Who Moved My Pulpit?

I wanted to give you a quick review of Thom Rainer's book, "Who Moved My Pulpit?". Dr. Rainer & B&H Publishing were gracious enough to get me some advance copies to review & distribute to ministry leaders. If you'd like to enter to win one of those copies, you've got three option. First, visit my Twitter page & follow the instruction in my #WhoMovedMyPulpit tweets. Or you can visit my Facebook page & follow the instructions in my "Who Moved My Pulpit?" updates. The last option is the easiest; you can simply leave a comment here on the blog. However, you need to hurry though because tomorrow I'll be selecting the winners & getting these advance copies out. If you miss out on one of the freebies, you'll be able to find it at bookstores on June 1st.

Dr. Rainer's focus in this book is on leading change effectively in the church. Some of the impetus for writing this book comes from the fact that 90% of churches are plateaued or in decline compared to their community. The overwhelming majority of churches need to change in order to survive & continue to be a viable part of the Great Commission.

In the book Dr. Rainer outlines a roadmap for leading change in the church that would serve as a solid baseline for any leader in any ministry context. In fact, I'm passing on copies of this book to our Church Leadership Team as we work through the process of revitalizing the ministry in our congregation. I'm also planning to get some copies to our local denominational leadership who will be working with churches seeking to revitalize.

If you serve on a church staff or as a ministry lay leader, you should invest in this little book. I finished it up in a couple of hours, so it's a quick but loaded read. If you'd like more information on "Who Moved My Pulpit?" visit the official website.

Membership Matters

It's become trendy in recent years to downplay the value of church membership. Some churches have all but done away with official membership while others have contributed to the negative connotation of membership by making it little more than filling out a card & getting your name on a list. Still other churches have tried to dodge some of the negativity by using different terminology that allows them to communicate the value of being meaningfully connected with a congregation & particularly a small group of believers while using a set of terms that don't carry quite so much baggage. There is even a movement in some churches to combat the apathy concerning church membership by raising the bar of expectation by requiring members to renew their membership every year & by actually holding members accountable for the biblical standards of what it means to be a part of a local congregation of Christ followers. The important thing for us to see here is that we shouldn't deal with the negative issues surrounding church membership by throwing the entire concept out, but instead we should lift up the biblical standard & call people to it. Membership matters. 

In fact, I would be so bold as to say you cannot fulfill New Testament instructions concerning following Christ together without it. When you read passages like Hebrews 10:19-25 or Colossians 3:12-14, you have to ask yourself, "How can I really do this apart from being meaningfully engaged with, devoted to, & invested in a community of believers who are following Christ together?" In other words, "How can I really do this without a church family that I'm responsible for & accountable to." The answer is you can't. The church needs you, & you need the church. Most of the conversations I've had over the years with people whose faith is drying up or who feel distant from God begin by recognizing that they drifted away from the people of God before they drifted away from God. As a result they've robbed themselves of other believers ministering to them, & they've robbed others of the encouragement that they might have to offer their brothers & sisters. Even more tragically, they rob the lost of the opportunity to hear the Gospel & see the Gospel at work. After all, I don't have a whole lot of interaction with people who are disconnected from their church family who are also leading a lot of people to faith in Christ. Being deeply invested in a congregation matters.

"Church Membership & Ministry Are Essential Because 

They Equip Us To Deny Self As We Submit To & Serve One Another."

Think about it. Our human nature is pretty self-centered. In addition to that, our culture reinforces that mentality. Meanwhile, Jesus tells us that to follow Him, we have to deny self. Since that goes against our own nature, it stands to reason that we might just need a training ground to help us grow in our willingness to put others ahead of ourselves. We need other disciples of Jesus who can encourage us & hold us accountable. We also need someone that we're investing in in the same way. We see this selfishness pop up when we listen to ourselves talk about why we leave churches.

"I wasn't being fed."

"I didn't like the music."

"The church didn't meet my needs."

If you'll notice most folks don't leave churches because they don't take the Gospel or the Great Commission seriously enough. They usually hop from one place to another because "their needs" aren't being met. Here's a newsflash: No church can meet your needs. Only Jesus does that. To expect a church to fill that void is to make it a false god. The church is where redeemed, imperfect people imperfectly follow Jesus together. You need it. I need it. Membership matters. Devote yourself to a local congregation. Get engaged with the people & the mission. Declare your devotion to that congregation, & invest your life in it.

