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Jesus + Nothing = Everything Quotes

2012-01-27T08:00:00.001-06:00

I am now three chapters into Jesus + Nothing = Everything by Tullian Tchividjian. So, I wanted to share a few quotes from chapter 3.

"What are you missing in life that prompts you to go after this particular addiction? They're deciding to yield to that addiction, to give themselves to it, to embrace it, because something else they crave is lacking."

"Identify where your restlessness is rooted--because that's where a confrontation with the gospel is needed."

" In fact, when it comes to Christian life and experience, many of us have understood the gospel as the thing that gets us in, while the thing that then keeps us in (we assume) is our own effort and performance. We recognize that the gospel ignites the Christian life, but we often fail to see that it's also the fuel to keep us going and growing as Christians."

"John Calvin famously said that all our hearts are idol-making factories. . . An idol is anything that's usurping the proper place of God in our lives."

"So what are you trusting in, other than Jesus, to gain acceptance or approval, to experience security and significance, to find meaning and purpose, to discover identity and direction?"

Sticky Gospel

2012-01-26T12:59:00.000-06:00

I am continuing to read Sticky Faith by Powell & Clark. Chapter 2 is entitled, " The Sticky Gospel". This is a great place to start on a book about parenting and faith.

The authors write, "Kara and I think that the core of Sticky Faith is developing a clear and honest understanding of both the gospel and biblical faith. As our kids are led into an awareness of their significant role in the kingdom of God demonstrated throughout Scripture, they will have the best chance of discovering a faith that is compelling and life-giving." Is this what you teach your kids? Is this what your church teaches?

I agree with the authors that we have done a disservice to the younger generations because we have taught that Christianity is about "sin management". Powell & Clark write, "When your children are taught what it means to live as a Christian, typically they receive a list of what to do and what not to do." Does this sound familiar? To me, it does. But is it biblical?

If these topics are resonating with you, I encourage you to pick up Sticky Faith and see what the authors suggest for correcting our understanding of the gospel and what it looks like practically.

My Kids Watched Courageous Twice

2012-01-25T09:30:00.000-06:00

This post is not intended to sway you into letting children under the age of 13 to watch Courageous, but instead to discern as a parent if it would be right for your kids.

As you probably know, Courageous, came out on DVD last week. I had received it as a gift and was interested in watching it again. I have already seen the movie three times so I was familiar with the themes and content of the movie. My children became very excited about watching the movie before ever seeing it. My son was even going to pass going to a friend's house because he wanted to watch Courageous with his dad.

So, on Saturday night, we sat down as a family to watch the movie. We let our daughters (ages 9,8, & 4) know that there was some fighting and guns. Molly, our youngest, watched most of the movie but the content was hard for her to understand. But she really enjoyed the scene in the cop car about the "snake kings". Mackenzie is our highly sensitive daughter so I was most concerned about her watching the movie. Both Megan and Mackenzie hid their eyes when we told them about "scary" parts of the movie. Mitchell watched the whole thing.

Evidently they enjoyed the movie because the three oldest watched it again on Sunday afternoon. Megan & Mackenzie even watched it again on Monday afternoon.

What's the point? As with any movie, do your research. Answer the question, "Why is it rated PG-13?" Then watch the movie yourself to see if it is appropriate for your children. Have a discussion with your children before or after the movie about why you are watching the movie even though it is PG-13. Share the importance of guarding our hearts and minds. Explain that most PG-13 movies are not appropriate for 13 & under and many are not OK for those over 13 including me.

I would encourage you to buy the DVD and watch it as family. As I have shared in previous posts, this is a great movie especially for fathers.

Who Needs To Attend Art of Marriage? YOU

2012-01-20T08:01:00.001-06:00

Hesston MB is excited to be providing The Art of Marriage conference on Feb. 10-11 at the church. The times are Friday from 7-9:30 p.m. & Saturday from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. The Art of Marriage is based on the popular Weekend to Remember sponsored by Family Life. It is DVD based and includes 6 sessions over the weekend. The topics are listed below.

So, who should attend Art of Marriage? YOU. There is something for couples at all different stages. It would helpful for seriously dating couples and newlyweds as they anticipate or begin their lives together as a couple. Couples who have been married for several years can be encouraged to continue growing as a couple or make some necessary changes if certain bad habits have developed. Couples with teenagers might need a chance to renew or restore the intimacy that they once had that has seemed to fade. Empty nesters can benefit from learning new information as well and evaluate the legacy they are leaving.

The Art of Marriage is very well done with a great balance of humor, real life stories, & advice & teaching from experts. Each couple will receive a workbook full of great ideas and suggestions following the weekend. They will also participate in three projects throughout the weekend to take what is learned and put it into practice in their own relationship.

You can get more information by calling 620-327-2847 or by visiting www.hesstonmb.org and clicking on The Art of Marriage banner. Cost is $25 and includes snacks and lunch on Saturday. For more information or questions, contact J.L. Martin at above number or email him at jl@hesstonmb.org.

Topics Covered

Session 1: love happens (purpose of marriage)

Session 2: love fades (drift to isolation)

Session 3: love dances (roles)

Session 4: love interrupted (communication)

Session 5: love sizzles (romance and sex)

Session 6: love always (legacy)

Quotes & Coffee

2012-01-19T14:56:00.000-06:00

Thought I would share a few quotes from books I read today by Tchvidjian, Harvey, Powell & Clark:

Jesus + Nothing = Everything by Tullian Tchvidjian

"I was learning the hard way that the gospel alone can free us from our addiction to being liked-that Jesus measured up for us so that we wouldn't have to live under the enslaving pressure of measuring up for others."

"I was realizing in a fresh way the now-power of the gospel--that the gospel doesn't simply rescue us from the past and rescue us for the future; it also rescues us in the present from being enslaved to things like fear, insecurity, anger, self-reliance, bitterness, entitlement, and insignificance."

When Sinners Say I Do by Dave Harvey (one of the speakers for Art of Marriage)

"Let's look briefly at three of the most important components of a solid, biblical theology of marriage . . . The Foundation of Your Marriage-The Bible, The Fountain of Your Marriage-The Gospel, & The Focus of Your Marriage-The Glory of God"

"What we believe about God determines the quality of our marriage."

"God created the marriage program, wrote the operating manual, and is faithful to explain it."

"Then we begin to realize there is new hope for our marriages. A lot of hope. Hope that emerges from the power of the gospel, the very power that raised Christ from the tomb."

Sticky Faith by Kara Powell & Dr. Chap Clark

"Sticky faith is both internal and external. Sticky Faith is both personal and communal. Sticky Faith is both mature and maturing."

"Which group did they rank number one? Parents. More good news: our research shows a relationship between this parental support and Sticky Faith."

"How you express and live out your faith may have a greater impact on your son or daughter than anything else."

"When it comes to kids' faith, parents get what they are."

D6 Conference Announces 2012 Theme: Abide

2012-01-11T11:36:00.000-06:00

Click here to see press release announcing theme and speakers for 2012 D6 Conference.

Ministry Conferences for 2012

2012-01-11T09:52:00.000-06:00

So, as the those New Year's resolutions are coming and going. I thought I would write about my plans for ministry growth in 2012. Every year I have the opportunity for continuing education through seminars and conferences. I also make sure I am reading a lot to help me grow in between conferences.

Here are the conferences I plan to attend in 2012:

Orange Conference--The first on my schedule is the Orange Conference. It is a gathering of ministry leaders for children, youth, and adults with a focus on church and home working together. I have never attended this conference before but have enjoyed Reggie Joiner's book, Think Orange. I am excited about this conference as it has several great breakout sessions and gives a slightly different take on what it means to equip parents to pass on faith to their kids. For more information, go to their website here.

Conection 2012-This is a conference for the Mennonite Brethren Church. Yes, it is spelled wrong to focus on "one" as part of our vision as a conference of churches. I am looking forward to this national gathering in Omaha, Nebraska. I will have the opportunity to teach a breakout session with others on generational discipleship. We will have the opportunity to here from Stephen Kendrick as well as comedian Kenn Kington. This is a great opportunity to network and connect with others serving in MB churches. You can visit their site here.

D6-This has been my favorite conference of all. I have attended for 3 years. You can check out previous blog posts from speakers from past years at D6. This conference does a great job of not only giving you practical tools for ministry, but also giving you the theology behind it. I have never attended a conference that has been as centered on Scripture as D6. A few great speakers from last year were Voddie Baucham, David Platt, and Steven Curtis Chapman. But I think the best part of the conference are the pre-con labs that start the day before the conference. I have learned so much from these labs that they were worth the price of the conference alone. You can check out their website here. I plan to post a blog later in the week announcing speakers for 2012.

I know conference dollars are limited, but I would recommend doing your homework as you choose what to attend in 2012. I am looking forward to all 3 of these opportunities in 2012. Check back later in the year to read posts from them.

What I Am Reading

2012-01-05T13:41:00.000-06:00

Occasionally, I like to share what I am reading at the moment. A few of the books are for classes, groups, or staff discussion, but the rest are for edification and growth.

Here is my list for the start of 2012:

The Resolution for Men by Alex & Stephen Kendrick
The Legacy Path by Brian Haynes
The Good & Beautiful God by James Bryan Smith
Who Stole My Church by Gordon MacDonald
The Meaning of Marriage by Timothy Keller
Sticky Faith by Kara Powell & Chap Clark
Jesus + Nothing = Everything by Tullian Tchividjian

Here is a quote from The Good and Beautiful God:

"As we spend time in quiet and rest and contemplation, sitting at the feet of Jesus, we gain strength to act in wisdom in the hustle and bustle of a busy world."

It's Christmas Eve!

2011-12-24T14:18:00.000-06:00

I cannot believe it is Christmas already. Today, we are getting ready to travel and be with family which means laundry and getting dishes done. Bethany had to work until 2 so we watched The Nativity Story. It is fun to watch the story as you think about the Scriptures.

In a few hours, we will gather as a family and open our last box for "What God Wants for Christmas" and read the Christmas story. We have picked a book that has been most age appropriate for our kids yet stays true to Scripture. After this, we will open presents. For the last few years, we have done 3 presents for each of our kids to keep it simple. I am looking forward to seeing their reactions.

We then eat chili together and get ready for church. I always enjoy Christmas Eve Services as we sing carols and get to end with candle lighting. I hope you are enjoying your own Christmas traditions today. Blessings upon you and your family. Drive safely and enjoy the celebration of our Savior's birth.

Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year from the Martin's!

Best Christmas Movies to watch with kids

2011-12-23T09:52:00.000-06:00

Well, Christmas is almost here. I don't know about you, but once the kids are out of school for a few days, I enjoy sitting around watching a good movie or two. So, I thought I would share some of my favorites.

For Younger Kids:

Veggie Tales: Saint Nicholas
Veggie Tales: The Little Drummer Boy (newest one)
Veggie Tales: It's a Meaningful Life
Veggie Tales: Madame Blueberry
Charlie Brown Christmas

For Older Children:

It's A Wonderful Life
The Nativity Story
Elf
A Christmas Story

I know I need to expand my repertoire of Christmas movies, but all of these are great to watch and great to discuss afterwards.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Are you a sinner or saint?

2011-12-22T14:00:00.000-06:00

How would you answer that question? Personally, I lean much more towards sinner. But as we look at Scripture and better understand our identity in Christ, does that change the answer? When we grapple with what Christ did through his life, death, and resurrection, does that impact how we see ourselves? Is this just a theological debate or does it truly affect how we live the Christian life?

I am reading The Good and Beautiful God by James Bryan Smith. His chapter entitled, "God Transforms" addresses the title of this post. Smith argues that our narratives of being a sinner are false. Before you get upset, he believes we still sin, but wonders if focusing on being a sinner fits with what Christ did on the cross and the rest of the New Testament . He reminds us that we are not under the power of sin any longer. He says, "God is no longer dealing with you on the basis of your sin." I look forward to discussing more of the details of this chapter during the Sunday School Class I am teaching on this topic in a few months.

But I want to leave you with a quote from the chapter. It was so powerful that I wanted to share it with you. The quote comes from John of Kronstadt, a nineteenth-century Russian Orthodox priest, who went to the streets to help and minister to people. As he would help those on the streets dealing with a hangover he would say, "This is beneath your dignity. You were meant to house the fullness of God."

How would things change in our lives if we saw ourselves in this way?

Christmas Devotions

2011-12-21T09:15:00.000-06:00

As parents, how can we keep Jesus at the center of Christmas? One of the ways we have used in the past is using a devotional book or activity during Advent. We gather usually right after supper or at the dinner table and spend some time talking about the reason of the season. For several years, we used "Adornaments" by Family Life. They take the "I Am" passages of Scripture and have an ornament that has the day's reading inside and then you hang it on the tree. I love this resource! However, it is out of print.

Another resource we have used is "The ADVENTure of Christmas" by Lisa Whelchel. "You take the good, you take the bad. . . The Facts of Life" Yes, she was Blair on the Facts of Life. She has written an excellent book that discusses the meaning behind the traditions of Christmas such as the tree, lights, etc. We used this one last year. It even has fun activities to go along with the stories.

This year we are using "What God Wants for Christmas" by Family Life. It has a booklet you read along with opening 7 presents. Each present has a piece that you can add to a kid friendly nativity. The kids have enjoyed trying to guess what is inside each gift. We are currently on Day 5 and have already opened a box with baby Jesus so they are baffled as to what the final gift is. It is well written in poetic form to keep attention and also includes Scripture and a question to discuss together. This one works really well right at the dinner table.

So, how about you? What resources have you used? I would encourage you to look for these and other resources during the after Christmas sales and put them away for next year. It is a simple way to worship Jesus during Advent.

