WHY MENTOR?

Starting next Tuesday, I will have 3 posts concentrating on mentoring. My ideas have been generated and/or taken from The Slow Fade by Joiner, Bomar & Smith. For today, the focus will be on getting you to think about the topic and why you should be mentored and/or mentor someone else.

WHY MENTOR?

• To join God in the work He is already doing in someone’s life.
• When we discover who we are in God, we discover our purpose and find meaning.
• Teach them they can never outrun the arm of grace!
• Mutual transformation; God transforms you, not just the mentoree!

My Thoughts on LOST

Lost ended in a way that was characteristic of every other ending the show had ever had in its 6 year history, unanswered questions. These questions though were not specific to the island, the man in black, or who won – those were clearly answered. The island remained, everything you saw was real, Jack killed the man in black, the light (although out briefly out) persevered. Good beat evil, evil was contained, and free will wins out (Hurley chose to protect the island, Jack chose to die, Kate chose to leave).

But… there are lingering questions, 2 main ones to be exact. Were they dead all along? This was one of the main theories throughout the show. That the island was some sort of purgatory mean to hold them and there was a battle (good verse evil) that needed to be fought. In the closing scene Jack sees and embraces his dead father, his father reveals that Jack is like him, dead. The question comes in his father’s answer, “we all die at some point, some before and some long after.” So, when did Jack die? Was he dead from the final scene on the island or was this some sort of Sixth Sense existence we have been watching?

The other main question has to do with how they all ended up in the church. On one of the closing island scenes with Hurley and Benjamin, Ben indicates that Hurley can change the rules from what Jacob had done, adding that the new rules could be “better.” The closing moments heading into the church indicated that Hurley and Ben had been working together for quite some time, as they complemented each other’s work. Thus, the question presents itself; did the two of them orchestrate this reunion in order to help the survivors of the Oceanic flight in order to “help” them? It is an odd question for a great yet odd show.

Whatever the answers are, I don’t care, it does not matter, it was all make belief anyway. I am glad the show is over and that it is an hour of my week I no longer feel compelled to watch Lost. I though, am admittedly not a diehard fan of the show, so it makes it easier for me. I was one who saw the pilot, loved the show and for the first two years barely missed an episode or even part of an episode. Then it just got stupid. Time travel was lost on me, and I hardly watched any of seasons 3-5. I did catch the season 5 finale, and watched all of season 6.

Anyway, the reason for this post is to give it my 5 minutes of thought (compared to jack’s 5 seconds of fear), and then be done with it. The irony for me personally is found in reading a book about the show, a terrible book where my thought was, “this guy (the author) watches way too much television, I hope I never watch this much TV…” My fear is that I watch too much TV!

My Favorite Household Tools

This post is all about my favorite things I use around the house. To my surprise, they are all Black & Decker products. Surprise, because I was not really aware my favorite things were even that brand.

I was responsible for taking care of my family’s yard, and I HATED having to use the electric plug in edgers/weed eaters. When we purchased our home, I immediately bought a gas weed eater too (to show my father) and was excited to use it… but that excitement did not last long.


Getting it started was a pain, maintenance was not enjoyable, and the line/string was also a pain. Once the starter line tore I purchased the Black & Decker 18-Volt Cordless Grasshog Trimmer/Edger, and it changed my yard working life. It’s a great product, easy to use, easy to maintain, NO GAS or CORDS, and did I mention it was easy to use.


It comes with 2 batteries that you simple swap out when one goes dead. The reason I trusted this product is because I originally took a chance on the cordless broom, which in reality is more like a blower (Black & Decker 18 Volt Cordless Broom Hard Surface Sweeper). Keep in mind that my yard is not that big and I am able to get the job done with the batteries I have – 2 per each product (4 total).


