“The test of a preacher is that his congregation goes away saying, not, 'What a lovely sermon!' but 'I will do something.'” -- Billy Graham Confession time: there have been times in my preaching past when I was more concerned with crafting a lovely sermon than I was about inspiring people to action. I imagine I am not alone among pastors. The temptation is always there. In searching for a story or movie clip, is it to enhance the loveliness of the message or to prompt a response by the listener? Am I interested in finding the right turn of a phrase in order to impress my audience or to challenge them? Good marketing include what is known as a "call to action." It answer the "so what?" question. So what am I supposed to do about what I've just seen or heard? A call to action explains the next…
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"Every tomorrow has two handles. We can take hold of it with the handle of anxiety or the handle of faith." -- Henry Ward Beecher There are a number of anxious people in our world -- and I don't mean the larger, global world, but your little corner of the landscape. We encounter anxious people at work, next door, and around the kitchen table. What is anxiety? Anxiety is anticipating something bad or dangerous happening and worrying about it before it happens. And many times, it never happens. On the other hand, faith is anticipating what God is capable of doing and waiting hopefully for it to happen. Fear or faith. Anxiety over what hasn't happened or hoping for what could happen. The choice is yours.
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While bouncing around Google looking for a John Wesley quote (how theologically nerdy is that!), I came across a great blog post from a pastor in New Zealand. I pass it on to you. ****************** Come and Watch Me Burn Spirituality might well be a frequent topic of conversation today – but when it comes to the preacher, it is one of the hardest issues to master. How significant is the state of the preacher’s walk with God when it comes to measuring the impact of their sermons? This issue isn’t discussed much because it doesn’t quite fit as a natural component in the ‘art’ of preaching. It tends to remain assumed and so it can receive very little attention. It thus becomes an opaque issue, lurking uncomfortably in the background, unaddressed. However it is my conviction that the preacher’s spiritual state is utterly crucial for the effective ministry of…
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I'm biased and I admit it. Ever since planting a church in San Diego (a shout out to my LifePoint peeps) I've been a firm believer in the need to start more churches. There is something about new churches that I love ... the sense of mission, new faces, challenges, and opportunities. I absolutely love church planting and church planters. On October 10, 2010, there will be an explosion of new churches. It's called the 10-10-10 initiative (http://www.101010initiative.org/). New churches will hold their first service on that day and existing churches will renew their commitment to church planting. Be praying now for 10-10-10. Here in Denver, Elevation Church will launch in Aurora on that day. Scott Bloyer and his team have been working and praying hard. I've had the privilege of having coffee with Scott and getting to hear his passion for disconnected people. If you're in or around Denver,…
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This morning I spoke on two of the core competencies leaders must have (convictions and curiosity). In a follow-up conversation, the topic of confidence came up. Do effective leaders have confidence and how is it different from conviction? Do they have confidence? Yes! Timid leaders emit mixed signals and don't inspire courage in their followers. Some confuse humility with a lack of confidence - not so. Humble leaders can be humble because they have a quiet confidence about what they're doing. Without confidence, a leader may abandon convictions too quickly. The confidence I'm referring to is an assurance that the leader is on the right path; for believers, it is a belief that they are doing what God would want them to do. Confidence and convictions go hand-in-hand. Without confidence, convictions may flounder. Without convictions, confidence may cause the leader to abuse his position or power. Short answer ... it…
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