Stop the Hop by Steven Furtick

2011-12-14T14:56:00.000-06:00

This was one of my favorite posts of 2011 by Steven Furtick of Elevation Church. You can visit his website here .

One of the things that really troubles me about the church today is the phenomenon of church hopping and church shopping. It’s a consumeristic mindset towards the body of Christ that grieves the heart of God.

It’s time for us to stop the hop. This isn’t Christianity. Jesus didn’t die so we could sample different churches like varieties of meat on a party platter. Jesus died to establish His church as the most powerful entity on the planet.

We are alive at the greatest time in history for the advance of the gospel. We have so much going for us.

We have the ability.
We have the resources.
We have the people.

What we don’t have is them committed to a place where they can actually be used for their God-ordained purpose.

If this generation doesn’t make the impact it should, it won’t be because it didn’t have the resources. Or even the passion. It will be because it was too busy hopping to different churches to stop and commit to one where its resources and passion could actually find an outlet.

The church is the change the world is waiting for. God help us if we keep the world waiting for us while we try to find the perfect church for us.

If you’ve fallen into the trap of church hopping, let me encourage you: embrace your place somewhere where God can use you. At the end of your life, God’s not going to be impressed or pleased that you saw what He was doing at ten different churches. He’s going be more pleased that you were a part of what He was doing at one church.

And you’re never going to find the perfect one, so give up looking. If the church you’re visiting doesn’t have what you’re looking for, it might be because God wants you to provide it.

Let’s all commit together to begin a campaign to stop the hop.
Find a place to get planted. Embrace it. And start changing the world.

The question of our day isn’t if God wants to do incredible things through the church. The question is will we be in place to experience it?

Children's Christmas Program

2011-12-10T08:24:00.001-06:00

On Wednesday night, I was able to watch our Hide N Seek kids and fuzion students practice for the Christmas Program. It was so exciting to see our children praising God and our 5th & 6th grade students reading Scripture & other readings and doing puppets. There is nothing like watching children worship. So, join us this Sunday at Hesston MB at 10:10 a.m. for our Children's Christmas program.

Days in Nebraska

2011-12-09T10:40:00.000-06:00

Can someone tell me why whenever I visit Nebraska it is freezing cold?

Despite the cold, it was a great two days away with my wife. Bethany and I drove to Henderson, Nebraska on Sunday to set up for a book table at Bethesda Mennonite Church. Faith & Life Bookstore, where Bethany is manager, has hosted a book table at this church for many years. This was our second year to go. I enjoy getting to see Bethany in action as a manager. She has great ideas and does a great job helping customers.

It was also a great treat to get away without the kids. We are so thankful to have parents who help so graciously watch our kids when we are away. We spent most of each day at the book table just reading and talking. It was fun just to be together. Then each evening we were able to go out and eat and have conversation without interruption (except for the loud group sitting next to us at Applebee's). It was fun to get away from the routine and relax. An extra bonus was being together on my birthday. These trips are great ways to strengthen our marriage and refresh us to parent our kids.

So, when are you planning your next date night or overnight together? It will be worth it!

Book Review: The Love and Respect Experience

2011-12-08T15:50:00.000-06:00

This devotional is based on the popular book by Emerson Eggerichs. It has a great subtitle to get men to pick it up. It says, "A Husband Friendly Devotional that Wives Truly Love." Why will men love it? First of all, instead of becoming overwhelmed with 365 daily devotionals, this book only has one per week. Second, the devotions tend to be short at only about 2-3 pages. Third, it is easy to use as each devotional ends with a simple prayer prompt and an action step. For those interested in using it in a small group or to go more in depth, Eggerichs also includes discussion questions for each week in the appendix.

What about the content? I have not read Eggerichs book to compare, but I would assume based on the content of the devotionals that this would be a great resource for the person who does not like to read. From my perspective, I think I understand many of the concepts from Eggerichs book by just reading the 52 devotionals. Therefore, this can be a great help to marriages in smaller chunks that reading the whole book. Eggerichs illustrations are helpful for any marriage no matter the stage.

I would recommend this devotional for couples. Not only does it get couples praying and reading Scripture together, but it also gives them skills to help improve their marriage. Since Christmas is only a few weeks away, this would be a great gift for the married couple in your life.

Thankful for . . .

2011-11-22T21:23:00.000-06:00

Tonight at the dinner table, we talked about thankfulness. I decided it would be fun to see how many times we could go around the table and share what we are thankful for. The only rule was that we could not repeat what someone else had said. It was a great opportunity to show the many things we have to be thankful for. So, what are you thankful for today?

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Family Night with Operation Christmas Child

2011-11-17T08:18:00.000-06:00

Last night was our Family Night when we fill Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes. This is one of our best attended Family Nights. We had about 120 people last night. We had a great meal-thanks Rachel & Richelle & others who helped in the kitchen! After the meal, we sang a couple of songs from Seeds Family Worship. We did my newest favorite, "More Than Conquerors" and then did "Light of the World" which involved some glow sticks. Then each family read 2 Corinthians 9:6-15 and I briefly talked about generosity and how we are to give to others. At this point, the kids are getting anxious. We watched a brief video from Samaritan's Purse describing what Operation Christmas Child is and where the boxes go and then it was GO time. Each family enjoyed making cards for their child, filling it with toys, candy, art supplies, and hygiene items, and then praying for each box. We finished 77 boxes thanks to the generosity of many people. And I know a few more boxes went home with families too.

Fun Saturday

2011-11-13T12:43:00.001-06:00

Yesterday was a great Saturday! It started out by sleeping late. For those who know me, this is a highlight. I love my sleep. Then it was a lazy morning with the whole family at home. It seems like this has not happened in several weeks. Then Mitchell, Molly and I headed to the Turkey Shoot at the Middle School. We had a good time and we each made a few free throws. Bethany had to cover lunches at Faith and Life so Mackenzie and Megan went with her.

After the turkey shoot, we headed to Panda Kitchen for lunch. It was tasty! Then it was time for Mitchell to go to a basketball clinic at the high school. So, Molly and I headed to the Wellness Center to swim. We had fun playing some games and swimming around. Towards the end, Molly decided she enjoyed the acoustics at the indoor pool and began making up songs. Another lady in the pool commented on her singing and the "joy" she brought her as she sang.

We then picked up Mitchell and headed home. Bethany and the girls were pulling in at about the same time. Then we decided spur of the moment to head to Wichita. We made a quick stop at World Market and Target before heading to Bethany's parents. We ordered in pizza and watched the Wildcats win a great football game in 4 overtimes. Then made another quick trip to see Bethany's brother's new house. While there, we also met his girlfriend and daughter. We look forward to going to the Wings game with all of them next Saturday. Then it was time to head home, but not before some Dairy Queen for dessert as we headed home.

It was a fun and enjoyable Saturday as a family!

Book Review: Impress Faith on Your Kids

2011-11-12T07:49:00.012-06:00

I finished Mark Holmen's new book, Impress Faith on Your Kids on Thursday. In the book, Holmen walks through Deuteronomy 6 and its implications for parents. This is a good book to put into the hands of new parents as they seek how to pass on faith to their children. Holmen does a great job of looking to specific verses from Deuteronomy 6 and making them practical in our day to day lives. At the end of each chapter, Holmen writes a letter to a friend summarizing the content of the chapter. At first, I thought this was redundant, but then I understood Holmen's heart for the friend to whom these letters were written. He explains how these letters were specifically written to someone who probably would never pick up his book. Holmen also includes questions for small group discussion at the end of each chapter.

The specific chapters focus on different aspects of parenting. He starts with the goal of parenting which by the way is not good kids, smart kids, artistic kids, or athletic kids. He writes, "A good parent is one who leads his/her children into life not death." He then focuses on having a family mission statement. He continues by clearly showing the importance of living faith at home and not outsourcing the faith of our children to the church. His next chapter focuses on true love. He asks this question, "As a parent who is trying to lead your children to know, love, and follow Christ, it comes down to do you know, love, and follow Christ?"

Holmen then makes the 10 Commandments personal to his life and for his family. This is a great chapter as he makes clear the importance of following the commandments not out of ritual, but instead out of relationship. He ends the book by specifically looking at how we talk about faith and walk the walk in the home. This is extremely practical as he gives specific examples of how to "talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." He reminds us as parents to make clear who we worship and follow. Holmen shares his own reminder, "WWJHMD". I recommend you pick up the book and find out what this acronym means as well as other great information that will help as you pass on your faith at home.

Gospel Centered Discipleship

2011-11-11T07:56:00.001-06:00

Currently, I am serving on a committee at church called the Discipleship Ministries Committee. It has replaced the Christian Education committee. We have been discussing for a few months what we should focus on and what are responsibilities are. One of the committee members sent us an email with a link to an article. This article linked to a specific website called Gospel Centered Discipleship. I went to the site and downloaded two free e-books.

I started reading one of those e-books on Thursday. It is called Grow: Reproducing through Organic Discipleship by Winfield Bevins. I have not finished the e-book, but was challenged by several through provoking quotes. Here are a few quotes from the introduction and first two chapters:

"In a similar way, a church's discipleship strategy must be structured enough to maintain order, but organic enough to change with the ongoing needs of the church as it grows or it will hinder its growth."

"When Jesus said, "make disciples" the disciples understood it to mean more than simply getting someone to believe in Jesus and they interpreted it to mean that they should make out of others what Jesus made out of them."

"The church needs to bring evangelism and discipleship together. Christians have viewed discipleship as something they do on one hand and evangelism on the other, which is a false dichotomy. The church needs to rediscover the integration of evangelism and discipleship in order to fulfill the Great Commission and 21st century disciples of Christ."

"Therefore the gospel of Jesus Christ that saves individuals is also the gospel that grows individuals through discipleship."

"Discipleship and spiritual formation are rooted in the gospel of Jesus Christ from beginning to end."

"Believers are saved by the gospel and called to live by the gospel. The gospel is for all of life."

"Church leaders can use church growth principles to add people to the church; however, only the gospel can grow people into disciples of Jesus Christ."

"The gospel is not an addition to our ministry or even a beginning point; rather, the gospel must saturate every part of our church's life."

Perk & Pork

2011-11-10T14:56:00.000-06:00

Today has been a busy day! I started my normal Thursday routine by heading to the Perk for coffee and reading. I was blessed by the encouragement of a couple who stopped by for coffee on their way to a meeting. You know who you are! I finished Holmen's book, Impress Faith On Your Kids and will write a review later this week. I also started an e-book I received from Gospel Centered Discipleship. You can visit the site here. I will share a few thought provoking quotes from this e-book later too.

I also was able to spend some time today serving pulled pork at Kropf Lumber's Customer Appreciation Day. It was a fun change of routine and kept me busy. I enjoyed conversation with Jena as we served hundreds of sandwiches. It was good to see many unfamiliar faces as I don't spend a lot of time at Kropf, not because it is not a nice store, but because I am handy-man challenged. If something breaks at my house, I am not much help. Thanks Deb for the invitation!

Check back later in the week for quotes from Grow: Reproducing through Organic Discipleship & a book review on Holmen's newest book.

Don't Forget the Lyrics

2011-11-07T09:59:00.000-06:00

Occasionally, when flipping through channels, we as a family like to watch Don't Forget the Lyrics. If you have never seen the show, contestants have to fill in missing lyrics once the music stops. It brings to mind the argument about lyrics. Just last week, Mitchell was asking if he could listen to other stations than 99.1 and 90.7. We had the discussion about being discerning about music choices because words can get stuck in our heads. I don't buy the "I just like the beat argument". Lyrics stay with us.

Here is an example. Yesterday, after a busy morning at church, I had gone downstairs to watch some TV and maybe take a nap. The nap won. I turned off the TV and was drifting off to sleep. Then I heard Molly playing with dolls in the corner. She was singing, "Our God will not be moved. Our God will never be shaken." Great lyrics to be singing! But here is the point. We had just sang this song at church that morning and had never sang it before. After only hearing it once during worship, Molly had already memorized a line from a song. She is 4.

Parents, we need to be careful what we let our children listen to. Let's fill their minds with lyrics and songs that will encourage them to Love God and Love Others!

P.S. As I type, she is now singing "Hip, Hip, Hippopotamus, Hip Hip Hooray God Made All Us. Hip, Hip, Hippopotamus, God Loves All of Us!

Judgment House: Yay or Nay?

2011-11-05T13:44:00.006-05:00

So, Halloween has come and gone which also means that many churches have completed their Trunk or Treats, Harvest Festivals, or Judgment House. These are all ways that the church has attempted to minister to people around Halloween. For those who are unfamiliar with Judgement House, here is a link to the organization that provides resources.

I have to say that I am biased against Judgement House because of an experience in another state. However, I have to ask myself if this is the best way to share the gospel. I know many people accept Christ, but do they fully understand what it means to follow Christ? Has the fear of hell forced a decision? The reason I am asking is because of cautions from pastors like Matt Chandler, David Platt and Kyle Idleman who wonder if we are getting people to simply say a prayer without understanding what it means to follow Christ?

So, what are your thoughts? Are you in favor or against churches hosting Judgement House?

Francis Chan in Wichita

2011-11-04T16:44:00.000-05:00

Last night, I had the opportunity to hear Francis Chan speak at Central Christian Church in Wichita. He was speaking on behalf of World Impact. For those who are unfamiliar, World Impact serves the urban poor in several cities throughout the United States. Check them out here. It was a great night of worship and the Word.

Chan, as always, spoke some powerful and challenging words. Here are a few notes that I took. He shared about how he is serving in San Francisco in the Tenderloin. Hey, GracePoint Youth, remember when we served there in 2001. He has a prayer team of 20 individuals who start by praying for apartment buildings. After prayer, Chan and others from his team start knocking on doors. They ask two questions: What do you need? How can we pray? I wonder how those two questions could impact lives where you and I live.

