The Ramblings of a First Time Senior Pastor

There is nothing more that I hate...

2008-07-19T18:14:00.000-07:00

Moving. Ahhhhhh. Every time I have moved, I said that I would never do it again. I am serious this time. I am never, ever moving again. Perla and I spent the day packing up the garage. We spent yesterday packing up our offices. We will spend the majority of this upcoming week packing the bedroom, living room, and kitchen. Then comes the loading. I have some great friends lined up to help us, so I hope it won't take us too long. Then there is the travel time and the unloading. Then the unpacking. The whole process is just ridiculous.

You have likely surmised from the above rant that Perla and I are leaving West Union. I resigned at the church. July 27 is my last day and we load up and move back to Circleville on Monday, the 28th. It has been an interesting 15 months. I have certainly learned a lot. I have also made some great friends. However, we feel the very distinct call of God to head a different direction. We are excited about what God has in store for us, and for what He has in store for the church. We are also excited to being going back home!!!

Thanks for reading. This will likely be the last post. May God bless you and all that you do for Him.

Dave

Praising God for His Goodness!!!

2008-05-21T10:52:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy few weeks. Before I left on vacation, (see previous post) I was working on my comprehensive examination for my PhD program. You must successfully pass comps before moving on to the dissertation phase of the program. What's more, you only get 2 chances to pass, or you get bounced out of the program. Praise God, I passed my exam the first time around!! This was a nerve racking experience, and I am glad that it is over. However, it was a positive learning experience, overall!! I finished a call with my comps mentor today, and she told me that 2 exams had been turned in to date. 1 passed, the other did not. She had to inform the other student that they did not pass. Not a fun job. I thank God He saw me thorough this!!!

At church, we had Friend Day on Sunday and saw about 50 visitors come through the door. It was a great day, a good service, and good food and fellowship. We spend the last 4 weeks talking about evangelism using Hybel's Walk Across the Room. I was feeling that most of our folks were getting it, but I wasn't sure that they would actually do it. They did. It was great. Praise God for helping us to understand the importance of relational evangelism.

We are having a our Name Change Celebration on June 1. This will be a great day to celebrate our past and anticipate our future. I believe that God has some big plans for us in 2008-09, and I am excited to be a part of His work here in West Union!!! To God be the glory...

Dave

How Do You Turn it Off???

2008-05-11T18:09:00.001-07:00

So, its been about 1 month since I posted something. Thought I might just jot a few wandering thoughts down.

Nothing too huge has happened in the past month. We had nominations for our Church Board for 2008-09. Looks like at least 2 positions will be changing. We are planning our special name change service for June. Also, this past month, we have been emphasizing personal evangelism in our AM services. We used Hybel's Walk Across the Room stuff. I think it was good for our folks. We are having a Friend Day on May 18, and we are praying for at least 15 unsaved people to join us for worship.

This past week, we went on vacation. The Smoky Mountains of Tennessee. It was nice, but it is good to be home. While we were there, I found myself having a hard time turing off thoughts about church. I was continually thinking about all I needed to do (budgets, strategic planning, etc). When I say continually, I really mean in our down time when we were doing nothing. It was nice to be away, relaxing. But when I was just sitting around, I kept thinking about church stuff. I need to learn how to turn it off, I guess. On the flip side, I love it. It gets my motor going. So, it doesn't really seem like work (we get paid for this???).

Anyway, there's the update. A few things going on, but we are about to hit a busy season with camps, church ministry events, etc. I will update on how our Friend Day goes.

Dave

Are Week Long Revivals Effective Anymore?

2008-04-12T19:48:00.001-07:00

Last week, we held revival services at our church. This was our first revival since I have come to be pastor. We did a good job getting the word out to our folks, we had a great speaker for the week, and we had a number of different music groups come. The only thing we really didn't have was, well....people.

There were nights that it looked like we had a good group, but that is because the singing groups had between 4-8 people total with them each night. Most nights we had 20 people in the seats. I was very discouraged by the attendance. I was even more discouraged after each service. It was great that the Holy Spirit visited us in a special way each night. Even though no one took advantage of the alter call, I knew God was working on the hearts of our people. More people needed to hear what God had laid on our speaker's heart and I was discouraged that they didn't come to do so.

Sunday morning was good. 62 folks came to worship with us. Sunday night was good as well. However, in an effort to offer some additional times of discipleship during our revival, I scheduled 2 Saturday workshops. One on getting out of debt and the other on effective Bible study. A grand total of 0 people came to each one. This was fairly discouraging.

On Sunday morning, our official church counter remarked that this was the lowest number of people we had ever had at revival. I told him that we weren't going to have it anymore (at least week long revivals). "What?" I explained that the week cost us over $1000.00 (which is a lot of money for a small church) and that we just couldn't justify the expense for the number of people who participated. When faced with reality and logic, to my surprise, he conceded and agreed.

Do week long revivals work? Are they effective? I suppose that depends on how we define "effective". I certainly believe that those who came were challenged. Revivals are more of a discipleship event now, it seems. You hear stories about how people used to get saved at revival all of the time. I am sure that this still happens. However, revival, much like Sunday School, has become more of a time of discipleship than anything else. So, do we simply need to adjust our expectations? My frustration level is high and my ideas are low. What should we do?

I don't know what the answer is. I do know that this Fall, we will be having a three day revival as opposed to a week long revival. I pray that our people will take advantage of these times of discipleship and growth. We all need to grow closer to Jesus.

New Church Name!!!

2008-03-25T13:24:00.001-07:00

The church has voted. On June 1, 2008 West Union Church of Christ in Christian Union will become...

We praise God for His leadership in this area. Is everyone happy? Nope. Are most people happy? Yeah, I think so. Lots of positive comments about this. We simply want some identity in our community. With West Union Church of Christ and West Union Christian Union Church, we are often confused. People don't know WHO we are or WHERE we are located. People constantly think we are the Christian Union church at the other end of town. No good.

