FIFS : Jeremiah 29:4-7

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4. “Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, to all the exiles whom I have sent into exile from Jerusalem to Babylon,  5. ‘Build houses and live in them; and plant gardens and eat their produce[. 6.  ‘Take wives and become the fathers of sons and daughters, and take wives for your sons and give your daughters to husbands, that they may bear sons and daughters; and multiply there and do not decrease. 7. ‘Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the LORD on its behalf; for in its welfare you will have welfare.’

I heard it said once that as believers we are to grow where we’re planted because that’s where God waters us. God had allowed the people of Israel to be exiled into a foreign country. Instead of longing to be somewhere else, God spoke to them and commanded them to treat their new land as their home. The influence of God’s people in a land that did not acknowledge Him was needed. Much like today. As individuals and churches, we have been placed in this land where we live so that we may be a light and an influence to the lost. We are to pray for the people around us. We are to pray for the city in which we love. When the city and the people around us prosper as a result of the gospel, we will prosper as God’s people. Not until. Let’s not long for somewhere else. Instead, let’s grow where God has planted us.  

Worth Repeating

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“Compassion is hard because it requires the inner disposition to go with others to the place where they are weak, vulnerable, lonely, and broken. But this is not our spontaneous response to suffering. What we desire most is to do away with sufffering by fleeing from it or finding a quick cure for it.”  Henri J.M. Nouwen

Something Happened at the Associational Meeting Last Night

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Last night I attended the Savannah River Baptist Association Annual Meeting, my first as pastor of Port Royal. My initial impressions are mixed. I liked some of the things I saw. I did not like some of the things I saw. These meetings are fairly predictable. I’ve attended and moderated enough of them to know what will usually happen. Reports are given, officers are presented, and budgets are adopted. This year, instead of an inspirational message, updates were given from some of our churches as to how God was blessing their ministries. I found this encouraging.

Normally, I find the business part of these meetings the most interesting. Sounds funny, I know. I enjoy that kind of stuff. Something was different for me last night. The music during the worship sessions was outstanding. The songs that were chosen were right on time and stirred my heart. Of the many songs that were done, one stands out. That  song is “You Never Let Go” by Matt Redman. The chorus goes like this:

Oh no, You never let go
Through the calm and through the storm
Oh no, You never let go
In every high and every low
Oh no, You never let go
Lord, You never let go of me

I kept thinking to myself how appropriate that song is for this time. Some of our people have deep burdens on their heart and life. This was a powerful reminder that God, regardless of what we may be going through, does not let go of us. As I look out on the bay while I write this, I can see boats with anchors out. The anchors are holding those boats in place, not letting go. Our God is that anchor in our lives. He holds us. He helps us. He keeps us. He protects us. He provides for us. He doesn’t let go. Our worship time last night was a welcome and needed reminder.

Something happened at the associational meeting last night. I arrived believing I knew what the night was going to hold for me. I left thankful that God can use the seeming predictable times in life to show Himself to us.

We’re Here For You

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On Saturday, November 7th we will participate in the convention-wide ministry day labeled as “We’re Here For You”. Our South Carolina Baptist Convention is encouraging all churches to be involved in some sort of simultaneous and tangible mission project in their local area. This state-wide project is occuring the weekend before the SCBC annual meeting in Columbia. This event mirrors the Crossover events that occur in the host city of the SBC annual meeting during the summer where evangelism amd ministry events take place througout the host city.

At Port Royal, we have decided to take on as our project the local skatepark and farmer’s market. Our goal is to go where the people normally and regularly gather and perform acts of kindness. In this case, we will giving out free water. Our desire is to be able to tell people why we are there, share some information about our church, and if the door opens share Christ with someone. We want to establish a presence that will build bridges for future ministry. Prayerfully through this simple project, someone will come understand that God loves them through our love for them. In addition to free water, we will be face painting, making balloon animals, and maybe some hot-drink (depending on the weather).

This project has encouraged me. As we began to plan for this day, there was a sense of excitement among our people. Many agreed that we needed a presence in this area. We have scheduled two prayerwalks ahead of this event. The first was last Saturday with twelve people attending. This was encouraging to me. The next prayerwalk is scheduled for Saturday, October 31st. I am thankful for those who came out to walk, to pray, and to lift up this event to the Lord. I am so very proud of our people. Pray for us as we strive to change our little corner of the world.

Thank You

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Yesterday was Pastor Appreciation Day at Port Royal Baptist Church. The church planned a wonderful fellowship lunch after the morning service that was well attended at very enjoyable. I just want to say thank you to Port Royal for all the cards, gifts, and words of encouragement that you extended to me and my family yesterday. Words cannot say how blessed I am to have the opportunity to be your pastor. You are a wonderful people and I look forward to what the future holds.

Surprising Insights : Conclusion

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The second part of this book describes the leader of the church that reaches the unchurched. A great deal of attention is given to to the leader and to the subject of leadership. Although the pastor is referred to often, the principles can be transferred to anyone in a leadership position. This is especially true of the chapter that covers what makes the leader tick. The following is a six-point profile that is painted of the unchurched-reaching leader. First, the leader had tenure. The average tenure of a pastor in America (all denominations), according to Rainer, is 3.8 years. The average tenure of an unchurched-reaching pastor is 11.8 years. As I see it, tenure is vitally important. It is with tneure that that a leader earns the confidence of the people and then the right to take then where he believes God is leading. Second, formal education was present. The majority of these leaders were seminary trained. Third, passion marked the life of the leader. Passionate was the word used to describe their attitude toward the church. Fourth, reading was imporant. These leaders were avid readers and were always seeking to learn something new. Fifth, preaching was fundamental. Sixth, these leaders were overwhelmingly conservative in their theology.