He challenged the church and its leaders to seriously consider how we interpret Scripture. He wondered if we have made it too complicated. He said he will simply read God's Word and then obey it. He shared how he has experienced powerful moves of God when he does. When we read God's Word, do we have to clarify things if they seem to difficult or uncomfortable? Are we guilty of this in the American Church?

He closed with a few quotes:

"I will error on the side of faith instead of comfort."

"The pressure to get safe only increases as we age."

Are we not seeing the Holy Spirit move because we have become too comfortable and play it safe?

Happy Anniversary!

2011-11-01T21:41:00.000-05:00

Happy Anniversary to me! No, it's not my wedding anniversary, but instead my work anniversary. I began my ministry at Hesston MB on November 1, 2008. So, today marks my anniversary. I have enjoyed my 3 years in ministry at Hesston and have grown a lot as well. I cannot wait to see how God is going to use me and the church in the future.

As I reflect on 3 years of ministry, here are a few exciting things that God is doing (or has done) at Hesston MB:

Excitement & learning related to our CHRIST acrostic in Sunday School and small groups
New ministries: CHICKS, movie ministry, D6 Dads, single parent ministries such as oil change & parents day out
Five newcomer lunches over the last year
New individuals and families plugging into ministries
Development of a prayer team and monthly prayer meeting
Discussions occurring in Discipleship Ministries Committee
Ideas percolating regarding strengthening marriages and how to minister to those in crisis
Consistent, loving, faithful teachers for Sunday School & Wednesday nights
Growth in our mid-week ministries through Hide N Seek & fuzion
Continued interest in how to serve others in our community and beyond
Upcoming candidating weekend for our Pastor of Youth & Families

All of these are a reminder of our great, big God and how He invites us to join Him in His mission on earth!

Good fun, good books, & good conversation

2011-10-28T11:48:00.000-05:00

Today, I enjoyed some great food at Faith & Life Bookstore for Pastor Appreciation Month. Way to go, Bethany! It was fun to talk with some Newton pastors that we bumped into while eating. And of course, a coupon is always a great addition.

After eating, Brad and I stayed at the bookstore to discuss a book we are reading as a staff. It is The Legacy Path by Brian Haynes. I have written a review of the book and highly recommend it to pastors and parents. We are only in Chapter 2 and we cannot ever finish a chapter as it is so full of great thoughts and ideas. Today, our discussion was on abiding. We had a great conversation about what this means and what it looks like and how to share it with others. Haynes asks this question, "How do you currently abide in Christ?" How would you respond? I look forward to our discussion of that question when our Discipleship Ministries Committee meets next Tuesday.

Yesterday, I was at the Perk and I started a new book called, The Good and Beautiful God by James Bryan Smith. There are 3 books in this series by Smith who is a professor at Friends University in Wichita, KS. I will be using this book as a foundation for our study on the CHRIST acrostic related to intimate worship. I was able to get a couple of chapters into the book. I am excited about the discussion that will occur in Sunday School and in my personal life as I continue this book. I want to leave you with a question that Smith asks. He writes, "Is this understanding of God consistent with the God Jesus revealed?"

Marriage Conversations

2011-10-27T08:04:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was a good day for marriage conversations. I had two separate meetings where the topic was strengthening marriages & helping marriages in crisis. I am excited about these new ministries within Hesston MB Church.

My first conversation was regarding a ministry called Marriage 911. This curriculum is used by churches to help those in crisis in their marriage. It allows the church to walk alongside couples and become a place people turn to rather than avoid. For more information, check out the website at here.

During this meeting, we also began planning a marriage seminar called "The Art of Marriage". We will be hosting this seminar in February 2012. We are looking at dates and locations as well as beginning to work on publicity. This will be a Friday night and all day Saturday seminar that will help strengthen marriages. My hope is that it will be well attended by the Hesston community.

My afternoon meeting was discussing marriage mentoring. I have felt led by God to start something like this at Hesston MB. This ministry would pair couples with another couple who will walk through a curriculum together over a year. It is relationship based and easy to use. I am exciting about the potential of this new ministry as well as I hope it will help couples develop strong marriages before problems develop.

I know that I must rely on the Holy Spirit to guide all of these new ministries because I cannot do it on my own. I look forward to how God will work in the lives of others as He empowers them to serve Him and serve marriages.

Would You Rather?

2011-10-26T08:25:00.000-05:00

Tonight, after we finished supper, the girls were in a hurry to leave the table. I decided it would be fun to have some more conversation. The girls looked at me like I was crazy. By the way, Mitchell was at a birthday party at Pizza Hut. So, I started by asking Would You Rather be a princess or President of the United States? Or how about this one, would you rather be a hairy gorilla or slimy snake? Or would you rather be an armpit or slimy mud (Molly's word for toe jam)? The girls finally got into the conversation and came up with some good ones as well. We all had some good laughs and it was a fun way to spend a little extra time together as a family. Try it tonight and see what your kids come up with.

Serving on a day off from school

2011-10-21T11:30:00.000-05:00

Typically, on a day off from school, I will take the kids to Lincoln Perk, the park, or Wellness Center Pool. Today, I wanted to do something a little different. As I was praying about this, I felt led by the Holy Spirit to find a way for the kids to serve on their day off from school. I felt led to contact the Hesston Resource Center to see what we could do for them. It so happened (or better yet God orchestrated) that our church had just finished a food drive for the Resource Center for Thanksgiving.

So, we were able to take all of the bags of food donated and deliver them to the Resource Center. At the Resource Center, the kids weighed, counted, and sorted the donated food. The kids had a great time doing it and it only took us about an hour.

Thank you Hesston MB for your donation of 388 items which amounted to 373 pounds of food for Thanksgiving bags for our community!

Book Review: Intentional Integrity

2011-10-20T14:04:00.000-05:00

I finished reading Intentional Integrity by Garnett Reid today. The cover of the book states, "Ten Life Strategies For Wholeness From the Book of Job." In the book, Reid looks specifically at Job Chapter 31 where he sees ten areas of integrity that should be present in our lives. These ten areas include: purity, honesty, contentment, loyalty, equity, compassion, worship, forgiveness, confession, & stewardship. Each chapter has the same format: What Job Says, What We Face (our culture), & What We Must Do.

The format made the book easy to read in many aspects. However, I kept wondering to whom would I recommend this book. The first part of each chapter at times became cumbersome and difficult to wade through. However, due to the predictability of each chapter, I kept going to the less academic sections which looked to culture and application. Reid is an Old Testament scholar and it shows in those sections of the book. But I kept wondering, would others be willing to persevere through these sections? I have to admit I am not a scholar by any means, but was not sure I would have been able to discover these ten areas from Job 31. At times, they felt forced.

There were two other elements of the book that I would change. The first is a personal preference, but the notes at the end of the book were hard to follow. I would have liked to have seen foot notes or end notes. Second, the what to do section made me feel overwhelmed. I think it was due to the number of practical suggestions and what felt like I just need to try harder. I felt it lacked an element of being empowered by the Holy Spirit.

With all that said, I would cautiously recommend this book to others. Reid's understanding of culture and practical application were helpful and definitely made me reflect on my own personal integrity. It was also a quick read at only 110 pages. I could see the book used in accountability groups and especially in a college guy's small group.

Need A Boost?

2011-10-19T08:45:00.000-05:00

Today, I am dragging. I just could not get out of bed today. Part of it is the change in weather and it still being dark outside when I wake up. The other part is a cold that I am battling right now. Either way, I could use a boost today.

What are things you do to get a boost on those slow start mornings? Coffee, Running, Loud Music, Conversation with Friends, Lifting Weights, Projects Around the House or Office, etc.

As we continue our study on being Holy Spirit Empowered, I am reminded of the word, "power", as it is used in relation to the Holy Spirit. Many times we are told that we receive power from the Holy Spirit. So, today I am going to ask for the Holy Spirit to give me a boost. Not just so I can get moving, but so I can be available to be used by Him as I go through my day.

Sterling Homecoming Pictures

2011-10-15T21:42:00.002-05:00

Here are pictures from Sterling College Homecoming 2011. All of the ladies in this picture were roommates during their years at Sterling. Ed & I roomed together all 4 years. Ed, Barry, Jenia & I all were business majors so we had a ton of classes together. Robin & Barry have an RP Church connection. That is all to say, we were connected to each other in many ways and are good friends.

These are the kids from these 3 marriages. Molly & Gracie (in green Sterling shirts) & Sydney (red Sterling shirt on right) are Barry & Jenia's kids. Caden (only other boy except Mitchell), Lydia (in pink on front row) & Kelsey (back row in red shirt) are Ed & Robin's kids. The other four are mine. They had fun playing together today on inflatables, games on Cooper Lawn, at petting zoos, at a football game, and a cookout after the game.

It was a beautiful day to spend with friends. Needless to say, the Martin's as usual forgot our sunscreen.

Sterling Homecoming

2011-10-14T20:50:00.000-05:00

I am so excited to be headed to Sterling College Homecoming tomorrow. My kids are just about as excited as we are. We didn't make it back last year because Bethany had to work at Fall Fest which is Bethel's Homecoming. Boo! It just felt weird to be on Bethel's campus when we really wanted to be at our alma mater. Tomorrow will include a parade, pancake feed, games for the kids on campus, football game, cookout at friend's house, and of course seeing friends from the college days.

Sterling will always hold special memories for me. It was where I met my beautiful wife the first day on campus and experienced love at first sight. She was a little slower to realize it about me. This is where my faith in Christ grew deeper. It is also where I received a great education in business/accounting as well as a great foundation in Christian Education. It is where I made some of my best friends. It is where God orchestrated a call into ministry. It also allowed me to begin serving in ministry with youth, a mission trip to Amsterdam, and even to the student body as chaplain. I love Sterling!

How about you? What are your favorite memories from Sterling College?

Huddle Up Family Night

2011-10-13T07:13:00.000-05:00

Last night, we had our first Family Night of the year. The theme was "Huddle Up". I used a curriculum called F3 published by Standard. It is well organized and done well. I have done several family nights in the past, but felt this one did a great job of keeping attention and still keeping the Bible as central.

I asked my kids what their favorite part of the evening was and they all responded the skit. It was really funny! Thank you Tahlia, Simon, Joanna, Rick & Hank for being such good sports!

I thought all of the pieces of the curriculum work really well together. From the activity to the skit to the discussions about the Bible passage, it all works together seamlessly. Way to go, Standard on this resource! But I still have to say that my favorite part of each and every Family Night is looking out and seeing families eating together, laughing together, reading the Bible together, and talking together. I am exhausted at the end of Family Night, but the image of families talking about Jesus together fires me up for the next time.

Thank you to Rachel Burkholder & Richelle Arrasmith for all their work in cooking the food and for the kitchen crew who brought food, cooked, served, and cleaned up. Your work behind the scenes is appreciated.

I look forward to our next Family Night on November 16th when we gather again as families and this time will focus on filling Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes.

Recommend Resources

2011-10-12T08:04:00.013-05:00

Tonight is Family Night at Hesston MB. I am looking forward to food, fun, & learning together as families. I will share more about it on Thursday or Friday. Today, I want to share my recommended resources that I put together each year for those who attend.

Parenting

Anthony, Michelle. Spiritual Parenting. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010.

Castleman, Robbie. Parenting in the Pew. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1993.

Dobson, James. Preparing for Adolescence. Ventura: Gospel Light, 2006.

Fowler, Larry. Raising A Modern Day Joseph. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2009.

Haynes, Brian. The Legacy Path. Nashville: Randall House, 2011.

Holmen, Mark. Faith Begins At Home. Ventura: Regal, 2005.

Ingram, Chip. Effective Parenting in a Defective World. Carol Stream: Tyndale House, 2006.

Kimmel, Tim. Grace Based Parenting. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2004.

Rienow, Rob. Visionary Parenting. Nashville: Randall House, 2009.

Tripp, Tedd. Shepherding a Child’s Heart. Pennsylvania: Shepherd Press, 1995.

Turansky, Scott and Joanne Miller. Parenting is Heart Work. Colorado Springs:

David C. Cook, 2006.

Dads

Canfield, Ken. They Call Me Dad. Louisiana: Howard Publishing, 2005.

Farrar, Steve. King Me. Chicago: Moody, 2005.

Kendrick, Alex & Stephen. The Resolution for Men. Nashville: B & H Publishing, 2011.

Lewis, Robert. Raising A Modern-Day Knight. Illinois: Tyndale, 2007.

Morley, Patrick and David Delk. The Dad in the Mirror. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2003.

Rainey, Dennis. Stepping Up. Little Rock: Family Life Publishing, 2011

Moms

Courtney, Vicki. 5 Conversations You Must Have With Your Daughter. Nashville: B & H , 2008.

Gresh, Dannah. 6 Ways to Keep the Little in Your Girl. Eugene: Harvest House, 2010

James, Stephen & David Thomas. Wild Things: The Art of Nurturing Boys. Illinois: Tyndale, 2009.

Whelchel, Lisa. Creative Correction. Illinois: Tyndale, 2000.

Family Devotions/Worship

Graham, Ruth. Step into the Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007.

Holmen, Mark. Faith Begins @ Home Devotions. Ventura: Regal, 2010.

Lytle, Marcy. Catching Fireflies. Greenville: Ambassador Group, 2007.

Rivers, Francine and Shannon Rivers Coibion. Bible Stories for Growing Kids. Carol Stream: Tyndale House, 2007.

Trent, John. Bedtime Blessings, Volume 1 & 2. Illinois: Tyndale, 2000.

Weaver, Kirk. Running the Race. Family Time Training, 2007.

Weaver, Kirk. Seeing is Believing. Family Time Training, 2007.

Weaver, Kirk. Playing for Keeps. Family Time Training, 2007.

