing that disturbed me the most in the articles were how angry the authors seemed to be. Each of the articles seemed to mock Bell, McLaren and Burke for their supposed beliefs.
As I read, the only thing I could think of was, “How are these authors acting in the Spirit of Christ?” While Bell, McLaren and Burke may be Universalists, I just cannot think of a single example in the Bible where Jesus mocked, belittled, or outright insulted someone for their theological beliefs. However, I can think of multiple examples of Jesus getting angry at the religious leaders who felt that they had a corner on the God market.
Overall it seems that the people who are actively trying to explore their faith in Jesus are the ones that look the most like him. While those who act like they already have Jesus figured out (and we should simply agree 100% with them) look significantly less like Jesus.
It all makes me wonder about the importance of right and wrong. While I do not believe in the concept of “relative truth” I sometimes wonder if we get too focused on right and wrong, and forget all about good and evil. Could those that are blasting Bell, McLaren and Burke be “technically” right and yet not good in their actions? Furthermore, could Bell, McLaren and Burke be wrong in their theological position, and yet acting more like Jesus? Where is the line? Do we need to have all the correct theological doctrine down? Or is it more important to act good with the knowledge we have, while continually seeking Jesus for more?
Monday, July 13, 2009
Equipping Leaders
This morning I had my weekly meeting with Kristy and Christina for Extended Play. I think we are starting to move in the right direction. We have finally decided on a mission statement that should help in governing where we go as a group. We have decided on the statement of “Following Jesus Together.” This should invoke two different but not mutually exclusive tasks of the group. First of all, we have the desire to follow Jesus, to be his disciples. The first goal of the group will be to truly experience the life of Christ.
Secondly, I see the need for relationships and community. It is not enough of us to each be following Jesus individually, in an almost parallel path, but instead we must be doing this journey as a group. The need for community is drastically important, especially in a smaller town like Portland.
Now, as best as I can understand, the entire point of a “pastor” is not to do ministry. I do not get paid to do all the work, make all the calls, plan all the events, teach everything, evangelize, disciple and promote. My role as a pastor is to equip people for the task of ministry. However, at the same time, my role as a Christian is to do the ministry itself.
I have constantly been reminding Kristy and Christina that my goal in leading EP is not to take it over and then let it drop when I leave. But rather, that I want to help organize the group, give it a central task that people can rally around, and equip both Kristy and Christina to run it after I leave.
As it stands currently, I am doing the teaching, Kristy is acting as the group facilitator that asks questions and gets the group talking after the teaching, and Christina is acting as the community organizer. However, after I leave Kristy will also become the primary teacher, or at least that is the tentative plan so far. Currently, I plan to work with Kristy during the coming months at developing her ability to teach. However, depending on how that goes it might be more beneficial to look into doing a video series where Kristy can remain as a facilitator.
Furthermore, Christina wants to continue planning activities and events that bring everyone closer together. I think that is an excellent fit for her. Her biggest obstacle right now is a lack of knowledge on how to be more effective at it. I think I should be able to resource her with some good creative materials on how to plan and lead events, along with how to advertise and market those events.
Secondly, I see the need for relationships and community. It is not enough of us to each be following Jesus individually, in an almost parallel path, but instead we must be doing this journey as a group. The need for community is drastically important, especially in a smaller town like Portland.
Now, as best as I can understand, the entire point of a “pastor” is not to do ministry. I do not get paid to do all the work, make all the calls, plan all the events, teach everything, evangelize, disciple and promote. My role as a pastor is to equip people for the task of ministry. However, at the same time, my role as a Christian is to do the ministry itself.
I have constantly been reminding Kristy and Christina that my goal in leading EP is not to take it over and then let it drop when I leave. But rather, that I want to help organize the group, give it a central task that people can rally around, and equip both Kristy and Christina to run it after I leave.
