So, You Want To Be A Pastor...

So, You Want To Be A Pastor... 

One day as Jesus was walking along the shore beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers--Simon, also called Peter, and Andrew--fishing with a net, for they were commercial fishermen. 19Jesus called out to them, "Come, be my disciples, and I will show you how to fish for people!" 20And they left their nets at once and went with him.Matthew 4:21-23 

There are times when I have to laugh about the position God has placed me into. Here's a guy who was after the American Dream - had a great job with one of the best companies on earth, great family, new car, new house.. etc. We had just finished a year within which we had reached a level of income we had never seen before. Our friends at church were great, the church was growing, and we were a part of it. Word within the church was I was a shoo in for deacon. 

Then God went and made me a pastor. I sure didn't see that coming, but it was clear to me and to others I trusted that God was calling me to serve His church.

Which leaves me wide open for questions like why? 

If it was in pursuit of accomplishment - well I'll have you know I had already achieved great success. 

For example, were you aware that I had sold the first full page color Pepto Bismol ad in the known world? Ha! Didn't think so. Or that I had sold 23 trucks full of Folgers coffee, marking the single biggest purchase on record for that brand? No? Well, now you know. And I hope you also know that compared to a person coming to know Christ or growing deeper in ther faith, that stuff's so lame.

If you decide to go into the ministry though, I should tell you that you'll have to learn a lot more about failure than accomplishment. And instead of trusting in your skill or passion, you'll have to learn to rely on the power of the Holy Spirit even when it seems He's nowhere to be found. Trust Him.

Now there will be times when everything goes well and people will single you out as a great pastor and leader, and then there will be times when things are running the wrong way and people look to you to make something happen and wonder if you can. But you have to know in your heart that all you've done from the very beginning is to love God, love His people, and try to give both your best. Any success has come from God and if it's dry right now, then He's still at work, just in a different way. Follow Him.

You'll have to come to grips with the knowledge that there will always be people who question your motives and wisdom. It'll happen more at first, but after almost 17 years here and over 20 years as a pastor, it still happens. Love them.

Sometimes there will be people who come but are at cross purposes with what the church is and hopes to be and that you still have to love them, but you don't have to let them have their way. In fact, you can't - because you're the pastor, and the good pastor lays down his life for the sheep. You'll pray for them, talk with them, and try to make them understand God's call on your church. Not the one across town or across the oceans. The church you serve. Stay true to that call. Follow the Holy Spirit's direction. 

Some people will leave, and you have to wish God's best for them, even if you believe they are leaving just that. Even if you've stood up for them to others. Even if you've given them your time. And then you have to believe that it is all part of God's plan and keep praying, keep loving, and keep preaching the Word. Does it hurt? Oh yes. Sometimes it rips your heart and that of your family. When you've prayed literally hours for someone and been there during some of the events of their life, it's tough. Guess it should be. If you don't care for people, don't you dare become a pastor.

There are stresses and strains in your life that no one will see. We've had to make use of the church food pantry too many times. Racing the Gulf Power cut off guy home gets old. We got really good and pinching pennies, but after over 20 years as a pastor I've never equalled what I made the year before I became one. When you get to the church on Christmas Eve, check the mailbox and find that your check has bounced, it takes a deep faith to stick that slip in your pocket and go lift people's eyes to the cross. My wife and my family have paid a price for my answering the call. It can destroy a marriage - it can ruin a life - several lives. I was blessed with a wife who has been more and done more for the churches I have served than anyone will ever know. And my sons - well I hope they saw that their Dad did his best. If money matters a lot to you, this is the wrong career field.

I have fewer years ahead than I have behind me, and I'm bivocational now instead of full time. But there's never a day that I'm not praying, not studying/ reading in some way to be a better pastor, a better communicator. I'm always looking for ways to see New Hope grow. We've tried some that did great, and some that didn't. But you have to keep trying to connect people to God and to people. It can be frustrating to have to build the consensus and gather the volunteers to get something done. But it's worth it, and there are many times that if you'll listen, some of the best ideas you will ever hear come from them.

One day I'll no longer be the pastor of a church. I'll still be God's servant, but I'll be serving in a different role. I don't know when that will be, but I know when it comes I'll be praying every day for my pastor, and seeking to do whatever I can to help him as he works for God.

Pastor - It's a hard, hard job. It's a thankless one from the world's point of view. But keep following Him. Keep loving His people.

For the knowledge that you served Jesus... now that makes it all worthwhile.

Ruthless

Here below find the words of John Baillie as written in his "A Diary of Private Prayer." The language may be archaic at times, but as I read it, I found myself wondering how many of we Christians today would be willing to submit ourselves daily to such a ruthless self-examination of the practice of our faith in Jesus. All I could say after I read this was "Lord have mercy on me, a sinner."