Kids

Anthony, Michelle. The Big God Story. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010.

Blair, Lindsey and Bobby Gilles. Our Home is Like a Little Church. Louisville: Sojourn Community Church, 2008.

Hunt, Susan. My ABC Bible Verses. Wheaton: Crossway, 1998.

Lloyd-Jones, Sally. The Jesus Storybook Bible. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2007.

Lucado, Max, Randy Frazee and Karen Davis Hill. The Story for Children. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2011.

Young, Sarah. Jesus Calling: 365 Devotions for Kids. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2010.

Websites

www.amfmonline.com

www.d6family.com

daddy4ms.blogspot.com (Pastor J.L.’s blog)

www.legacymilestones.com

www.seedsfamilyworship.net

www.visionaryparenting.com

Birthday Cake for Traci

2011-10-11T21:44:00.000-05:00

When I arrived home today, I was greeted by Molly and Jacob and their "dirt" cakes in the driveway. Molly explained to me that hers was for Aunt Traci. That was interesting since Molly does not have an Aunt Traci. Then she explained to me that she went to eat at Pizza Hut for Aunt Traci's birthday and I was getting more confused. Finally, I got the scoop from Bethany. Molly went to eat with Traci Thiessen today for a birthday lunch and since everyone around her was calling her Aunt Traci, Molly decided to join in too.

That girl is always making me laugh. But it just reminds me of the simplicity of a child's world. It was not weird for her to call her Aunt Traci because that was what she heard. It not unusual to have a great imagination that can make birthday cakes out of dirt or pies out of sand. It just reminded me of the joy of being a child. What do you miss from when you were a child?

By the way, Family Night at Hesston MB tomorrow night at 6:30 p.m. Free food, fun, & learning together. Our theme is "Huddle Up". Hope to see you there!

Highs for the Week

2011-10-09T12:15:00.020-05:00

I wanted to share some highlights from the last week. I continue to want to practice thankfulness for the many blessings in my life.

Date Night Hesston
Supper & Ice Cream with college friends
Faith @ Home Training in Wichita last weekend
Daddy Day with Molly
Church meetings looking to the future
Visits with church members throughout the week at the Perk, in my office, around town & at hospital
D6 Dads
Family Movie Night
Soccer games

Not A Fan

2011-10-08T08:15:00.002-05:00

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I had a great day of reading on Thursday and was able to finish two books: Spiritual Parenting by Michelle Anthony & Not A Fan by Kyle Idleman. If you would like to read more about Spiritual Parenting go here & here. But today I am focusing on Not A Fan. For those who attend Hesston MB, this will be our study when we move into "Transparent Relationships" as we move through the CHRIST acrostic.

I highly recommend this book as well. I had several posts about Not A Fan several weeks ago. If interested, they are here, here, & here. But Idleman finishes this book stronger than he began. Don't get me wrong-I was intrigued from the minute I picked up the book. But at the end, he hammers his point home. His last section is about denying ourselves. This is not a popular topic in Christian circles even when it is clearly biblical. Here are the titles of the last 3 chapters: wherever, whenever, & whatever. I will share quotes from these chapters below.

Wherever

"Following Jesus literally means that you go where Jesus goes."

"Fear always asks the question, "What if?"

"Saying yes to following Jesus meant saying no to comfort."

Whenever

"When fans are asked about when they will get serious about their commitment to follow Jesus, the most common answer is tomorrow."

"The word tomorrow is not in the Holy Spirit's vocabulary"

"The truth is the longer you put him off, the more likely it is that following him will never happen."

Whatever

"Jesus doesn't want followers who have a divided affection or a split allegiance. And Jesus points to what you most value and are most concerned about, and says, "What about that?"

"the one thing we are most reluctant to give up is the one thing that has the most potential to become a substitute for him."

"Understand it's not that any of those things are wrong or sinful in and of themselves, but for too many of us these good things become God things."

Spiritual Parenting

2011-10-07T09:14:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, I switched up my routine a little and headed to Mojo's in Newton for my Thursday morning reading. I had a great pumpkin spice latte and sat down to do some reading. Currently, I am reading several books, but two were close to being finished so that became my goal. I was able to finish Spiritual Parenting by Michelle Anthony & Not A Fan by Kyle Idleman. As I have been saying from the first few chapters, if you are a parent you need to read Anthony's book.

Let me start with Spiritual Parenting. Tomorrow, I will post about Not A Fan. Not only did I love this book, but it also was the "open door" to begin a conversation with someone at the Perk a few weeks ago. For more on that story, go here. Anthony does a great job of reminding parents of our true goal in parenting. She backs that up with great practical ideas of how to do it. Let me share a few quotes from the last few chapters. Anthony writes, "Spiritual parents recognize the brevity of our profound influence in our children's lives, and they choose to live their lives in that awareness." She concludes the book in the same way she starts. She writes, "These are the very things we identified that we wanted for our children's faith development: (1) to know and hear God's voice through a loving relationship and through His Word, (2) to desire to obey His voice, and (3) to obey Him through the power of God's Spirit and not their own strength alone. You and your child are on a spiritual journey together, not just for the next few years, but for a lifetime. . ."

Let's commit to being spiritual parents today. Don't worry about the past, get started today. My desire is to partner with parents in the Hesston community to help them in this area. I would encourage all of you to pick up the book.

What's Next?

2011-10-06T07:12:00.023-05:00

The theme for the D6 Conference this year was NEXT. Brian Haynes shared his next steps on his blog. So, what is next for Hesston MB as a result of my attending the D6 Conference?

Here are a few thoughts:

Always keep the gospel at the center of everything we do. David Platt reminded us that God's kingdom is more important than our family.
Always return to the root rather than focus on side issues. Voddie Baucham challenged us to not spend all of our time fighting the hot button issues of the day (abortion, homosexuality, politics, etc.), but to remember the root of it all began in Genesis 3 with our sin. Our only hope for victory in the culture war is the Promised Redeemer, Jesus.
Always remember that we are called to make disciples. For those with children, it starts with them. For grandparents, it is discipling your grandchildren and children. For those without children, it is discipling those around you. We are all to make disciples. This is the fruit of John 15.
Always approach how we serve in our churches with humility. At D6, you hear a lot of great ideas. A lot of them are in agreement as to the need for church and home to work together. All of them have their opinion to what that looks like. We need to pray and ask God to show us what He wants done in our church. For me, it includes some ideas from Watermark Church on date nights, some marriage mentoring and couples in crisis ideas from AMFM in June, a little focus on ministry outcomes from Legacy Milestones by Brian Haynes, equipping parents through Sunday School from Take It Home by Holmen, and some help with Family Nights from Standard Publishing called F3. This reminds me that we need conferences like D6 to help us hear about resources and ideas and then we must return home and ask God for wisdom to implement it.

So, what about you? What are your next steps after D6?

Calling All Men!

2011-10-05T07:21:00.002-05:00

It's a D6 Dads week and I thought I would share a little from the book we are reading. If you are a dad in the Hesston area, come and join us. There are three times available to fit into your schedule: Tuesdays at 6:30 a.m., Wednesdays at 6:45 p.m., or Thursdays at 9:00 p.m.

We are reading a book inspired by the movie, Courageous, called "The Resolution for Men" by the Kendrick brothers and Randy Alcorn. If you have seen the movie (if you have not, you need to go), the book is based on the resolution the dads sign. I am excited about how God will use this book to challenge us. I am only two chapters in and I am already recommending it. Here are a few quotes to get you thinking today.

"God's Word commands husbands and fathers to lovingly lead their homes."

"An all-out assault has been declared against you as a husband and father."

"I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old, which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generations to come the praises of the Lord." (Psalm 78:2-4 NKJV)

In Chapter 2, a vision is shared about the destiny of one man. Here is a quote that follows the vision.

"Both of these stories are being written right now in the lives of fathers around the world. But what is important now is to resolve which man you will become."

Are You Abiding?

2011-10-04T07:06:00.003-05:00

Currently, Pastor Brad & I are reading through, "The Legacy Path" by Brian Haynes. I have written a review of the book here. As I mentioned in that review, Chapter 2 is worth the price of the book in my opinion. In it, Haynes takes us to John 15 to learn more about what it means to abide. Before reading his words, he encourages us to go to John 15 and read & study this passage. I have included it here for your convenience from the ESV:

¹"I am thetrue vine, and my Father isthe vinedresser. ²Every branch in me that does not bear fruithe takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes,that it may bear more fruit. ³Alreadyyou are cleanbecause of the word that I have spoken to you. ⁴Abidein me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. ⁵I am the vine;you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is thatbears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶If anyone does not abide in mehe is thrown away like a branch and withers;and the branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. ⁷Ifyou abide in me, and my words abide in you,ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸By this my Father is glorified, that youbear much fruit and so prove to be my disciples. ⁹As the Father has loved me,so have I loved you. Abide in my love. ¹⁰If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just asI have keptmy Father’s commandments and abide in his love. ¹¹These things I have spoken to you,that my joy may be in you, and thatyour joy may be full."

Haynes shares several challenging quotes in Chapter 2 in relationship to our relationship with Christ and how that impacts our children. Here are several:

"The greatest obstacle parents have to overcome in leading their children spiritually is their own mediocre or morbidly religious relationship with God accompanied by a juvenile understanding of His Word."

"The essence of a daily relationship with Christ can be summed up in one word: abide."

Haynes shares what he calls the "1-2 punch" in regards to abiding. They are prayer & Scripture.

"Prayer is essential to abiding in Christ. . .In my life there is a direct correlation to my connectedness with the Father and my daily commitment to prayer. . .Prayer is as important as breathing when it comes to an abiding life in Christ."

"Perhaps it is because knowing and practicing the Word of God is essential to living life in relationship with Him. . .Abiding through reading, studying, and meditating on God's Word is a spiritual discipline. . .Abiding in the Word influences "whatever we do" so we can do it in the name of Christ."

Why do I share this? To make you feel guilty? Absolutely not. I have been convicted by the Holy Spirit myself in relation to what I read in John 15 and this chapter from Haynes. I share this with you because the Enemy does not want you to abide. Why? Because when we abide, there is strength & power in Christ. So, if Satan works hard to keep us from doing it, then there must be something about it. This is not checking something off a list to say I'm a good Christian, but instead goes to the heart of who we were created to be. Let us seek to abide in Christ today and from this day forward.

After Courageous

2011-10-03T07:48:00.002-05:00

So, hopefully you went to the movies this weekend as part of Date Night Hesston or just to see a great movie. As someone who now has seen the movie three times, I am amazed at what God does in me each time I see it. My prayer for this movie is that once the credits play, people will not just say, "That was a good movie and continue life as is." I am hoping the Holy Spirit will empower people to be who God has created them to be. For some, this might mean reconciliation in damaged relationships, for others it might be a decision to follow Christ for the first time, or maybe for some it might require some changes in how we interact with God, our spouse, our children, or those with whom we are in relationship with.

Therefore, I want to share a a few opportunities with you while the movie is still clear in your minds. First, if you were challenged to go deeper with God, we have several opportunities for you through Sunday School or small groups. Currently, I am leading a class called "Life in CHRIST" and we are going through "Forgotten God" by Francis Chan as we seek a Biblical understanding of the Holy Spirit. Second, if you are married, I encourage you to plan on attending "The Art of Marriage" conference that we will be hosting at our church in the month of February. Also, we are in process of implementing a marriage mentoring ministry at our church to help newlyweds get started well and to encourage other couples toward healthy marriages. Lastly, if you are a dad, I challenge you to seek accountability with other men. One of the ways we can help is through our D6 Dads group. They meet every other week for about an hour. Several times are available for your busy schedule so you would be without excuse. There are several other great opportunities available as well. If not sure what is available, please contact me.

Here's to God doing some amazing things in and through us after Courageous!

Holy Spirit Empowered

2011-10-02T12:41:00.005-05:00

Today, Pastor Brad began his month long series on what it means to be Holy Spirit Empowered. Along with this, I am teaching a 7 week study based on Francis Chan's book, Forgotten God. As I was preparing this week, I am excited to see how God is going to use this study. It is full of Scripture and challenges our thinking in many ways.

But I wanted to share a story of how I experienced Holy Spirit Empowerment this past week. The story actually begins about 2 weeks ago. I was at Lincoln Perk (I know you are surprised) and doing my weekly reading on Thursdays. I was drinking coffee and reading Spiritual Parenting by Michelle Anthony. Then a guy approached me and asked about the book. Eventually our conversation turned to parenting & I shared that I was a pastor and I would share some resources if he was interested. He was so I took down his email and he left. Immediately after he pulled out, I was convicted by the Holy Spirit that I should have prayed for him.

So, when I emailed him the resources, I shared that I felt led to pray for him. He then asked if I would be willing to meet him again. I agreed. So, we met on Tuesday to talk about life. I shared with Pastor Brad that morning that I would be relying on the Holy Spirit's guidance as I talked with him. So, I prayed as I drove to the Perk that the Holy Spirit would give me the words and guide our discussion. As we talked, I shared several things that I would have shared with any dad, but there were a few comments that I made that were interesting to me. However, these comments were the ones that spoke specifically to questions he had been having. He shared that he had felt led to start some kind of Bible study with his daughter and my comments confirmed this for him.

I walked away from this meeting excited about what God had done. It was not in my strength, but instead in the power of the Holy Spirit that I was able to impact his life. I am excited about this month of study at Hesston MB about the Holy Spirit. If you don't have a church home, join us on Sunday mornings at 10:10 a.m. If you are interested in our study on Forgotten God, please join us at 9 a.m. in the old sanctuary.

Here's to a better understanding of the Holy Spirit and actually living by the Holy Spirit in our daily lives!