As it stands currently, I am doing the teaching, Kristy is acting as the group facilitator that asks questions and gets the group talking after the teaching, and Christina is acting as the community organizer. However, after I leave Kristy will also become the primary teacher, or at least that is the tentative plan so far. Currently, I plan to work with Kristy during the coming months at developing her ability to teach. However, depending on how that goes it might be more beneficial to look into doing a video series where Kristy can remain as a facilitator.
Furthermore, Christina wants to continue planning activities and events that bring everyone closer together. I think that is an excellent fit for her. Her biggest obstacle right now is a lack of knowledge on how to be more effective at it. I think I should be able to resource her with some good creative materials on how to plan and lead events, along with how to advertise and market those events.
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Walking with Jesus
Sometimes I feel like I mix up my desire for God with physical hunger. Or maybe it is just that God uses my physical hunger to make me realize how hungry for him I am. Either way, if I had to summarize just what exactly I have been learning recently, it would be the centrality of Jesus, all over again. I have been reading the book The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer for the past few weeks. At the same time, in our Wednesday Journey Team meetings we just finished John Maxwell’s Leadership Gold and are starting So Beautiful by Leonard Sweet. While all of these books are amazing, and I am learning so much from them, there is a point where I feel like it is information overload. All of them are offering fantastic nuggets of truth, concerning what it means to be a disciple, how to effectively lead people, and what the DNA of the church really looks like. And on one hand I want to soak it all in and learn as much as possible. But on the other hand I feel like it is all such useless information if I am not first and foremost focused on Jesus.
In fact, as cliché as it is Christianity is relational. So I cannot try and lead people towards Jesus when I am not following him, pursuing him and seeking him myself. I feel like part of me has been trying to do all of that without following Jesus. I feel like I follow Jesus for a while, and every now and then stop to make sure all the people behind me are still in line. I stop and keep pointing. “Jesus went that way.” I say, almost as if I am a personal road marker.
However, Jesus never stops. I stop to point others in his direction, but he keeps walking. Which means I am getting further away from Jesus simply because I am not walking towards him. In fact, as I write this I am reminded of the analogy of one of those moving walkways in airports. I have heard it said that our spiritual journey is like trying to walk the opposite direction on one of those walkways. If we stop, we start moving backwards, so we must continually walk in order to get from backsliding.
But what if that is a bad analogy? What if it is more accurate to speak of going on a walk through a park with Jesus? As we walk he begins to point things out around us. “See those trees?” He might say. Or, “Take a look at this dragonfly.” But if I stop walking, it is not that I start to move backwards, but Jesus continues to walk, meaning I move farther away from him, relatively speaking. Maybe instead of stopping to point others towards Jesus, I need to continue to walk with Jesus, and invite other people to walk with me, as I walk with him.
"Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." - Paul in his first letter to the church in Corinth.
In fact, as cliché as it is Christianity is relational. So I cannot try and lead people towards Jesus when I am not following him, pursuing him and seeking him myself. I feel like part of me has been trying to do all of that without following Jesus. I feel like I follow Jesus for a while, and every now and then stop to make sure all the people behind me are still in line. I stop and keep pointing. “Jesus went that way.” I say, almost as if I am a personal road marker.
However, Jesus never stops. I stop to point others in his direction, but he keeps walking. Which means I am getting further away from Jesus simply because I am not walking towards him. In fact, as I write this I am reminded of the analogy of one of those moving walkways in airports. I have heard it said that our spiritual journey is like trying to walk the opposite direction on one of those walkways. If we stop, we start moving backwards, so we must continually walk in order to get from backsliding.
But what if that is a bad analogy? What if it is more accurate to speak of going on a walk through a park with Jesus? As we walk he begins to point things out around us. “See those trees?” He might say. Or, “Take a look at this dragonfly.” But if I stop walking, it is not that I start to move backwards, but Jesus continues to walk, meaning I move farther away from him, relatively speaking. Maybe instead of stopping to point others towards Jesus, I need to continue to walk with Jesus, and invite other people to walk with me, as I walk with him.
"Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ." - Paul in his first letter to the church in Corinth.