It is our prayer that this change will us be better known in our community. Certainly, there is more to it than a name. However, this is a strategic move as we attempt to Love God and Love People in West Union. To God be the Glory as we celebrate our past and anticipate our future.

Easter Reflection...

2008-03-25T13:14:00.000-07:00

Easter has come and gone here at WU CCCU. I saw a sign on a church somewhere that said "Christians celebrate Easter everyday." I pray that this is true of our church!

We joined together with two other churches for a Maundy Thursday service. We set up stations and narrated the Last Supper, as well as Jesus' journey to the Cross. Everyone spoke highly of it, even though it wasn't that well attended.

Good Friday I participated in a service with 5 other Pastors at the local Catholic Church. It was a Stations of the Cross kind of a thing. Longest service I have ever been at, clocking it at a whopping 1 hour and 45 minutes. It was good, though. Some interesting reflections on Jesus' journey. Again, though, not very well attended.

Easter was celebrated at WU CCCU with a breakfast at 9:30 AM and Celebration Service at 10:30 AM. Both were extremely well attended, which I did not expect. At Christmas, we didn't get any "Twice a Year" folks. It seems like people in our town are more of a "Once a Year" kind of folk, as we had a much larger than normal crowd. Even though we were 1/3 larger than normal, a number of our own people were missing. This is still confusing to me, especially when they are board members and leaders of the church. Overall, though, it was a good service and a good day.

We praise God for the Resurrection. We thank Jesus for His substitutionary sacrifice that we might all be able to live forever in Heaven. Hallelujah.

Dark Leadership...

2008-03-18T16:08:00.000-07:00

More downtime means more posts.

Do you have dark leadership tendencies? Be careful before you answer too quickly. McIntosh and Rima (1997) suggest that everybody has dark side tendencies. I just completed a course on this very subject in my PhD program (which is in Organizational Management and Leadership). It was quite interesting (as was the use of McIntosh and Rima, which is a Christian based text).

Here is what the authors suggest:

Everyone has a dark side. Accepting this fact, investigating it, and then dealing with the results are what make great leaders great.

Dark side leadership manifests itself in the following ways:

Compulsive leaders (need absolute control)
Narcissistic leaders (intense ambition, feelings of inferiority, and excessive needs for affirmation)
Paranoid leaders (strong suspicion of others)
Codependent leaders (minister to others in order to feel needed)
Passive-aggressive leader (resist demands with stubbornness, procrastination, or forgetfulness).

Do any of these grab you and give you a little shake?

In Practicing Greatness, McNeal (2006) discusses Dotlich and Cairo's Additional Destructive Patterns of Leaders

11 Derailing patterns
o Arrogance
o Melodramatic behavior
o Volatility
o Excessive Caution
o Habitual Mistrust
o Aloofness
o Mischievousness
o Eccentricity
o Passive resistance
o Perfectionism
o Excessive eagerness to please

What about these? Do any of these reach up and give you a little slap?

McIntosh and McNeal are both interested in self awareness. It is about understanding why we think, say, act, serve, etc, the way we do. It is due to a number of issues, many of which stem from childhood and from our own life experiences (both good and bad).

I have to admit that some of these are areas I need to work on. An honest person will admit that they need to work on some of these areas in their life, too (or that they are currently working on them). I want to be the best leader I can be, not for my sake, but for the glory of God. I have a responsibility to myself, my family, to those I lead, and to God to ensure that I not practicing dark leadership. It seems this is a continual process that will always need to be revisited and re-evaluated.

No one said leadership was going to be easy.

More Misc. Stuff

2008-03-17T18:05:00.000-07:00

So, I am currently in Chicago at my final PhD residency. I am finding it difficult to stay busy. All of my course work is finished, so I don't have any reading or writing to do. I am leading a Retreat in about a week and a half, but the work for that is done until the Retreat is closer, so nothing to do there. I don't like not being busy.

I lead a hybrid sort of Tenebrae service this past Thursday. It was a surprise to everybody who came to Bible Study that night, as I didn't announce it. We commemorated the Last Supper together and then focused in on the events that lead to Jesus' death. I thought it was a good service. Some of our folks liked it, some did not. I think overall that it was well received.

One other big thing happening at the church, in addition to Easter, is that we are voting on a new name. There are some people happy about this and some not. But, I believe God is calling us to do it. We have a bit of an identity crisis in the community. Few people know who, or where, we are. I believe the name change will help with this issue. It is an exciting time at our church!

On a final note, I was away from church this Sunday. It was difficult. I missed being with our folks. I am looking forward to getting back!

Stay tuned. I will announce the name our church chooses here after Easter!

Doin' Work...Staying Busy

2008-03-11T16:34:00.000-07:00

Wow. Time certainly flies. It has been about 2 months since I posted anything. That's no good. I apologize to my 1 reader...if you are still out there.

I will recap the last several weeks, quickly. I have been in the midst of completing post graduate studies. Coursework ends this week. Now, I have to take and pass a sort of final exam and then, on to the dissertation. I will post some of my thoughts on a dissertation topic soon!!!

I have allowed myself to get too busy. I have never needed to admit that before, but it is true! Between denominational ministry, some "on the side" jobs I do, and trying to pastor a church full time, there are not enough minutes in the day. I am currently working on widdling down my personal schedule. I hope I am successful!!!

Things at the church have been going pretty well. No huge issues...just normal church issues, I think. We are moving forward in a couple of strategic areas, and people aren't too happy about the changes. However, it has been nearly a year since I accepted the assignment, and I feel like God is prompting us to step out in these areas. He is calling us to continue to move forward. So, things are exciting. But, again, there is some push back that I am working my way through.

We are planning some opportunities for our people to reach out and do some evangelism in the next few months. We need this. We need to continue to seek God and also seek to help others love Him. I pray we will be able to do this!!

I will write a little more regularly now. I am about to ditch the anonymous idea, which would make it easier for me to write. We'll see.