Leaders are not perfect. I don’t know anyone who is. In one of the chapters, Rainer included research that both surprised me and encouraged me. He listed the top twelve strengths and weaknesses of the unchurched-reaching leaders. These strengths and weaknesses are the result of questions asked of the leaders themselves. I want to share the top six in each category.

Strengths of the Unchurched-Reaching Leader

1. Ability to Cast Vision

2. Sense of Humor

3. Work Ethic

4. Persistence

5. Leadership by Example

6. Integrity

 

Weaknesses of the Unchurched-Reaching Leaders

1. Pastoral Ministry

2. Lack of Patience

3. Dealing with Staff

4. Dealing with Criticism

5.  Always Task-Driven

6. Too Little Time in Prayer

 

In conclusion, I want to repeat what I said at the beginning. If you enjoy research, you will enjoy the format of this book. If you are not a research person, you may find yourself bogged down in percentages, numbers, and graphs. That being said, I highly recommend this book. Anyone who is involved in the work of the church, as it relates to connecting unchurched people to the body of Christ, will benefit from this book. In my opinion, the benefit of this book is insight. It is tremendously helpful to know how the unchurched think and what has kept them from the church. It is with this knowledge that we as leaders and laymen can better build the bridges the unchurched need.

 

FIFS : Isaiah 14:24

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“The Lord of Hosts has sworn: As I have planned, so it will be; as I have purposed it, so it will happen.”

There is an tremendous amount that I don’t understand. I don’t understand why some people get sick and others do not. I don’t understand why some who are sick are healed, and others are not. I don’t understand how someone can observe creation and at least not consider there is a Creator. I don’t fully understand why bad things happen to good people and that evil always seem to prosper. I don’t understand how God purposed and planend for my life long before I was born.

It is at times when I lack understanding that I am pushed into a deeper trust of God’s sovereignty. I trust His absolute reign and rule over my life and the events of this world. Isaiah wrote that the very plans that God has made and sure and He will bring to pass that which He desires. It is humbling to think that we can have a place and a part in God’s history (for history really is His story). Henry Blackaby wrote, ‘When God chooses a person for His purpose, all of eternity will be shaped by His decision.’  In the times that I don’t fully understand God’s healing, or why evil seems to prosper, I have come to understand one thing. It’s not what I don’t know that matters, it is who I know that matters.

Uniquely Situated

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Port Royal Baptist Church is uniquely situated for ministry opportunity. I believe the placement of our church has nothing to do with chance or luck. Instead, I believe that we are where we are for a reason. If you have never been to Port Royal Baptist Church, let me explain a little bit about our location.

If you step out of the front door and look to the left, you will see  major highway connecting the town of Port Royal to the city of Beaufort. If you step out of the front door and look to the right, you will see the Naval Hospital Beaufort. On this military base you have housing for both singles and families. If you step out of the front and look directly in front of you, you will see a park that is maintained by the town of Port Royal. There are two things worth mentioning about this park. First, a skate park was built several years ago and now gives kids who enjoy skateboarding a place to go. There always seems to be kids there, my son included. Second, this park hosts a farmers market from about April until November. Each Staurday morning vendors set-up in the park and sell everything from vegetables to fresh shrimp. The farmers market draws a large crowd, consistently. The exciting part is that all of this takes place at our doorsteps. Directly behind the church is an apartment complex in which we have a witness of the gospel, and praying for an increase. Also, within a half-mile of the church, there are at least hree multi-housing units. Port Royal Baptist Church is just over a mile from the front gate of the Marine Corps Recruit Depot at Parris Island. We are praying for an opportunity to open up to that would enable us to minister to the families on the depot.

I said all of that to say this. It’s all about placement. Opportunity surrounds us. Our mission field is right here. I believe that God has uniquely positioned us here to significantly impact our community. If you have never been to Port Royal Baptist Church, I hope this helps you understand where we are. If you have been to Port Royal Baptist Church, have you noticed what is around you? When you drive to church, do you realize that you pass through a mission field on your way to worship? We have a people to reach. I am excited about the potential. I am excited about the opportunity before us. In jsut a few weeks we are planning a service project in the park, right in front of us. I’ll write more about that later. I love this town. I love these people. May God enable us to reach them.  

Surprising Insights : Part #6

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Chapter 6 is a straight forward and a no-nonsense chapter. A good reminder. This chapter deals with the issue of doctrine and the importance of it in the mind of the unchurched. A false assumption is put to rest by the research conducted in the writing of this book. The false assumption is that you have to water down and compromise on sound biblical truth in order to reach an unchurched person. The point I found most interesting was the unchurched were looking for absolutes. The doctrine of the church provided absolutes in a culture where very few exist. The unchurched also looked to the church to actually believe and live out the doctrine they say is important. As a church, we must keep a focus on the importance of living before the world what we say with our mouths to be important. The unchurched are counting on it.