Meat & Milk
Tonight we had worship team practice which I ran sound for. I think it went much better than last week, since I know a lot more about this particular sound board now. I was able to take charge a lot more, even though I had a couple of people trying to tell me how to do my job. I always hate when people try to tell me exactly what to do, as if I have no clue what I am doing. In some ways it feels like they are simply trying to show dominance and prove that they are useful in all areas, even though they do not need to be. After all, the reason they are on the worship team is because they already showed aptitude in a certain area, on some specific instrument. So I feel like I did a good job of not allowing myself to be run over by others, while at the same time not being a jerk by shutting them down either.
Also, before every band practice we do a “heart check” where we discuss something spiritual. This week Josh brought up the idea of leading worship with such force that people cannot help but feel God’s presence when they enter the building. However, Amanda and I brought the entire conversation much deeper by suggesting that God is not controlled by our attempts at worship. Many of the other people there were suggesting that when can bring God into the building in a tangible way by making sure our hearts are in the right place, or by developing a rich community amongst ourselves.
But the problem with that, which I made sure to mention, is that it places us in the control seat. So much of what was said made God sound more like an energy for us to wield and less of a tangible personality. When we start to believe that God must show up simply because we have read our bible enough, prayed enough or communed enough, then we place ourselves in control of our relationship with God. Instead we must recognize that God and God alone is in charge of our relationship. God shows up when he wants to show up, not because we have said the right ritual. However, that is not to say that God is not eager to join us and commune with us. But God at the same time, sometimes intentionally stays away from us. And why? That, unfortunately, is the mystery of God.
The entire experience left me wondering about the theology of church. In fact, Josh even made a point of mentioning that we are not a very theologically deep church. Which is unfortunate, but at the same time, when you have people that are new to a relationship with God you cannot expect them to go too deep. So I understand why we do not go too deep. But it also makes me wonder what we can or should be doing for those who need meat rather than milk. While I recognize that we do not have many of those people, there are some, and we need to provide for those people just as much.
Overall, this was definitely an experience I will remember when it comes to planting churches in Calgary, because I need to figure out how I can balance the two side of the spectrum. Perhaps having kids will help me figure that out, since while my children are growing up some of them will need to drink from a bottle while others are eating solid food.
Also, before every band practice we do a “heart check” where we discuss something spiritual. This week Josh brought up the idea of leading worship with such force that people cannot help but feel God’s presence when they enter the building. However, Amanda and I brought the entire conversation much deeper by suggesting that God is not controlled by our attempts at worship. Many of the other people there were suggesting that when can bring God into the building in a tangible way by making sure our hearts are in the right place, or by developing a rich community amongst ourselves.
But the problem with that, which I made sure to mention, is that it places us in the control seat. So much of what was said made God sound more like an energy for us to wield and less of a tangible personality. When we start to believe that God must show up simply because we have read our bible enough, prayed enough or communed enough, then we place ourselves in control of our relationship with God. Instead we must recognize that God and God alone is in charge of our relationship. God shows up when he wants to show up, not because we have said the right ritual. However, that is not to say that God is not eager to join us and commune with us. But God at the same time, sometimes intentionally stays away from us. And why? That, unfortunately, is the mystery of God.
The entire experience left me wondering about the theology of church. In fact, Josh even made a point of mentioning that we are not a very theologically deep church. Which is unfortunate, but at the same time, when you have people that are new to a relationship with God you cannot expect them to go too deep. So I understand why we do not go too deep. But it also makes me wonder what we can or should be doing for those who need meat rather than milk. While I recognize that we do not have many of those people, there are some, and we need to provide for those people just as much.