Favorite Quotes from D6 Conference

2011-10-01T07:47:00.086-05:00

Here are my favorite quotes from the D6 2011 Speakers:

Doug Fields said, "Church needs leaders who:

Can authentically say, Follow me as I follow Jesus.
Walking & talking with Jesus
Value a collective vision
Are acutely aware of the twisters impacting families.

David Platt shared, "Our goal in parenting is not for our kids to get a great education, have great relationships, make a lot of money, etc. Instead, our goal in parenting is to follow a great God!"

Emerson Eggerichs said, "But in reality, how do men & women respond when in conflict?

Men-Without respect, he responds without love.
Women-Without love, she responds without respect."

John McGee shared, "God used His Word, His Spirit, His People to speak into couple's lives."

Tim Kimmel said, "God is the best family ministry model we can find."
Dannah Gresh shared, "Our theology of sexuality is weak at best."

Ron Hunter said, "Some conversations you have with your kids will never be remembered but if you don't have them they will never forget."

Steven Curtis Chapman shared this as he wrestled with losing his daughter. "One commitment that he made early was that he would not pretend. If he couldn't sing the songs with conviction, he would just stop. God is faithful."

Voddie Baucham said, "The central issue is the Word of God vs. Word of Man. Do not fight the shiny balloons, but go to the root."

Student Ministry Panelist shared, "We need to have balance-The tendency is to go to extremes. It is D6 & Ephesians 4. The mistake we make is when we tell parents, we got this."

Mark Holmen shared, "Faith @ Home is discipleship & evangelism all woven together."

Garnett Reid said, "God is faithful! God's hesed to us is there for us even in our unfaithfulness."

Rob Rienow just shared about the three loves of the staff and speakers at D6. They are:

Love of the Word of God
Love of Families
Love of the Church

Brian Haynes said, "This is simple. The most important thing for our kid's spiritual formation is mommy & daddy's abiding. Our kids need to see our fruit"

My Response to Student Ministry Panel at D6

2011-09-30T08:07:00.001-05:00

One of the sessions at D6 this year was a Student Ministry Panel from student ministers from a variety of churches. You can view some of the dialog here. While I agreed with much of the content, there was something missing.

As a former youth pastor myself, I struggled with how to engage parents in ministry with students. Several volunteered to help out with activities, but I was not sure how involved they were in passing on faith at home. I tried seminars such Understanding Your Teenager and other parenting classes, but the only ones that showed up were parents that seemed to being doing well at home. I knew there must be a better way.

I hoped that this panel would give me new ideas to share, but I heard a lot of the same "excuses" youth pastors have been using for years. I realize that teenagers are separating from their parents, but does that mean the parent does not have influence any longer. I know our teenagers need other voices in their lives so I agree youth ministry is needed, but the majority of what I heard was church focused not home focused. I know it won't look the same as what we do with our children. Wayne Rice did share about the importance of teens worshiping with parents and how they had done intergenerational activities at his church. But for the most part, I came away with focus on the youth ministry and not the home.

In response, I look to what Dave Teixeira was doing at Ventura Missionary Church. Dave did some innovative things to bring parents into the middle of the conversation. See his book with Mark Holmen called Take It Home for more information. I also look to what Brad Burkholder (our former youth pastor and now lead pastor) has done with parents in the area of purity. He has taught parents how to talk with their teens about issues of purity & sex. Brad also encouraged parents to attend his most recent mission trip to the Dominican Republic. Brian Haynes also has some great thoughts with his legacy milestones. These, in my opinion, are great ideas for how to partner with parents.

So, what do you think? Did I miss these elements during the panel discussion? Am I being too optimistic that parents can & will shape their teenagers' spiritual lives? I would love to hear your thoughts.

Interview via email with Mark Holmen about D6 tour

2011-09-29T07:09:00.006-05:00

Mark Holmen will be coming to Countryside Christian Church in Wichita, KS as part of the D6 Tour on Oct. 1-2. Hesston MB Church will be attending this seminar. Here are some questions that I asked Mark Holmen via email.

What was key thing/event that led you to Faith @ Home?

Ultimately it was a change God made in my life through a survey that showed that parents, and what happens in the home when it comes to faith formation, is 2-3 times more influential than any church program. When that sank in, I realized I needed to be a more faith@home focused leader where I spent as much of my time energy and resources focusing on helping people live out their faith@home as I was doing on getting them to church events and programs.

Holmen has written a resource called Take It Home. I asked Mark, how did you pick specific skills?

We were looking for skills/behaviors that enhance your relationship with God. For example, I believe you grow deeper in your relationship with God through prayer, Bible reading, worship, devotions and service just to name a few. I don't want people simply doing stuff, I want them growing in their personal relationship with Christ which I believe happens when we live and connect with God 24 hours a day, seven days a week and not just at church on Sunday.

If a church can only implement a few at a time, which ones would you suggest?

Helping people establish a relationship with God through prayer, Bible reading and service seem to be great first steps. With younger children, the ritual of blessing them every day/night is also a very good first step.

In preparation for the Wichita Event on Saturday & Sunday, I asked Holmen these two questions:

Why should church leaders attend on Saturday?

I think we all recognize that something isn't working as well as it should be when it comes to the way we "do" church today. But as I discovered, it wasn't what we were doing at church that was necessarily the problem. What's happening in homes today is where the real battleground and struggle is taking place. People today don't need a better worship service or more programs, they need help living their life in a more Godly manner at home and when the church begins doing this it will bring new life to the way we "do" church and it will help us reach new people that are not interested in organized religion today. As hundreds of church leaders have told me, "Faith @ Home was a missing piece in our overall strategy as a church."

How will you equip parents on Sunday?

We will simply go crazy providing as many practical ideas and suggestions as we can to showcase how we can bring a more Godly lifestyle into our homes through family mission statements, prayer, Bible reading, faith talk, service as well as boundaries and discipline. Most families need help today and they also believe that being a little more "Godly" at home would help but the problem is that they simply don't know how to do this. By the end of the Extreme Family Makeover they will now know how!

Holmen shared at the D6 conference about some new resources from his ministry. I asked him to tell me more about one of them which is faith @ home partner churches.

We want to help churches, and their families, sustain a faith @ home focus and that's why we created the Faith @ Home Church Partner program. Through this churches will receive an online Faith @ Home network that will provide digital content in the form of articles, blogs, webinars and pod casts to help moms, dads, parents of teenagers, Sr. pastors, youth leaders and children's ministry leaders establish and sustain a Faith @ Home focus. In addition to this, Faith @ Home Partner Churches will receive resource kits from Randall House, Focus On The Family, Gospel Light and others providing additional great resources to help you sustain your faith @ home focus. For more information, or to register to be a Partner Church simply go to www.faithathome.com and click on the Church Partner tab.

Way to go, fuzion!

2011-09-28T21:01:00.000-05:00

I am so proud of our 5th & 6th graders which is called fuzion. One of my favorite parts of this ministry is our monthly service projects. As I read about pre-teen ministry, I discovered that at this age there is great potential for developing and using their gifts. Therefore, I incorporated service into the DNA of this ministry.

Tonight, a group of 24 fuzion students & 9 leaders headed to North Newton to fill MCC Kits. For those who are unfamiliar with MCC Kits, they are bags of school supplies that go throughout the world. They include 4 notebooks, 4 pencils, 12 colored pencils, an eraser, & a ruler. Our fuzion students made 286 kits in a little over 30 minutes. These kits will go to students in Bosnia, Iraq, Haiti, & Jordan.

I was so proud as they worked really hard to get the kits done. God is pleased with your service as well. Way to go, fuzion!

Interview with Rob Rienow at D6

2011-09-28T07:49:00.002-05:00

While at the D6 Conference, I had the privilege to interview Rob & Amy Rienow backstage. My questions and their answers are listed below.

I mentioned to Rob that our small group had completed Visionary Parenting and enjoyed it. Recently, I purchased Visionary Parenting: Encouragement for Single Parents. I asked Rob about that new resource.

Rienow shared the heart behind this new resource. His parents got divorced when he was in high school. He also experienced a lot of pastoral ministry to single parents.

He continued sharing that single parents face particular challenges. In this resource, he talks plainly about how single parenting is an “impossible” job. There is just too much to do, and not enough hours in the day. So how do we need to respond? We choose what will get our best, and what will get less than our best. Rob then goes on to encourage and equip single parents to make the spiritual training of their children their top priority.

The resource also has a section on anger & forgiveness. This part walks through a biblical plan of how to disciple their children in these areas. Satan wants use anger to harden the hearts of children toward God.

He also shares from Ephesians 6 which includes prayers for blessing, protection, & wisdom. He shared again about his mom having the conversation about divorce with him and walks single parents through how to explain the truth in their family. A challenge is how do you do it with different ages of children?

The subtitle is Encouragement for Single Parents. Rienow wants single parents to walk away feeling pumped up and encouragement is central in this area.
Amy shared that biblically our priorities are God, spouse, children. For the single parent, they have an opportunity to disciple their children instead of focusing on their spouse maybe just for a season.

I then asked Rob & Amy about the transition from ministry in the local church to full time with Visionary Parenting.

Rob shared about his joy in serving for 18 years as a pastor. During this time God was creating “Visionary Parenting” on the side. As this ministry grew to include Never Too Late & Visionary Marriage, it became like two full time jobs.

He shared about Experiencing God by Blackaby which talks about spiritual markers in our lives. As he looked at these, he came to the conclusion that it was time to focus on Visionary Parenting. They began full time in Feb 2011. They now raise missionary support and speak twice a month at churches. They are having more and more churches contact them. Their conference schedule is full through 2012. They also have had the opportunity to build the church through a global reformation of family discipleship. Rienow plans one international trip each year. He was in Singapore this past summer. This outpouring of support and booked schedules is confirmation that God is doing it as calls continue to come in nationally & internationally.

I shared that often we use Scriptures like Deuteronomy 6, Psalm 78, & Ephesians 6:4 when talking about family discipleship. I asked Rienow what other Scriptures support family discipleship?

Go to his website http://visionaryfam.com for free mp3 titled, "Your family & God’s plan for the world" for a walk through the Bible on how God connects the Great Commission with family.

Here are a few Scriptures, he quickly shared:

Genesis 1 -Be fruitful & multiply.
Genesis 3- The Messiah will come into world through family.
Genesis 6-9 - God used Noah's family to continue his legacy in the world.
In Genesis 9 – God repeats his call to Noah to be fruitful and multiply.

God weaves His creation of the family throughout the Bible. Rienow continues, there is a connection between the temporary institution of family to advance his everlasting CHURCH. In the New Testament, God institutes the temporary institution of the local church. Why? For the same reason, to build His everlasting CHURCH. The local church now equips and supports the family.

I then shared about a ministry at our church called D6 Dads. I asked what encouragement he could give to fathers about how to start leading their families spiritually.

Deuteronomy 6 begins with a call for parents to love God themselves. The dad must be growing in his faith. He cannot pass on faith to his kids if he does not have it himself. Dads need to impress these commands to their children. Deuteronomy 6 gives us what do you do. Talk about them when you sit at home (family worship). This is the supernatural engine that powers the family. He shared many times we lead our families through good intentions & willpower. When we fail, we try harder the next time. He opposes this with the supernatural strength we receive from God through the Bible and prayer. Even a few minutes each day of prayer and Scripture can have a supernatural effect on a family.

My last question for the Rienow's was about leading our wives spiritually. I shared that often the husband feels inadequate or intimidated by leading his wife spiritually. I asked what advice he could give to husbands.

He pointed the husband to Ephesians 5:25-26 which tells husbands to love their wife, serve her, & lead. The text says, "Make her holy by washing of water with the Word.” Husbands, just read it with her. He shared his own intimidation at times. He challenged us as husbands to simply ask, "can we pray?" He reminded couples that at this point a great spiritual battle begins because Satan does not want us reading the Word and praying with our wives.

Amy shared that the wife can help by encouraging her husband. She said the spiritual battle for the wife is to respect her husband when he approaches her to lead her spiritually. At this point, she shared a favorite quote of hers by G.K. Chesterton which is, "Whatever is worth doing, it's worth doing poorly." The point: just do it. Don't wait around until you have it all figured out. Get started now.

Highlights from the D6 Conference

2011-09-27T07:29:00.005-05:00

I wanted to share a few highlights from the D6 Conference this year.

Great hotel, great made to order omelets for breakfast, & great meals (In & Out Burger, Cheesecake Factory, & Ted's in OKC)
Great conversations with Brad & Brad (my team from Hesston)
Excellent hospitality from Jacob Riggs & the Randall House team as I was part of the blogger's circle
Excellent labs on Wednesday especially Michelle Anthony & Timothy Paul Jones
Hearing David Platt & Voddie Baucham speak
A great evening with Steven Curtis Chapman
Lots of ideas to pray through and see what God has in store for Hesston MB for the coming year

Check back throughout the week for interviews with Rob Rienow & Mark Holmen. As well, watch for my response to the student ministry panel later in the week. I will also share one quote from each speaker on Saturday. Enjoy this week's posts!

Quotes from Doug Fields at D6 2011

2011-09-26T09:36:00.002-05:00

Doug Fields talking about the ministry bait and switch.

Doug Fields talking about ministry bait & switch.

Bait-to be good in ministry-you just need to love teenagers.
Switch-to be good in ministry-you must develop leaders.

Second bait: Grow the ministry
Switch: To manage your ministry growth

Third bait: Growth requires strong leadership/management
Switch: Pressure requires inner world management

Bait: Marriage is going to be awesome.
Switch: Where is the church that helped me get to this awesome marriage?

The perfect storm: ministry meeting the family. What next?

Church needs leaders who:

Can authentically say, Follow me as I follow Jesus.
Walking & talking with Jesus
Value a collective vision
Are acutely aware of the twisters impacting families. We need to start spending time with families. Talk to them. Is our church doing anything that is adding to the twisters that families are experiencing?