O merciful Father, who dost look down upon the weaknesses of Thy human children more in pity than in anger, and more in love than in pity, let me know in Thy holy presence inquire into the secrets of my heart.
Have I today done anything to fulfill the purpose for which Thou didst cause me to be born?
Have I accepted such opportunities of service as Thou in Thy wisdom hast set before my feet?
Have I performed without omission the plain duties of the day?
         Give me grace to answer honestly, O God.
Have I today done anything to tarnish my Christian ideal of manhood?
Have I been lazy in body or languid in spirit?
Have I wrongfully indulged my bodily appetites?
Have I kept my imagination pure and healthy?
Have I been scrupulously honorable in all my business dealings?
Have I been transparently sincere in all I have professed to be, to feel, or to do?
          Give me grace to answer honestly, O God.
Have I tried today to see myself as others see me?
Have I made more excuses for myself than I have been willing to make for others?
Have I, in my own home, been a peacemaker or have I stirred up strife?
Have I, while professing noble sentiments for great causes and distant objects, failed even in common charity and courtesy toward those nearest to me?
         Give me grace to answer honestly, O God.
O Thou, whose infinite love, made manifest in Jesus Christ, alone has the power to destroy the empire of evil in my soul, grant that with each day that passes I may more and more be delivered from my besetting sins.
Amen.

Moving the Stakes

         

Fred Craddock often told the wonderful story about that remarkable evening during his childhood when his father called him out into the backyard of his home in Tennessee. Fred's father asked him to lie down in the summer grass beside him and to look up at the stars... and then he asked, "Son, how far can you think?"

            And Fred said, "What?"

            His father asked again, "How far can you think?"

            "Well, I don't know what you mean."

            "Just think as far as you can think up toward those stars."

            And so, said Fred, I screwed my imagination down, and I said, "I'm thinking... I'm thinking... I'm thinking."

            His dad said, "Think as far as you can think now."

            After a while Fred said, "I'm thinking as far as I can think."

            "OK then. Drive down a stake out there at that point.  In your mind, drive down a stake.  Have you driven down the stake?  That's how far you can think?"

            Fred said, "Yes, sir."

            And his father said, "Now, Fred, what's on the other side of your stake?"

            Fred said, "Well, there's more sky."

            And his father said, "Then, you'd better move your stake." 

            (from a sermon by Robert Dunham)

Lately I've been reading far more than I have in a long time. Most of the year is an exhausting blur where I bounce between tasks like a steel ball in a pinball machine. Contemplation gives way to a pragmatic "Git R' Done" mindset.

But it's summer, now.

And God is at work... calling me to examine who I am in Him and how faithfully I am carrying out His purpose.

When I think I've "moved my stakes" about as far as I dare, then that still, small voice whispers "more." 

I wonder if that's what Peter felt that night when Christ called him to step out of the boat?

Teaching the One Good Story

“We want our children to know and believe the one good story. Every other story is a copy or shadow of this one. Some copies of it are quite good and shout the Truth. Others see only the faintest whisper of it, or, in its absence remind us of the Truth. We want our kids to know the one good story so well that when they see Luke Skywalker, Harry Potter, Frodo, Anne of Green Gables, Arielle, or Sleeping Beauty, they can recognize the strands of Truth and deception in them. Saturating our children in the one good story will enable them to discern Truth and error as it comes to them from the world.” 
― Elyse M. Fitzpatrick, Give Them Grace: Dazzling Your Kids with the Love of Jesus

The power of story. This quote resonated with me.

Some of my favorite times as a father have been reading my boys a bedtime story -or in Sean's case, making one up each night about the world travels of "Charles the Pig." I used to be able to recite most all of the Dr. Seuss tales, the Patchwork Fish, and several others.

Later it was my boys that pestered me until I gave in and listened to the audio version of the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, which I think was on about 3,000 audio cassettes.

The one story I pray that we shared that we not only remember but share, is the story of Jesus.

Because in the end, it's the only one that matters.

"Just like you said."

I'm a man who believes in grace and mercy - and who draws strength from those deep wells more often than most realize. As a pastor of a smaller church family that's seen its share of challenges, staying focused on Jesus' love has meant that when the storms come I know they come with needed rain and that they will not last forever. God loves me and works everything together for my good - even if it doesn't feel like "good" at the time. And that same beacon keeps me straight at school too.

Every year as a teacher is different. Obviously there are new children and new parents to know and relate to. Less obvious to the outside world are the changes in what you teach and how you teach. Let's just say we are in a time of extremely rapid change that's affecting everyone.

Teaching relies on a lot of skills, but really good teaching has that and more - good teachers have a character that lets them sway with the wind but stay rooted in their confident belief that if they do the right things every day, children will come through their classroom and leave as better students and better people. Like my work as a pastor though, that belief is tested by the times when you can't see the change happen, or when you look out and see people headed the wrong way despite everything you invested and prayed for.

