VBS...Coming Soon!

Summer is racing forward…three church camps are over and now we are focused on VBS. It busts out of the gate next Sunday afternoon and continues thru Thursday night. Our goal is 150 kids…at least that is the goal to have attend any one night and Jeff and I will have our heads shaved the next Sunday morning after church. Some have asked me if I am nuts or what…well, I figure it will actually take about 200 or more invitations to get 150 here any one night. That is kids our church will touched with the love of Jesus Christ. Yeah, some are our own kids…and some are kids from other churches…but in that number there will likely be a kid or two who doesn’t attend any church regularly, or who lives in a home where Jesus is a curse word, or worse yet, hungers for some loving attention. What a priviledge for our church to be able to share the love of Christ with that child…all because some goffy preacher offered to have his head shaved. I’ve said it before, if I’m gonna be a fool, I want to be a fool for Jesus Christ! Now, to get others to catch the vision. If you’re not involved with it, VBS is tough work, but along with church camp, one of the most effective tools we have in reaching a young life for Christ. Pray that we will be effective next week…that our goofy stunts will attract children and point them to the Savior…and perhaps some will make Him their Savior.

Being A Missionary

God is at work again…yeah, I know He never stops, but seems to be working overtime lately. I’ve been in conversation with someone about why churches fail to reach people and the fact that it is not God who is failing, but it’s the church who fails. Well, this morning I read the following, which was posted by Mike Rayson on his Facebook page, and he credits Leonard Sweet for this line of thought. “If I go to Japan as a missionary & tell them how much I hate their food, their dress, and their music - and then tell them about the love of Jesus...I will fail. So why does the church insist on telling a younger generation that we hate their clothes, their friends and especially their music - and still think we can tell them about the love of Jesus.” That is so well said! Everyone knows that to be an effective missionary, one must not only go to those lost, but one must learn their culture and their language and then share with them the love of God in a way they’ll understand. It does not work to force our thoughts and ways upon them…just study English & Spanish history as they attempted to colonize the world. Why can’t we understand it works the same way with churches in communities? Rayson (or Sweet) is using the age/music example, but fact is, the results are the same for any division: social, economic, educational, racial...the list goes on and on. Remember, God wants them…but He doesn’t necessarily want them to be just like us. Another great comment in the conversation was, “We cannot show them the love of Jesus, without loving them.”

Mythbusting for God!

I don’t watch much television, but one of my favorite programs (aside from Monk and Andy Griffith) is Mythbusters. If you’ve not seen the show, it’s about testing those myths and old wife’s tales that we’ve all heard and seem to permeate the internet these days (one of my favorite busted myths was catching a bullet with your teeth). Their goal is to either verify a myth or bust it, while they continually caution viewers “Do not try this at home!” One aspect of a busted myth I enjoy is trying to replicate a myth, showing how absurd it really is. They routinely chase the ridiculous and often end up with big explosions, but it got me to thinking…God wants each of us to be mythbusters. Not like Adam & Jamie, but like Timothy. “Concentrate on doing your best for God, work you won't be ashamed of, laying out the truth plain and simple” (2 Timothy 2:15, the Message). There are so many false myths circulated in our culture about salvation, baptism, heaven, miracles, church, healing…you get the idea. The fact is you and I have been charged with sharing our witness and presenting the Gospel to others, plain and simple. Peterson interprets Paul’s words as we need to concentrate on doing our best for God. Are you giving God your best busting those myths and spreading truth…or just putting in your time? Btw, God wants us to try this at home...and at work...and at school...everywhere!

Lord, That's Not What I Meant!

Just a note to let everyone know I am home and doing fine. A long day and a night in the hospital yielded one of the most painful, albeit small, kidney stones that I ever want to meet…wouldn’t wish that experience on an enemy! Thanks for all the prayers, calls, and a ride home from a saint. Sounds like the prayers worked as I only spent about 12 hours dealing with the problem and I hear some have spent days trying to produce results! Regardless, I am home and almost back to normal…whatever that is. In the meantime, it gave me the opportunity to invite some folks to church and to VBS. Remember, God provides the opportunities, we just need to seize the moment. Now listen to me, I was not sharing my witness while in the throws of pain (maybe I was, but it wasn’t intentional!), but the recovery time offered me a steady stream of new opportunities walking into my room. Does this mean we have to witness while we are in the hospital? Not necessarily, but we are told to be ready to preach the Word in season and out of season, and if you’re prepared, and if God provides the opportunities…why not? I daily pray for God to give me opportunities to witness and pray for others and that I might recognize them…I might just re-phrase that prayer a bit!

