A "Community of God's Presence"

I've been reading this book called Ancient-Future Faith. Rethinking Evangelicalism for a Postmodern World. The author states that as we move into a postmodern world, the church needs to go back to classical Christianity if it wants to be relevant. I'll blog more in the coming posts but one thing that really jumped out at me is the phrase community of God's presence. That my friends is what the Church ought to be about. It's beautiful! Imagine a place where God's presence is felt in and through the people gathered! I'm going to end this post with a simple question; What does God's presence look like in a community of imperfect people?

Visiting another Blog

Well, I officially started my classes last night! The Orientation was 8 lessons long and it took me forever to complete the last one; I couldn't find the required link to complete it. I emailed the prof and sure enough, plain as day the link was staring me in the face the whole time!! Anyways, it was fun; I'm glad to be back. I seriously could be a career student. Can we say PhD? Dr. Antrim...... Hmmmmm. Actually, I could steal the title my my dad-in-law uses:
The Right Reverend Honorable Dr. Mr. Antrim.

Anyhow... My Pastor, Joseph Thompson asked me to post on his sight this week soooooo..... Look for me on Thursday over at Seasons of Change.



See ya!

School is cool!

It's official... I start my Masters Degree in April. It's been 15 years since my last college class! My program is a a Masters Degree in Theology and Pastoral Ministry. Why am I doing this? The past 2 years have confirmed for me that I am called to serve others through ministry. It's almost an oxymoron really; to lead by serving. Could you imagine any other type of leadership position "serving" others? I mean, you don't see Donald Trump asking his "apprentices" how he can help them,do you? You don't see CEO's of huge corporations going out of their way to make sure their employees needs are being met? And yet, Jesus teaches that those who want to be first must be last; those that want to lead must serve.

So, why go to school? I was asked that by my Pastor a year ago when I came to him sharing that this was something I felt God was laying on my heart. He assured me that I didn't have to do this for him or to be qualified to serve at The Well. Simply, I'm doing it out of obedience Last year after a time of fasting and praying, I felt a very strong urge or leading in my heart that I needed to do this. Secondly, it has been a desire of my heart for 12 years and it is now coming to pass. I'm excited! Also, a bit nervous becuase I'm still working full time, have a family and all of the "stuff" of life that I need to tend to. Also, it costs money to go back to school but I'm not concerned. This is what I'm supposed to be doing so I'm trusting that God will supply my needs to be able to do this.

My point is this, if God is prompting you in your heart to do something, in the words of Nike, "Just do it!" Don't worry about the details. God WILL work it out!

Heart Condition

I Like Obama. WHAT????? Got your attention, didn't I? It's true. I do like him. I may not vote for him, or, maybe I will. When I saw him at the Democratic National Convention in '04, I knew he would rise quickly. Now, he stands to be the first African-American President in History. Amazing. I like his platform of "Real Change". The problem though is that real change doesn't come from policy changes and political maneuvering. Obama claims to be a Christian, I believe him. I have read some positive things on how he views prayer and how it affects his life and his desire to do the right thing. Real change though comes from the heart. Look what the Bible says about our heart condition.

Ezekiel 36:26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

Matthew 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies.

So, in reality, if we want to see REAL CHANGE in our society, it will begin only when we start doing more heart transplants.

How do we do that? Well, thankfully, it doesn't involve going to medical school and becoming a surgeon. It occurs when we enter into a personal relationship with the Almighty God. You know, it's been said time and time again and I don't think enough people really get it; Christianity is a real relationship and as you grow in intimacy with God, it changes your heart. That's how we initiate real change in our world and as I said in a previous blog, we can do it one person at a time.

Go out and make a change!

Church of the Relevant

I said something yesterday which was, in my opinion, pretty profoud; it actually kind of surprised me. I said that the church doesn't need to be more present, it needs to be more relevant. What did I mean by that? Well, in 2006, the popoulation of Seminole County was a little over 406,000. Of that number less than 10% were "churched". Take that statistic and place it in any other place in the world and you would have an unreached people group. In Seminole County, however, there are over 300 churches.

As a Pastor involved in planting a church, that absolutely floors me. I used to say that we didn't need more churches, there are churches across the street from each other, there are "church rows" all over town where you'll have 5 different churches along a short stretch of road. The church doesn't need to be more present; they're all around but nobody's going!!! We need to be more relevant. Jesus met real, felt needs as well as spiritual needs. He went to the people. Now that's a concept, instead of people coming to us in the church (won't happen) let's go out to them! "No, no, no door to door evangelism won't work, no we can't pass out tracks, we can't....." blah, blah, blah. Again, I said relevant!!!!

What does that mean? I don't know exactly, that's the beauty of it, it's different from community to community. You get to figure it out for yourself. Just because one thing works for one church doesn't mean it will work for another. But the key is to be sensitive to God's leading and to the needs of the community your serving. If you're relevant, you can develop relationship and from relationship REAL ministry can occur. Now that's church!

Look around!