I also love my dustbuster (Black & Decker Energy Star 18-V. Cordless Pivoting Hand Vacuum), but this is not like any other dustbuster I have ever used – it holds a charge and last well beyond the typical 15 seconds every other one I used has. My in-laws introduced me to it as I had to clean up a mess from a road trip to visit them last year. Not only did it clean up the snack, it held a charge and had significant power to vacuum up the whole vehicle, with time to spare. Last Christmas it was the only thing I asked for from them (they got me a new one, not theirs), and it has been awesome to use ever since.

Anyway, these are 3 products I love and 3 things you should consider buying!

Book Review: The Slow Fade by Joiner, Bomar & Smith

This is another book I picked up at Drive Conference 2010. My initial thought was that The Slow Fade by Joiner, Bomar & Smith would serve as a good resource in connecting with college students for our Ignite Worship Service geared at reaching young adults. Instead, I discovered that I picked up a guide to mentoring. Although not explicitly stated, this book provided all the resources necessary to starting a mentoring ministry.

Chapter 4, “Mentoring Redefined,” presented a detailed description of the role of a mentor – again there is no list, but I did come up with 6 key roles from this chapter. Chapter 5, “A New Bread of Leader,” described 8 things a mentor should be intentional about doing. Appendix A “A Note To Ministry Leaders,” gave Chuck Bomar’s mentoring ministry strategy.

Overall, this is by far the best book I have read on “How To” mentor. While the premise for this book deals with this subject, the title and subtitle do not, which is the only knock on it. If you work with college students (the intended target of this book) or young adults, you really need to read through this book. I am already excited to equip some of our mentors with the tools learned from reading this book… and not being able to sleep (tonight) finally paid dividends!

iPulpit

Today I had the opportunity to meet with Richard Carver, Owner and Senior Art Director for Little Mountain Productions. While we meeting to discuss design and themes for our new children and preschool areas, he introduced me to something new, something awesome, something I have to have… the iPulpit! Basically, you insert your iPad into the pulpit and preach from it directly. The good news for all the tree huggers is that it will eliminate the need to print on paper. For those who are easily distracted by the flipping of notes, that is gone too. For those who love technology, it allows us to maximize what is out there while having a crystal clear screen to read from.

Book Review: Choosing To Cheat by Andy Stanley

Choosing To Cheat is not what it sounds like initially, it is about “who wins when family and work collide.” Throughout the book, Andy Stanley tackles the number one challenge in my life, which is also the greatest challenge in most men’s life: balancing our work-life and home-life, career and family, professional verse parental/spousal. The beauty of this book is that he does not merely address the issue, he gives easy to follow advice for how to deal with these steps.

While there are many helpful points, some are found is addressing the balance between work and family before it spirals out of control. Chapter Four (Picking Up The Pieces) provides a healthy barometer along with quality questions to ask your children to gauge how you are truly doing with your family.

Section 2 is the practical part of the book that provides a roadmap for how to make family your family your top priority. Through the life and dedication of Daniel, Stanley provides 3 simple steps to follow: Make up your mind, come up with a plan, and set up a trial. For me, chapter seven was the most helpful chapter. One of my favorite quotes came from that chapter on page 86, “Reprioritizing your world around your family is not just a good idea. It is a God idea. As a Christian, I don’t think I have any option when it comes to establishing my priorities.”

My reason for purchasing this book and reading it is a direct result of listening to Andy Stanley give the Pastors’ Q & A at his Drive 2010 Conference last week. He said this book was the most important one he has ever written. After completing it, I think he is correct. The only real critique I have of it is what he addresses as the book’s main problem in the introduction, the book’s title. Once he sets up the idea it does make sense, because every man is going to cheat on his job (for his family) or cheat on his family (for his job).

To be clear, I would recommend every father and husband take a couple hours to read this book, then spend your life altering it to do be the man at home only you can be!