Summertime!

Well, I’ve almost caught up from the past week. Almost got the grass mowed and trying to focus on the coming weekend and now Samantha’s coming home…just for a day or so, but it will be great to see her. Summer is so busy that I want to caution everyone not to lose your focus on our Lord. I may be the only one who struggles with this, but it is a struggle. I know summer comes and goes fast. I know we do so many things for the Lord during the summer…VBS, mission trips, church camp…but even while doing the “good” things we can drift from the presence of our Savior if we are not intentional about our relationship and that is when the “good” becomes a burden. Remember, Jesus wants us first to be in relationship with Him and then to work for the Kingdom…not to work, work, work and then try to find time for a relationship with Him. Satan uses any trick he can to pull us from our relationship, even good works…so be careful this summer. Take the time for your Bible reading, devotions, and prayer time…in fact, why not this summer plan to increase each...just a bit. Sound too hard…especially during the busy summer? They don’t call them disciplines for nothing!

Home Again...Again!

Well, I left Monday morning (after the last four days at Annual Conference) with 18 others, including 11 youth, and just returned about an hour ago. We had a work trip for the youth at Love Packages, a ministry in Butler, IL. I've posted a video that Steve has done to show everyone exactly what they do there. Watch it, you might just want to go volunteer yourself. I hope to have another work trip, maybe in August before school starts up. Also, know that I will be posting another video from Love Packages soon as the group from Beulah is featured in it! Until then, praise God for my brother in the faith, Steve Schmidt, and his willingness to follow God's call. To find out more, go to www.lovepackages.org.

Home Again!

Home from AC and bushed...but it was a great conf. The Holy Spirit showed up EVERY time Bishop Palmer spoke...wow! Got to see some old friends and meet some new ones. In the meantime, here's something I found, I think it will bless you (the scenes are from The Passion of the Christ).

Come Holy Spirit!

I don’t know if you’ve had the opportunity (or the desire) to follow the IGRC Annual Conference business on line and I am not sure if any will be offered for replay, but if it is, be sure to watch the ordination service, specifically the sermon. Bishop Palmer was in our face (both clergy and laity) as he called the church to relevance. However, as prophetic as that sermon was, it was not the high point of the day…at least in my opinion. That moment came during the Cabinet report when two new initiatives were announced. First, we can expect a streamlined assessment process for use this fall. PPR chairs and committee members will all cheer, that is if we really do realized a streamlined process (I gotta say I am withholding comment until I see the new instrument). Now, it sounds good, and the premise that effective leadership produces fruit I agree totally with…but let’s see the instrument. Secondly, and this is the biggie, the cabinet called for all churches to participate in prayer and fasting on the first Thursday of the month for the next conference year. Could it be that somebody finally gets it? The local church’s inability to make disciples for Jesus Christ is a spiritual problem, and new programs are not the answer. We need spiritual solutions for our spiritual problems. I, for one, am looking forward to what God will do as we seek His face and will. Here’s my prophetic word…we are on the verge of exciting times!

Rush, Rush, Rush!

Well, there just isn’t enough time…kind of makes me glad for God a day is like a thousand years…if that is what heaven is like, I might just get something done! Now I’m trying to get ready to leave for Annual Conference early tomorrow morning. I say that to inform you there might be a gigantic lag between postings…we’ll see how it goes. But, if you want to know what’s going on there, you can visit the Peoria Civic Center via a live webcast. I am not sure what the schedule will be or when it will start…I’ll be there so I haven’t looked into it…but I have watched other Annual Conference’s webcasts and they have been both informative and enjoyable. So, if you want to know just what goes on at AC, or if you want to see your conference leaders in action, go to www.igrc.org, scroll about half way down the homepage and check out the streaming capabilities. Now, I gotta get back to work…I’m so thankful that God is in control, because days like today let me know that I am not!