church planting tips
When I was in DC I had the chance to meet with Mark Batterson, lead pastor of National Community Church. We had a great conversation, and I was able to ask him a few questions about church planting. Here is a short synopsis of his answers.
1. Initially, what is the hardest obstacle to overcome?
Be Yourself--even more important than being a pastor is being yourself. Be authentic. Be real. Share your weaknesses and struggles. Remind your congregation that you are a work in progress just like they are. Be true to the unique passions and giftings God has given you. Develop core values and core convictions.
2. How do you balance living in the future and making the most of today?
There is a healthy tension that is good. Enjoy the Journey--if you're a visionary you'll tend to live for the future, but enjoy the moment. Be the best pastor you can be during every stage.
3. Out of college until now, what road do you think most effectively/ adequately prepares a church planter?
A lot of it depends on the person. But I'm a big fan of baptism by immersion. It's not for everyone, but a lot of times it benefits the minister the most.
4. What ministries do you think are absolutely vital to a church plant?
The question to ask is who are you trying to reach. Keep it Simple--less is more. We have two goals: plug into a small group and plug into a ministry. Don't try to do too much. Be really good at what you do. Know who you are. Know who you aren't. Develop a kingdom mindset. Learn to appreciate the unique role that others churches play in your community. Then play to your strengths.
And some last minute tips he gave me:
1. Family first--I limit my church-related meetings to one evening per week. Establish those boundaries early on. If there is ever a conflict between family and ministry it's a no-brainer. Family first.
2. Keep Learning--readers are leaders and leaders are readers. Once you think you have it figured out it's the beginning of the end. There are ways of doing church that no one has discovered yet. Keep experimenting. Study to show yourself approved. And make sure you're doing both biblical exegesis and cultural exegesis.
Labels: christianity
recap part III
Labels: personal
recap II
Blogger is really making me mad. It won't let me upload pictures... geez. So here are three posts, which really should be one.
Labels: personal
vacation recap
The last two weeks were really relaxing and a much needed break from life down here in Waxahachie. I made my first ever trip to Washington DC with my friend Nathan. I loved DC; it was a lot cooler than Dallas could ever think about being :-)
I will say that I love the Metro. Maybe just because it was my first time, but it made things so much easier getting around.
I didn't have my camera with me when I visited NCC, so no pictures but Mark and his crew know what they are doing. It's an incredible church doing a lot of really really good stuff. I went to both their Saturday night and Sunday morning service. Very different, but both very authentic. It was great to have the chance to connect with him and experience everything there. It was the highlight of my trip most definitely.
It was then back to Memphis to meet Lacey and her parents to drive to Gulf Shores. We stayed in a really nice place right on the beach. It was a lot of good family time. We did the whole laying at the beach and pool thing, hot tubs, naps, sailboating, eating out, and celebrating my birthday. It was a great week.
Labels: personal
back home
Lacey and I got home last night after a long car ride yesterday from Gulf Shores, AL. It took a lot longer than expected with bathroom breaks and a near blow-out. Thank you God for the old guy that drove by and pointed out my bad tire. And we just happened to be near a Wal-mart so I was able to get a new tire and get back on the journey. Only about an hour break. It could have been much much worse.
I'll post some more pictures later, but this is all I have time for right now. Here's a couple of pictures of the tire. Like I said it could have been a lot worse had the tire burst with us driving 75 mph.
Labels: personal
blog hiatus
I'm going home to Arkansas tonight to see a lot of friends from school and all of my family. I won't get to see my parents though, so that's kinda sorry.
I will be in Arkansas, Memphis, Washington DC, back to Memphis, then to Gulf Shores, Alabama, and then finally back home to Dallas over the course of two weeks. It's a lot of traveling and a lot of driving, but the beach is going to be so relaxing.
And I'm really excited about DC and going to National Community Church. Should be really sweet.
Peace out. Labels: personal
no credentials for me
The title says it all. I went through a lot of work to make things happen, but all of my references didn't get turned in on time so I can't go take the test and interview. It's not that big of a deal... just frustrating since I put a lot of effort to study and make this happen.
Oh well, I will be prepared in October.
Labels: personal
the next billy graham?