So you learn to pray for rays of sunlight in the dark days - for glimpses of God's mercy and grace. You say things to Him like "If I could just see one thing go right today..."

In the avalanche of prayers that reach His ears, I'm sure that seems trivial. But absent confidence, teaching becomes something of a roller coaster ride depending on immediate success to keep you going. But this time of year, 12 weeks in, immediacy isn't always there.

Our awards ceremony comes for the first nine weeks and I have only one student who qualifies. Most classes have 6 or more. Four of my kids missed it by one point, but they missed it. I'm trying to shake the feeling that somehow I failed.

So I'm sitting in the audience after my turn, watching the 4th graders troop across the stage and applauding when they do, but harder when my kids from last year do. About halfway through,I notice a kid who had the teacher next door to me last year made it. He struggled last year for a lot of reasons out of his control, and a couple of times his teacher had asked me to talk to him. I tried to let him know that it wouldn't always be that hard, and the best thing he could do was do his best at the things he could control. Then I had him look directly at me when I told him that I believed he could and should be an honors student.

And now he was. That was cool to see, but then it happened.

As the 4th graders filed past me, returning to their seats, the boy stopped in front of me and said, "I did it Mr. Wilson. Just like you said I could."

I replied, "Just like I knew you could. Great job!"

A sense of warmth and love filled my soul. I needed that. I had prayed for that.

Thank you God. You were there for me, just like You said.

"So how big did this place get?"

It's funny how an offhand comment or question can sometimes drive me into periods of really deep thought and reflection. That's really not a neighborhood I frequent much anymore, simply because the pressure of getting this done NOW is so much a part of my life. Between church and school there's just not much down time.

The question came from a friend while we were preparing meals to be delivered to people who live in the neighborhoods around the church. I could be there because it was a "snow day" for us at school, so I could help Bunny get the cooking done and then be able to show up at church hours earlier than normal. His job on base let him be there too. The roads were icy, and most people had hunkered down at home, but that didn't mean they didn't need a hot meal. So some of the folks at New Hope turned out including this young man.

He and his family had simply showed up one Sunday and quickly became a part of our church. Their heart for Christ and willingness to serve have just endeared them to everyone at New Hope. And their precious daughter is a sense of endless fascination and joy while we watch her scamper around. It's been a great blessing to have them within our church family.

So his question was delivered while he and I were filling clam shell containers with black-eyed peas and rice. Not a probe, just a curious question. But it's made me think.

I answered him like most pastors would do - with numbers and relating them to the size of our sanctuary and number of seats. It's possible I mentioned some of the factors that have caused those numbers to shrink - but I don't think so.

At any rate we kept filling the containers with food, and another New Hope family member came in with some rolls to add to the meal. Then in a little while another brother came in to help finish up "plating" the meal and help deliver them. And once we got them all filled, we left and delivered them all - 99 meals to people who needed them, and maybe reminding of the fact that God loves them and so do we.

Today as I was taking a look at Sunday's Bible study, the conversation came back to my memory. You have to understand - I've spent over 14 years at New Hope, preaching and teaching the Word, loving and praying for the people, and doing whatever it took at the time to see us love people and reach them with the love of God. There have been times I wanted to leave out of frustration with what was happening, and a couple times I could have left, but I knew absolutely it was God's will for me to move here and though it has been tough at times, He has never released me from this call. So here I am.

Look - we've had more people. Twice as many plus some. We've had some really great folks come and serve with us, and then move away or move on for one reason or another. God bless them all. I'll be forever grateful for what they meant to God's work at New Hope, and what they meant to me personally.

You don't serve with someone, spend time in each other's homes, do funerals for their fathers, mothers, and pets; you don't stand up with their children as they pledge their lives to God and each other; you don't laugh and cry with them - without a feeling of loss when they leave. Not sure many people understand that when you have prayed for a person as their pastor - calling out to God for them by name everyday for years, you grow kind of attached. So yeah...

But you have to understand this too. A pastor does not live in the past, he runs to the future, because that's where his prayers to the timeless God he prays to - lead him. I'm always praying for another chance to see God capture the heart of a child, of a teen, of an adult. I'm always hoping to be there when God mends a broken heart or when He sets one on FIRE for souls. That's what drives me - what keeps me excited about being a pastor.

And right now I'm seeing a rekindling of that fire in the people of New Hope. We may have less people, but we have a group who love, who serve, who give, who want to see the Kingdom come and His will be done right here in a small church in a small town.

"So how big did this place get is?" a question I hope to ask the Father one day. In person.

I really expect to be blown away.

Because Scripture tells me that God can do more than we can ask or even imagine. And I believe it with all my heart.

Just Saying...

It's gotten to be a joke between my bride and me - my use of the phrase "I'm just saying..." as I try to make a case for an opinion or qualify something I've said. One of the great joys of this life has been and is that I get to spend time with someone who knows me intimately and yet loves me as I am.