If you want to be a leader in today's church, we have to focus on our own family.

For the sake of families, I commit to:

I will follow Jesus.
I'm better together.
I will care deeply for families.

Pictures from D6

2011-09-25T14:14:00.002-05:00

Here are a few pictures from the D6 Conference.
This first picture is of the D6 attendees sharing the light of Christ with others.

The second picture is Brad & Brad on the 2nd row.
A special thanks to Green Menace for getting them these seats.

Home Sweet Home

2011-09-24T14:58:00.003-05:00

It was so great to sleep in my own bed last night. I love going to conferences, but it is always great to be back home. I enjoyed chatting with Bethany into the late hours of the night and catching up on her week. I have enjoyed time with the kids this morning at soccer games and at home. Now, I am feeling exhausted and ready to go to bed already and it is only 3 p.m.

I will be adding some more content from the D6 conference in the days ahead. I have at least one interview to share and quotes from one of the sessions that I did not get posted during the conference. I also hope to share a video from the Sanctus Real concert. However, my phone is not cooperating. Check back next week for these updates. I hope that once I get caught up on being gone for 3 days that I will be able to add some reflections and next steps based on what I heard at D6 this year.

Thanks to all who visited my blog these last few days! I hope it was an encouragement and benefit for all of you.

Last Session of D6 Conference

2011-09-23T14:38:00.014-05:00

Last session starts out with a life size game of Angry Birds.

Skit Guys were up next.

Garnett Reid shares about God's Word and looks at inter-generational living throughout the Old Testament.

He shared about heritage and legacy. Heritage-"living faithfully today".

I want to challenge you, but also want to encourage you. I especially want to encourage the fathers.

Psalm 90-You have been our dwelling place throughout all generations. He shared the story of 3 generations. God's story is one of faithfulness.
Hesed-Hebrew word for God's loyalty, His covenantal faithfulness. Dad, God will be faithful to you as you lead your family spiritually.

4 Simple Conclusions about Hesed

God pledges Himself in "hesed" to every son in every generation. What words are we to teach from Deuteronomy 6? Look at Deuteronomy 5-focus on the 10 commandments. Make no image of God. He keeps His covenant promises. Showing "hesed" to thousands of generations to those who love me. He repays unfaithfulness. But God redeems disloyalty. The consequences of a dad's unfaithfulness might show up several generations later. But God will also reward faithfulness.
God does His work of discipleship in every son in every generation primarily through the heart. The writers of the historical narratives mention the heart. When we teach our children about loyalty, we need to speak to the heart.
Your commitment as a father must begin with your heart.
Each son in every generation must find that center where hesed flourishes in his life.

What was David's heart like?

flawed
forgiven
faithful

A hesed dad's heart is:

greatful
joyful
receptive
proven
focused
courageous
persistent
trusting
stable (fixed)
transparent (Psalm 139)

God is faithful! God's hesed to in there for us even in our unfaithfulness.

Reid continues to trace "hesed" through the generations following David. Because of David, God brought faithfulness to many generations who followed David even though they turned from God.

Seeds Family Worship closes out our conference by singing "Christ is Risen & Our God is Greater"

Voddie Baucham & Joshua Griffin closed out the conference in prayer and blessing.

Mark Holmen at D6 2011

2011-09-23T11:15:00.000-05:00

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=608dcb6835" &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Mark Holmen at D6&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Student Ministry Panel at D6 2011

2011-09-23T09:35:00.000-05:00

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Voddie Baucham at D6 2011

2011-09-23T08:54:00.004-05:00

Voddie Baucham is up and talking about the culture war.

Baucham said the culture war began in Genesis 3.

The central issue is the Word of God vs. Word of Man.

What happened to marriage?

Genesis 2:18-It is not good for the man to be alone. Some have been gifted supernaturally to be single. Notice what is next-Adam is told to name the animals.

His response when someone asks "Is the Bible literal?" His response, "where I am supposed to".

Adam did not name every genus and species
The world would only have contained a representative sampling of the animals we know currently (i.e. the cat or the dog)
Adam named categories of animals.

Theological Issues

Adam has no concept of alone
Adam has no concept of need
Thus, God demonstrates here that marriage is his idea; not man's.

Single people-If God can find Adam a wife, when he was the only human being, he can find you someone too.

God Gives Marriage Its Purpose

Procreation-Be fruitful & multiply, involves bearing and training children, spreading the image of God throughout the earth
Illustration-physical model of a spiritual relationship, A triune representation of the triune God, earthly picture of relationship between Christ and the church
Sanctification-Active sanctification & Passive Sanctification

After the Fall

Roles are reversed (God, Man, Woman, Creation)
Man is alienated from God
Offenders are cursed (The Serpent and the Seed-1 John 3:12, Revelation 12:3-4, The Woman, The Man, Creation)

What does this War look like?

Serpent-Abortion, Murder
Woman-feminism
Man-physical death, laziness, leadership vacuum, passivity in men, delayed marriage, extended childhood, absenteeism

What's the answer?

The gospel
Rest of Genesis-who is the promised seed? child of Sarah/Hagar, Jacob/Esau, 12 brothers
The Promised Redeemer-Our Only Hope for Victory in the Culture War
Do not fight the shiny balloons, but go to the root.

Closing Word-The gospel is sufficient

Steven Curtis Chapman at D6

2011-09-22T19:54:00.008-05:00

Tonight, we had the privilege of spending an evening with Steven Curtis Chapman.

Opened by singing, "Speechless".

God has been showing me His goodness over the last few years.

Psalm 34:8-Not just the good that comes in heaven, but also the goodness here on earth.

I was taken to church by my mom while my dad slept in. His mother was pregnant at the age of 16. His dad eventually became the Minister of Music for the pastor that banged on his bedroom window to get him to wake up and come to church.

"Lord of the Dance"

Dancing with the Dinosaur-What was I thinking? I think it was influenced by Barney. I wrote all of these songs about dancing and I knew nothing about dancing.

I had a sense at the age of 15 of God's call on my life. He wrote his first song at this time.

"For the Sake of the Call"

He attended Anderson University. One day he received a letter in his mailbox and ripped it open to find out it was actually addressed to Mary Beth Chapman. Wouldn't it be neat to meet someone with the same last name? Been married 27 years this October.

After finding out his parents were getting divorced, he wrote the song, "I Will Be Here" for his wife.

We had been married 7 months when we found out we were pregnant with our daughter, Emily. Then his two sons were born. When Emily went on a mission trip to Haiti with her mom, she came back and decided that she needed a little sister. Emily would write letters to her parents about adoption and even to say they would be living in disobedience if they didn't adopt.

They went to China and adopted Shaohannah. Nothing will change the way God loves us. This became more real as he returned from China. He wrote this song as a response, "When Love Takes You In".

A few years later, Mary Beth returned to China to get Stevey Joy. Soon after, Steven was on a different trip with Luis Palau, where he was able to share gospel in China. At this time, he met Maria at an event. As he was holding her, he fell in love and as he drove away, he started to cry. He asked, "What is this about?" By the time, he got home from China, Mary Beth had already begun the paperwork to adopt Maria.

One night, Stevey Joy & Maria were dressed in play dresses. They wanted to go to the wall and wanted to dance and Steven was trying to quickly get the girls to bed because he had work to do. After rushing to get the girls to bed, he started to think about what to write. He then began to remember his daughter, Emily, who away at college. He started to realize our time with our kids is short. This song was written that evening, "Cinderella" After Maria passed away, he thought he would never sing this song again. But the song has become a reminder of hope to him.

Stevey Joy asked her dad one evening, "Are fairy tales true?" Yes, it is true that there is an ever after that is amazing.

May 21, 2008-The day Maria went to be with Jesus. I haven't talked a lot about that day. Was God good on May 21st? One commitment that he made early was that he would not pretend. If he couldn't sing the songs with conviction, he would just stop. God is faithful. He is mysterious and His ways are not our ways, but I trust Him. Jeremiah 29:11. I don't understand for sure what was going on that day. The best picture I can get is God with tears in His eyes restrained Himself from stopping for reasons that we don't know. Maria ran to meet her brother who could help her reach the bars. Maria knew Will is the greatest big brother that ever lived.

Maria loved to glue and cut, glue and cut, and then put glitter over it. She always drew a picture of a flower with six petals but this picture only had one petal colored. She had drawn a butterfly and had written a word that she didn't even know. It was "see." They had been praying for something physical they could see to bring comfort. For them this picture and word was that comfort. They framed the picture and even got tattoos with it. He returned back to Psalm 34:8. Will we trust God? Will we trust him with our marriage, our kids, our anger, etc.?

After a time of prayer, he closed by singing "Blessed Be the Name of the Lord & How Great Is Our God."

Conversations with Your Kids by Ron Hunter

2011-09-22T19:24:00.004-05:00

"Some conversations you have with your kids will never be remembered but if you don't have them they will never forget."

3 Types of Conversations

Shoreline

Most parents
Little or No Risk of Conflict
Knowledge
Conversation with a store clerk

Shallow

Some parents
Begin the Risk of Conflict
Understanding of Feelings/Opinions
Conversation with your co-workers

Deep

Few parents
Higher Risk of Conflict
Influence in Desires, Needs, Beliefs
Conversation with close friends/family

Quotes from Dannah Gresh at D6

2011-09-22T15:44:00.003-05:00

Her topic for today is "Keeping the "Good" In Our Boys and the "Little" In Our Girls"

What are the messy moments in your life?

How do you pray for your families? Matthew 6:9-13

"May people believe in your reign of goodness because of how I live today." Phillip Yancey

"The best way the Church can bid His kingdom come is by giving a lost world pause to believe in His reign of goodness because of the goodness they see in our families."

"Our theology of sexuality is weak at best."

"Most popular television show for girls age 12 now-Desperate Housewives, Vampire Diaries. In 1980, it was Care Bears."

"adultescent"-20 year old men who play video games

"By age 11, many will be introduced to pornography."

"The intent of the Enemy is a direct assault on the picture of Christ and the Church. And we are doing nothing about it."

"Go home and start marriage counseling for our children whether 3, 13, or 23."

2 Easy Steps:

Plant a desire for family in your children. Answer the whys. Coach your teenagers.
Protect the desire for family by keeping the little in your girl and the good in your boy. Learn to say no-too much games, boy craziness. Learn to say yes more than no. Do whatever it takes to fix your marriage when it needs it.

Dannah Gresh at D6 2011

2011-09-22T15:43:00.001-05:00

<a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=0504c17aea" >Dannah Gresh at D6 2011</a>

John McGee at D6 2011

2011-09-22T14:03:00.000-05:00

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=9780d4e36d" &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;John McGee at D6&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Emerson Eggerichs at D6 2011

2011-09-22T11:09:00.008-05:00

Emerson Eggerichs is best selling author of Love and Respect. He has been a counselor for over 30 years. A great new resource is Love & Respect for small groups.

In marriage, many times we get into conflict over saying the same thing. A funny example is, "I have nothing to wear." For women, this means I don't have anything new. For men, this means I don't have anything clean.

Men & women are equal, but not the same.

What is the one thing that is going on in the spirit of a woman?
What is the one thing that is going on in the spirit of a man?

University of Washington studied 2,000 couples over 20 years. We now know the two key successful elements in marriage. They are love & respect.

During conflict, a woman tends to feel hostility and wonder why he doesn't love her. Men, on the other hand, as a woman wants to try and communicate, perceive disrespect.

Ephesians 5:33-Notice what God's Word says--Husbands, love your wife. Wives, respect your husband.

Eggerichs asked 7,000 people in conflict, do you feel unloved or disprespected?

83% of men say disrespect
72% of women say unloved

We all need love and respect equally. But during conflict, women need love & men need respect.

But in reality, how do men & women respond when in conflict?

Men-Without respect, he responds without love.
Women-Without love, she responds without respect.

In marriage, you will have ongoing clashes about preferences. He applies this in the area of sex. We are both right, just different.

Are we going to live by Hollywood or the Holy Word?

Don't dismiss your spouse as childish when they respond in ways different than you would. He uses the example of a husband giving his wife a diet book. Or the wife gives her husband the 3rd book on marriage.

Behind closed doors, we are adolescents.

Respect is motivating to men.
Love is motivating to women.

Everything is being viewed through the pink grid. Most talk shows are speaking from a female perspective.

Women confront to connect with men.

How do we get off this crazy cycle?

My response is my responsibility
He/she is a good person.

You are married to an irritant. But they are revealing who we are.

Quotes from David Platt at D6 2011

2011-09-22T10:41:00.000-05:00

David Platt sharing his story about adopting their first child. After adoption, they found out they were pregnant. Now, he is sharing the story of the birth of their second child. God is sovereign. He is good. In process of adopting a daughter from China.

His daughter from China thinking, “Why did I get stuck with the guy rebelling against the American Dream?”

6.8 Billion people in the world today. Massive urgent spiritual needs around the world.

We don’t have time to play games with our lives, families and in the church.

First thing Platt’s mentor said at a youth event, “I’m going to try and talk you out of following Christ.”

How do we teach the next generation to follow Christ?

Luke 9:57-62-What does the text speak to us in regard to the next generation?

Teach them to treasure the person of Christ more than the possessions of this world. Jesus said, “Follow me. I am all you have.” We teach, “Come to Jesus to get ______________ (fill in the blank). Teach them that Christ is enough. Show them in your life. Jesus is not the means to the end.
Tell them God’s kingdom is infinitely more important than their family. Platt’s caution is not just focused on “own”, but also “them.” Families should be in submission to the church. No one is born into the church. We are born again to the church. We need to go to all nations.
Train them to love the Lord enough to gladly leave their home behind. We need to have a superior love for Christ more than anything else.

