Guitly as Charged - Meetings Are Too Long!

In my quest to become a better leader, I have run across a variety of helpful resources which I plan to share with you throughout the year. As uncomfortable as it has been, many of them have helped me better identify and understand my shortcomings as a leader.

One area in which I've fallen short is making meetings productive and concise. This is something I am working to correct. I found the following article on a business leadership blog entry on meetings helpful. Though it is designed for a business audience, it has many applications in our congregational context. (By the way, ROI is Return on Investment.)

http://www.leadersbeacon.com/want-greater-roi-from-your-meetings-six-questions-that-will-make-the-difference/

I will be putting more insights and other things I have learned here on my blog. I encourage you to come back and check for new entries often. Please leave comments so we can dialogue through this venue.

Max Lucado is helping me!

I have been reading Max Lucado's "Facing Your Giants"at the recommendation of a good friend. On pages 74-75 he is discussing David and his men at the Brook Besor. At one very discouraging point when almost everyone has turned against him, David turns to the Lord for help. As Max expounds:

"'But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.' (1 Samuel 30:6) How essential that we learn to do the same. Support systems don't always support. Friends aren't always friendly. Pastors can wander off base and churches get out of touch.When no one can help, we have to do what David does here. He turns toward God."

This is a great encouragement and reminder for us all. Thanks, Max! (Great book, by the way, I highly recommend it.)

Our Congregation’s Mission – Building Committed Followers of Jesus Christ

Whatever the season, we each must be about God’s business each day if we are going to fulfill our mission as a congregation. God will use you do help accomplish our mission in the course of your everyday life.

Every follower of Jesus is in full-time ministry – not just pastors. God wants to use you each day, wherever you are, whether working or retired, married or not, rich or poor.

If you have been reluctant to let God fill you and use you to make a difference in someone else’s life, let me strongly encourage you to do so today. “How do I do that?” you ask.

A simple prayer is the first step. There are no magic words. The prayer just needs these simple elements:

1. Just ask God to use you.

2. Ask Him to make clear to you who He wants you to impact.

3. Ask Him to make clear what you are to do for Him.

4. Thank Him in advance for what He will do through you.

Then, like the Nike commercial says… JUST DO IT!

Often, God will give you something very simple to do. It may be a phone call or a hug, stopping to talk with someone and really listen, praying with someone on the spot (yes, even if you are really nervous or in public!), or helping a person with a simple need.

Whatever you do, when they ask why you are being so nice or considerate, just tell them God loves them (and you) and that He sent you to them to prove it. After they ask if you are kidding and you assure them that you are not, tell them in your own words why Jesus is important to you and what a difference He makes in your life.

It doesn’t take fancy words or a good argument, just be genuine with them. Think about it first. Practice what you would tell someone if they asked why you are a Christian.

Keep the focus on what God has done for you, not on what you do for Him. Then expect God to show up and do something only He can do through your life. I know you won’t be disappointed.

After you have told them about the difference God has made in your life, invite them to learn more about Him by coming with you to one of our special events or worship services. You can also ask if they would like me to visit them to answer their questions about God or our church. I would be happy to do that.

May God give you the boldness to ask to be used by Him, the peace and confidence to know the directions He is giving you, the strength to obey what He tells you to do, the wisdom to speak to the person to whom He has led you, and the joy of His Son Jesus as you experience the power of God working through you.

Our Mission – Building Committed Followers of Jesus Christ (Part One)

“And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.” Romans 12:1 (NLT)

As we approach the craziness of summer time in Southern California, it is fitting to remind ourselves of our mission as a congregation. During the summer it is easy to become distracted while focusing on vacations and other projects. Yet our work as God’s people goes on from season to season and we are accountable to God for it.

The above verse from Romans reminds us that we are called by God to a high standard. Thankfully, by His grace, God provides the desire, strength, and resources (His Word and Holy Spirit) to work toward this standard and to help others do the same. Because of His mercy, in Jesus He even provides forgiveness when we fall short.

Our mission as a congregation is to introduce these truths to others and to be available to God to be used by Him to equip others to become fully committed followers of Jesus. While there are many noble endeavors, there is no greater or more fulfilling calling in this life.

It is important that we keep this mission ever present in our prayers, our thinking, our planning, and our actions. We will only be successful at accomplishing it when we combine God’s grace and provision with our intentionality and hard work. Over the summer we need to remain diligent about our mission and seeking God’s wisdom, guidance, and provision for finding new ways to fulfill it.

“God saved you by his grace when you believed. And you can’t take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” Ephesians 2:8-10 (NLT)

This verse from Ephesians helps us to remember that this is God’s work from start to finish, in us and in others. I am amazed by this truth. The Creator and Sustainer of the entire universe is willing to use us to impact the lives of others! Can you believe it? We cannot boast about anything, only in what God is doing through us as we make ourselves available to Him.

Lent Is Not the Stuff that Clings to Your Clothes in the Dryer

“If we say we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and refusing to accept the truth.
But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to
cleanse us from every wrong.” 1 John 1:8-9

While many of us will readily admit we are “sinners”, few of us will ask God to search our hearts as King David at the end of Psalm 139. It is one thing to admit that we sin, after all – everyone does! It is far more intimidating, however, to ask God to search the nooks and crannies of our hearts for the sin that we like to forget about, or worse, the sin to which we’ve grown callous and deaf.

Bringing up these things will almost certainly be embarrassing and probably painful. At a minimum, if God reveals them to us, we must respond. Either we reject God, argue with Him about His definition of sin, or we allow His Holy Spirit to convict us and repent.

Ouch! There is that word so few of us like – repent. Oh, it’s fine when we are pointing out someone else’s sin and calling them to turn back to God. But for the average Christian it is a word that is used as little as possible – like healthy food at a buffet. Sure, we can put a couple of green beans or a little salad on our plate to help us feel better about all the calories we are carelessly consuming. But in the end, they have little positive effect on our bodies and they do little to relieve our guilt for overeating.

The first verse above indicates that refusing to acknowledge the truth about our sin is foolish. A Christ-follower that does not regularly come before the throne of God and ask to have her dirty laundry aired by a just and holy God is robbing herself of both the power of God and the joy that comes from being in His presence. Verse nine reminds us that when we confess our sins to Him, He will forgive us.

By the way, this kind of confession is not the “Okay you caught me! I’m sorry,” we get from children when they are only sorry they got caught, not because they disappointed you by breaking a rule. This kind of confession goes hand in hand with genuine repentance. That is realizing you have missed the mark of God’s perfect standard for your life, and that you don’t want to repeat that mistake ever again. It means humbly asking God’s mercy and forgiveness, and asking for His power to avoid the same mistake in the future.

This is why the season of Lent is so important. We are preparing our hearts to remember and receive with gladness the eternal life our Savior won for us by dying for our sins and conquering death and the grave as He rose from the dead on Easter morning. For a Christ-follower, Easter should be a cause of great joy and celebration.

However, when we do not acknowledge all of our sin and ask God’s forgiveness, we are robbing ourselves of the true joy and transformative power of Easter. Don’t let this happen to you! Spend time this Lent alone with God everyday. Ask Him to take away your fear of having your sin revealed so that you can confess it and experience the true joy of His forgiveness.

Knowing that we are forgiven also removes any unholy fear we have of being in God’s presence and it helps us look forward with greater expectation to living forever with God our Father and His Son Jesus Christ. What extraordinary joy will be ours!