My wife has a knack for "helping" (I typed that wincing, BTW) me to see not just whether my arguments are good ones, but perhaps as important, whether the way I'm putting them forward is good.

You see, I'm a passionate guy.

This life, role, position - this whatever you call it - how about - Christ-follower- demands that I never "phone it in". I'm supposed to be ever learning, ever changing, ever growing as I follow Jesus as his disciple. Love for Him drives me to really work at that - every day.

But there are times when even while driving hard after being like Jesus, being conformed to His image, I wind up portraying just the opposite. And what's crazy, I can do it without even realizing it.

"I'm just saying..."

If my Spirit-filled wife is really good at pointing that out, there is someone who's even better.

The Holy Spirit.

So I'm reading the story of the prodigal son today in Luke, not looking for anything specific, just wanting again to experience how much God loves "lost" things and through that remind myself of how much He loves "lost" people.

You know the story. Guy gets full of himself, tells his old man he's splitting, and to give him his part of the inheritance. Dad does, guy goes off to Las Vegas (my modern day paraphrase) and loses it all, and winds up sleeping with the pigs and living low on the hog. Realizes finally what he left behind and gets up and goes to try to make it right. Has his apology well rehearsed, probably repeating it over and over as he nears his old home. But his daddy, whose been pleading with God every day for him, and expecting God to bring him home, sees his son coming and runs to meet him. Grabs him. Hugs his filthy self and tells him it will be okay. BBQ ensues. (irony there, eh?)

With me so far?

Ok. Here's where I found myself in the story today.

28 "The older brother was angry and wouldn't go in. His father came out and begged him, 29 but he replied, 'All these years I've slaved for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to. And in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my friends. 30 Yet when this son of yours comes back after squandering your money on prostitutes, you celebrate by killing the fattened calf!' Luke 15:28-30 (NLT)

I could see the older brother, seeing what went on and getting furious. Then as we used to hear in Georgia, he "showed himself."

All those years he spent doing the right thing - for the wrong reason - had changed him alright, but not in the way they should have. They made him more cynical, more willing to find fault in others, more blind to faults in himself.

When his daddy protested 'Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours. 32 We had to celebrate this happy day. For your brother was dead and has come back to life! He was lost, but now he is found!'"

Luke 15:31-32 (NLT)

I could hear that older brother say,

"I'm just saying..."
Friends, that's just wrong.

I thank God for the people He's put in my life to help with the corrections necessary sometimes when I start to veer off the Way.

What about your life -  if you were able to step back and see it as others do, would make you realize that changes were needed to get back in step with the Spirit?

Maybe it's time to really commit to becoming part of a community of faith where each person holds the other accountable to Jesus, in love.

Maybe it's time to really follow Jesus as His disciple.

You need Jesus. I'm just saying... :)

Grace!

David

Living in a Pre-Easter World

We miss it almost every year. We forget that the people we read about in the accounts of the events that make up Easter weekend even had a Saturday filled with nothing more than grief, loss, and crushing doubt. The day before they saw their worst nightmares come true before their eyes. Everything they had given three years of their lives to - the central pivot point to every step they made - was dead and buried.

They shared one of the questions that dog us even today - What now?

Some are paralyzed with grief and become almost catatonic, unable to do anything at all. Loss does that.

You lose a family member that has always "been there for you." Now you and the rest of the family have to figure out how to relate to each other - how to live as a family.

You lose a  job that provided for your family, and gave you satisfaction and a sense of identity - is lost. Now you are dealing with a pack of howling doubts about how you are going to make it, and even whispers asking who are you and are you capable of getting another job. The tightness in your throat, the rumbling in your stomach just won't go away. And your family is looking at your for guidance and for security.

Others make peace with the loss and move on, doing what they believe they should do. Little noted in the accounts of the days of Easter are the women who went shopping on Saturday for the spices they'd use to make sure Jesus' body was prepared to the max. If they couldn't change the past, they'd be found faithful with what they could do.

That's living in a pre-Easter world, isn't it.

Living in the fellowship of suffering.

So let's embrace it for what it can teach us about God and His relationship with those who love Him.

First, let's eliminate the biggest fear. God is not dead, He is not asleep, He isn't pretending not to notice our pains and sorrows. We might think so based on what we've seen happen, but if Easter teaches us anything, it should be that God is always at work - even when we can't see Him.

So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.”
Deut 31:6 (NLT) BTW, that's repeated in Hebrews 13 as well.

So God is at work, then what is this experience designed to do? Well, what were we told about faith?
Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see. Heb 11:1 (NLT)

Listen - I've been there and done this too many times. When the storms come, you have to move toward a deeper understanding and practice of your faith. You have to put your fears and doubts behind you and use them as a push to go farther. It's NOT EASY. You might say "I can't do it." And really, many of us can't.