Related Post: Family-Ministry Balance

How To Burnout In 5 Easy Steps

From Serving Strong:

Staying strong is overrated. All this talk about avoiding the wall? Hooey. You were born to burnout. You were meant for serving weak. Want a quick way to burnout in ministry leadership? Here are 5 easy steps:

1. Seek Unforgiveness. Someone hurt you lately? Cool. Here's what you do: Hold a grudge. That's right. Don't give in to the temptation to be the weaker one. Keep steady. Better yet, give them the silent treatment. Yeah! It will teach them a lesson and you'll be well on your way to burning out.

2. Pursue Passionlessness. Ask yourself this question: "What ministry fuels my passion?" Got your answer? Good. Now do something (anything) that is the opposite of your answer. Do the thing that is a total drag for you. Give it your all. Seek the boredom. Revel in the difficulty. It will annoy those around you and you'll be well on your way to burning out.

3. Engage In Prayerlessness. Got prayer concerns? Want to touch the heart of God? Want to seek and sense His will for your life? Forget it. You're looking to burnout, right? Good. Then cut ALL prayer from your routine. Don't pray in the morning. Don't pray when you're stressed or sad. And don't pray when things are going well. Think of the time you'll save. It will grieve the Holy Spirit and you'll be well on your way to burning out.

4. Be An Impostor. Are you introverted by nature? Be extroverted. Are you methodical? Be spontaneous. Are you a people person? Then be a recluse. You have to understand that being yourself is simply going to keep you from burning out. So don't be yourself. Better yet, try to be just like someone else. It will irritate your loved ones and you'll be well on your way to burning out.

5. Over-identify. In your work with others, you will feel their pain. This is good. Dwell on it. Identify it so deeply that you begin to feel responsible for it. This will give you ownership of their pain, as though you were the cause. You will sink in the quicksand of their misery. You won't be able to help them because you'll be so depressed yourself. This will help others become co-dependent and you'll be well on your way to burning out.

So you see, if you are interested in burning out, it's quite simple really. Just follow these 5 easy steps and we'll see you in rehab!

How To Have An Awesome Worship Service

This is from the Drive 2010 Conference I attended this week, which was awesome:

"Sunday's Coming" Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.

Book Review: You Were Made For More by Cymbala

You Were Made For More is classic Cymbala. It is not enough for him to tell you a spiritual truth, he uses real stories of the power of God he is describing to illustrate that truth. As I read through this book, I felt as though it was the sequel to “Fresh Wind, Fresh Fire.” The main reason for that assumption is that he referenced that book and stories from it throughout this work. My two favorite stories in the book were of Fernie (page 56) and Vanessa (page 69).

While it is difficult for me to narrow down one particular best part, I found his Chapter 8, “What’s Up With This,” to be very helpful. The gist of this chapter was that God uses our problems to develop us into what He wants us to be. For those who buy into the “name it claim” or “prosperity gospel” or “word of faith movement,” this chapter will serve as an awakening to how God has worked throughout time in order to draw us closer to Him while making us more like Jesus.

I would advise that people who doubt if God wants to use them to read this book. If you know of someone who sits on the sidelines and fails to serve in their local church family, give them this book. If you have a friend who doubts if God could shine through them to reveal His love and salvation to others, this is the book for them… because You Were Made For More.

Book Review: The Gospel According to Lost

The whole time I read this book (The Gospel According to Lost by Chris Seay) I kept thinking, "this dude watches way too much TV, I hope I never watch this much TV." I blame my accountability partner for picking this book and will not allow him to do so again for quite some time. The whole book is a reach for me personally.

That being said, my guess is that Pastor Chris Seay is quite good at using modern interest to influence people for the cause of Christ... I am just not sure this book was as successful as I have heard he is as a pastor. It was not all bad though, chapter 16 was good (albeit 1 of 17 chapters).

The 2 best quotes of the book were on page 168, "God deserves better than what we have to offer, but he chooses us. And he gladly accepts us. Through the sacrifice of Jesus, God holds us," and on page 174, "Nothing can stand between us and the love of the living God: not our fear or reluctance, not the disapproval of others, nothing. And even then, for as long as it takes for us to accept it, his love will bear all things, believe all things, hope all things, and endure all things. Love never fails."