Overall, this was definitely an experience I will remember when it comes to planting churches in Calgary, because I need to figure out how I can balance the two side of the spectrum. Perhaps having kids will help me figure that out, since while my children are growing up some of them will need to drink from a bottle while others are eating solid food.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Number Game
Tonight we had Extended Play again. Only a handful of people showed up, which was disappointing. The last few weeks we have had upwards of ten to fifteen people showing up, which is more than usual. But tonight we had six total, included Amanda and me. In all honesty it is a real hit to my ego when no one shows up. I like to think that I am a great teacher, and I know that I am very gifted at it, but I like to think my teaching is the reason people come. Almost as if people are flocking to hear me speak. So when we have a night where no one comes, I internalize that and assume it is because of me.
But perhaps God is trying to teach me that numbers are not important. After all, Jesus himself spent three and a half years teaching his disciples. He started with twelve, and ended with eleven. So, I know that I need to realize that it is not about the quantity of people that show up, but the quality of the teaching. So I need to stop worrying about who shows up, or how many show up, and simply focus on teaching what I am teaching as well as I can.
At the same time, since there was a small group, we ended up going to an ice cream shop and then for a walk. We definitely got a lot more personal in regards to everyone’s spiritual walk. We had a very good conversation about how we discern the voice of God and know that we are doing his will. It is interesting, because it seems like everyone has differing opinions on hearing God.
It seems to me though, that God is more concerned with having partners that will work in creation with him, and less concerned with having robots that will do exactly what he says. I recognize that there are times when God does have a very specific plan for someone, like time in Apostle Paul’s life. But I wonder if there are other times when God wants us to make the decisions based on the passions and gifts he has already given us.
But perhaps God is trying to teach me that numbers are not important. After all, Jesus himself spent three and a half years teaching his disciples. He started with twelve, and ended with eleven. So, I know that I need to realize that it is not about the quantity of people that show up, but the quality of the teaching. So I need to stop worrying about who shows up, or how many show up, and simply focus on teaching what I am teaching as well as I can.
At the same time, since there was a small group, we ended up going to an ice cream shop and then for a walk. We definitely got a lot more personal in regards to everyone’s spiritual walk. We had a very good conversation about how we discern the voice of God and know that we are doing his will. It is interesting, because it seems like everyone has differing opinions on hearing God.
It seems to me though, that God is more concerned with having partners that will work in creation with him, and less concerned with having robots that will do exactly what he says. I recognize that there are times when God does have a very specific plan for someone, like time in Apostle Paul’s life. But I wonder if there are other times when God wants us to make the decisions based on the passions and gifts he has already given us.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Supervision
One of the interesting things about internship is how many different things I am expected to do. I am working with the youth group, working with Melanie on organizational and outreach events, working with the young adult group, and I will start working with Randy soon on construction of the new building, as well as working with Steve up at Pathway. In fact, I am supposed to be going up to Pathway on Tuesday nights for their pre-launch meetings that they have. Furthermore, Ed told me today that he wants me to start attending the creative team meetings on the first Tuesday of every month. Not to mention that I am also starting to work with the worship team, playing bass and running sound.
In some ways it is fine, and I am glad that I get to have so many different experiences. But at the same time, it is unfortunate that I do not get to focus my time nearly as much as I would like too. In reading John Maxwell’s Leadership Gold for our journey team meetings, I have realized the importance of finding your strength zones, what you are really good at and passionate about and staying there. So, as much as I am learning some good stuff about all of these different areas of the church, part of me simply wants to focus on teaching. I feel like teaching is by far my biggest strength area and the area that I will the easiest and quickest gain influence among the people of the church. I could then use that influence to lead and grow the people around me.
At the same time I realize that there is more to a church than teaching, and no matter how great of a teacher I am, if I simply teach without addressing the rest of the church my ministry will soon collapse. Also, I need to remember that the people here still do not know me very well and do not know what I am capable of yet. So there are often times when they will be watching over my shoulder in areas that I do not need watching and maybe even letting me loose in areas that I need supervision in.