But GOD can.  - your absence of what it took created the perfect opportunity for the Holy Spirit to work in and through you. God showed up BIG TIME that first Easter weekend, and His power is available to you today. 

Resurrection power.

Think about it. Pray about it.

Then go out and live an Easter life no matter what day it is.

Because the believer in Jesus knows life's greatest secret.

It may be Saturday - but Sunday's coming.

All I Want For Christmas

I was there in my office at New Hope on a rare day off from school and spending some time getting reacquainted with the place. For years I spent hours a day in here, arriving at 9 and leaving at 5 or thereabouts. Then we realized how much it was costing to heat and cool a building for one person and I started to work at home, coming here when Bunny came up to teach piano. She'd be here two or three hours most days. It still felt secure, safe - a place that I had filled with prayers, labored over words and the Word, and met with people to counsel or just talk.

I loved my office. My study. And to a large extent, it was my sanctuary.

But now?

I feel like a visitor. The books who were loyal and true friends seem distant, like people from my home town that I used to know well. The collections - of unit mugs from different military units, things New Hope people have given me over the years that I treasure, toys I kept on hand for the kids who would drop by, all just seem like stuff. I don't spend enough time here for it to feel the way it did. My bivocational status as a teacher means I am making a difference in the lives of the students at Eglin and still reach out and care for people through New Hope. It is a big help financially for the church, and an opportunity to show that the preacher is practicing what he preaches. But it is a different type of ministry and I'm still adjusting to it.

For thirteen years I have preferred New Hope Baptist Church - the people that have made it up and the mission God has given us - over everything else in my life save my wife and family. I came here because I believed that God was sending me here to work with Him and His people to make a difference. And we have - we are. Just last week while Bunny and I were gone, the people of New Hope worked together to produce and deliver a Thanksgiving meal for everyone they could find in our community that needed one.

And I believe that Bunny and I are doing everything we can do to see God's church move forward and reach more people in years to come. But the last couple of years have been tough and tougher. I sit here on a Sunday night praying that God will draw near and let me know how I can see His name glorified again in a growing church. The people I dearly love need that. I need that.

I know what I want for Christmas. I'm praying that Jesus will come alongside each of us and give us what we need to reach others in our circles of influence with His love. I'm praying people who have cooled off, tuned out, or been turned off to religion come to New Hope this Christmas season and see what a church family that's directed by God's will and sold out to making a difference looks like.

If you're reading this and that fits you, then come. Come worship with us. Come serve God and your neighbor with us. Come and experience the grace that is New Hope.

A Witness In Wood

I took this picture a few years ago. It was at this desk, where a man built a career. He rose from salesman, to territory manager, to manage a district for a major multinational company. He'd leave his family late Sunday night or early Monday each week and drive all over the Southeast, returning on Friday. Later on, he'd fly to distant places and meet a salesman that he'd hope to help become better. But every Friday, he'd be home.

Saturday night he'd study his Sunday School lesson at this desk, preparing to teach the class he led for decades.  He was the picture of an expository Bible teacher, and could have been a good preacher if God had led him there. His calling was broader - husband, father, servant, Sunday School teacher. I can remember the men in his class and the respect they had for him as a teacher. But it wasn't just his teaching they were looking at - it was the way he lived his life. There are lots of ways to teach. He led by precept, principles, and by his practices. 

He retired from his career, and came home. Enjoyed his wife, his kids and his grandchildren - had a garden, and a shop downstairs. He and one of his long-time friends started a little business building furniture and fixing things in homes. They had a ball helping people, though I doubt they made anything from it. Still every Saturday night would find him sitting at this desk, preparing his lesson. Broadman's Commentary, Standard Sunday School Lessons, Open Bible, Amplified - were the tools of this teacher. In retirement, he did more around the church and around the house. He continued to encourage his pastor, to love his family, and to serve as an example of a true Christian man for us all, until His maker called him home.

In the aftermath, Bunny was struck with the realization that both her parents were gone. Having been through that myself years ago, I knew the feeling of having no "roots" or "pillars" to lean on that losing your parents can bring. There are still times when it sneaks up on me, and Bunny still misses her Mom and Dad a great deal. They were such a blessing.

When Bunny's oldest brother asked her what she would like to have of the things left behind, initially she couldn't think of anything. Then I remembered Curtis' desk. It was such a part of who I saw him as, and Bunny remembered him sitting at it from when she was a little girl. She had recollections of going up to him sitting there to ask him for a new dress, of the crazy "finger in a box" toy, and the silly "goofy glasses" her very reserved daddy would pull out and create laughter. This simple piece of wood was so tied to both of our memories of him - who he was, we quickly agreed we'd love to have it. So she asked with the stipulation that if one of her brothers wanted it, they should have it.

It's here. We brought it down from Georgia a couple of weeks ago.

