Wednesday, February 28, 2007

Powerful Influence

I've been thinking a lot about influence these days as I am doing a series on the call Jesus gives us to make disciples. This week we are exploring the theme... Disciples are both learners and teachers. Taken from the Great Commission text from Matthew 28, where Jesus says that we are to teach others the commands he taught us.

I've long wondered about the texts in Acts where whole households were baptized at once. Today, I was thinking about how that could be... through the powerful influence of a seriously committed Christ follower. If I take seriously the call to learn from Jesus and to teach my family his commands and help them experience his love, then I will be influencing them in a powerful way.... in the way of Jesus -- not as a destination, but as a journey... as a way of life.

I just came from spending some time at my daughter's school attending an awards assembly with her. What a better way to show her Christ's love than to show her that she is important to me! I am thankful that I have a job that allows me to spend that time with my kids when they have important events in their lives.

Tuesday, February 27, 2007

Ebay Frustration... Take 2

A few days ago, I blogged about my ebay frustration. Turns out that the gentleman who encouraged me to share my relationship with the artist was right! My ebay auctions have been netting more since I disclosed that I am friends and hunting buddies with the artist! It probably also, doesn't hurt that I've received nothing but EXCELLENT ratings and folks are testifying to the legitimacy of the prints I am selling!

Since that day, I have emailed a few ebayers who were selling Mr. Goebel's prints and didn't have his name listed with their listings, to tell them his name and encourage them to include it in the listing. They too have benefited from that.

What a journey it has been and continues to be!

Oprah does what church isn't!

I watched Oprah's special last night on the school she has built in South Africa for girls. And over and over while I was watching the show and seeing the kind of impact that Oprah is having in helping girls have a life-changing experience, I was struck with the thought...that's what the church should be doing!

The church of Jesus should be working together to have that kind of impact on the world.

But instead we are caught up in this reality that is so far from what Jesus envisioned that instead of impacting lives, we are turning people away from Jesus and the power of life-change that he offers.

I want to be part of a church that dramatically impacts the world with a fresh expression of Jesus' love. I want to be part of a church that is more concerned about others than itself! I want to be part of a church that takes risks and does what others deem impossible. And the older I get the more I realize it's time to make a move -- to stop playing the church game! To become more missional! To take risks to join Jesus in his mission to set people free and to proclaim the Kingdom of God and help it become a reality here on earth as it is in heaven. Stay tuned....

Greatest Risk...NOT

I am reading Mark Batterson's book "In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day" http://chasethelion.com . In something I read yesterday, Mark said, "...taking no risks is the greatest risk of all." I agree, especially when it comes to following Jesus!

This is something that I have learned over and over again. The times that I have taken risks have mostly been times where I have seen God's movement in my life in the greatest way.

Think about it. Taking risks puts us out of our comfort zones in a position where we aren't in control and have to trust God to work. Taking risks is where we move into the realm of where we need God in our lives. Too many times, we just do what we know we can do and we leave God out of the picture!

When we take no risks, we risk not growing deeper in our relationship with God. We risk keeping God out of our lives! We risk missing the greatest blessings God has for us!

Monday, February 26, 2007

A Church in a Coffee House

On Saturday, Sharon and Caroline and Brittany spent the day in D.C. seeing the sights and enjoying the free things there. We ended our day at Ebenezers Coffee House http://ebenezerscoffeehouse.com/ for a great cup of Java and some time of worship at the National Community Church's 5:05 p.m. worship service http://theaterchurch.com/.

What a blessing to spend time together. To see the sights. And to see a fresh outpouring of what God is doing through that church. Kinda like a vision I have that continues to grow and develop. How neat it was to see the basement room in the coffee house swell with about 170 - twenthysomethings. And weird that at 41, I was one of the older ones in the room! AWESOME experience! If you ever get to D.C. near the Capitol at Union Station, check out Ebenezers!

Also, check out the church, their vision is to have a church at metro stops in the D.C. area. They have three locations now!

Tuesday, February 20, 2007

Forming NOT forcing

On Sunday, I was speaking on making disciples from the great commission that Jesus gave us in Matthew 28:16-20 and we were exploring the process of making disciples. As I see it, it starts with Being in God's presence and having a strong God connection. Then we must Go out... Go out of our comfort zones and connect with others. Then as we go, we must do something with Jesus for others. This is BOTH a sharing Jesus with our words AND showing Jesus with our actions. Then it's not enough to simply share and show, we must invite others to join the journey of loving Jesus and discovering who he is. That part of the journey I called Making disciples of Jesus. But the making is NOT forcing but is about forming. Helping others be formed by Jesus' love, grace, and connection. And finally, it all circles back in a spiral kinda way to being in God's presence... helping others find strength in their own God connection as they surrender to Jesus and start the process all over again.