In some ways it is fine, and I am glad that I get to have so many different experiences. But at the same time, it is unfortunate that I do not get to focus my time nearly as much as I would like too. In reading John Maxwell’s Leadership Gold for our journey team meetings, I have realized the importance of finding your strength zones, what you are really good at and passionate about and staying there. So, as much as I am learning some good stuff about all of these different areas of the church, part of me simply wants to focus on teaching. I feel like teaching is by far my biggest strength area and the area that I will the easiest and quickest gain influence among the people of the church. I could then use that influence to lead and grow the people around me.
At the same time I realize that there is more to a church than teaching, and no matter how great of a teacher I am, if I simply teach without addressing the rest of the church my ministry will soon collapse. Also, I need to remember that the people here still do not know me very well and do not know what I am capable of yet. So there are often times when they will be watching over my shoulder in areas that I do not need watching and maybe even letting me loose in areas that I need supervision in.
Advice
Today I took a much needed day off. Ordinarily I take Friday’s off and work a half day on Saturday, but that did not exactly happen last week. Compiled with desperately needing a day off after my trip to South Dakota, I feel like taking an extra day off was a good idea. However, Amanda feels like I am not listening to her. She suggested earlier that I take an extra day off, which I rejected. But then later Lee also suggested that I take a day off, which I then agreed with.
I think part of it is that I am willing to listen to different people about different things. Part of it is that I feel like certain people have authority behind what they say in different areas. So it is not that I feel like Amanda is completely unreliable, or that I should not listen to her about anything. But when she suggests that I take a day off, I am definitely less inclined to listen to her suggestion, because she does not work at the church nor does she understand ministry schedules the way Lee or Ed do.
Over all, it seems difficult to navigate the waters of leadership. I want to be open to the advice of people, but at the same time I do not want to be continually swayed by the personal opinions of everyone else, which is frustrating too. Many times Amanda and I will be talking and she will try to give me advice about how to handle various situations or people and I need to discern whether her advice is valid or not. After all, since she does not look at things with the same leadership perspective that I do, is her advice coming from the belief that I need to back down and let someone else lead, or is it actually beneficial for my leadership ability?
I think part of it is that I am willing to listen to different people about different things. Part of it is that I feel like certain people have authority behind what they say in different areas. So it is not that I feel like Amanda is completely unreliable, or that I should not listen to her about anything. But when she suggests that I take a day off, I am definitely less inclined to listen to her suggestion, because she does not work at the church nor does she understand ministry schedules the way Lee or Ed do.
Over all, it seems difficult to navigate the waters of leadership. I want to be open to the advice of people, but at the same time I do not want to be continually swayed by the personal opinions of everyone else, which is frustrating too. Many times Amanda and I will be talking and she will try to give me advice about how to handle various situations or people and I need to discern whether her advice is valid or not. After all, since she does not look at things with the same leadership perspective that I do, is her advice coming from the belief that I need to back down and let someone else lead, or is it actually beneficial for my leadership ability?
Friday, July 3, 2009
Model Trends
Yesterday Amanda and I went over to Grand Rapids. The whole point of going over there was to buy some tables and chairs that will go in our new building. Fortunately we were able to get the tables and chairs used from another church, so there were significantly cheaper. When we got to the church I noticed that the entire church was a converted old warehouse, except that they had done a wonderful job remodeling and renovating the space. There was nothing about the church that looked old or worn down what so ever.
I also noticed as we pulled up, that this was not a simple transaction between two churches. I assumed that the church we were purchasing the tables and chairs from was simply getting new furniture, and allowing us to use their old stuff. However, instead of a church remodeling or acquiring new furniture I found that the church was in fact selling everything they had. It looked like a giant garage sale, where they were literally getting rid of everything.
I naturally had to ask the lady that transacted my business what exactly was going on and why they were selling all of their stuff. She told me, with much excitement in her voice, that their church had decided to go to the house church model and they were getting rid of everything in their church. I have read some stuff about house churches, specifically some books by Frank Viola, so I could definitely share in her excitement to a point. But then she informed me that they had actually moved into this warehouse only three years ago and had spent a lot of money to renovate it. In fact, they were very deep into debt, and the reason they were selling all their stuff was to hopefully alleviate some of that debt.