Anyone out there???

Discipleship...

2008-01-09T15:34:00.001-08:00

I want our church to grow. Who doesn't? However, I feel led lately to put more of an emphasis on discipleship. That's not to say that we aren't going to be concerted in our efforts to reach non-believers. However, I believe we will be involved in effective evangelism when we are healthy within. So, we will focus on discipleship here for awhile.

I feel we are a little like Willow Creek. Bill Hybels has recently said that they are a mile wide and an inch deep. In other words, lots of people, little depth. We are a little surfacy at our church, too. We are more like an inch wide and a millimeter deep, but the illustration holds true.

May God be with us as we grow in our relationship with Him this year. May God guide us and direct us, and may we allow Him to do so, surrendering our will to His. We need to Grow in 2008...grow in our relationship with Him.

The Future of Church Leadership...

2008-01-09T15:27:00.000-08:00

I was confronted with some concerning statistics this week. The organization with which I am affiliated compiled a list of Senior Pastors by age. The results? A bit unbelievable and certainly concerning.

There are currently only two (2) Senior Pastors between the ages of 20-29. Additionally, the biggest concentration of Senior Pastors is in the 50 and 60 year old bracket. The problem? There aren't enough Senior Pastors in their 20s, 30s, and 40s to take over for the number of folks we have in their 50s, 60s, and 70s.

What are we going to do? I don't know, but we are going to have to do something and something soon. Otherwise, I am concerned about the level of practical experience people will have when they are inevitably thrust into Senior Pastor positions.

May God embolden our hearts to address this issue. The future success of our churches depends on it. We must find and mentor younger leaders who can take over the leadership of our churches.

First Mid Level Disappointment...

2007-12-25T16:22:00.000-08:00

Things have been going very well at the church. I thought our folks are drawing nearer to God each week as we continue to put an emphasis on discipleship. The past four weeks, during Advent, I have continued to drive home the fact that Christmas is not about us, the stuff, food, or even our families gathering together. While these are all fine things, the reason we need to be focused on is Jesus Christ. I felt led to challenge people to get past all of the materialism of Christmas and focus on and worship God as Messiah, Redeemer, Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. I challenged them to worship Jesus as wholly God and wholly man, Holy. I prayed that people felt a renewed sense of what Christmas is really all about.

Given this, I felt like we should have a Candlelight Christmas Eve Service. I tossed the idea around to a few folks, and they suggested they had never heard of, nor done this sort of service. I don't think they have ever really done any sort of service on Christmas. So, we did it. We encouraged our folks not only to come, but to bring friends and family. We pushed the service each week and we put it in the local paper.

Now, the disappointment...we had 17 folks at our service. It was a very nice service and everyone that was in attendance responded positively. We worshipped God together. However, I was disappointed by the attendance. Don't get the wrong idea...I am not just a numbers person. However, we talk about the once or twice a year-ers. You know, the folks that show up on Christmas and Easter. Well, either there aren't any in my town or they all went to another church because we had 0 folks in this category. Not only didn't we have any once-ers, but few of our own folks attended. I was genuinely disappointed. I gave up Christmas Eve with my family for this service. I made it a priority. I feel like few others did not.

I love our folks, and I don't want to be a negative. However, I feel like those who are spiritually grounded and continuing to grow in their walk are the ones who are at church every time the doors are open. They are the ones that are willing to rearrange their schedules on Christmas to come and Worship the main reason for Christmas. Certainly, I would not suggest that everyone at our Christmas Eve service is spiritually mature, nor does their attendance at this service suggest such. However, I am beginning to see a pattern emerge. We have a few people interested in worship and in growing. We have, I fear, a lot more who are more interested in other things, more interested in themselves. . They have not made worship and/or discipleship a priority. I feel led to continue to work on this in 2008.

May God help me as I attempt to lead this group of people. May all of us continue to grow closer to Jesus Christ in 2008. May God help us all to worship Him with all of our hearts. May God help us!

I knew this would happen...eventually

2007-12-08T15:58:00.000-08:00

I am an ordained minister. During my ministerial career, I have been involved in a number of different ministries, but, as the name of this blog so creatively suggests, this is my first time as a senior pastor. When I first came to this church, there was a wedding scheduled for 2 of our folks. However, they requested that the former pastor be permitted to do the ceremony. I was absolutely fine with that.

One of our board members recently came to me and told me that someone wanted to use the church for a wedding, but that they wanted another minister to perform the ceremony. "Yes" I thought, "Dodged the bullet again." However, after thinking about it, I became uneasy allowing someone not affiliated with our church to perform such an important ceremony. So, I agreed that the couple could get married at the church, but that I would need to do their ceremony (what was I thinking?)

So, this week, I sent off my ministerial credentials to the Secretary of State to receive permission to solemnize marriages. This is important. You don't get to say "By the power vested in my by the State of ___________" without this. You can't legally marry someone without it. So, I did it. My first wedding ceremony. Hope I don't blow it!!!

Continued "Firsts"

2007-12-03T06:54:00.000-08:00

This continues to be a time of "firsts" for me in my first year as a senior pastor. Today, we celebrated the first Sunday of Advent. It was (I think) a nice time of reflection on what Advent is about. I read a little history about Advent and talked about the significance of it, we had an Advent reading, the Candle of Hope was lit, we had prayer, and sang. We also gave opportunity during the service for people to bring a Christmas ornament up to decorate the Church Christmas tree. Some gave testimony about what God was doing in their life as they came. It was a very nice service, and the presence of the Holy Spirit was felt.

We also handed out a number of Advent devotionals after the service. People received 3 books as they left. One for them to keep and 2 to give away. We also included a bookmark with all of our Christmas and church information on it. We pray these devotionals we will an effective means of outreach as we continue to develop our influence with unbelievers.

Keep us in your prayers during this busy time of year. We want our focus to remain on Christ this Christmas!

The Pastoral Role of Counseling...