Every Saturday night I go in my office and sit at that desk as I prepare the powerpoint for tomorrow's message and go over the lesson for Bible Study. I am very conscious of the legacy left me through the memories of Curtis Clinard. His love for Christ was real and penetrated every area of his life. 

So when I sit down, it's as if his hand is on my shoulder. And how I wish it was.

Thank you again Curtis. You trusted me with your precious daughter, encouraged and guided me through my married life, and continue to give me a standard to aspire to. I could not have asked for a better Father In Love. See you later my friend. Say hello to Ballard for me, and give Dot a kiss.

Shout!

Advent. It's a season that can get you to examine things you've been covering over and pretending not to notice. I've been trying to follow the readings for each day even during the busyness of teaching and pastoral work. Advent is preparation.

Behind the pulpit, and in the classroom, a lack of preparation will cause you to quickly experience fear. And that fear robs you of the effectiveness you need to speak and explain. It almost paralyzes me. The feeling is of being tied to the train tracks and seeing the light of an approaching locomotive. I just cannot preach or teach off the cuff. I have to prepare. Advent is preparation.

Sure, in the back of everyone's mind this time of year Charlie Brown and Linus are on a darkened stage. People know the story of Christmas well. But they don't necessarily know why Christmas matters or why Advent matters. Advent is preparation.

In my new dual role as pastor/teacher, I'm learning more about how the world is working and my research is returning a clear finding of "not good." "A new generation arose knowing not Joseph" wrote the scribes. Well, new generations have risen believing that the world revolves around them and that there's noting more to life than what they can see or hold in their hands. Working with kids every day, each of whom are precious in God's sight and dear to my heart, I can see the effects of society's message. And one day Jesus will return and set everything right. Advent is preparation.

"A voice said 'Shout!'"


"Shout that people are like the grass.
Their beauty fades as quickly
as the flowers in a field."

Advent is preparation for life here, and life eternal with Jesus. It's acknowledging that some things God has done are simple yet complex, warm and fuzzy, but incredibly costly, and the effects that we can see may be only a fraction of what God has done. A baby was born. No big deal, right? Babies get born every day. But this one changed everything.

One day people will wake up. Maybe it'll be a week day. Or maybe the weekend will see Him come. But one day Jesus will come, not as a babe in Bethlehem, but as the leader of Heaven's Armies - as King.

Advent is preparation for that day when the Shepherd of Israel returns. To His enemies His wrath will come. To His beloved... "He will carry the lambs in His arms, holding them close to His heart. He will gently lead the mother sheep with her young." I LOVE that picture.

But while we wait...

"And so dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found living peaceful lives that are pure and blameless in His sight."


Make every effort.

Advent is preparation. 

Take time this weekend to worship Him and study His Word.

Upon Further Review

The weeks have flown by at Mary Esther Elementary.

I've learned an awful lot about teaching that textbooks will never deliver. Constant improvement is my goal. I have training across multiple disciplines and communication is something I've used daily for years. As a first year teacher, I need to use whatever I can. One of the skills I've transferred from my primary vocation is reflection. As a pastor, you are constantly delivering and evaluating, delivering and evaluating. And you pray, oh how you pray, that God would take your efforts and make them more than you ever could.

Funny thing.

I've been doing that every morning at Mary Esther Elementary.

As a pastor, I've always prayed for people in my congregation individually. The regular practice of intercessory prayer helps me remember to work out of God's love. As a teacher, I want to do the same. So as part of the preparation to teach - along with lesson plans, text and practice books, assessment plans, technology and hands on work - I pray.

There's no way I can share everything I have heard from those little voices during the last few weeks. But I will tell you that they reflect every hurt their families suffer, every lack they feel. Children don't have filters. They may cheat on a test but then turn around and be brutally honest about how it felt when the chaplain came to the door and told Mom daddy had been shot in the shoulder. Or how it feels that daddy is in jail. Or that life with a step-dad is better because daddy drinks and hides his beer under the bed. I can look at their clothes and see the needs, or notice that one who brings his books in a Food World bag instead of a backpack and took three weeks to get some of the school supplies he needed.

They will send you to heights of joy and break your heart. Kids do that. These kids do that.

So I go in every morning wearing a badge that identifies me as a certified substitute teacher who's going to give them every chance to succeed. And I leave every day drained of everything save my faith that God will take whatever I did that day and help the kids I've grown to love.

No collar. No suit. No Bible. Mr.Wilson is all the title I need.

Just Jesus' love identifies me.

Looking back over the last 6 weeks, that'll do.

If you are looking for his monument...

Sunday's message as we walked through Paul's second letter to the church at Corinth, centered on just what God would have us understand "success" to be. As always, the one who delivers the message never really knows what the ultimate effect of it will be. I can hope that it will affect someone's heart and direct them to a closer walk with God. But I really won't know. I'm just a tradesman, an architect using God's blueprints to help people build lives that will stand the test of time.