As I drove off I could not help but think about what they lady had said. Here was a church that three years ago had moved into an old warehouse and spent vast amounts of money on renovations, simply to three years later abandon that church model in favor for a different model. But where was God in this process? Did God tell them three years ago to acquire massive debt for a building? If so, was God truly now telling them to transition into a house church model?
While I never want to act as if I understand the will of God completely and totally, I have to say that I was baffled. How could God ask a church to go into serious debt, only to three years later ask that same church to abandon the very reason they had amassed so much debt in the first place? Did that church hear God correctly three years ago? Are they hearing God correctly now? My fear is that one of a few choices is going on. Either this church did not follow God’s direction three years ago, in which case the debt that they incurred was unnecessary, there are not currently listening to God in which case they are abandoning their project for nothing, or worst of all they did not hear from God in either situation.
After all, just a few years ago it was popular to have a warehouse feel to your church. To meet in a warehouse was rugged, raw, and lacked that canned, sterile feel that you might find in other churches. But now to meet in a house church is authentic and personal, warm and inviting. My biggest fear is that this church is not following God’s direction in either model, but instead simply following the biggest, coolest, latest trend.
I also noticed as we pulled up, that this was not a simple transaction between two churches. I assumed that the church we were purchasing the tables and chairs from was simply getting new furniture, and allowing us to use their old stuff. However, instead of a church remodeling or acquiring new furniture I found that the church was in fact selling everything they had. It looked like a giant garage sale, where they were literally getting rid of everything.
I naturally had to ask the lady that transacted my business what exactly was going on and why they were selling all of their stuff. She told me, with much excitement in her voice, that their church had decided to go to the house church model and they were getting rid of everything in their church. I have read some stuff about house churches, specifically some books by Frank Viola, so I could definitely share in her excitement to a point. But then she informed me that they had actually moved into this warehouse only three years ago and had spent a lot of money to renovate it. In fact, they were very deep into debt, and the reason they were selling all their stuff was to hopefully alleviate some of that debt.
As I drove off I could not help but think about what they lady had said. Here was a church that three years ago had moved into an old warehouse and spent vast amounts of money on renovations, simply to three years later abandon that church model in favor for a different model. But where was God in this process? Did God tell them three years ago to acquire massive debt for a building? If so, was God truly now telling them to transition into a house church model?
While I never want to act as if I understand the will of God completely and totally, I have to say that I was baffled. How could God ask a church to go into serious debt, only to three years later ask that same church to abandon the very reason they had amassed so much debt in the first place? Did that church hear God correctly three years ago? Are they hearing God correctly now? My fear is that one of a few choices is going on. Either this church did not follow God’s direction three years ago, in which case the debt that they incurred was unnecessary, there are not currently listening to God in which case they are abandoning their project for nothing, or worst of all they did not hear from God in either situation.
After all, just a few years ago it was popular to have a warehouse feel to your church. To meet in a warehouse was rugged, raw, and lacked that canned, sterile feel that you might find in other churches. But now to meet in a house church is authentic and personal, warm and inviting. My biggest fear is that this church is not following God’s direction in either model, but instead simply following the biggest, coolest, latest trend.
Grand Rapids
I am a little bit frustrated. I hate when I feel like I have no options, and all my decisions are made for me. I suppose tonight might not have actually been one of those days, but it definitely felt like it. This morning Amanda and Emily had a meeting at 9 am. We also had an appointment at Verizon Wireless at 10 am to switch our phone. Last week in South Dakota we lost the charger to our phone, so it has been dead for the past week almost. That would be okay if our cell phone was not our single source of communication with the outside world.
Our original plan was to have Amanda drop me off at work at 8:45 so she could meet with Emily for close to an hour, then come pick me up around 9:30 and we could make it to Verizon in time for our meeting. But instead we woke up late. We got to Emily’s place at about 9:10, so instead of going to work, I dropped a book off at the library, and got coffee for us before swinging back and getting Amanda 20 minutes later. We still left Emily’s house late and subsequently got to Verizon late too; which is fine since we had a 30 minute window to make the appointment. On the way back to Portland from that however, I got a call from Melanie wondering if I had left for Grand Rapids yet. I completely forgot that I needed to also run up to Grand Rapids in order to pick up some chairs and tables for our new building.