One of the main problems the church has in this whole disciple making realm is that we too often try to force people into a relationship with Jesus instead of helping them form a relationship with Jesus. The forcing pushes them away, while the forming is about deeper discovery and strengthening relationship/ connection. Forming also recognizes that we don't have all the answers and we haven't arrived yet either. Loving Jesus and serving him in the world is a process that is life-long. Come join the journey! It's a wonderful thing!

Connections...

Connections... we all need connections! Connections are such a vital role in many aspects of our lives. From the need for cell connection anytime and anywhere( think sprint ads - where the person talking is sharing something vital and the call is obviously dropped at the wrong time) to real time connections face to face to connections that help us through the rough spots of life.

Yesterday, I was helping a friend who has been down and out for a while and is suffering from a health concern that has made him unable to work for long enough that he and his family are "homeless" living with some friends and relatives. I had taken him to a doctors visit and we were told they couldn't see him due to his medical card being with the wrong insurance plan. So, we called a friend who works at the doc's main office and she got us in and actually they are going to write off the visit. Connections are wonderful!

And that's not all, after the visit, we talked to her again and she is working on fast-tracking some surgery for him that will get him back on his feet and able to work sooner rather than later. So hopefully soon, we can get him in a place of his own and his family back together. Connections are wonderful!

Then I was thinking about the connections I have in my life. I am grateful for my connection with my wife, kids, family, church, and friends. But most of all, I am thankful for my connection with God...don't know how I would live without that connection! And the neat thing about our God connections... there is NEVER a dropped call!

Pigeons in the same direction...

Today as I was driving downtown Salisbury on Rt. 13 south, I was struck by the something I saw. Up on the power line beside Rita's was a large flock of pigeons...probably over 100 strong. They were sitting on three levels of wire and the odd thing was that every last bird was facing the same direction. They were sitting shoulder to shoulder (actually more like wing to wing) and ALL of the birds were looking south.

And so, I wondered why? Why were they all looking south? Why wasn't there at least one looking north? Which one chose the direction to look? Was something like the wind direction or sun position influencing the way they perched?

And another thing I noticed, they were all situated together. Not one pigeon was at a distance from others.

And I thought... now isn't that a wonderful picture of doing life together... All of us shoulder to shoulder as we ride out the journey. And I also thought -- I am sure glad that we don't all go the same direction all the time. How unadventurous that would be! Thank God that life is best lived in the context of a community where we find connection and closeness, but don't necessarily have to all go the same direction! We in our community connections, we can still exercise some individuality!

Monday, February 19, 2007

Grant's Three

Grant has been an inspiration to so many throughout the years... as a husband, parent, grandparent, teacher, school administrator, and church leader. Recently I asked him to share about his relationship with Jesus.

He stated that there were three things that he never wanted to be guilty of. And that he has tried to live his life with these three as a guide to how he lives. Grant has lived his life so that he would never be accused of...1. Mistreatment or hindrance of the church, because the church is Christ's Bride. 2. Hindrance or hurting a child, because of such is the Kingdom of Heaven. 3. Hindrance or hurt to a woman, because she is God's gift to man.

What a different world we would live in if all of us would live by these three! I'm in! Let it never be said of me that I hindered or harmed the church, a child, or a woman!

Saturday, February 17, 2007

The Stewardship of Death

For a long time now, I have known that I wanted to be cremated upon my death. Mostly as a stewardship issue. Why waste a good piece of ground by putting a metal or wood airtight casket inside a cement vault and cover it with a granite stone. None of which makes the ground good for anything. Growing up in a farm family, I was taught the value of preserving the earth.

Then in Saturday's mail came the Feb. 26, 2007 issue of Time magazine. In it on pg. 13, there is an article addressing the stewardship of death... actually it refers to is as "Going Green to the Grave". It mentions several new methods of practicing stewardship of the earth...1. caskets made of 90% recycled wood and natural glue, 2. being dipped in liquid nitrogen (being done now in Sweden) so that your body will become brittle and become dust easier, 3. using the carbon from being cremated to make a synthetic diamond. It also mentions the reality that our dental fillings when cremated cause a toxic pollutant -- something I hadn't thought about when choosing cremation.

Of all the above options, I like the diamond one. After-all I can just imagine my daughter being complimented on her beautiful diamond and responding with "Thanks -- It's my dad!"