2007-11-16T13:24:00.000-08:00

As I settle down more here at the church, (almost 7 months now) people are beginning to open up and trust me a bit more. This is leading to some opportunity to do some pastoral counseling with our folks. Even today, I have met with 3 separate people who have wanted to talk with me about personal matters. I have also been in contact with two on the phone and one via email. This is why I am here. To help people, to give Biblical advice, to pray, to listen, (a big part of counseling!!!) to help people grow closer to Jesus in the good times and the bad. It is an honor to be trusted by these people with their personal concerns and trials. I certainly need God's help and wisdom, as many of them are going through things that I have never gone through in my life. However, God is using me, and for that, I give thanks and praise.

God, may I never steer anyone astray and may I always embrace folks who need to hear a Word from You with understanding, compassion, and love. Give me wisdom and work through me so that these folks might find a life changing, life long relationship with you, or deepen the one they currently have. To God be the glory. Amen!!!

Stirring up a Hornets' Nest

2007-11-14T01:00:00.000-08:00

We had a board meeting tonight at the church. 90 percent of it went very well. We were able to knock out a number of administrative items that are going to help us operate much more effectively than we currently are. We also discussed some great ministry initiatives and evaluated our progress on our 2007-08 church goals.

Then it all came crashing down. I brought up the fact that one of our ministry departments is operating outside of our denomination's bylaws and that I thought we needed to come into compliance. A few people, one in particular, went "round the bend." This was an interesting reaction given the fact that we just discussed a very significant change in our church, one which has the potential to cause some real disagreement among our people, and we had very positive dialogue about it at the board level. But this little change that I proposed, benign as it seemed to be, caused serious debate (which I think is good, by the way. I think debate leads to better decisions).

As I evaluate this situation, I fear it is about one person feeling like they are losing control. Incidentally, tonight, I was told that this ministry group discussed the idea and decided to implement the change this summer. This in light of the fact that the board decided to leave it alone for a while.

I think it is interesting how we let our emotions rule us at times. I took this person, and one or two other dissenters, point by point through why the denominational structure was a good idea, but they wouldn't concede. That's fine, this was a minimal thing, and I dropped it. A day later, the person does a complete 180. Is it conviction? Is it logic reigning when emotions cool down? I don't know. Either way, it is certainly interesting.

On a completely different note, we have been having good services this month, as we focus on Giving Thanks. I am excited about finishing up this series and moving into our Christmas series. Praise God for all He is doing in our midst.

A Season of Giving Thanks...

2007-11-04T19:17:00.000-08:00

The Lord continues to bless our church. We began a month long focus on giving thanks this morning. The text was The 10 Lepors from Luke. Inevitably, God impressed upon me to challenge our folks to "Be the One." We need to be the one who returns to give Jesus praise and thanks, regardless of our circumstances. We had many people at the alter commiting to Be the One, to stop everyday this November and give God thanks for His many blessings. We don't want to allow November to come and go, simply saying a short prayer on Thanksgiving and that's it. We need to do and be more.

We had good attendance this morning, a good offering, and a few folks who are irregular attenders with us. The Lord is continuing to bless us, and we stop, right now, to give thanks and praise to God for what HE is doing. We praise Him for how He is moving amoung the people of our church, for how He is allowing us to reach out and touch our community, and for all He is doing.

Today marks my 6 month anniversary at the church. We have had a couple of issues, we are dealing with a couple of issues, and I imagine other issues are on the horizon. But, we praise God anyway. I am continuing to learn and grow as a pastor. I am having a great time ministering to this group of folks and this community. I am having a great time doing what God has called me to do.

Sometimes, this is a thankless, lonely job. I used to work at a place where there were hundreds of people around all of the time, everyday. Now, I work from home with much less interaction than I am used to. However, I received an email from a good friend today, and he was very encouraging. I am convinced that I am here for "such a time as this." I believe that I am here right now for a reason and that God is using me right now, as well as preparing me for the future. I thank God for His call on my life and pray that He continues to lead and guide me. As I said, I am learning. I make mistakes. But, God helps me to learn from them and do better the next time. I pray the Lord continues to teach me and that I continue to learn!!!

Praise God for all He is doing in my life!!! Amen.

The Lord Continues to Bless...

2007-10-28T17:45:00.001-07:00

We had a great weekend at the church. Friday night was Trick or Treat in our community. We decided to have "Trunk or Treat." We had 3 huge inflatables, hayrides, face painting, food, and candy (a whole CAR TRUNK full) and everything was FREE. We promoted several different ways in the community. I was convinced we would see at least 200 people through the doors. Our church folks were a little less sure, I found out. After the event was over, we had counted 260 some people through. Everyone from the church was amazed. Many stated that they never imagined we would have so many. Some suggested they thought we would be lucky to have 100 people.

I had to make sure to level expectations though. This morning, we saw no fruit from our Friday even labors. However, I made sure to tell our folks that we were planting seeds. My comment was that one day, these people are going to think "maybe we should go to church." They are going to remember that little church who had the big thing on Trick or Treat. I believe that down the road, we will reap the harvest from these sorts of events. We will continue to do these kind of events as we want to make a mark on our community for Jesus Christ!
======================
Today was a bit bitter sweet, too. Our youth pastor is leaving. We sent him off with a farewell celebration and some cards and gifts. He is a good friend and he will be missed. We are beginning the process of rebuilding our youth ministry and we need God's direction in this area.

Services went well today. Attendance was good. Worship was good. We will begin a month long series on Giving Thanks next week. It is hard to believe that the Holidays are here.

We have had a good 6 months...God continues to bless in many areas. We are working through some challenges, but we are trusting God to continue to lead and guide us in all areas of our ministry. "Praise God from whom all blessings flow..."

Pastor Appreciation...

2007-10-24T14:26:00.000-07:00

I was gone 2 weeks ago, so the church had some time to plan a special day for me. On Sunday, our children's Sunday School class presented a special song to us in honor of Pastor Appreciation. They also gave me a very nice gift and a card. I then received a number of other cards from other folks in the congregation, as well as from the church.