However, when we got to Grand Rapids Amanda needed to do some shopping for work clothes. Macy’s has an employee dress code of all black, and unless Amanda wants to wear the same shirt and skirt every day, we needed to buy new clothes. And since Grand Rapids has some better and cheaper stores than Lansing, we needed to do the shopping in Lansing. Which means that I spent all day helping Amanda find clothes when I was supposed to be working.
The end result is that I then have to come in tomorrow, on my day off, to essentially make up for the day that I just took off. Except it does not feel like a day off because I still had to wake up early and get some projects done this morning. Nor was I planning on making today my day off either, so I was not mentally prepared for a day off. The thing that is so frustrating is that I am completely exhausted. Going to South Dakota was a whirlwind of a trip, and since I got back I have been working every day. I honestly need a day off in order to recuperate and organize myself for work mode again. But I did not get that. Instead I got a day of shopping, standing on my feet and running errands. So, now I will wait for next Friday, where I can hopefully sleep in, relax and do nothing.
Our original plan was to have Amanda drop me off at work at 8:45 so she could meet with Emily for close to an hour, then come pick me up around 9:30 and we could make it to Verizon in time for our meeting. But instead we woke up late. We got to Emily’s place at about 9:10, so instead of going to work, I dropped a book off at the library, and got coffee for us before swinging back and getting Amanda 20 minutes later. We still left Emily’s house late and subsequently got to Verizon late too; which is fine since we had a 30 minute window to make the appointment. On the way back to Portland from that however, I got a call from Melanie wondering if I had left for Grand Rapids yet. I completely forgot that I needed to also run up to Grand Rapids in order to pick up some chairs and tables for our new building.
However, when we got to Grand Rapids Amanda needed to do some shopping for work clothes. Macy’s has an employee dress code of all black, and unless Amanda wants to wear the same shirt and skirt every day, we needed to buy new clothes. And since Grand Rapids has some better and cheaper stores than Lansing, we needed to do the shopping in Lansing. Which means that I spent all day helping Amanda find clothes when I was supposed to be working.
The end result is that I then have to come in tomorrow, on my day off, to essentially make up for the day that I just took off. Except it does not feel like a day off because I still had to wake up early and get some projects done this morning. Nor was I planning on making today my day off either, so I was not mentally prepared for a day off. The thing that is so frustrating is that I am completely exhausted. Going to South Dakota was a whirlwind of a trip, and since I got back I have been working every day. I honestly need a day off in order to recuperate and organize myself for work mode again. But I did not get that. Instead I got a day of shopping, standing on my feet and running errands. So, now I will wait for next Friday, where I can hopefully sleep in, relax and do nothing.
The Creation Narrative
It is hard to believe it is already July. I feel like June just flew by. We had a lot going on though. Ed was gone for two weeks in June and I was gone for one, so we really only had one week where both of us were around. Even this week it seems like we keep missing each other. I am really looking forward to July because I feel like June was so chaotic; it was hard to keep up.
Part of me wonders if ministry is always this hectic and busy. I really do not want it to be. How can I be effective at teaching people about God if I am continually running around thinking about the next meeting, next teaching, next event I need to coordinate? I know there is my weekly day off, but honestly, that does not really feel like a day off when I then pack all of my non-work related projects into that day.
On the plus side though, Extended Play went really well tonight. Josh and Kristy could not make it, which was unfortunately. Kristy was supposed to formulate some questions to go along with my teaching, but since she did not show up I had to try and do some questioning on the fly. Fortunately Lee and Amanda were able to ask some questions that I knew they obviously had the answers for. I appreciate that they were willing to voices some questions and make other people feel less bad about having questions of their own.