Our goal is parenting is not for our kids to get a great education, have great relationships, make a lot of money, etc. Instead, our goal in parenting is to follow a great God!

David Platt from D6 2011

2011-09-22T09:00:00.002-05:00

&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=c94d010781" &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;David Platt at D6&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/a&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;

Opening Session of D6 Conference

2011-09-22T07:53:00.000-05:00

<a href="http://www.coveritlive.com/mobile.php/option=com_mobile/task=viewaltcast/altcast_code=340e971cb0" >Opening Session-Thursday at D6</a>

Timothy Paul Jones pre-con lab at D6 Conference

2011-09-21T14:03:00.005-05:00

Timothy Paul Jones is professor of family ministry at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Starts by sharing a survey that can be used in churches to evaluate.

His packet for the pre-con lab is thick. Thanks for the great resources!

Three Tools Every Family Needs is the title for his pre-con lab.

Our most important ministry is to our wife & children. What we do in the home is who we are. It does not start at church or work, but instead in our own homes.

Check out "Family Ministry Field Guide: How Your Church Can Equip Parents to Raise Disciples" by Timothy Paul Jones.

90% of parents say I know I am responsible for discipling my kids.
40% of parents were doing something consistent in discipleship with their kids.

Why aren't parents discipling their children?

28%=lack of training
10%=lack of time
52%=lack of training & time
10%=other factors

3 factors to help in this area: telling, training & time

Telling

How long does it take for someone involved in your ministry to know they are to disciple their own children?
We must communicate consistently and clearly that parents are to be discipling their children.

Time

Take an honest look at your church calendar. Are we making people too busy to disciple their own kids?
Make sure people understand what we are expecting. Communicate clearly & explain: "once a week to have a Faith Talk", "once a day to have a Faith Walk with your children", & "Faith Process-where are your children spiritually? How are they growing spiritually?" Not about doing it perfectly, but being intentional & persistent.

Training

Parents want to do it, but they just don't know how. This should be encouraging to us as church leaders.
How do we do it? Jones calls this the T.I.E. principle. Train, Involve, Equip. Do not start anything new! Take what you have and change it.
Train-Things that happen once a year. For example, a youth retreat. Before going on retreat, give parents some questions to discuss with their child. Another example: summer camp-family devotions built on themes from summer camp. For next 5 weeks, families could reinforce what was discussed during the week of camp.
Involve-Example: mission trip. Encouraged fathers to attend. If child does not have a father present or a believing father, another male figure becomes for them their "family in faith". Fathers then led their family during the evening after working during the day. Give dads an easy win.
Equip-Get a resource into their parents hands. Make it something they can take what you have done and reinforce it at home.

In all of this, the center is not the family. Our goal is not stronger families. Our goal is not to do family devotions. Our goal is to mobilize the family in proclaiming the gospel. Jesus is the center.

"Long Story Short" by Marty Machowski is a great resource for families.

Dale Hudson pre-con lab at D6 Conference

2011-09-21T14:01:00.001-05:00

Dale Hudson lab was titled, "Magnetic Family Ministry: How to Draw Families to Your Church."

Magnets-invisible force that draws things.

How can we do this in ministry? We cannot do this. But Jesus can. See John 12:32, John 6:44

Mark 6:5-What barrier is keeping people from being drawn?

10 Principles:

1. Unity that is grounded in love, driven by vision, and empowered by core values.

a. See John 17:21, John 13:35, Psalm 133:1, Colossians 3:12-14, Proverbs 29:18

b. “Who you are is more important than what you do.”

2. Keep an outward focus

a. See Luke 19:10, 2 Peter 3:9

3. Make sure the front door shines

a. First impression is the lasting impression. Decision is made in first 8 minutes when someone visits your church.

i. Have guest parking

ii. Have signage

iii. Make sure you have the right people greeting at the doors

4. Be culturally relevant

a. See 1 Chronicles 12:32. Do we connect with people in our community?

5. Meet people where they are at & love them in Christ

a. Matthew 9:9-13, Luke 19:5-10, Luke 7:34, Ephesians 4:15, Luke 14:15-24

6. Make children and student ministry a top priority

a. Mark 10:13-16

b. Safety & security are a main concern

7. Provide clear, simple steps for families to get connected and grow spiritually

a. Off the road & into a circle

8. Do a few things well

a. Not more ministries, but be selective

b. See questions/statements on handout

9. Be committed to excellence

a. See 1 Corinthians 10:31

b. Do your best in everything you do! This is not about perfection, but doing our best.

c. Think of example of Disney. Certain handrails painted every single night. Is it clean? Outside of church? Correspondence?

10. Make room

a. 85% rule-if you church is 85% full, you church will stop growing

i. Classrooms

ii. Parking

iii. Do we have room to grow?

iv. See Mark 2:1-12

John McGee-pre-con lab at D6 Conference

2011-09-21T13:57:00.003-05:00

John McGee is director of Marriage Ministry at Watermark Community Church, in Dallas, TX. During his pre-con lab he shared their churches-3 ½ Things

They decided they were going to play offense instead of play defense.

Premarried & newlyweds are often neglected in the church.

Merge-8 week class for premarrieds. 2 hours-1 hour teaching from front, 1 hour at tables with facilitators. Presented a high view of marriage and let couples evaluate if marriage is right for them. After completing the class, couples will go through Prepare/Enrich. Class is offered 5 times a year.

If you are worried about marriage, you will go and find as much information as you can about marriage. This is a great opportunity for the church.

Foundation-Newlywed couples. 18 months. When Sinners Say I Do by Harvey, 2/3 of A Lasting Promise by Stanley, Finances developed by Watermark staff, Sheet Music by Kevin Lehman. Meet every other week in facilitator’s home. Accountability for genders.

Membership requirements: Give, Serve, Grow (small group)

Marriage ministry is an orchard.

Re-engage-Helping couples needing to work on marriage. Offered 52 weeks a year on Wednesdays. Whether you need to reconnect or marriage in crisis. Couple will work through 16 weeks with small group. Homework included. Couples will share their story: adultery, infertility, on brink of divorce, etc. Offer hope-God changes people’s lives and marriages. Made available to other churches in the summer.

Question from room-What are the first steps?: lay out possibilities for the church & what assets do we have in church, start small & do something well, leverage the stories.

½ is marriage conferences, couple check-up or Date Nights (drive through church and pick up bag with coupons, candies, free give aways) Check out marriedpeople.org

Distinictives

Discipleship more than skills

Circles more than rows

Authenticity more than self protecting

The body more than paid staff

Grace & Truth not Grace or Truth

Marriage is a litmus test

John 13:34-35-Charity, chasity, integrity-elements of early church

Awakening Spiritual Parenting in Today's Families by Michelle Anthony

2011-09-21T09:27:00.010-05:00

I am sitting almost in the front row of my first pre-con lab for D6 Conference. No, I am not the teacher's pet, but it was the only seat available.

Michelle Anthony has spent 25 years in children's, youth, and family ministry in the church. But after a family move, started working at David C Cook as a Family Ministry Architect.

What does it mean for the church to come alongside families?

Good Behavior vs. Faith-It's tempting for us as parents to accept the counterfeit by focusing on good behavior instead of faith. Good behavior does not stand up to the pressures of life. When trials come, behavior won't stand. Faith will last. Our pride creates in us a desire to look like a good a parent whether in public or at home.

What Fosters Faith?-Guilt does not transform us, but only produces temporary change. Guilt is counterfeit for conviction. We need to get back to the basics. Conviction-cuts to the heart. We cannot convict our children's life only the Holy Spirit can. Convictions leads to transformation.

Experiencing God
It's not formulaic . . . it's organic (needs a place to be applied individually)

The Path of the Divine-God's holiness changes children's lives. We need to elevate God and the gospel at home and the church.

Faith is always the goal!

God's design-Deuteronomy 6
Jesus' Response-when Jesus saw faith, he called it out. When it was lacking, he challenged people.
Faith by definition: Pistos-3 parts: firm conviction (believing, trusting, cognitive understanding), personal surrender (Galatians 2:20, give life to Christ, not just praying a prayer, but surrendering our lives), corresponding conduct inspired by the prior two (we go straight to this area as parents, why can't you be more loving, patient, kind, etc.?)

Practical Steps Toward Spiritual Parenting

Redeeming the Time

Faith is not an "add-on".
Ephesians 5:15-17-don't leave anything "redeem" behind in reference time. Time is "kairos"-opportune moment. Don't miss out on the time in early years with your kids. Look for opportunities in the car, cooking at home to redeem the time with your kids.
Putting God on display-Helping children see God throughout the day. Our faith in God matters in every day life. Model authenticity with our kids-in good & bad. We need to allow them to shape "faith muscles" at home in difficult times (i.e. relationships, purity, words). Admit when we have sinned. We don't have to be a perfect parent to be a spiritual parent. But we need to help our kids see when we are like Christ and when we are not. Everything can be redeemed.

Approach to God's Word

Informational/Formational/Transformational-What do you know about God from that story? Think about story of Noah: God is faithful, obedient, protector, loving.
God-Centered-Remember all stories in the Bible are about God. He is main character. Jonah, David, Daniel, etc. are supporting characters. Instead of calling the story-David & Goliath, call it God is victorious. Call it "God is the famous one" instead of story of Rahab.
One Narrative-Big God Story. Not a collection of great stories but knowing "the story." Help kids understand how the story ties together.

Posture of Response

Responding vs. Controlling-As parents, we struggle with controlling circumstances, friends, school, behavior, clothing, etc. When we wake up say, "God, I give you this day and I will respond in my life & in my children's lives. When kids sin, stop & pray in front of your kids.
Ask, Seek, & Give-The Holy Spirit is working in our kids lives. Let kids experience this rather than being Holy Spirit for them. With your kids: Ask questions, Seek Together (open Bible, pray), & Give Opportunities (Make choices, failure)
Coming alongside of what God's Spirit is up to . . . Philippians 2:13

Opening Session of D6 Conference

2011-09-21T08:41:00.003-05:00

Rob Rienow just shared about the three loves of the staff and speakers at D6.

They are:

Love of the Word of God
Love of Families
Love of the Church

Brian Haynes is speaking now. Why are we here? Because the Holy Spirit is awakening the church to remember the importance of the family in discipleship. We care about the next generation and want them to follow Christ wholeheartedly instead of compartmentalized faith.

Scripture is sufficient. The family is central. Before we jump into strategies and philosophies, we need to talk about who. One of the greatest threats to the family is the spiritual ineptness of fathers. But beyond fathers, spiritual leaders have a lust for strategy rather than a love for Christ.

John 15:1-11. "The very words of God!" Why is this important? Because we listen to a lot of voices. But the Scriptures are the very words of God.

Vinedresser is God the Father
Vine-what goes into the ground. It is not what the fruit hangs from. Jesus is the vine. Without the vine, there would be no fruit.
Branches-There are two kinds according to John 15. One kind is alive and one is dead. Question is, "what kind of branch am I?"
Fruit-Two kinds of people. One produces fruit because of abiding in Christ. Others are burned in fire because they are not connected to vine.

What does it mean to abide?

Remain, stay connected to the vine.

How will you know commandments? By meditating & reading the Scriptures.

Questions:

What Scriptures are you chewing on today?
Are the commands of God upon our hearts?

Scripture & Prayer is like peanut butter & jelly. They go together.

Before we go and share with our families or churches, we need to abide ourselves.

This is simple. The most important thing for our kids spiritual formation is mommy & daddy's abiding. Our kids need to see our fruit. The fruit proves we are Jesus' disciples.

When we are abiding in Christ, we ask for what God wants us to ask for. God answers prayer!

What are your big prayers?

You cannot separate Deuteronomy 6 & the great commands uttered by Jesus.

John McGee will be speaking at D6

2011-09-19T16:46:00.001-05:00

This week (September 21-23) is the D6 Conference in Dallas. I am excited to be going along with my lead pastor and a leader in one of our ministries. We head out tomorrow afternoon to drive down to Dallas. This summer, I had the opportunity to attend the AMFM conference in Dallas as well and heard John McGee speak. Those attending D6 are in for a treat when John shares about his heart & vision for strengthening marriages. I was able to interview John McGee via email. Here are my questions and his answers below.

1. Briefly share about yourself, family, and ministry at Watermark.

Pam and I have been married 16 years and have 4 kids. I have been the director of Marriage Ministry at Watermark for last 9 years. It is not a role I signed up for, but is now one I don’t want to relinquish. I am really grateful to have a front row seat for all the life change that is happening in marriages at our church and in our community.

2. What can the church do to help strengthen marriages?

You don’t have enough space on your blog for all my thoughts, but here are a couple. 1. There is a real opportunity for the church with marriage preparation. Couples are more skittish about getting married than our parents were. When people are unsure about decisions today they instinctively look for more information. I think this may be the best time ever for the church to be in the marriage preparation business. 2Invest in newlyweds. Some studies will show that couples are more likely to divorce in year 1 than any other. Rather than waiting for couples to struggle you can match them with mentor couples, place them in small groups to support each other, and give them good content. We call it playing offense before defense.

3. What are some examples of how you have done this?

Our strategy is basically to prepare nearly weds, invest in newly weds, and enrich those who are married. We have distinct programs and strategies for each one. You can find out more at http://dallasmarriage.org/

4. What is the biggest obstacle to marriage ministry in the church?

That is a great question. Generally on a platform at a conference blame will be cast on the Sr. Pastor and perhaps the fact the he doesn’t have a good marriage. That might be true occasionally but more than anything I think the church simply doesn’t have a vision for what could happen through marriages. I hope that as more and more churches invest in marriages and have great stories to tell, other churches will follow. The thought of hiring a full time youth pastor in a church in the 50’s was probably met with a lot of resistance and now it is consistently one of the first few hires of any church. I hope the same will happen in the way we think about marriage ministry as the church wakes up to what could happen and how this might be the best way to live out John 13:34-35.