Seriously, it's time for us to think about a stewardship of death. Our current practices render useful land useless. What do you think?

The Dreads of Life...

One of the dreads of life... I just finished getting my tax information ready for the accountant! What a dread!!! It's a necessary evil I guess. I hate this time of year every year and some years I put it off...but not this year. Yeah!

I guess there is another way to look at this dread... and that is to be thankful that we have good jobs and make enough money that we have to pay taxes! Truly we are blessed. I am thankful to God for all that I have and for the ways he has blessed my family.

One other thing that happens when I fill out my tax information for the accountant... I get to see a total of all the charitable contributions we make throughout the year. And I always enjoy seeing the total of my expressions of thanks each year. We set out to give a minimum of 13% last year to our church and then on top of there are the other charitable requests that come our way.

When I realize that tax time reminds me of the blessings I have and the ways I help share those blessings I have been given, I don't dread it as much!

Friday, February 16, 2007

Met with the Mayor last night..


I met with the Mayor last night to share with her our church's vision for a Joy Center and to get her help in making it a reality. We'd like to purchase an old bakery in town (40,000 sq. ft.). Our vision is to turn it into both a facility for our church to use for worship and ministry. And to give 21,000 sq. ft. to a ministry partner who will use it to help resource street folks so that they can break the cycle of homelessness. Part of the vision would be to bring to the Joy Center, the resources (medical, job skills, life skills, mental health, addictions counseling) to help them chart a course out of their current situation. Another part of the vision is to turn part of the facility into a transitional living arrangement. Salisbury lacks transitional housing for folks who just need a little help to get back on a more solid foundation.

Please join me in praying for God's guidance for the Mayor and our church as we discern direction in this situation. I must say after meeting with the Mayor, I am not hopeful that the politics of the city will allow us to do this... BUT I know God is bigger than any of that and will work out the details if it is where he is leading us.


Amazed by people...

People constantly amaze me!

Several (probably 6) years ago, our congregation (Community of Joy) met a lady who lived in a house that had recently been sold for taxes. Not only that, but she had lived in this house for 3 years without water and electricity. It had been given to her by her parents and she was not able to pay all her bills to keep the place up. She lived with two dogs and living in the stench and clutter were almost worse than living without water and electricity. Long story short, we helped her get out of the house into a rent assisted apartment for seniors which was lovely. We supplied her all the furniture she needed... what she had in the house was not fit to move. We drove her to Dr. visits, the grocery store, etc. We even paid her security deposit and the additional cost of having one of her dogs live with her. The other one, we helped her find a home for.

Then an offer came from someone to purchase her house. But before she could accept that offer, she had to redeem the house from the tax sale. So, our congregation voted to loan her up to $10,000 from our building fund to redeem the house so that she could sell it. Long story short, we were able to help her realize a profit from selling the house and she paid off all her debts and set up an annuity to supplement her monthly income. In addition we helped her use some of the money to buy some new furniture items and helped her pre-pay her funeral arrangements (which was the first thing she wanted to do when the money came). She was set up in as good a situation as she had been in for years!

Then her health took a turn for the worse. And after a valiant battle, she died. Upon her death a long lost cousin showed up and moved in for whatever she could get. I received a phone call yesterday from this cousin's attorney because they were asking the housing manager to return the security deposit to them. But the manager told them that the church had paid the deposit and the total amount had been used to restore the apartment to a livable place again. (which was necessary!)

This whole experience has amazed me! Where was this cousin when our her cousin was living in the house for 3 years without water or electricity? Where was this cousin when she needed rides to the doctor? Where was this cousin when the home was sold and her cousin had no place to live? Where was this cousin for all these years and why did she come on the scene now?

Greed has a terrible way of making us into monsters!

But seeing someone in need has a way of making us a blessing to others!

People constantly amaze me! What an amazing group of people at Community of Joy! They are a real blessing to so many! And I am blessed to be part of such a spectacular group!

Assume NOTHING!

When I was in college at Goldey Beacom College in Wilmignton, DE, I worked at the Wilmington Housing Authority and for a lady named Cindy Dragonas. Cindy always looked over the top of her half glasses and pointed her finger at you when you assumed things you shouldn't have and would say "Assume NOTHING!" while shaking her finger at you. That image and experience has always stuck with me... unfortunately I haven't always heeded that wisdom!