On top of all of this, they decided to celebrate my birthday, as well. There was a surprise party for me that night after the PM Service. I received a number of cards, gifts, and happy birthdays. It was a special day.

Needless to say, there are times when you certainly don't feel very appreciated as a pastor. This day was NOT one of those days.

Talk about Walking Right into it!!!

2007-10-17T15:24:00.000-07:00

So, I was calling some of our folks to let them know we were cancelling our Mid-Week Bible study to go to another local church’s (within our same denomination) revival. When I called one of our ladies, I innocently asked “Hey, how are you doing.” Who could have known this one short sentence, 5 little words, 6 syllables could have evoked such a response.

This person was in charge of an aspect of our Homecoming event. They didn’t feel like this area they were in charge of went as smoothly as it could have. They felt like they had failed and that the failure was their fault and that everyone thinks funny of them now. I continued to assure the person that the slight issue was not a big deal, that nothing goes perfectly, and that everything was fine.

I am setting up the context of the situation for you because I feel like it somewhat contributed to this person’s current emotional state, which I would classify as very hurt. See, I had put this person in charge of another event for this week. However, one of our more assertive ladies told her that she wasn’t doing it anymore…they had other plans. This really hurt the lady, who was already licking her Homecoming wounds anyway. She felt like the assertive lady overstepped her bounds. Now, assertive lady is known to be a bit pushy and to lack a bit of tact. There are times when I feel like she is purposeful in her tactlessness.

Anyway, I have a problem with all of this because I put someone in charge of something and then a church member went behind my back and told the person that they were NOT in charge of it. This is a difficult thing to comprehend, and I feel like I need to give more information. See, I think that a group in the church was planning something special for me for Pastor Appreciation and my birthday. I wanted to lump this other thing, which is sort of an appreciation/going away thing for our associate pastor who is leaving, in with this “surprise thing.” Well, because I don’t know what is going on, some things were changed and different plans were made. I don’t think this will be a common thing (people going behind my back telling others what they can and cannot do). I think this is a unique and confusing situation compounded by a number of people planning a number of different things for the same night along with me not know what most of those things are, as well as hurt feelings to begin with.

Whew….I am definitely not getting paid enough. Anyway, I have 2 people who are pretty hurt, talking about taking some time off from church. Then I have two other people who don’t seem to see what the problem is. I was ready to cancel the whole dang thing, but I am not sure that would be helpful at all. I have rustled some feathers now, as the 2 ladies who are fine know that the others aren’t. They also know I am not a bit happy about it. I don’t think this is over yet, but it is at least done with for the day. We will see if anyone throws cake at someone else during the event on Sunday. If so, I will be sure to take and post pictures!!

Pray for me…they don’t teach you about this stuff in college (not even in graduate school). Sure, you can take conflict resolution courses, management, leadership, etc (which I have). Nothing from a book, no theory or idea really prepares you for dealing with real issues like this, though. There might be some occasional useful insights, but it is really live, learn, and do it better the next time. I WILL do it better the next time.

Homecoming Celebration

2007-10-14T18:30:00.000-07:00

Today was Homecoming at the church. We had a great crowd (125 folks). It was a good service, with a former pastor coming back to preach and a group of my friends leading worship. We had a carry in dinner (food was great - we will be better organized next time) and then a concert with 60 folks hanging around. We also honored 4 people for their dedicated and faithful service to their Lord at the church.

It was great to meet some of our church folks' friends and family, as well as meet some that have attended in the past. It was a great day, and we praise God for blessing us!

Next? We have a huge Halloween Outreach. I am re-evaluating my next sermon series. I was set one way, but strategically, we might need to move it to the Spring. We have a ton of ministries in the next few weeks, and I think people are getting worn out. We need prayer as we continue to seek God and His will and direction for our church.

Giving...Uh Oh!!!

2007-09-30T13:19:00.000-07:00

We had a good service this morning. We had over 50 for the second week in a row in attendance. More importantly, we had a good time of fellowship and worship. Every once in awhile I break out the old guitar, and people really seem to enjoy it. Then, we got to the message.

The message was okay, not my best nor my worst. However, the content of the message was on giving. Many people seemed to accept what was being said. Main points included that God does pour out his blessings on the cheerful, faithful, sacrificial giver and that you cannot out give God. I also went as far as challenging folks who weren't tithing to do so for 3 months and if God did not bless them, to come and see me; for I would give them all of their money back personally (Stan Toler talks about doing this in his book The Cycle of Victorious Giving).

After church, we went out to eat and I heard a comment from one fellow who apparently wasn't too thrilled with the morning's message. He said "If you keep preaching like that, you aren't going to have anyone left to preach to." Huh. I was at a table with 10 other people, many of which were very positive about the message. So, you win some and lose some, I guess. I though the message was developed in a way that encouraged those who were giving as they should and challenged, but not indicted, those who weren't. This is always one of those difficult issues to get exactly right, I think. However, I feel it was a valiant first effort.

Church Work Day

2007-09-22T15:21:00.001-07:00

Today was a very encouraging day. Our church was in need of some serious TLC. Weeds had overtaken a portion of the parking lot and grown up all around the front door (yikes!) Additionally, the doors needed painting, some areas needed some weed eating, and several other things needed out attention. 19 people showed up for this day, which come out to about 50 or so man hours of work (2 were kids, so I am estimating).

It was great to see folks come out and give of their time to get our church cleaned up and looking good for the fall. I think this was an important day, not only because of all the work we got done, but also because a day like this helps people to feel a sense of ownership.

Today was a good day!!

(obviously some people will give away who I am, but that's okay. I don't believe anyone is reading this anyway. If you are, thanks!!!)

A Disappointing Day...

2007-09-09T18:16:00.000-07:00

We had good attendance and participation all through the summer months, which is opposite of what many churches might report in the summer. We praise God for those good months.