Albert Pujols' Testimony

I do not like the St. Louis Cardinals, but I do like Albert Pujols. Here is his testimony:

6 Best Coaching Questions

This is from EXPONENTIAL (Book Excerpt)

Got a coach? Need a coach? Here are six great coaching questions from my friend Dave Ferguson...

There are from his new book: Exponential: How You and Your Friends Can Start a Missional Church Movement (Co-Authored with Dave's brother, Jon!)

1) “How are you?”

Remember at the heart of effecting coaching is a relational investment. It may sound cliché, but it’s still true: “People don’t care how much you know, until they know how much you care.” We begin every coaching conversation by checking in to see how the person we are coaching is really doing.

2) “What are you celebrating?”

Every meeting at Community begins with some form of this question. Often it’s stated like this: “Where are you/we winning?” Whether it’s a one-on-one meeting, a group meeting, a staff meeting, or a temporary task force, we begin by celebrating how God is at work in our life, ministry, and church. Moving from “How are you?” to “What are you celebrating?” keeps the tone of the meeting very relational and positive. It’s tempting to quickly focus on what’s not working or what is broken. This question keeps the conversation focused on where the leader is feeling successful.

3) "What challenges are you facing?"

You might be thinking, “Finally we get to something productive.” Yes, the previous questions are very relational, but if it helps any, remember that when it comes to coaching the relationship really is the task. This question gives your leader an opportunity to talk openly about the things that aren’t going very well in his group or team.

4) "How will you do about those challenges?"

Once a leader has disclosed some areas where he or she may be experiencing some challenges with his life, group, or team it is tempting to quickly move into “fix-it” mode and tries to solve the problem for him. There are times when a leader will need your insight and wisdom. However, the best way you can serve a leader is to help them tap into the wisdom and insight God has already given them to deal with whatever situation they are facing. It is the coach’s role to draw those answers or solutions out of the leader.

5) "How can I help you?"

Finally, the question we’ve wanted to ask. This is an important question, but if you never get to this question because the leader has already come up with an action plan as you walked through the previous questions, considers yourself an extremely effective coach. There are times when a coach needs to step in and offer whatever assistance is necessary to help a leader in need. One of the three tasks that flow out of the relational investment is “serving”, and one of the ways you can best serve a leader is to help them through a tough situation.

6) "How can I pray for you?"

The best way to wrap up a coaching conversation is to ask the leader how you can be praying for him. It is also a great opportunity for the coach to ask the leader to be praying for her. This is one way a coach can help the leader know that this relationship is mutually beneficial. After the leader has had a chance to express some areas where he is in need of prayer, take a few moments to pray for the leader and reassure him that you will be praying for him regularly.


The dream of God is not for the church to be led by a one-man show, but that it would be a great team led by great coaches. Our role is to equip and empower the people of the church to do the work of ministry. When the game is on the line and the final point needs to be scored, the ball will be in the hands of our leaders and those leaders need to be coached to take the winning shot.

To give full credit, you can also find this article here.

Ed Young's Lifestyle Debacle

Ed Young is in more trouble about his lifestyle and company… ahem, church expenses. WFAA in DFW is reporting about his lavish lifestyle and company expenses. He has issued a response through his public relations firm – no, not a joke – denying any wrongdoing and shifting the blame and focus from himself to WFAA.

If Ed cared about transparency, he would disclose everything. Instead, he is playing the PR game to transfer attention from himself to WFAA. In his public response during a Saturday night church service, he talked about his salary and home as if it was all proper. He never disclosed his salaries (church + $ generated from work for the church + royalties + etc.). His lifestyle is ridiculous and he could/should learn a bunch from Francis Chan about giving to the need. Instead, he lives a lifestyle of extravagance (7,820 sq. ft. home, 1.1 million dollar condo, 8 million dollar leased jet).