I'm a Pastor. It took me several months to make that assertion because I felt very uncomfortable with the title. It brought up all kinds of imagery and expectations that I knew I couldn't live up to. Whatever; it didn't change the reality that I have a desire and destiny to come along side others for the purpose of serving, encouraging and building them up and introducing them to a God that can change their lives and give them a future and a destiny. As I look back on my life, I have always done that in some way, shape or form. It IS who I AM. I didn't always do it very well but just like with anything, it takes doing it to get better at it.

The reality for all of us that claim Jesus is that we are called to have an impact on the lives of those around us. I found just this past week that if I opened up a little bit and let myself out of my own egocentric existence, there are a HECK of a lot of hurting people all around me. I would venture to say the same for your sphere of influence. "Whatta ya gonna do about it?" In my sphere of influence I found a girl who slept in her car the other night, another who "dances" just to make ends meet and another who went to the hospital and has no family near by to support her. Um, hello??? There are hurting people all around. I would be a hypocrite if I didn't make an attempt to reaching out. It doesn't mean that I'll have all of the answers but Jesus didn't say we would have them; we just need to point people to Him; He'll figure it out! Whew! What a relief to know I don't need to figure out all of everyone else's issues; Heck, I can't even figure out my own 3/4 of the time!

My point to this post is this; open your eyes, get out of your comfort zone. Do you truly want to make a difference in this world? Make a difference in 1 person's life this week and then next week and then the next and pretty soon like a pebble dropped in a pond the ripple effect will be so far reaching and amazing...

Deal or No Deal

The offer stood at over $250,000 dollars; more than what this gal would probably ever see in her life time all at once. To boot, if she kissed a frog, the offer would be doubled (the banker had it in for her...) So, over 1/2 million dollars were hers if she hit the buzzer.



How much is enough? Some weeks, as I sit and pay my bills I think to myself, wow, just $100.00 more this week and things would be great! The really sad part about that is that was AFTER a significant raise. How much is enough? We don't get it here in this country. We are so materialistic. Just a little bit more, we keep chasing that carrot that is dangled before us as we race to keep up with the Jones'.



So, back to my story, she kept going for the million. She wanted more. In the end, she had to settle for $160,000.00 (as if that is really settling, I know!) but if she would have taken the earlier deal, she would have been set for life...



So I ask, are you content with what you have or do you need more? There is a club called the junky car club. http://www.junkycarclub.com/ Their mission is to live with less so they can give more so they get rid of their car payments and drive junky cars. There is another group I saw on 60 minutes or something that boasts giving away 1/2 of their income. Imagine, giving away half of your income and being content and happy. Wow... now that's a deal!

Paul taught contentment. He wrote the book of Philippians, the book of joy, in a rank prison chained to a big, burly, smelly Roman guard (added description mine, literary freedom). He was more concerned about the churches than his own situation. He was content! He knew his life wasn't tied to how much or how little he had. To live was Jesus, in other words, he knew his God given purpose and he was bent on carrying it out no matter what the cost.

So I ask, are you caught up in the more, more more or are you content with what you have?

Happy Monday...

How was your weekend? It's Monday (duh) and I'm reflecting on the last couple of days. I'm in a good place. No, I didn't win the lottery but I got my bills paid, on time. I like my job and I believe, without a doubt that I am making a difference. I have a purpose that will affect lives. I have a family that I love and loves and supports me. I ride a motorcycle (never thought I'd ever do that!) and I love it. I have friends that pray for me and watch out for me.

My point I guess, is this... I'm thankful. That's it, just thankful. Things could be a whole lot different for me and I'm thankful for my life right now. The last season of my life has been trying and difficult and you know what? I'm thankful for it as well. Do I want to repeat it? Not particularly BUT, I would be willing if I knew that the outcome would make me a stronger person.

So, in the hurriedness of today, take a moment to reflect on what you are thankful for.

Taking the day of...

Why don't you visit some of my friends...

http://www.jthelmsdeep.blogspot.com/

http://www.hoperclark.blogspot.com/

http://christadventure.blogspot.com/

http://abandonimage.blogspot.com/

Enjoy!!!!

Real Change!

Wow! What a night! I can't believe we missed it! Amidst all of the voting on Super Tuesday, we missed it! Shaquille O'Neal is being traded to the Suns! Now, that's a big change!

I've been quiet about the election process over the last few months but make no mistake, this is a very important election. The exit polls of the recent primaries have revealed a trend; people in this nation are concerned most about the economy. "It's the economy stupid" all over again. They're not as concerned about the fact that there are evil people wanting to kill us and our way of life, the war, declining morality or crime; they're concerned about their wallet. That scares me. Amidst all of the rhetoric all of the candidates have been spewing forth, I had to ask myself one simple question; what is important to me? WOW! Epiphany! As I wrote that, another question came up;

What is important to God?

Might I suggest something? Prayer. That is my qualification for the next President of the United States; it's not his view on the economy, healthcare, the war, illegal aliens or any of that. I want to know if the President of the United States believes in the power of prayer. If he does, then all of the other issues will take a back seat because

it is in prayer that all of these other issues can truly be effected.