However, today, we saw our lowest attendance since I have been here. We were missing a TON of people. What is the reason. Has the "new-ness" of me being here worn off? Are people simply extraordinarily busy as the Fall season, school, sports, etc begins? We had somewhere in the 40s for Worship this morning. We were at 31 this evening. The evening worship attendance is pretty close to normal. However, I am concerned about morning worship.

Let me be clear, I am not all wrapped up in numbers. However, I do think it is important and I am wondering why we were missing so many? I fear it speaks to a deeper issue of commitment and a lack of understanding about the importance of Sunday worship. We just kicked off our Fall ministry season, and I feel like we are in a slump already.

We trust and pray that this was the exception to the rule and that this is not going to be a reoccurring issues. I plan on spending much time in prayer this week for our members and attendees. God, please help us understand the importance of consistency at worship services!

(Offerings were way down, as well, which is directly related, I believe, to our attendance. Nonetheless, we have some significant ministry events coming up which will require some serious dollars. We are trusting God to provide!!)

Vision Sunday...

2007-09-02T13:13:00.000-07:00

This morning at church was Vision Sunday. We have been working for the past several weeks to seek God and His will for our church. This morning, I cast the vision for who we are, who we want to become, and what we are planning to do in 2007-08.

There were a number of changes that we made in preparation for this service. First, we are now meeting on Thursday nights to plan worship. This includes me, the piano player, and the worship leader. We also came up with a schedule for the piano players (we have several) so that the same person doesn't always have to do it every week. This was received well by those involved, and I think worship will improve because of the concerted effort.

Second, we re-decorated the sanctuary for fall. Yes, a little early, but this was our FALL kick-off, so we went ahead. It looks great and was a nice change from the previous decorations.

Third, we (I) got rid of the hideous attendance board which resided at the back of the church. There were any number of problems with this board, not the least of which was that it only recorded Sunday School attendance. So, when guests came, we looked like a church of 37, instead of a church of 60. Interestingly, there was some concern from leadership that this would "be a thing" but I heard only positive comments about it, as we now include all service attendance numbers in the bulletin.

Fourth, the bulletin changes formats. We went from a bi-fold with the little covers you get in Christian bookstores to a plain white tri-fold. It looks a lot more professional and clean in this format. Again, good comments.

Fifth, we launched a new website. Wish I could share it here, but that would defeat the purpose of being anonymous. However, for the 2 of you who read this and know who I am, if you send me an email or text, I will give you the link. We pray the website will give us increased visibility in our community.

Finally, as I said earlier, this morning was all about our mission: To love God and Love People, our vision, to be a lighthouse in our community, our values, and our goals. At the end, I asked everyone who was willing to commit themselves to these things to come forward in a visible sign of their commitment. Nearly everyone did (we had some visitors this morning, praise God who didn't, but that is to be expected). WE PRAISE GOD FOR THE 6 or so VISITORS THAT HE SENT US. 4 were just traveling through, but 1 lady said she was looking for a home church and seemed to be positive about her experience this morning.

It is labor day weekend, so we were missing at least 12 of our own folks, so attendance was down, but not too much since we had some new folks.

Praise God from whom all blessings flow. We thank Him for how He led us to this place, and we look to Him with great anticipation as we begin this new chapter in our church's history. To God be the glory!!!!

Spiritual Gifts...

2007-08-19T18:22:00.000-07:00

I was disturbed to learn that no one in my church has ever taken a spiritual gifts survey. We have been talking about investing our time in the things of God's kingdom. As we discuss this, I am learning that people might be serving in areas where they are not gifted. I call them CRACK FILLERS. People who stand in the crack when no one else will.

How can we be effective in ministry if we don't know what God has wired us to do? This is a great opportunity for me to discuss spiritual gifts and to lead our church in a Spiritual Gifts analysis. We are going to get people into places where they can be effective in ministry!!

The Blahs...

2007-08-19T18:20:00.000-07:00

Summer seems to have caught up with us at the church. Everyone is just sort of there, not active, not participating...just there.

I am working my way through dealing with attendance blahs and with people just seeming complacent. May God help us!

Leadership Retreat...

2007-08-19T18:14:00.000-07:00

We praise the Lord today for a good turnout during our first ever Leadership Retreat. The board and key leaders in the church met off campus to discuss our mission, vision, values, and goals, as well as discuss the upcoming ministry year. It was a great day of food, fun, fellowship, and leadership development. We addressed what it means to work as a team, what I expect from the board and what they should expect from me. We dealt with the bain of every church's existence...GOSSIP. Everything that was presented was received well.

It was a good day. Good conversation was had, and we grew together as friends and as a leadership team. It was an investment in our future, and it was worth every cent and every minute that we spent.

Pray for us as we move forward. We have Vision Sunday scheduled for the 2nd. We will reveal our revised mission, vision, values, and goals then, as well as discuss important upcoming ministries. We praise God for a bright future.

Back from Youth Camp...

2007-08-13T11:18:00.000-07:00

Well, if there is anyone out there reading this, sorry I haven't posted lately. I just returned from youth camp. It was a good week, but running a camp is exhausting. There are always 20 different people yelling your name, needing something, wanting something. But, that's just how it goes sometimes.

Youth camps are important for a number of reasons. First, they allow students to get away from TV, computers, MySpace, and focus on something else. Additionally, concentrated times of worship and preaching can have a profound affect on students. Also, kids who have been hiding things, like perhaps abuse, neglect, etc, usually will tell someone on staff by the end of the week. This is an enormous nightmare, as appropriate organizations must be contacted, reports must be filed, and of course, families are usually ripped apart by any accusations. However, it is good that the student feels comfortable enough to tell someone. They NEED to tell someone. Thank God for a safe environment where these issues can be dealt with in an appropriate manner.

Finally, youth camps are about meeting with God in a special way. We did that this past week. As these kids gear up to head back to school, I pray that they will remember the things we talked about. I pray they will read God's word and pray daily. I pray they will be able to stay refueled for the journey that is ahead.

