Reflections on Send North America

Thirty intense hours.... music, break-outs, Bible preaching and fellowships. Predominantly gen-x'ers and millennials and a few boomers in attendance. Four personal take-aways: 1. Live intentionally in my marketplace. 2. Be aware of when and how God changes that marketplace. 3. Be sensitive to the needs and opportunities in my marketplace. 4. Stop worrying about the cultures around me, and spend my time sharing the gospel.

IMB Do It

It's just a game! Or is there more. . . . .?

OK.  I admit it: I don't like to lose.  My team lost this afternoon, and I was upset for quite a while.  But, "It is just a game," you say. But I like to win.

And I don't like it when I think the game was taken from my team. "It isn't fair."

While walking just before sunset, I was thinking about the game, and Romans 8.28 popped into my head. "All things work to advance God's kingdom." (David's paraphrase.) I know by now that when a verse pops up, I better listen because that is an encounter with God.

Yes, it really does say, "all things."

Even a basketball game? How can losing a basketball game advance the Kingdom?

Maybe the game is more than just a basketball game.

I thought of these two life lessons as a result of stewing over the loss:

1. I should focus on those things in life that have eternal value and minimize the time spent thinking and worrying about the temporal. A basketball game is temporal. I should be more upset about people in my area of influence dying without knowing Jesus as Savior than about losing a basketball game.

2. Who am I to judge whether life is fair or not. The Bible says that God's ways are much higher than mine; He is sovereign and in control.

I needed those reminders this afternoon.

Questions for Church Leaders and Members

After his resurrection, Jesus gave all believers the same mission: make disciples (who make disciples) wherever you go. Matthew 28:18-20.  Acts 1:8. We carry out this mission, working together, as members of a local church that has a unique vision. 

There are polls and reports almost monthly telling us how churches as a group are doing, but how well is your church carrying out its biblical responsibilities?  Is it thriving, surviving or dying.  How do you know?

There are several questions that help us determine areas for needed improvement as a church seeks to work within God's will in a culture that is rapidly changing.

(By the way, these questions are good for any organization or business to periodically ask.)

1. Is God's desire for your local church crystal clear to all members?

• Has the church prayerfully considered where God is working and where He wants your particular church to work? 
• Do all members know the vision? 

2. Do your church members know the "why" behind "what" you are doing?

• Are your church members biblically literate? We have raised one-two generations of church members who have not and do not read the Bible.
• Do your church members understand Missio Dei and that each individual member has a part in God's mission. God sent Jesus, and Jesus sends us.
• Do your church members understand what it means to "Make Disciples?"
• Do your church members have a passion for the lost?

3. Are the spiritual results and expectations for your church obvious to everyone?

• Do your people know the spiritual status of your church?
• Is your church thriving, surviving or dying?
• How do you know? 
• Do your members and pastoral leadership understand the responsibility of the pastor and teacher to equip the members to be ministers?

4. Do your church members have peace and joy? 

• How can you tell?
• Do your church members know how to share their testimony (their story) without offending others?
• Do your church members genuinely care for unbelievers outside the walls of the church?

5. Is the pastoral leadership team doing a good job of equipping members to be ministers? 

• How can you tell?
• Is the paid staff expected to make most or all of the hospital visits?
• Is the paid staff expected to be the ones who practice personal evangelism?
• Do your church members understand the concept of discipling in their marketplace, beginning in their homes, neighborhoods and workplaces?

6. Does your church do a good job executing the strategies God has given it to advance His Kingdom?

• How can you tell?
• Do you know for sure that your church is pursuing a God-given vision? 

7. Is your church unified on the Great Commission? 

• How can I tell?
• Does your church understand the importance of  unity?
• Do your church members actively pray for one another?

8. Is our church developing leaders in proportional to growth?

• What keeps pastoral leadership from equipping more members for ministry? 

Suggestions for Studying God's Word

Many people resolve at the beginning of a year, "I am going to read the entire Bible this year! And they make a schedule to read the correct number of pages per day and then begin reading.  By the end of January, they are behind and give up.

Here are suggestions for making Bible study a way of life for you.

1.  Read your Bible for the purpose of knowing God better as your Father rather than reading to increase your knowledge about the Bible. How do we understand the Father better and improve our relationship with Him?  By communicating with HIm - praying, reading the Bible to hear His words, having a quiet time, journaling and fasting.

2. Select a Bible that is right for you.  If you are a beginning student of the Bible, choose a study Bible that gives a good chronological overview of the entire Bible. 

 For example, put it in perspective with approximate dates:  

• Abraham was called about 2000 BC
• Joseph and his family in Egypt about 1800 BC
• Moses lead the Exodus about 1400 BC
• David was king of Israel about 1000 BC
• Judah fell about 575 BC
• Jesus was born about 2 BC
• The church was established about 30 AD
• Jerusalem was destroyed about 70 AD

Select a translation that you like.  I prefer ESV, NIV or NKJ.

3. Make your reading plan. This year, I began with Revelation (to read the ending first) because I am completing an online course from Dallas Seminary on Revelation. 

Then  I read Matthew, followed by:

• Mark and Luke together because they cover similar material
• Acts, to learn how the Holy Spirit led the early church
• 1,2 Peter. Gospel to the Jews
• Paul's books.  Spread of the gospel to non Jews.
• James.  Pastor of the church at Jerusalem
• Jude.  Half brother of Jesus
• 1,2,3 John
• John

I will then read the Old Testament as written.

4. Find a place and time that are good for you to be alone and read, pray, think, and journal.  For me, I like an upstairs bedroom with a comfortable chair and reading light early in the morning. 

5. Finally, read with God's Mission in mind.  The entire Bible, from Genesis 3 to the second from the last chapter of Revelation, describes God's Mission to reconcile a lost world to Himself. Let God, your Father, speak to you through His word so that you understand the work He has called, shaped and set you to do in your marketplace. 

Who Moved my Pulpit

 Change, a normal part of life, impacts pastors and other leaders in the church. Thom Rainer has written a new book, Who Moved my Pulpit, which discusses changes in leadership and churches.

You can read Brian Upshaw's ( NC Baptist Convention)  review of the book, and if you are interested in learning more about change and how to deal with it, check out a conference at Calvary West Campus, in Advance NC on March 7, 2017.  

A one-day event for your entire church staff focused on leading change in the local church. The conference features Dr. Thom Rainer, president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources, and nearly two dozen ministry leaders from around the  country.