#OC12-Doug Fields at Orange

On Friday afternoon, Doug Fields shared about his experiences in ministry.  He started by sharing a story of sitting in front of a sun lamp to get rid of some acne.  The result was that he burned his corneas.  He compared this temporary blindness to what we can experience in ministry.

3 Sun Lamps that cause blindness in ministry:

• Importance of Numbers
• The lie of bigger is better which requires us to feed the beast.

• Pace of Life
• Increases speed which makes ministry more like a sprint.  There is always more to do.  This pace of life causes us to skim on relationships.

• Constant Comparison
• There is danger to always be comparing yourself to others whether that is how you speak, lead, etc.

These become a problem when you focus on them.

How do you turn the lamp off?  He shared the story of Lazarus in John 11.  It says, "Unwrap him & live."

3 Learnings

• Bigger isn't better.  Better is better.
• Most people in church don't want to be a number.  Numbers feed ego.

• Hurry is the enemy of depth
• This includes depth with people, self, Jesus
• You can't rush relationships or discipleship

• Replace comparison with effectiveness
• God created me to be me.
• I need to stop comparing and start abiding.

"I wasn't horrible. I was blind. I was focused on artificial light not the real Light. "

He shared a few closing thoughts for each of the sun lamps:

• Numbers--"When you ask how my family is doing, I don't respond with 5."
• Pace--"Busyness is a sign of brokenness."
• Comparison--"Help each other. Applaud them. Believe in them."

 I hope to be able to share a few "take-aways" from Orange Conference in the next day or two.  Check back to see how this conference will affect how we minister at Hesston MB.