A Jesus-centered, faith-community offering love & hope to the world
Archive for Being The Church
June 6, 2007 at 11:43 am · Filed under Being The Church
A fifth priority for me is to continuously call our church to unity. Now in my mind, unity does not mean that we always agree on everything. But it does mean that we learn how to navigate the places of disagreement, love each other, and listen to each other so that everyone feels heard. If we can work through our disagreements and come out with love and respect for one another we’ll truly have something to offer to the world. You see, unity in a local church is a missional testimony to those outside looking in: Jesus prayed that his church would be one … so that the world would know that the Father sent Him. (John 17:23)
June 2, 2007 at 11:33 am · Filed under Being The Church
Third, it is priority to me to encourage and empower others. I have a personal responsibility to invest in others what God has invested in me in such a way that the greatest return for the King can be realized.
The relational part of me will want to be everything for every one of you. I trust you’ll sense how much I enjoy personally connecting, praying, and talking to you. Just being with you. As much as I might want to, I’ll just not be able to adequately care for each of you individually. We’ll need to learn to care for one another. To watch over one another in love. To connect in our life groups, our ministry teams, and in other places.
May 23, 2007 at 2:49 pm · Filed under Being The Church
We must be a church that stays centered upon Jesus. I commit to you as your pastor and as a brother and friend in Christ to do what is necessary to personally live in daily vital relationship with Jesus. I purpose to invite you with a clear conscience to follow me as I follow Jesus; and to be and do anything I ask you to be and do.
As His church, there must be no doubt about our intention and efforts to center everything around Jesus Christ. This means we don’t get upset when we can’t have our way, when the overall church does not do every ministry that individually any of the 600-800 of us want to see happen (this includes me — 
). My responsibility as your pastor and as a leader is not to see to it that everyone is always happy (although I fully expect that our gatherings will be full of joy and happiness in Jesus!), but to ask “What is best for the Kingdom of God at Lakeside?” “What is best for God’s church?” “How do we best stay centered upon Jesus?”
April 14, 2007 at 2:48 pm · Filed under Being The Church
An interesting post from “SmuloSpace,” a blog I follow:
“We live during a time when capitalism and consumerism are significant
aspects of western culture, and much of the world. One of the outflows of this is that individuals have high expectations of the companies, organizations, and products that they use. There’s significant competition when it comes from everything to what shampoo you use, to what restaurants you eat at.
It appears that there is syncretism between this area of cultural values and the church. It leads me to question, “Has the local church merely become one more dispenser of
goods and services for the consumer to consider?”
In my context, at least, it appears that this is the case. Christians refer to “church
shopping”. This involves inspecting the product each local church produces and deciding which services their personal needs best. A church shopping list looks like a typical grocery list, with items such as the following on it:
- Suitable worship music
- Good preaching
- Friendly people
- Comfortable seats
- Excellent children’s program
- Right beliefs
- Right practices
- Good coffee
- Free donuts
I remember a conversation with one couple that went to a former church I pastored who told me that they had been church shopping for two years for the “perfect church” before settling on ours. I didn’t know if I should be flattered or naseous, but I quickly felt the latter.”
April 13, 2007 at 7:23 pm · Filed under Being The Church
Here’s part 2 of the broad picture vision for Lakeside, or better called "my dream for Lakeside." Please check out part one also, and remember that I’m qualifying these ‘vision’ segments by my need to spend time with you, hearing your dreams for our fellowship, seeking the Lord, learning about us, etc.
An Authentic Community - We watch over each other, relentlessly pursuing a deeper walk with Jesus, and are committed to speak BOTH truth and grace to each other. We’re intending to understand and embrace the call to discipleship and to order every aspect of our lives around Jesus Christ and the Kingdom way.
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