A lot of people don't know what to think about Rob Bell, but personally I like what he is doing at Mars Hill. I enjoyed his book Velvet Elvis--people made way too big of a deal about the "controversy" of the book. It was a fresh read for me and extremely interesting to read some of the enlightening insights about Scripture. I think he looked at things in/of Christianity a very authentic way... something that needs to be done more often.
Anyway, here is an article from the Chicago Sun-Times. They did a piece on him, calling him the possible next Billy Graham. It's pretty interesting, so be sure you read it.
ps. I'm out of the office most of the day, so I'm hoping all my credential stuff gets worked out. Yeah, pray for that.
good intentions
This is a great post from Mark Batterson. It was worth posting here.
I have a friend, Zeb Mengistu, who pastors the church we are helping to plant in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Zeb is the kind of guy that can't open his mouth without saying something profound. His insight into Scripture always inspires me. I just got an excerpt from his message this weekend that I thought I would share.
You remember the way David's older brother, Eliab, gave him a hard time when David started asking questions about Goliath? In fact, Scripture says he burned with anger. Then he talked ancient smack. "Why have you come down? And with whom have you left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know your insolence and the wickedness of your heart; for you have come down in order to see the battle."
I love David's typical little brother response: "What have I done now? I was only asking a question." I think he probably said geez somewhere in there too :)Here is Zeb's take:
"David had good intentions, but they were misinterpreted. People will not celebrate or accept your intentions. You will waste your time fighting to prove your intentions. But where intentions are not celebrated, fruit is. The very ones who reject your intentions will rejoice over your fruit. In fact, by fighting to justify your intentions you compromise your fruit. We must learn to let our fruit fight for us. Scripture says that wisdom is proved right by her children. Wisdom does not fight for herself, her children do. Instead of fighting for man's approval, we must fight for God's approval because, "if God is for us, who can be against us?" Labels: christianity
am i or aren't i?
That's the big question concerning me getting my credentials. I have been preparing to take the exam this week, but I was just informed that they don't have my file completed. It's really frustrating because there is nothing I can do. It's not my fault or their's.
I called Tommy Carpenter, Arkansas' Secretary-Treasurer, to see what we can get worked out. I think I may have most of it worked out, but I'm waiting on a phone call from him now for the go.
My plans for this weekend and part of next week may be changed completely. I was supposed to be leaving on Saturday to head home, but now it may be Friday night or it could be the middle of next week. I guess I'll be home when I'm home.
Labels: personal
improper balance
This will probably be one of the few times you will ever hear me say this, but sometimes balance isn't always the best approach.
I am a strong advocate of balance and will teach it to anyone, everywhere. One of the major keys to life is keeping everything in balance. Without it, things get really out of wack. It applies to pretty much every area of life and a lot of problems can be associated with balance problems. There is one arena though that balance is not the goal. It's the arena that contains our pursuit of God and our pursuit of God's calling on our lives.
The pendulum can never swing too far to "our calling." It just can't. But the problem is it's really easy to do. Our pursuit of God though must always stay the precedent. I find myself wanting to be great for God and do great things, but the question becomes "Am I more concerned with what I do than who I am becoming in God?"
There is a part of me, a part of you, and a part of every human alive that desires acclaim, accolades, praise, and awards. It's natural but we have to harness it. Jack Hayford says that
"A leader seeking personal growth more than just career success is not easy to find."
We must line up our desires with Christ. I find myself often desiring success in ministry, but I must now stop and ask myself a tough question. "Would I rather have Jesus than anything?" I understand the success of our ministry will flow from our relationship with God, but that's really not what I'm talking about. God will work through me and bless what I do because people mean the world to him. I just have to make sure my end is taken care of. Are my motives right for wanting to do ministry? Are they really about God or are they about my drive for success?
While this isn't the case for me right now, to be honest I think I can fall into this category at times because I am so driven. But I can't allow my paradigm on God and ministry to become unbalanced. It's too high of a cost. It's God first, and ministry follows. It's that simple. I cannot fool myself to believe my motives are pure when they really aren't. I cannot allow myself to pursue ministry success more than I pursue the creator of my calling. It's God first, and ministry follows. Labels: christianity