5. What encouragement can you give to church leaders interested in starting a focused marriage ministry?

Create an all-encompassing vision but only implement one thing at a time. Pick the area that is an overlap of the competencies you have in your church and the needs of your community and church. When you are doing that one well move on to the next.

A special thanks to John McGee for taking the time to answer my questions. If you are unable to attend the D6 conference, bookmark this blog and return daily Sept. 21-23 for quotes, updates, and reflections. Also, you can view several of the sessions live by going to www.d6conference.com/live

Can't attend D6? Check this out.

2011-09-19T08:49:00.000-05:00

The D6 Conference is pleased to announce we will be streaming the following sessions from this year’s conference for free at d6conference.com/live. (All times are approximate.)

Be sure to follow @theD6conference for unique conference-related tweets!

September 21—Wednesday

· Brian Haynes (8:45 AM CST)

· Sean McDowell (12:00 PM CST)

September 22—Thursday

· David Platt (9:55 AM CST)—During Session 1

· John McGee (2:35 PM CST)—During Session 3

September 23—Friday

· Student Ministry Panel—Josh Griffin, Allyson Evans, Allen Pointer, Wayne Rice (9:30 AM CST)—During Session 6

· Mark Holmen (11:05 AM CST)—During Session 7

Official Conference Hashtags

#D62011—for general conference tweets
#D6Help—to get your questions answered
#D6Wish—for the dreams of conference attendees to come true

In addition to these live sessions, you can return to this site for daily updates, quotes, and reflections on all of the speakers and sessions. Bookmark this site and check back often Sept. 21-23.

Things I Loved Today

2011-09-18T20:53:00.004-05:00

Bethany was telling me about a book called, "1000 Gifts", the other day. The premise is looking at the many "gifts" that we take for granted on a daily basis. So, I decided it would be fun to list the things I loved today. Here is my list:

Waking up to the sound of rain
Enjoying the quiet house before the rest of the family woke up
Teaching Sunday School Class
Hearing about the generosity of God's people to those in need
Worshiping with my church family
Having lunch with newcomer's to our church
Nap time
Supper with friends at PMC
Singing "More Than Conquerors" with Molly at Hesston MB's Got Talent
Eating homemade ice cream
Coming to end of the day & relaxing with my wife

Free Oil Change

2011-09-17T13:41:00.003-05:00

Today, Hesston MB Church in conjunction with Lord's Lubers hosted our free oil change. I am thankful for another great day of serving. First of all, God answered prayer about it not raining while we were doing the oil changes. Second, after a non-existent sign up, we were able to change oil on 25 cars. Praise God!

Why do we do this? Because of our relationship with Jesus and wanting to share that love with others.

Thanks to those who made the community outreach possible! Here is the list:

5 men from Lord's Lubers to supervise & change oil
12 men from Hesston MB to work on cars both under the hood and vacuuming & cleaning windows
8 women who provided goodies and drinks while people waited on their cars
5 women who visited with people during the oil change

It is great to see how God uses each of our gifts to accomplish His will here on earth. I am thankful for each and every person we were able to make contact with today.

When Family Devotions Go Bad

2011-09-16T07:30:00.000-05:00

So, there is a lot of talk right now about the importance of families talking about faith at home. Right now, there are more resources to help in this area than ever before. Many families are realizing the importance of these times and making the decision to start. So, what happens when you decide you are going to do family devotions and the experience is less than desirable?

In other words, what happens when family devotions go bad?

I happen to be able to speak from experience about this. Recently, I had planned and prepared our time together well to have one of my kids make the experience difficult. Bad attitudes were not the only issue, but it also included verbal distractions. I am not sure anyone else was able to worship that evening.

Why do I share this? To realistically explain, that when you decide to do this, there will at times be resistance. Sometimes this resistance can come from yourself, your spouse, or your kids. Know this fact-Satan does not want you personally leading your family spiritually at home. He will do all in his power to distract and make your life so busy so there is no time for worship at home.

Here is my advice. Don't quit! Tomorrow is a new day. Don't dwell on the one, two, or ten bad family devotions, but instead remember what our purpose is. Ephesians 6:4 says, "Fathers, do not exasperate your children instead bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." This is why we keep at it even when it is difficult. Here's to gathering together again tomorrow.

Date Night Hesston

2011-09-15T07:23:00.000-05:00

Have you signed up to join us for Date Night Hesston? You might wonder what I am talking about. Date Night Hesston is Saturday, October 1st. This is open to couples in the Hesston area of any age. The purpose of Date Night Hesston is to encourage couples to go out together and strengthen relationships. The best part of it--it is inexpensive and already planned for you. Guys, this is a win-win situation for you.

The theme for this first Date Night Hesston is Buy One, Get One Free. By paying $10, you will get two movie tickets to the 6:50 showing of Courageous at Warren West Theater. Also included is buy one, get one free coupons to Twisted Cow, Lincoln Perk, and Faith & Life Bookstore. I have even included email addresses to a few of our college students that provide child care on Sunday nights at the church that are available to watch the kids.

So, what are you waiting for? Contact me via facebook, email, or call 327-2847 to get signed up.

Thanks to these great businesses that have provided coupons for our first ever Date Night Hesston!

Mark Holmen at D6 2010

2011-09-14T09:34:00.003-05:00

Here is another post from Mark Holmen from D6 conference last year. For more information about D6 2011, check out www.d6conference.com or visit my blog Sept. 21-23 for live updates. You can even chat with me live and ask questions. I am getting excited as the conference begins in one week.

The next speaker was Mark Holmen who is a missionary for Faith at Home. Previously he was a youth pastor and pastor who implements faith at home practices. He started by sharing the stats about 18 year olds leaving the church after high school. He asked the question, Why? His opinion is that it is hypocrisy in the home. Faith was seen as church centered rather than a lifestyle. He talked about the two approaches of family ministry. Silos-separate ministries for children, youth, adults, family & Integrated where faith at home is a thread within all ministries.

He described his Take It Home Events (which I am working on for Hesston MB). At the Take It Home Event, he did 4 things: motivate, model, practice (parents with their own kids), and provide resources. Faith at home means living the Christian life 24-7 not just at church.

He ended by sharing some keys for becoming more of a Faith at Home church?

Recognize the critical role of the Sr. Pastor
Language Matters (do not use family ministry)
Faith at Home must be a part of the strategy of the church. For example, his church had these purposes: Reach the lost (evangelism), Faith at Home (Lifestyle), Connect to church (community), and Go Make a difference (missionality).
Give it time (it could take a generation)

Brian Haynes at D6 2010

2011-09-13T08:00:00.002-05:00

Here is a blog post from last year's D6 Conference. Brian Haynes will again be speaking this year. You can participate in the D6 Conference from home by following my blog as I share quotes and reflections from the speaker or by watching some of the sessions live. Visit www.d6conference.com for more information.

Brian Haynes spoke on the topic of family ministry. I have enjoyed attending his pre-con labs the last two years. His church website is www.legacymilestones.com. He talked about the following during his keynote:

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 + Matthew 28:18-20 = Family Ministry

He calls this generational discipleship. In his ministry, they have developed a common path for church and family to walk. It has 7 Milestones & 3 Parent Actions. The Milestones are parent/child dedication, faith commitment, preparing for adolescence, purity for life, rite of passage, high school graduation, and life in Christ. Parents & Church celebrate each milestone and the church and home teach in preparation for the next milestone. The three parent actions are weekly faith talks, recognize God moments, and celebrate milestones.

The ministry actions are:

Align ministries
Equip parents
Resource parents
Build wins

All of this begins in your own home. You cannot pass on what you don't have. Therefore you must ask yourself, "Am I abiding in Christ?" If so, then you will pass on faith at home and then you can teach the families in your church to do the same.

Blogging Live At D6 Conference

2011-09-12T10:54:00.001-05:00

As you have probably heard, I will be blogging live from the D6 Conference. I look forward to sharing with you quotes from the speakers as well as my reflections. I posted a schedule several days ago about the live streaming schedule. Today, I have included a list of my fellow bloggers who will be joining me at D6 for the blogging circle. I look forward to meeting them and blogging together Sept. 21-23. For more information about the D6 Conference, visit www.d6conference.com

D6 Conference Bloggers

This year we’ve invited several to participate in a blogger’s circle. This way, those of you who can’t get the full experience of being there can at least get a small taste of it from home (or, *cough*, work). The bloggers will be posting updates, providing commentary, conducting interviews with speakers, and chatting live with readers during live-streamed sessions. Here is the list of bloggers we know are coming, although we’ve heard rumors of more!

Jonathan Cliff—jonathancliff.com
Michael Chanley—michaelchanley.com
Amy Dolan—lemonlimekids.com
Tim Schmoyer—studentministry.org
Dale Hudson—relevantchildrensministry.blogspot.com
Brandon Baker—practicalyouthministry.com
Chris Spradlin—epicparent.tv
JL Martin—daddy4ms.blogspot.com

Small Groups Start Tonight

2011-09-11T13:01:00.001-05:00

Tonight, we begin our year of small groups together. I look forward to another year with my small group. Welcome to the Beckers! Pastor Brad and I have decided to try doing sermon based small groups this year. Each time our small group gathers we will plan to discuss the sermon from the previous two Sundays and discuss ways to go deeper and put ideas into action. Pastor Brad is currently preaching through the CHRIST acrostic which explains who we are as Hesston MB Church. We will start tonight with what it means to be Centered on Scripture.

So, how about you? Are you a part of a small group? If not, why? Small groups provide a great opportunity to connect with others as well as connect with God.

If you are a part of a small group:

How do you determine what you discuss?
Have you tried sermon based small groups? How did it work?
Is a curriculum chosen by each group or by leadership?

Check back tomorrow for more information about the blogger's circle at the D6 conference.

Not A Fan-"A Total Surrender"

2011-09-10T08:20:00.000-05:00

Here is my final paragraph from the book, Not A Fan, by Kyle Idleman. If you have missed the past two days, check out the previous posts about this book. Today's quote is about surrender. Unfortunately, we struggle a lot in this area because it requires sacrifice. We like to have it all. Listen to these words from Idleman.

Followers are willing to deny themselves and say, "I choose Jesus. I choose Jesus over my family. I choose Jesus over money. I choose Jesus over career goals. I am his completely. I choose Jesus over getting drunk. I choose Jesus over looking at porn. I choose Jesus over a redecorated house. I choose Jesus over my freedom. I choose Jesus over what other people may think of me." A follower makes a decision every day to deny himself and choose Jesus . . . even if it costs everything.

Am I willing to surrender all? This reminds me of a recent video I posted on facebook about worship songs. Check my page from Wednesday, September 7th. After watching it, you might resonate with the hymn, "I Surrender All" where they sing "I Surrender Some." We are willing to surrender in a lot of ways, but all just seems to radical. God would not really ask us to do that, would he? Idleman explains this is why many Christians live compartmentalized lives. We let God have most of our lives, but we keep certain things for ourselves.

What is it for you? Marriage, Kids, Money, Career, Home, Sex, Sports, Service, Hobbies, Addictions, Popularity, etc.

Not A Fan-"A Passionate Pursuit"

2011-09-09T08:00:00.000-05:00

If you read the blog yesterday, you will know that I am posting a paragraph from Not A Fan by Kyle Idleman over 3 days. Today, is the second day of this series. The quote today is about passionate pursuit. Idleman uses the phrase, "Come after me," from Luke 9:23 to compare how we romantically pursue the one we love and how we should pursue Christ.

It's not because God needs your time. He has always been and always will be. It's not because he needs your money. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills. If God needed your money he could take it. It's not that God needs your worship. If you don't worship, the Bible says that the rocks and trees will cry out. The reason we talk about those things is not because God needs or wants those things; it's because he wants you. He wants your love. He longs for you to passionately pursue him, and all those things are come after indicators. They are outer signs that point to an inner reality that you love Jesus more than anything else.

It is so interesting that many times we get caught up in "doing". This paragraph explains that tension. It talks about what we do, but these things are not God's focus. He is interested in you! As followers of Jesus, we need to be pursuing God. When we do this, the "come after indicators" will follow.

Are you pursuing God? Unfortunately, my answer at times is no. But remember this is not about doing but instead comes out of loving. Thankfully, we have the Holy Spirit as believers to empower us.

Stop by tomorrow for the last paragraph from Not A Fan about surrender.

Not A Fan-"An Open Invitation"

2011-09-08T15:44:00.004-05:00

For the next 3 days, I plan to share a paragraph from the book, Not A Fan, by Kyle Idleman. During these posts, I hope to encourage and challenge our thoughts and actions based on the selected paragraph. I would encourage you to pick up the book and start reading. I have actually included it as part of a Sunday School class I am teaching.

It's important to understand that the grace of God doesn't simply invite us to follow . . . it teaches us to follow. Just because Matthew left his past behind and started following didn't mean he was perfect. Far from it. Even after we decide to follow Jesus, we continue to need his grace for the journey. There are plenty of days where I find myself living as a fan, but each morning I receive the same grace-filled invitation that Jesus spoke to Matthew: "Follow me." (Idleman, 125)

As I read these words today, I was reminded of the "Amazing Grace" we sing about. Grace is not just for the person far from God, but is needed moment by moment for each of us. We see in these words how important it is to stay connected to God. We also notice that Jesus did not seek perfection. So, why then, do we try and act perfect when we gather with other Christians? Let's be real and admit our need of grace rather than strive so hard to be perfect. This would truly change the world's view of Christians. And let us always remember the all are invited to follow Jesus. We too can respond to the same invitation given to Matthew.

Check back tomorrow for another paragraph about passionate pursuit.