The Bible teaches in Proverbs that " the king's heart is like a stream of water directed by the Lord; he turns it wherever he pleases." I would much rather have a President that is sensitive to God's directing than one that can promise a reduced deficit, strong economy and jobs. Why? Matthew teaches in regards to money specifically to seek God first and His righteousness and then, as a result, these other things will follow. As long as this nation puts money or anything else first, we'll continue to struggle as a nation. Might I add, it is because of our wealth and lifestyles that much of the world is jealous and antagonistic toward us. When what we spend on ice cream alone in one year can feed the world's hungry it's no wonder we are viewed as materialistic and selfish but I digress...

So, Senators Obama, Clinton and McCain; Governors Huckabee and Romney, what is you're view on the importance of prayer in your Presidency?

2-4-1

OK, you're getting a two-fer today in honor of the SuperBowl. So, everyone just knew that the Giants were going to win; I mean, c'mon, what are the odds of having an absolutely perfect season, right?? OK, honestly, I really didn't care about the outcome. I did watch the game but I am not a football fan. it was a great game at least in the 4th quarter. I was disappointed with the Half Time Show but I guess it's pretty safe to assume Tom Petty won't have a wardrobe malfunction. The commercials were pretty good. My all time favorites are the Budweiser Frogs. These were probably my favorites though...

This one was pretty good too...

What did you think about the commercials?

To see them all... http://sports.aol.com/nfl/superbowlads

The God Card

We like to play Uno with our oldest daughter. The trick to Uno is to get down to your last card and shout "Uno!" By the next turn, you should hopefully be able to get rid of your last card and win the game. Within the deck there is the mother of all cards; this card allows you to make your opponent have to draw 4 cards AND allows you to change the flow of the game by selecting a new color. If you're paying attention, you can tell what colors your opponents don't have and change the color forcing them to have to keep drawing while you're discarding.

The concept of the God Card is not unique to me; My Pastor actually came up with the term so props to Pastor J. I have have observed it in Christian circles and in my own life. It's a very unique type of "card". Like the Draw Four and Change Color card in Uno, this card also allows you to change the flow in your life. Let me give you an example; imagine a person who has a strong sense that God has "called" them to do something like start a ministry or give to a particular vision. You know, they proudly proclaim that God told them to do something. Things are all hunky-dory until something changes. Things get tough within the ministry or maybe money is a little tight or whatever, but it causes them to think twice about the situation. No problem; just pull the "God Card". By simply stating that "God spoke to you and you are moving on" you are able to change the flow of the situation to make it suitable to your "hand" if you will. The beauty of it is this; who is going to challenge you? I mean God Himself told you to change course; who am I to challenge God? Well, here's the thing; If God "told you" to do whatever it was you were supposed to do in the first place, what happened? Did He change His mind? Matthew 5 says...

Let your 'Yes' mean 'Yes,' and your 'No' mean 'No.' Anything more is from the evil one.

In other words, if God made something clear to you then follow through with it. In the words of Nike, just do it. My good friend in ministry says it this way, "do the last thing that God showed you to do until He shows you something else". That's it; just follow through with what God "told you" and you'll be just fine.

Final thoughts...

Holiness was another issue that came up for me during the fast. I know that’s a “christianese” word and I apologize; but the fact is God requires holiness of us all and even before our fast began I knew God was calling out some of my stuff. The computer, for example; I have on my computer a nifty program put out by http://www.xxxchurch.com/. It’s a program that emails my wife and my best friend a listing of all the questionable websites visited in a period of time. I know what you're thinking and no, thankfully I don’t have a problem with the internet, that’s why I have it installed. If I had a problem with internet porn why on God’s green and blue earth would I install something that would email my wife and my best friend a listing of all the objectionable websites I would visit?” That’s stupid. I did it to be accountable so that it never becomes a problem; but that wasn’t good enough. I do a lot of searches for my blog and for teaching and no matter what I search, something objectionable always pops up in the search results. Well, I needed to deal with that. I wasn’t opening websites so XXXChurch wouldn’t send any results but here before me are 20 mini pictures of who-knows-who doing who-knows-what with who-knows-who when all I was searching was for was a spinach recipe! So, I changed the search engine to place a filter which would catch objectionable material; a simple and practical solution to help me in my walk.

So, here I am at the end of the fast wondering I’ll go "back to normal”. No way. I don’t want normal; I want abnormal. I want paranormal, supra-normal, beyond normal. I want to be different than I was so why would I go back to what I was doing and expect that I would be different? Incidentally, physically speaking, I feel great. From a caloric stand point fruits and vegetables are much lower in caloric density which means I can eat a whole lot more food! I missed my eggs, rice, and bread and yes, even meat so I’ll add them back sparingly but I won’t go back to eating the way I was. Things will be different. The results I’ve gotten spiritually and physically are so much more desirable than the food. It’s a great trade off. Pass the spinach please!