Many argue the point, but I agree that his lifestyle is a detrimental issue to his legacy and immediate influence. The problem is that money is a root of all kinds of evil. This situation is sad for The Church, and can undo so much good Fellowship Church has accomplished.

If he is innocent of any wrong doing and is truly above reproach, transparency is his option. If he is guilty, repentance and transparency are his options. Either way, he should man-up and let the truth of the situation set him free… after all, what should a role model for such a huge church have to hide?

The natural response is to ask me if I do the same thing as an associate pastor of a much smaller church; which I do not. However, my family still lives in a starter home, we drive Hondas, and thus avoid question generated from a lifestyle of extravagance. Also, the information about my salary (and any other staff member at my church) is fully and readily available to any church member who requests it.

Here is another post on the subject.

Cole's 2010 Mock Draft

1. Rams – Sam Bradford
2. Lions – Suh
3. Bucs –Gerald McCoy
4. Redskins – Trent Williams
5. Russell Okung
6. Seahawks – CJ Spiller
7. Browns – Eric Berry (if he falls here, it keeps them from making a stupid pick)
8. Raiders – Derrick Morgan (it wouldn’t surprise me if they take Classen, Tebow, or Bryant, I’m hoping reason wins out for this albatross of a franchise)
9. Bills – Bryan Bulaga
10. Jaguars – Rolando McClain (my guess is a TRADE here, if they can get a taker – Cowboys, PLEASE! – if so, Earl Thomas wears a star)
11. Broncos – Earl Thomas (if they draft Dez Bryant after trading Marshall, everyone in the organization should get fired)
12. Dolphins – Dan Williams
13. 49ers – Joe Haden
14. Seahawks – Anthony Davis
15. Giants – Jason Pierre-Paul
16. Titans – Kyle Wilson
17. 49ers – Maurice Pouncey
18. Steelers – Dez Bryant (really? After Holmes and Big Ben? I hope they take Tebow…)
19. Hawks – Brandon Graham
20. Texans – Taylor Mays
21. Bengals – Jermaine Gresham
22. Patriots – Sergio Kindle
23. Packers – Charles Brown
24. Eagles – Everson Griffen
25. Ravens – Terrance Cody
26. Cardinals – Devin McCourty
27. Cowboys – Bryan Bulaga (if they can trade up and get rid of Bennett or Carpenter, it’s a great night!)
28. Chargers – Ryan Matthews
29. Jets – Jerry Hughes
30. Vikings – Jimmy Clausen (my guess is he will be taken about 8-12 picks higher via a trade)
31. Colts – Jared Odrick
32. Saints – Brian Price

• I spent 15 minutes tops on my mock draft, but looked at other mocks more than once (before and during my mock)

• Although I am not a professional, I am sure I will be just as bad as Mel Kiper when the real results come in.

• During the Facebook/MySpace NFL Pro Football Picks challenge I was ranked #2 out of 112,274… which will mean nothing here, but at least I am finally letting the world know how awesome my picks were this year!

4 Constants in Family Bible Study by Mark Driscoll

From Mark Driscoll: I’m not a hugely formal student. I study a lot, read all the time, and in our family, things flex from week to week, season to season, and as the kids age. Upon reflection, though, four things are constant:

1.Lots of Bibles
We have tons of Bibles all over the house. We have Bibles for every age, lots of translations, and lots of formats. To be honest, if a member of my family finds a Bible they like that is faithful, I am not at all legalistic about which one they prefer. Most days, every room of the house has a Bible of some kind in it, ready to read.

2.A love of Bible reading
I love to read the Bible and want my family to love reading in general, and Bible reading in particular. It’s not a forced rule, but a fun part of life. Everyone in our family likes to read the Bible and does so daily. I’ve never made a rule about daily Bible reading, but we all do as a habit that we enjoy by God’s grace. We all read Scripture and pray at night before bed as a sort of wind-down wrap-up to the day and the kids like it a lot.