Youth camps are an significant investment of time and resources, but it is worth every second and every penny!!

Calm before the Storm???

2007-07-30T14:23:00.000-07:00

I am coming up on 100 days of ministry as a first time senior pastor. I wanted to be very purposeful in the first 100 days, so I put together a First 100 Days Strategic Plan and a One Year Strategic Plan. I am happy to report that I have met many of my goals for the first 100 days.

Specifically, I have visited nearly everyone in the congregation over the past 3 months outside of the church. Many miles and much time has been logged spending time with folks. This was important, as I wanted to build solid relationships right out of the gate. I think I have been able to do so.

I have also been working with key influencers, dropping hints and ideas about small changes that might need to be made. Many of these suggestions have been met with positive comments. However, I wonder if this isn't the calm before the storm. I have been working hard to get buy-in and to be participative in my leadership style. However, we will see, when the rubber meets the road, whether people are really on board or not.

Overall, I feel very accepted here. The church was somewhat hurt about the previous pastor's departure. However, I believe we have gotten past that and are moving forward. We love the town and we love the people. I have been accepted here as the new pastor and the new leader. As Rodney Atkins said, "These are my people." Well, they are God's people, but you know what I mean.

I believe that there are great days ahead for our church, and I praise God for what we have accomplished so far, and for what He has planned for us.

(We have a leadership retreat planned for mid-August. I am looking forward to getting everyone out of town for the day to focus on vision, mission, values, and goals for the upcoming year).

A Praise and A Rant...

2007-07-17T03:58:00.000-07:00

So, we had our VBS Closing Celebration on Sunday morning. 88 people came to see what we had been doing during the past week. That was awesome. We rocked the place, and everyone was extremely positive about the week as a whole. We praise God for an awesome VBS.

On a similar, yet much more frustrating note, we need more little kids at our church. Why? Well for the obvious reason that we want to build God's church. However, also because people know that if they bring their grand-daughter or great grand-daughter to church, they are going to have people all over them, giving them their undivided attention.

This past Sunday night, there were kids who were screaming and running around the entire service. Not only was it frustrating and distracting for me, but it was for a number of others, as well. My thoughts are that if we have more little kids, then it won't be such a big deal when a kid shows up. Also, we have a very nice nursery that has a huge window and a speaker for audio. No one wants to use it though, because then they don't get the attention that they get when they are out in the sanctuary.

This is a bit of a problem for me. We love kids, we want kids, but we also don't want them to be distracting to what we are trying to do. We are going to have to find a way to encourage the use of our nursery, especially if children are being disruptive.

Praise God for VBS!!!

2007-07-13T11:49:00.000-07:00

The purpose of Vacation Bible School is at least 2-fold. First and foremost, it is about reaching children and helping them find a life changing lifelong relationship with Jesus Christ. Second, it is about reaching families (parents and other kids too young or too old for VBS) and trying to get them in to the church if they are currently not worshipping some where.

While the second part of the purpose is very important, it can never overshadow the first part. I must admit I was allowing it to do so as we began our VBS this past week. I was frustrated when none of the neighborhood folks brought their kids to VBS. I just don't understand why they wouldn't walk a block (or drive) and bring their kids. There is a house full of kids right across from the church. We invited these people in person and we left a flyer on their door a couple of days before. Each night, we are out playing games and doing VBS activities, and these kids are also out, right across the street, playing and running around, NOT involved in our ministry.

Then, I looked at the kids that we do have at VBS (about 25-30 each night). These are mostly kids who go to church elsewhere or are the grandkids of the volunteers. We probably won't add any families to the church from our VBS because of the makeup of our kids. I was again frustrated about this. But then God opened my eyes again to the fact that VBS is primarily about reaching the kids. Sure, getting families to join the church is a nice by-product, but it is NOT the main thing. The main thing is that we had a number of the kids at the alter last night. 6 of them asked Jesus into their heart for the first time. 5 of them recommitted their life to living right for Jesus.

PRAISE GOD for the primary purpose of VBS, which is helping kids love Him!!!

Starved for Attention???

2007-07-13T11:41:00.000-07:00

It seems like the people at our church are starved for attention for some reason. I am not sure why, but people seem to always like to be the first one to tell everyone when someone is sick or when they know something else they think everyone should know. Also, whenever I go to visit folks or whenever I ask "how are you doing" they are, according to them, on the Virge of death. I mean, they tell you they have one foot in the grave. It seems like it they feel better after telling you how bad they currently feel. Seems sort of counter intuitive to me...but that is what is happening.

I am working my way through this...

A good meeting...

2007-06-28T09:15:00.000-07:00

We had our final board meeting of the church year last night. It was a very positive meeting, where the outgoing board members and incoming board members met together. We were missing a couple of people, but most were there and it was a good meeting.

I don't have anything overly exciting to share. There were a number of business items discussed and a number of decisions made; however, everything went smoothly. Praise God for that.

One more exciting thing for me is that we are having a leadership retreat in August. I think this will be an important day in the history of our church, as we get off the church campus and head 30 miles outside of town to plan, revise, and dream. A number of board members were very positive about this. I pray all those in leadership will be able to join us, as we will be revising our vision, talking about mission, values, and setting some short and long term goals (or at least starting these processes). I think this will help with buy in and will allow for shared vision as we move forward this next church year.

At the end of our board meeting, I asked that each person would pray out loud for the person to their left as we closed our time together. This was a meaningful time, as each board member prayed for their peer. You could tell that these prayers were heartfelt, as sometimes tears were flowing from the pray-er.

All in all, things are going well. I praise God for the easy transition we have had these past few months and for how the church is responding to the vision God has given us. Exciting times are ahead for us, not because of me, but because of HIM!!

Praise the Lord.

For my friend..

2007-06-23T15:10:00.000-07:00

This post is for my friend, JAD (you know who you are). He has been harassing me about not posting lately.

