Keep it simple stupid.

Keep it simple, stupid! I think we all remember that phrase from many years ago. So how many of you out there live complicated lives? How did they get complicated? Did you over time get yourself involved in so many things that now you feel trapped? Take heart, you have a lot of company. Americans are some of the busiest people on the planet and now if we could just figure out why? Christians are unfortunately no exception to that rule. Are you sometimes confused by the church when it tells you that you should spend more time with your family and out living your faith in front of your friends and neighbors, and then it schedules four events during the week which you are expected to be at? Is there just something wrong with that picture? Yes, I think we can say that there is.
Some churches confuse activity with getting things accomplished. And some churches confuse getting things accomplished with spiritual growth and discipleship. Unfortunately spiritual growth is measured by the number of hours you spend at the church. Particularly if you are not quite sure why you are there in the first place. Isn't there a better way? Isn't there a more practical way to meet with God, grow in faith and share his love with unbelievers around you?
Yes, yes there is! Keep it simple, stupid! Sorry didn't mean to call you stupid, it's just a phrase. My point is you can do more sometimes by doing less. Okay now, you say, that made no sense. Well maybe it just takes a whole new way of looking at things then.
I put to you that you can accomplish more by doing less if you center your focus and only do those things that fit what you are called to do. In other words do less, but do it much, much better than you did before. Get rid of all things that you don't need to do in the church, in life for that matter, and just concentrate on what you actually need to do. Make every move count.
Paul compares it someone running and boxing to win the prize. He tells us to not run aimlessly or swing at the air, but focus as someone who wants to win. My brother is an eigthth degree black belt in Karate. He has told me that as he has gotten older he is a little slower than he used to be, but he is twice as accurate. In other words he doesn't throw as many punches and kicks anymore but when he does, he hits his target everytime. He doesn't swing aimlessly.
Now think about the church. We haven't lost any of our speed at all, now if we could hit the target everytime and not just swing at the wind. Think how effective we could be by doing less to accomplish more and have a bigger impact.
Something to think about as look at the Revitalization Process.

Pastor Fred

The 911 Psalm

I was reminded this morning as I took my children to school that the perfect psalm for this day of Remembrance is Psalm 91:1 and following, and not just because it is the numbers 911. So I have decided to put this Psalm in my blog today to remind us that no matter what God is with us, even when we face terror and war.

Psalm 91:1ff

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, "My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked. Because you have made the Lord your dwelling place - the Most High, who is my refuge - no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent. For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot. "Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name. When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation."
(The Holy Bible, English Standard Version Copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers)

Pastor Fred

The Countdown has started for new beginnings

We are 15 days away from a new beginning. I know everybody is always talking about change now. It is said that everyone hates change but at the same time everyone seems to want it. It is kind of confusing. People want change for a variety of reasons. Some want change because they are bored with the present, they just want something new and they don't care what it is. Other's want change because someone else told them that it is the thing to be doing, if you are changing you are doing something right. Others want change because what they are doing right now is not working. That last reason is probably the best reason so far for change. But there is an even better reason for change. How about change so that you can start doing what you should have been doing in the first place? Change so you can do the right thing, the thing you were designed to do. Now there is change worth having. We are about 15 days away from starting that kind of change.
Actually we have already started the process. We have entered into an agreement with The Transforming Church Network. They are going to help us go through a congregational revitalization process. We have also begun writing a 20 year history of the congregation and putting other things in place. When this process is complete in about two years hopefully we will be a congregation that is fully integrated into our community taking worship outside of our walls and into our community. I am not talking about holding worship services in the park here. No I am talking about a church that is engaged in its local community, serving it and bringing it inside the church through interest groups and community events. A church whose people are found in different community organizations spreading their faith through their words and more importantly their deeds.
There will be a lot of training involved in this process both for me as the pastor and for the congregational leaders and even for the average member. We are starting that process the week of September 13 with new small groups studying "Why Are We Here? Motivation for Mission." This is a six week small group study. Then on October 30 through Nov 1 we will have a consulting team here to interview and train us for work in our community. It will be change at its hardest and best. No longer will we sit as a church and wait for people to come to us, instead we are going to go to them. Everyone in the congregation will be involved in small group ministry and everyone in the congregation will be working. No more pew, or chair sitting allowed.
Scared? I am. It is change from being a church with a sign out front to being the church that is found in the book of Acts. In other words this is a change to do and to be what God has called us to do and be. The countdown has started.