3.Life integration
Throughout the daily moments of life, the window of opportunity opens up to sit down with Grace and the kids, either one on one or as a group, to open the Bible and apply a particular portion to something happening in their life. As a parent and a spouse, it is a great honor to be on watch, appointed by God to capture these sacred moments of bringing Scripture to bear on a teachable moment.

4.Age-appropriate discussion We eat dinner together and have a Bible at the table that I use to lead discussions. We also keep a notebook of prayers for people and the kids really like seeing prayers answered and checked off. Some nights the family gets down some rabbit trail of conversation that is not overtly theological, and as a dad I don’t force a big theological discussion upon them, but rather follow the Holy Spirit as we just enjoy one another. Other nights we have some big theological discussions that I lead out of the Bible. After church on Sundays, since I’m still working, Grace is faithful to ask the kids what they learned in the service or their class and draw out of them what God revealed to them from Scripture. Anyone wanting to grow in this skill can read Big Truths for Young Hearts by Bruce Ware, in which he shows how to teach theology to kids in an age-appropriate fashion.
With our children (ages four to twelve), Bible reading really varies, but here is what is going on presently in our home:

Gideon (4) gets read a lot of Bible stories (especially at night) and asked fun Bible questions that I probably need to compile as a free e-book. I’ve done this with all the kids over the years as a sort of Bible Jeopardy for kids. He likes The Jesus Storybook Bible, The Beginner’s Bible, and The First Step Bible.

Alexie (6) is reading well so she reads to her mom and me from an age-appropriate Bible every day. No matter what, this includes snuggle time before bed, which is a big deal to her. She likes The Jesus Storybook Bible, as well as reading on her own from The Beginner’s Bible, and The First Step Bible.

Calvin (8) is reading well and has a good Bible for his age that he reads each day, and we discuss with him what he’s learning. He is enjoying Mighty Acts of God by Starr Meade, which is an age-appropriate book for him to read. Previously he read through The Jesus Storybook Bible on his own multiple times, and now he needs something a bit more suited for his reading level, so we’re trying other additional Bibles to give him some variety.

Zac (10) is reading through the New Testament right now in the New International Reader’s Version (NIrV), an age-appropriate version for him. He also is reading for fun from The Picture Bible, which is set up like a comic book. He also enjoys books such as Ten Boys Who Changed the World and Ten Boys Who Didn’t Give In, which are short biographies.

Ashley (12) read through the entire English Standard Version (ESV) of the Bible last year and is reading through the entire ESV Study Bible, including the notes, this year and so far has finished up the Pentateuch (first five books). She is an avid reader who reads a lot of fiction for fun, loves Christian biographies, and also has chosen to read through my new book Doctrine and write a report on it for school, which means the world to me. She keeps joking that one day she will be my research assistant and copy editor, as she’s a very gifted writer and we may have her start blogging for teenage girls and are praying it through.

Momma Grace and I are constantly reading and, it seems nearly every day, discussing what we are learning. Date nights and other extended times together are usually spent talking about people we are ministering to, the kids, and what we are reading and learning. This is pretty much a lifestyle for us that has been in effect for many years. We study very differently and so it works best for us each to study individually and then share together what we’re learning and discuss it. The Bible studies that had the biggest impact on Grace personally were on repentance and regeneration. She also loves the biblical counseling that comes from www.ccef.org, enjoys Carolyn Mahaney and has particularly enjoyed doing her Girl Talk study with Ashley, which is great for moms and daughters.