So, here is the update:

Things at the church are going well. I have been gone for a week, involved in denominational ministry out of town. So, things have been quiet (as far as I know).

I do know that two people in our congregation have had an a phone conversation which went badly. These two people have never really gotten along well. One speaks very, very badly about the other each time I visit. So, I am struggling with how to deal with this. I don't care to hear the venom that is being spewed about the other person. It is either untrue or irrelevant. It is certainly talk that has no redeeming value, regardless.

So, I am searching for a way to deal with this situation. Other than that, we are just trying to get through the busyness of summer. We are currently doing a series on the Parables of Jesus on Sunday Nights. After service, we load up and head to some one's home for food, fun, and fellowship. People were initially leery of this idea for some reason, but each one has been well attended and fun.

We are currently planning a vacation Bible school for the summer and looking ahead to Fall. We are also planning a leadership retreat for August and we are wrapping up our church year for 2006-07.

JAD, I will try to post more often. However, I think you might be the only one reading it so far. Maybe I need more juicy stuff??? :)

The Power of Prayer

2007-06-05T19:37:00.000-07:00

So, we were at a conference today, and our youth pastor comes up to me and tells me the following story...

"I was talking to a lady. I had never met her before, but we just struck up a conversation. She asked me where I was from, and I told her. She mentioned that we might see her company's trucks in my county because they do some work around us. I jokingly said, 'So, if I need to raise some money, I can just call you company, drop your name, and I will be good to go?'

"What do you need money for?"

"Well, we are taking a mission trip and we are currently a little short."

"Really? How much do you need?"

"About $700."

"Okay," responds the woman, as she whips out her checkbook, "Who do I make the check out to?"

It that not amazing? This woman wasn't even a part of the conference. She was simply a member of the church where the conference was held.

This is undeniably the power of God and the power of prayer. Before all of this happened, we brought all of the students going on this trip up to the alter and prayed a commissioning prayer over them this past Sunday. Before the prayer, the youth pastor mentioned their need of serious money. During the prayer, we prayed for God to meet the need. We didn't know how He would do so, but we prayed for it to happen and we believed that it would (this, I believe, is key, when praying!) We took up an offering at the end of the service, and God blessed with $350.00. We praise Him for that, but HE knew that we needed more.

And then, HE completely met the need.

We recently began a series on the parables. The first one was the unjust judge and the persistent widow. The point of this message was to PUSH (Pray until something happens). Don't worry...PRAY. Pray persistently. Pray positively, believing that God will answer your prayer (knowing that the answer is sometimes yes, sometimes no, sometimes wait, sometimes something better than we could even imagine).

Prayer is powerful. God's word tells us this is a fact. I think our youth pastor would testify to this fact today. We came to the throne of God with a request. We believed the need would be met. And it was. It was met by a woman who we knew for all of three minutes. God is good! God answers prayer!

My friend said this, and I think it sums up what God (not me) is going to do in our church. He said that "This money is a down payment on the things that God is going to do, on the way that God is going to bless the church."

Amen!!!

Elections at the Church

2007-05-31T20:10:00.000-07:00

I am currently in a state of shock, as we just had our elections at church tonight. This is where we elect members to serve in various board positions over the next year. One of our board members, who has been on the board for more than 20 years was voted out tonight. This person has been a good friend, but at times stood in opposition of some things we wanted to do in my short tenure at the church. I am not, though, necessarily happy to see him go.

I don't think opposition is bad. I think genuine dissent and discourse are important. I believe that it makes one critically think, re-evaluate, and look at something from all sides. I think it leads to better decisions. My concern now is that there will not necessarily be a dissenting opinion on the board. That's too bad. Really!

While I continue to process this, I am looking for ideas about how to honor this man and his 20 + years of service. I think it is important to do something, I am simply not sure what.

One month down...

2007-05-30T20:34:00.000-07:00

So, I have been doing this (full time senior pastor) for a minimal amount of time now. I am already learning a lot, and it has certainly been an eye opening experience.

1). Members will attempt to "dig at you" though your spouse. My wife has already had a bad experience. This is too bad!

2). Some church members attempt to "bully" everyone else. It is my goal to find an effective, Christlike way to get these members to check their attitudes.

3). Visitation at a small church is very important. I am spending a significant amount of time in people's homes.

4). If given the opportunity, people will push you around. I am confident that people will be given very little opportunity to do this with me.

5). Facilitating change (which is needed at this church) is going to be a difficult battle. I believe, though, that God has given me a picture of what this church can look like. We have the potential to have an enormous impact on our community, country, and world. I am confident that I will be able, with the help of God, to bring people along and move them on to God's agenda (Blackaby).

6). My denomination has a number of people in similar situations (or who have been in similar situations) who will be invaluable resources.

7). People like to tell you things aren't going to work. "That isn't going to work." I was told that a Memorial Day outreach and picnic we were planning wasn't going to have many attendees by several people. We had over 60 on Sunday morning and nearly the same number for the picnic. I allowed people to convince me we would be lucky to have 30. Praise God for how HE worked in this situation. We had a blast.

8). My primary lay leader, who is in his 70s, is going to be a tremendous person to work with. He has been nothing but supportive, even though I feel, at times, that there are some things he is uncomfortable with. He is not your typical "old person" who is against everything. I love spending time with him, and I am looking forward to our continued friendship and working relationship.

9). Money is a touchy subject at this church. We have a little, but we don't like to talk about it and we change out opinion on it frequently. Sometimes "We aren't rolling in money" and other times "Yeah, we can afford to drop $2000.00 on that." I am still working my way though this one.

10). While a number of the above have been somewhat negative, I am confident in where God has led me. I am confident in His call. I have doubts about my abilities to effectively lead this church. I shouldn't because I CANNOT effectively lead it. I can only do it with HIS wisdom, guidance, help, grace, and love. Can't do it on my own. Quite frankly, I wouldn't even try.