Over all I am very encouraged about the way EP has been going. We have a few people that have been coming that have not made personal professions of faith yet. So it is awesome to talk to them each week after my teaching because they say that it makes sense to them. I love that. It is nice to know that not only do I enjoy teaching people about God but that I can do it effectively. Tonight I was talking about the creation narrative and how God is in the process of bring order out of chaos, asking us to partner with him in creation, and has given us life as a gift to be enjoyed, not just a curse. Next week though I will touch on the effects of the fall.
Part of me wonders if ministry is always this hectic and busy. I really do not want it to be. How can I be effective at teaching people about God if I am continually running around thinking about the next meeting, next teaching, next event I need to coordinate? I know there is my weekly day off, but honestly, that does not really feel like a day off when I then pack all of my non-work related projects into that day.
On the plus side though, Extended Play went really well tonight. Josh and Kristy could not make it, which was unfortunately. Kristy was supposed to formulate some questions to go along with my teaching, but since she did not show up I had to try and do some questioning on the fly. Fortunately Lee and Amanda were able to ask some questions that I knew they obviously had the answers for. I appreciate that they were willing to voices some questions and make other people feel less bad about having questions of their own.
Over all I am very encouraged about the way EP has been going. We have a few people that have been coming that have not made personal professions of faith yet. So it is awesome to talk to them each week after my teaching because they say that it makes sense to them. I love that. It is nice to know that not only do I enjoy teaching people about God but that I can do it effectively. Tonight I was talking about the creation narrative and how God is in the process of bring order out of chaos, asking us to partner with him in creation, and has given us life as a gift to be enjoyed, not just a curse. Next week though I will touch on the effects of the fall.
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
The Juggling Act
There is a lot involved in church planting. Currently we are working on moving into a new building, which in some ways will mean we are no longer a church plant. But I suppose that is okay because we have been around for three years now. I know that some churches continue as church plants, or even act like church plants, well into five, seven or even ten years. But I would like to think that is more of an exception rather than the rule. I think it is a good goal to try and become an established church within three years of planting. I realize that in all situations and circumstances this is not always possible, but generally speaking three years should be the target goal.
Regardless, it still remains that church planting is tough work, or maybe more accurately there is just a lot to do when planting a church, and never enough people to do it all. I came in today after dropping Amanda off and everyone was standing around in our main gathering discussing our new chair possibilities for the new building. We had three different chairs to consider. While this alone does not seem like it is extremely important, controversial or stressful, in chairs alone we have to consider the aesthetic value, the comfort level, the price, the impact it will have on the congregation.
When you realize that this is simply one issue that must be considered, as well as all the rest of the building project demands (money, time, workers, relaunch date), outreach events in order to continue to spread the word that we even exist, and regular church functions such as teaching, small groups, and other ministries that are going on simultaneously, it is a lot to juggle.
I am realizing more and more how essential it is to do church as a team. There is no way that I can single-handedly do all of those things when I plant a church. I must remember that as the pastor, my job is to equip others for ministry. My job as a Christian is to do ministry.
Regardless, it still remains that church planting is tough work, or maybe more accurately there is just a lot to do when planting a church, and never enough people to do it all. I came in today after dropping Amanda off and everyone was standing around in our main gathering discussing our new chair possibilities for the new building. We had three different chairs to consider. While this alone does not seem like it is extremely important, controversial or stressful, in chairs alone we have to consider the aesthetic value, the comfort level, the price, the impact it will have on the congregation.
When you realize that this is simply one issue that must be considered, as well as all the rest of the building project demands (money, time, workers, relaunch date), outreach events in order to continue to spread the word that we even exist, and regular church functions such as teaching, small groups, and other ministries that are going on simultaneously, it is a lot to juggle.
I am realizing more and more how essential it is to do church as a team. There is no way that I can single-handedly do all of those things when I plant a church. I must remember that as the pastor, my job is to equip others for ministry. My job as a Christian is to do ministry.
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