Lastly, I highly value reading. When I was a little boy, my mom took me to the library very often and helped birth in me a great love of books and learning. So, in our home we each have our own library. Every bedroom has a bookshelf with a small library for each family member. We have a small family reference library downstairs off the reading room, where there is good lighting, comfy seating, and a fireplace, and no technology resides (e.g., TV, computer, stereo). That family reference library has commentaries, Bible dictionaries, concordances, Bible background information, and so on to help anyone get basic Bible study done. My rule about books is that if it’s decent and you’ll read it, I will buy it. My personal library is pushing five thousand volumes in print and many more than that in Logos Software and other digital formats. The other members of my family have maybe a combined thousand or more books. It has taken years to collect them all, and many come from friends who donated them or used book stores, but, bit by bit, you can build a decent library and continue to encourage reading by making it interesting with lots of options and fun

Redefining Dumb: Rep. Hank Johnson on Guam

Georgia's Fourth Congressional District, Congressman Hank Johnson, "My fear is that the island will become so overly populated that it will tip over and capsize." In recent days he said that he was making a joke, the only reality is that his intelligence is a joke. Georgia, congratulations on your congressman representing you so well!

Born To Die

March Madness and Jesus' Mission

March Madness is my favorite sports event all year. I love how NCAA basketball is on television from the time I wake up to the time I go to sleep (well, for the most part anyway). I love the purity of those who are playing, as exhibited by Cornell University and Northern Iowa this year. I love how the tournament through filling out brackets gets my wife into interested, as well as creating an avenue for my friends and family to reconnect. I also love how exciting the games are with the buzzer beaters, strategies, competition, and amazing athletes. When thinking through this, I was brought to a point where the greatness of March Madness is parallel to the greatness of our faith.

Jesus’ Mission is All-day, Everyday. He says that we are to be in the world not of it, and he prays for our protection from the evil one, that we would be protected when faced with temptation, opposition, persecution, etc. While far too many of us have adapted to the world instead of transforming it (In our language, entertainment, attitude, reactions), we must remember that we no more belong to the world than Jesus himself does.

Another similarity is that Jesus’ Mission is Pure. We all need to be sanctified. Sanctified comes from the Greek word hagios, which means holy or different or separate with 2 meanings: To set apart for a special task and to equip with the qualities of mind and heart and character which are necessary for that task. Simply put, we need to trade the rubbish of the world for something better God has for us! Here is the irony of the world we live in: the world is the enemy of our purity, yet in Jesus’ prayer it is the object of a living purpose expressed in mission.

Jesus’ Mission is also All-Inclusive. The directive to proclaim Christ to others is to the calling of every believer. Many think to live on mission equals us going on a mission trip (to Nicaragua, Alabama, Dallas, Nicaragua, etc), but the reality is going is as central to Christianity as love is. It is part of his nature, and you cannot spell God without GO! It is not special for the pastors or those on mission trips – its for every Christ follower. Evangelizing, sharing Jesus with others is the call of everyone who calls themselves Christian. To take the pressure off we need to understand 2 things: Our job is to share Jesus with others, not save them and we cannot save anyone, only Jesus can do that.

The problem is that we tend to see ourselves as business people trying to earn a paycheck when Jesus sends us out as His representatives or His missionaries. Thus, we need to think like missionaries. This occurs by being constantly aware of the lostness around you; constantly prayerful of those outside of a relationship with Christ; constantly looking for opportunities to share Christ; and constantly living as a person in a relationship with Christ. God’s mission is fulfilled through you and me and everyone else who identifies with Him

The final parallel is that Jesus’ Mission is Exciting. Jesus told us, “As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.” The same mission Jesus came to earth to fulfill is the same we are to fulfill. We are to bear witness to God (and produce followers of God), just as Jesus has done. God equips you for His work – the Holy Spirit is constantly moving, working through and around you.

Recently, I had the opportunity to lead a person to Christ. It was exhilarating to listen to this man I had not seen in 9 months refer to our previous conversation where I shared Christ with him by saying when asked if he had thought about our conversation, “I think about it very much, many times.” Although I was not around to share with him and although no one had spoken to him about Jesus, the Holy Spirit was speaking to him “very much, many times!” There is nothing as exciting as leading a person to Christ and it is my hope we will all join in the excitement our Lord and Savior calls us to engage in!

Book Review: Forgotten God by Chan

I thought Crazy Love was crazy good, so my expectation was high for Forgotten God… it did not live up to that expectation for me. While I think Chan is a great man with admirable passion, this book simply did not do it for me.