Pastor Fred

Cook off Challenge this Sunday at 9:30 service

Come one, come all we are having a food thrown down or challenge during the 9:30 service. Wisdom and Folly are the names of the two cooks. Both of them will be preparing a banquet of food, the question is which one is serving the best food? The basis for judging of this contest will be Proverbs 9.

Pastor Fred ( who will be intrepreting the results)

And a Little Child will Lead Them

This morning we had our first Wednesday morning chapel for the school year. We had lots of singing and Bible stories and puppets talking about God's creation. The best moment of the chapel though came without any planning. A video is always shown of a foreign country where most the population is not Christian. The video is shown to get the children to pray for the children of that country and get them interested in doing missions throughout their life, whether supporting them financially or going themselves as missionaries. After the showing of a video on Uzbekistan Miss Sue our director asked the children to pray for the children of that country tonight that they would come to know Jesus as their Savior. Out of the blue a little four year girl's hand went up and she asked if we could pray for them right now! So Miss Sue said sure and asked the four year if she would lead us in prayer. And she did, praying that God would lead the children of Uzbekistan to faith in Jesus.
Jesus said in Mark 10:14ff, "Let the little children come to me; and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." Jesus knew who had the most faith in the community, and it wasn't the grown up adults.
What a fantastic way to start a new school year, led by a little child of God. May we be little children of Jesus this year.

Pastor Fred

Back to School

As a parent I am really excited about school starting next Monday. I love my kids but I also love it when they are in school and I can exhale a little bit. Today at Family of Christ is Staff Development Day. Which means all the staff and teachers get together and talk about the coming year. I will be doing a devotion on how we surrender to God and rely on his strength through the Holy Spirit to carry out the tasks he has for us this year. We will go over all the regulations and have a lot of time for prayer. Then we will have lunch. I'm really excited about that! I do love to eat. This is a time to re-focus though and remember why we are here and why we do what we do. We do not just exist to provide education so that our kids are ready for elementary school, but we also exist to share the good news about Jesus' love for us. We will do that in earnest this year. The children will hear the message of what Christ has done for them on the cross every day in the classroom. On Wednesday morning we always have a chapel service where the children worship God with passion. If you have never attended one of our chapel services you need to.
We have a really great staff this year. We also have re-started our Kindergarten. We are all looking forward to a school year of learning more about Jesus and rejoicing in his death and resurrection and the forgiveness and salvation that he has given us. Come and join us!

A Summer with the Old Testament

During this past school year we have had a number of sermon series, some better than others. As I write this we are finishing up a sermon series on the 40 Days of Love. Sermon series are a great way to get deeper into a subject than if you just preached one sermon on it. It focuses everything and connects everything together. But sometimes we need a break from series. So this summer the sermons will be on the Old Testament text for that Sunday. That means that every sermon will be a stand alone sermon, but there is some advantage in that. If you didn't like a particular Sunday's topic well next week will be totally different.
I choose the Old Testament because it is not something I preach from a lot. I spend most of my time preaching on the Epistle's and the rest on the Gospel. I have tended to stay away from the Old Testament through the years for a number of reasons. When I preached on the readings for a particular Sunday I found that most of the time the Epistle and the Gospel had something in common, where the Old Testament reading never seemed to connect with either one. Many times the Old Testament reading is kind of the odd man out. The second reason I didn't preach on the Old Testament was, to be honest, because it was harder to do. There is many times a depth and richness to the Old Testament that is hard to get your mind around. The Old Testament is a challenge because in some ways you have to connect it to the New or show how it is fulfilled in the New.
So I am taking this on this summer as a challenge. I am trying to wrap my mind around some of these Old Testament texts and bring out what they have to say to New Testament people like us in 2009. I hope that you will join me on this journey starting June 7th with Isaiah 6:1-8.