The Friday Five

1. Book: Living By The Book by Dr. Howard Hendricks. This is possibly the most important book I ever bought in college or seminary. The great thing though is that it's not really a textbook. It's not overly academic in its approach. In classic Hendricks style, it's approachable for everybody. If you're wanting to grow your Bible study habit & dive deeper, I'd encourage you to check it out. I gave a copy away 15 years ago to a student, & I recently bought a new copy & am in the process of rereading it.
2. Follow: Taylor Guitars on Instagram. If you're a guitar geek like me, this is a must follow. I've been playing Taylor Guitars for a long time, & while there are a lot of great guitars out there, for me, this is the one.
3. TV: Daredevil on Netflix. Season 2 of Daredevil just wrapped up, & while as a whole, I didn't enjoy it as much as Season 1, it was still solid. Season 1 is incredible, & Season 2 has some great moments, & I think is going to set up next season really well. If you saw the old Ben Affleck film based on this character, you owe it to yourself to watch this show to wash that bad taste out of your mouth. It's really well done.
4. Quote: "Attending church is like exercise. If you only do it twice a year, it's gonna hurt." Sam Rainer
5. Music: Drive by Bela Fleck. This is a great, pure bluegrass, album from the master of the banjo. In addition to Bela's genius, it also features the likes of Sam Bush, Tony Rice, Jerry Douglas, Stuart Duncan, & Mark O'Connor. It's some of the best playing that you'll ever hear, & the end of Sam Bush's mandolin break on "Whitewater" still makes my jaw drop, even though I've heard it hundreds of times.

Kingdom Minded Moms & Dads

We wrapped up our Family Matters message series over the last two weeks with messages focused on parenting. We began with a message for moms & looked at 1st Samuel 1. This chapter of God's redemption story begins with a woman who desperately wanted to become a mother. However, her desire for a child wasn't just about satisfying her maternal instincts. Her desire was that God would use that little life to glorify His name & further His Kingdom. In fact, in Hannah's prayer in 1st Samuel 1, we see that before she is even pregnant, she sets aside her son for God. She knows that being given a child is a gift from God, but she also understood something profound about motherhood:

"The Greatest Gift A Mother Can Give Her Child 

Is To Give Her Child To God."

Hannah surrendered her plans & hopes for her child to God's plans. She knew that, above all else, being used by God & serving His Kingdom should be her desire for her son. Sometimes as parents we let our protective instincts go off the tracks, & if we're not careful, we end up protecting our kids from God Himself. As a result, we inadvertently rob them of the only thing that matters in life. May we all pursue Hannah's example of surrender.

This past weekend we focused our message toward dads by looking at a season of King David's life that was a total train wreck. In 2nd Samuel 11 David has his scandalous fall with Bathsheba. The chapters that follow tell a tale of chaos & calamity in David's family. And it all started with David losing the battle in his heart. David should have been on the battlefield, but instead he was on the roof. The fallout from David's sin landed squarely on his family. In the end he loses three sons, & one of his daughter's has her life destroyed when her half-brother rapes her. All the while, David did nothing as his family fell apart. He had lost his moral authority & credibility on that rooftop. David's life can teach us something important as fathers:

"Our Biggest Battles Will Always Be In Our Heart & Our Home."

David probably though his slip up with Bathsheba was no big deal until it spiraled out of control...the way sin always does. The truth is that the battles we often think are big are insignificant, & the battles we think are insignificant are actually the big ones. Too many men are on the rooftop rather than on the battlefield. They're being distracted by the things of the world, & like David they're eyes are lingering a little too long. It's time for fathers to focus their attention on the battlefield for the sake of their families, for the sake of the next generation, but most importantly for the sake of the Gospel.

The Friday Five

1. Podcast: Fellowship Bible Church. Dr. Crawford Loritts is the Senior Pastor at Fellowship which is located in the Atlanta area. Crawford is a powerful preacher & teacher, & as the pastor of a multi-cultural congregation, he & his ministry team are a group to pay attention to as we seek gospel fueled reconciliation in our culture.
2. Follow: Jennie Allen on Twitter. Jennie is one of several in a new generation of women's ministry leaders who have surely been influenced by leaders like Beth Moore. Jennie leads the IF: Gathering which is a powerful resource for ladies. Jennie is one of my favorite podcast guests as well. If I see that she's going to be on a podcast, it moves to the top of my list. She is a solid teacher of Scripture & full of energy. 
   