With that being said, there were some good points in the book. Starting off he throws down intense exegesis (letting the text speak for itself) verse eisegesis (making the text say what you want it to say) explanation which is not only relevant, it is needed. He is dead on accurate with his statements that we tend to leave out the Holy Spirit and rely on what we can do as well. His work has some great thought provoking points as well.

Chapter 6 was my favorite chapter, although the title is a bit abrasive for some in my opinion. So in short, if you want a contemporary view of the Holy Spirit, read this book… Just enter into the pages with a different mindset than that of Crazy Love.

Book Review: Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions by Barna

As a minister, Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions is the best parenting book I have ever read. Not only would I recommend it for anyone who works in a church, I would strongly recommend it to parents as well. We have a tendency to pawn off the responsibility of our children’s spiritual formation onto the church, when that is in fact anti-biblical and anti-productive.

Barna lays the groundwork for this work by establishing clear facts through research. From there, he lays down a Scriptural mandate for how God instructs us to raise our children. Then he provides solutions to the problem areas.

Not only that, the book also points out of failure to measure the effectiveness of our children’s spiritual development and just assume church’s are doing a good job, while giving quantifiable means by which to measure that process. Herein lies the true nugget of this book, it constantly provides solutions to real problems that come with raising Spiritual Champions.

For me, this is a book that will affect the way I do ministry in the future. It will cause me to think through the biblical role of the church and the biblical role of the family. While reading this book, I kept thinking I had read parts of this before. It would appear that Family Driven Faith (by Baucham) mirrored this book (written 4 years prior to his) in regards to philosophy and practice, although never specifically cited (Baucham did cite other Barna works).

Anyway, if you liked Family Driven Faith, you will love Transforming Children Into Spiritual Champions.

Athens Trip – March 2010, Day 7

Today we started off in Monastiraki, which is the major tourist spot in Athens, to grab a quick lunch and a couple of things for our family. After a short period there, we hiked up to Mars Hills to a time of Bible study, prayer, and reflection. It was fantastic to have such great reason to praise God and to talk through our trip. For me personally, I also enjoyed working on my sermon for Sunday from that key place in Greek Christian history… hopefully, the message will be as inspiring as Paul’s unknown God message!


Anyway, once we finished our time at Mars Hill, we made our way to Holargos. Today was different at our main campus because the students were receiving their marks or grades. Due to “report card day” they did not have the usual sports programs, but we were able to talk to the kids and say our goodbyes for now.


At 5:00, Sophia (the primary basketball director) drove us to a school we had never been at before to allow us to lead basketball with those children. The kids in this program were in 2nd and 3rd grade (7-8 years old – younger than our normal group). Unlike the other school, all of the parents came with them and we had a brief time to meet all of them. It was fun playing with the younger kids, and being able to lead the entirety of the session. We were not expecting to be given the reigns in this school, but we were elated to do so – we will definitely have to think through some age appropriate drills for next time!


Another cool thing about today was that our friend from America that has recently moved here joined us today; his name is Ryan. He has a very good heart and great mind for how to Shine in this country. We are excited to see how God uses him here and what will come of our newfound friendship. Fortunately, we were able to introduce him to Sophia, and he might even be able to enroll his own children in the sports academy of Holargos! It would be incredible for them to have an ongoing relationship with the workers and municipality – please pray this works out!

Ryan was also able to meet Bill. We stopped by Bill’s restaurant and introduced them to one another. Bill has a very busy schedule, but we are hoping he makes time to study the Word with Ryan and develop a friendship with him as well – please pray for this too! Our time with Ryan today, playing with children, introducing him to our friends, and dialoging about our work here encouraged our hearts greatly. It is our hope to continue this partnership and watch what happens!

Whenever I return home, I will do a summary of our trip. As a final prayer request, please pray that God would bless us with a safe and uneventful trip home. God is good, and He is definitely moving here!