The picture above is of St Paul's Cathedral in London. It was taken during the Nazi "blitz" bombings of that great city. I do not overstate when I state that picture above had a galvanizing effect on the English people and their friends around the world during a very dark and bleak time in history. Through the gloom, through the dust and terror of bombs falling - St Paul's stood - as did England. It still stands firm today, in  its 200th anniversary year.

The architect of that magnificent structure was Christopher Wren. 

Wren received the last contractor's payment in 1711, on Christmas Day.

Years later, he was buried in the cathedral, not in one of the ornate areas, but in a plain grave. On it is inscribed in Latin, this phrase: "If you seek his monument, look around you."

It's fitting for that to be written on Wren's grave, in St. Paul's. For in last Sunday's text, we read much the same sentiment. Just as Wren's grave encourages people to look around them to see what his life was about, Paul suggested anyone who wanted to know about his life's work to look at the people he had ministered to.

2 You yourselves are all the endorsement we need. Your very lives are a letter that anyone can read by just looking at you. 3 Christ himself wrote it— not with ink, but with God's living Spirit; not chiseled into stone, but carved into human lives— and we publish it. 2 Corinthians 3: 2-3

We who "publish" know in our hearts that we cannot change anyone.

Still, we "architects" rejoice when we see what God has done in people's lives around us, and yes, it hurts when people we've poured our lives into seem to falter or walk away from God's plan. The prayer of every pastor I know is that when our work is done, God will be able to direct us to "look around you" and we will see how what we did mattered.

Monday Matters

Had a kind of tough day yesterday. Since I'm a pastor, you should interpret that to mean that Church didn't go well. Wasn't for lack of effort on the part of any of our leaders. We were here, prepped and ready to go. And I had a sermon I was excited about because I believed it had real potential to help people move closer to God and farther away from their fears. Music went well - we have put more time and effort into that lately than ever (by we I mean Bunny, the band, and the vocalists who practice hard).

But for whatever and a variety of reasons, turn out was low. God sent us some visitors or it would have been even lower. Thanks, Father.

Now I'm going to write something I don't want you to misunderstand. So I'll preface it by saying that I know that the Holy Spirit was here and the size of the crowd didn't affect that. And that since I've been doing this for quite a while now, having preached to crowds of hundreds and in one memorable Sunday evening - to just TWO, numbers are just numbers and I'm going to give it everything I have every time I get the opportunity believing that God will use it and whoever and however many are here deserve everything I have to give. They got it.

Now back to what matters. When you aren't here in church, whether here is New Hope, the Crystal Cathedral, Mosaic LA, FBC whatever and wherever... it hurts the cause of Christ. I am not going legalistic on you. Just stating the fact that your attendance matters a great deal - more than you know. That person you would have been sitting by needed a listening ear and yours wasn't present. Your voice would have made a difference too during the singing. Yes, even your voice. That kid you always speak to never got his weekly dose of encouragement. The little old lady you compliment left without one. You were missed.

When you aren't here, we are less than we ought to be.

Priorities. Priorities.

If you only knew.

Honestly?

In our family, we do our level best not to lie. There may be times when what we say turns out not to be true, but that's an error, not a lie. So we don't use terms like "To tell you the truth" and "well, honestly" very often. Now that means that we have to carefully consider each word, and decide each time whether to speak at all, answer with what we know to be true, or lead the conversation in a different direction. But we don't lie.

There are times when you just get trapped. A new mom brings her baby up and someone says "isn't it beautiful?" and looks over at you. Well beloved, I've got two sons who were babies once, and they weren't always beautiful. After all, they have my genes too, not just those of my beautiful wife. There were stages when they were... in transition. :)

You still loved them, but they weren't beautiful.

I write all that to get to this - It hurts when I hear people say "I'm not going to be there on Easter." Easter matters. If a Christian would rather be at the beach than in worship of God on Easter, then I must be way off on what God expects our hearts to be attuned to.

It's the spirit of the age, I guess. Preferences trump piety. The Body of Christ isn't something you invest your life into, for you it's another charm, trinket, or badge you put on when you feel like it. Your local church isn't the place God called you into to strengthen, to serve through, to be a part of - for you it's just one of the franchises and if another has a better menu, you move there.

All over the world, people are gathering today even though by the very act of doing so, they risk death. In Iraq, in Nigeria, in Indonesia, in India, in China and other places, Christians recognize that celebrating the resurrection is important - is something you HAVE to do - "we love, because He first loved us" reaction to Jesus' actions on our behalf. They see their brothers and sisters as indispensable parts of a whole community of faith that's worth investing everything into for as long as God needs them there.

Love you guys, but honestly, this - Easter is optional, my church doesn't matter behavior isn't beautiful.

It's wrong.

It hurts.