3. TV: Sherlock. I'm still shocked at how many people I meet who are still unaware of BBC's Sherlock. They know Benedict Cumberbatch & Martin Freeman, but they don't know the incredible TV show they've made. It's smart, funny, brilliantly written & shot, & manages to stay pretty faithful to the old Holmes stories while putting a 21st century twist on it. The only downside is that the seasons are only a few episodes & because of the schedules of Freeman & Cumberbatch, we have to wait a couple years between each season. This is a binge show. Once you get sucked in, you can't get out. One last thing: Andrew Scott is absolutely incredible & unhinged as Moriarty. Hands down, one of my favorite shows. Cannot get enough of it.
4. Quote: "You are not just raising kids to become adults. You are raising kids to advance the Kingdom." Dr. Tony Evans
5. Article/Post: Is Your Worship Service Upside Down by Jared Wilson. I'm a big fan of Jared Wilson who is the Managing Editor at For The Church. Before that, Jared pastored for several years. Jared is a great blend of satirical humor & deep theological understanding. In this post, Jared focused on how so many of us have turned our worship services upside down in order to appeal to more people. As a result, God is no longer the central focus of our worship. Jared provides us with a short list to diagnose who the focus of our worship service really is.

Friday Five

1. Music: Bluesbreakers With Eric Clapton by John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers. This is often referred to as "The Beano Album", & if you're into the blues & you don't have this album, you're not into the blues. This album is a definitive work for not only John Mayall but also for Eric Clapton. There's so much good music on this album, but the best tracks are "Hideaway" & "Ramblin On My Mind." If you're a blues fan or a Clapton fan, or if you just like good music, buy this today.
2. Follow: Dr. Anthony Bradley on Twitter. Dr. Bradley is the Chair of the Religious & Theological Studies Program at The King's College in New York City. Dr. Bradley always provides thought provoking content in the area of the Gospel & culture, especially the realms of race & socioeconomics. Dr. Bradley brings a balanced, nuanced view to complex issues in our society.
   
3. TV: Arrow. Arrow is the TV show based on the DC Comic hero The Green Arrow. Oliver Queen/The Arrow is 1 part Robin Hood, 1 part Bruce Wayne, with a little ninja thrown in for good measure. The series begins with Queen returning to his hometown after being presumed dead for 5 years. We soon learn that he's on a quest to save his city, & we get to see how the spoiled little brat who went missing became the resourceful hero through flashbacks sprinkled throughout each episode. This show came recommended to me by one of my former students, & thankfully now there are 3 seasons on Netflix for you to binge watch. This is a really well done show. 
4. Quote: "The danger to republics is that they will fall to demagogues. The vulnerability is greatest when a republic is in a state of moral decay." Dr. Robert P. George
5. Article/Post: 16 Really Strange & Funny Things Pastors Have Been Asked To Do by Thom Rainer. If you've ever wanted a peek behind the curtain of what it's like to be a pastor, Dr. Rainer gives you a glimpse at just some of the stuff ministers are asked, & often expected, to do. Trust me everybody I know in ministry has some of these kind of stories. This is just the tip of the iceberg, & it's a huge iceberg.

Your Plans Aren't Great Enough

In our current series, "Family Matters", we're heading into the last few messages that focus on parenting. To kick that group of messages off, we looked at the fact that pretty much every parent has hopes, dreams, & plans for their kids, & there's nothing wrong with that. 

However, if we're not careful we'll dream dreams & make plans without including God in the process. As a result, we're in danger of not setting the bar of expectation too high for our kids, but of setting the wrong bar for them altogether. The worst thing we can do for our kids is to teach them to be successful without teaching them to be faithful.

In 1st Samuel 16 we find God sending his prophet Samuel out on a mission to anoint the next king of Israel. Those of us who've spent a few weeks in Sunday School know this is going to be David, yet when Samuel gets to Jesse's house & begins to meet the family, none of the sons are God's man. So Samuel had to ask what had to feel like a weird question, "Do you have any other sons?" Jesse's response tells us a lot about the expectations that Jesse & that ancient culture had placed on David. Jesse's response was pretty much, "Oh yeah, I've got another son, but he's the youngest, & he's just a shepherd." Basically, everyone in David's family & in culture in general would have assumed that David wasn't worth inviting to the party. It turns out, however, that David was the guest of honor for the party. Everybody had plans for David: his dad, his brothers, his culture, but God had plans as well. As parents, we should take note of that. Even though culture had predetermined David's future, God had another plan.

"God's Plans May Not Match Your Plans

    But Are Always Greater Than Your Plans."

Do your plans, hopes, & dreams for your children take God's plans into account? Are your plans broad enough & great enough to include what God might want to do in & through the life of your child? We must teach children that being successful starts with being faithful. Otherwise, they'll pursue being successful at the expense of being faithful. It was that faithful heart of David that God wanted to do great things through. Cultivate that same kind of heart in your kids, & God's plans will dwarf even your greatest hopes & dreams for your child because He will take whatever they do & use it for eternal, kingdom significance.