That's kind of what happened yesterday with the ebay thing. I ended up emailing the guy back and saying that I wasn't sure why it mattered for me to mention my relationship with the artist in my product description on ebay and then I told him that I was good friends with the artist and we both served together in our local NWTF chapter and we enjoyed lots of time hunting together. Here's where I was wrong... his response to me was that he thought this was the case and encouraged me to share that information in the listing because he thought it would increase bidding by giving folks confidence because I had a legitimate source. It was helpful advice and reminded me that it's best to Assume Nothing! when dealing with people.

Now about legitimacy. I had already disclosed in the description that I was acquiring them directly from the artist. Oh well, we will see if saying more helps... one thing is for sure though that practicing the assume nothing philosophy would have saved me some frustration.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Frustration on Ebay...

I've been selling things on ebay for a good friend. It's a great deal for me and a great product. He is a local artist that is nationally known http://www.wjgoebel.com/ . It's been quite a journey. We've been selling artist's proofs of paintings that he has produced for the NWTF. It has been going really well. BUT...

When I first started, my ebay rating was 100% (actually still is!) but I had not sold or purchase too many things, so the quantity of my feedback was lower. Not too long into the venture, I found out from some successful bidders on my items that some other ebayers were sending unsolicited emails to people bidding on my items saying they were fakes. Since then I have contacted ebay with user names and they are investigating. BUT...

Here's the rub... why do people who don't know me, haven't bought my products, whom I have done nothing to in any way, feel that they have the right and even in some cases the responsibility to "warn" other people about me?... which really means that they are slandering my character and spreading vicious lies about me and what I am doing! When I found out who one such person was I contacted him directly and asked him why he was doing this and asked him to stop. No response. I didn't figure he would respond.

Now, a month later, I get an email from someone else saying that I NEED to disclose how I am getting all these prints that I am selling. I'm not sure how I will handle that. A while back I developed a relationship with a buyer through email who eventually asked why I chose this particular artist, so I answered her questions. But not sure on this one... Again, I find myself asking why? Why does it matter how I am getting them? Why does it matter what my relationship is to the artist? Why doesn't it matter that I have nothing but SATISFIED customers? Why doesn't it matter that I am selling a quality product at a steal of a price?

Sometimes, I just don't get it! Just so you know... Wil is a good friend of mine, we hunt together lots, we do taxidermy together, I am president of our local NWTF and he is VP. We do lots of things together!

I know that one issue here is integrity of other sellers my ebay "friends" have dealt with... But that's not my integrity. I know a few bad apples ruin the whole bushel.. but that's why there's the feedback system. Another issue, which I may blog about later is, the hidden identities of ebayer's and other online users.

More later...

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Homeless again...

Once again our church will serve our homeless friends in Salisbury. Thursday, Feb 15 -- tomorrow, we will serve supper at the Community Emergency Shelter Program that houses 65 homeless men from the streets of Salisbury in a local church. The program runs from January til April and each week a local church takes turns hosting the men over night from 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. Part of that includes a warm place to sleep (on cots) and a hot meal for supper along with a warm breakfast in the a.m. and a packed lunch to go out with them.

Our church loves to serve and does a fabulous job under the leadership of Belinda White Valliere. We will be making our famous chicken corn soup with lots of meal and hearty veggies and noodles and corn. Along with that will be pulled BBQ chicken sandwiches, home-made cookies, and brownies. There will be LOTS of hard-boiled eggs for breakfast. I've stayed the night two times so far and both times the guys ate all the eggs before everyone was up. We WON'T run out of eggs on Friday a.m.!!! They absolutely LOVE hard-boiled eggs. Also we have lots of candy for them... another item the guys love.

If we had a building, we would be sure to host a week or two or three. But since we use rented facilities, we were delighted to find a church that would allow us to serve a meal. Thanks to St. Peter's Episcopal Church for allowing us to use your kitchen and to help during your week. Thanks also to Ruth Anne Oartel, who is the head cook at St. Peter's for allowing us to help out!

Knowing the need brings forth help... a story.

I have some friends that I have been helping both personally and through our church... recently they ended up in a tough spot. Actually they found themselves homeless and sleeping in their car. They took the 3 kids to their aunt's house until they could get things in better shape.

Through the wonder of email, I shared their story with my congregation (Community of Joy) and immediately help came from the congregation, but not only there. One of our folks emailed the story to her list of friends and it wasn't but a couple hours until several other offers of help (money), a job, and a place to stay came forward.

The lesson for me in all this is that when we share our needs with others, rather than keeping them to ourselves, we create an opportunity for others to experience the blessing of helping out -- meeting those needs. Truly we are in this journey of life together...that's why we always say at Community of Joy that we are a place "where relationships matter!"