Underneath

One of the things Bunny and I love to do on vacation is to visit old churches and old cemeteries. The Huguenot Cemetery in St Augustine is a favorite. The gravestones are old, dating back to the late 1700's. They are also ornate and the pinnacle of the craftsman's art at the time. Every single person who carved the stones is long dead.

They went to work each day, used their talents and skills to the best of their ability and hopefully pleased their customers, providing some comfort perhaps in their time of grief. In the cemetery there are stones that are well preserved like this one, and others that you cannot read at all, as time and the elements have erased the stone-carver's efforts.

I guess that's what drove me to take this picture - I can identify with that.

As a pastor, I'm giving everything I can to the work of God through New Hope Baptist Church. While I was on "vacation" I was still thinking about New Hope - praying that Sunday would go well, having certain people come to mind as I saw things in St Augustine, praying each day for others along the way. Having done everything I could take make sure Sunday without the Wilson family would "work", all I could do then was trust God.

But then that's all I can do everyday.

I can encourage. I can even inspire. I can teach God's Word. I can serve in any area needed, from worship leadership to setting up tables and cook the midweek meal. I can lead in prayer and by example. I can be there to cry with people and rejoice with them. I can love them.

But I can't... make them want more of God or more for their church. I can't.

I guess that's what bothers me, underneath.

When God Smiles

Had some things happen at New Hope yesterday that I know made God smile. Theologians tend to get a wee bit anxious when you start assigning human traits and actions to God, but there are numerous references for people pleasing God, and I've got to believe that He wouldn't sit there like a Baptist with a sour pickle face. When things happen here that change a person's eternity - God smiles. Like when a person decides to follow Jesus - to come home.

5 When you see them coming you'll smile—big smiles! Your heart will swell and, yes, burst! All those people returning by sea for the reunion, a rich harvest of exiles gathered in from the nations!
Isaiah 60:5 (MSG)

Awesome to see that happen. And then to hear about a need in our community and the instant and passionate pursuit of a way to meet that need? As a pastor, combine someone getting save with others getting busy serving the "least of these" and it's an incredibly encouraging moment. Then there's next Sunday - our third annual "Barefoot Sunday" where we'll end our collection for Soles4Souls and some of us will leave barefoot to experience even for a little while, just what people without shoes do all the time.

There's more going on in this smaller church than anyone riding by would ever know. We've got to let them know.

Hey - now you do - so go tell someone!

How To Encourage Your Pastor

Hi there,

David Wilson here, just one of thousands of pastors across America and around the world. I've come to you today to offer you some insight on how you can do something that will encourage your pastor and help your church accomplish all that God wants it to do. I'm not going to drop an exhaustive list of things on you, or suggest you do anything that's beyond your ability to do. What I'm suggesting is simple and easy to get done.

Are you ready?

Here it is.

Grow in your faith, be faithful in your attendance, look for ways to serve, and be excited about God's Word and the work God has given your church to do.

That's it.

Try it and you'll see God at work in your life and in the life of your church.

Imposters

Last night I started to notice that my Google Mail's "Spam" box was filling at a pretty rapid rate. One of the reasons I chose GMail to begin with years ago was because of its really good spam filters, but at the rate the numbers were climbing I began wondering if something was up. Oh, something was up all right. I had become (in the eyes of the unknowing world) a SPAMMER!

The email was the standard Nigerian scam of a bequest to the recipient that had fallen to the sender, in this case "me"  Rev. David Wilson, a parish priest in London England, to handle. The email address was slightly different than mine on the outgoing end but in the details they had "spoofed" my email address. It's stopped now - I guess Google figured out what was happening. But to the thousand or so people who go the spam sent under my name, I'm a spammer.

You could be too.

There's really not a lot you can do to prevent this. After checking to make sure it wasn't a hijack of my account (it wasn't) and alerting Google that was about all I could do. The spammers just take an email address they know is good to try and make their emails look safe so the filters won't catch them. But they normally do get caught by the better filtering technology. Still, it's no fun feeling like people all over the world think you are something that you know you are not.

Although... I've always wanted to live in England. ;)

Boundaries

From It's Like Herding Cats - A pastor's life

For me, it's the call.

It's always about being faithful to the call.

I've been in service to God through several distinct "calls." There was the call to come and follow Jesus that I responded to at Bethesda Baptist Church. Then there was the call to teach a couple years later at Bethesda. Later at Mt Zion, I resumed teaching but knew God now wanted more. With the help of a spiritually discerning friend named Rickie Baucom, I was able to say out loud "I believe God has called me to be a pastor to His people." Then there were calls by churches to serve.

Ten years ago, almost eleven years ago now, I accepted the call to pastor a struggling but hopeful congregation in Valparaiso, Florida - a place called "New Hope." Ever since we moved here, leaving home and family behind, my family and I have poured our lives into God's service through this group of people. They were coworkers in Christ initially who have become over the years unforgettable friends. We dearly love them and would do anything in the world to help in any way we can. It's a great privilege to be invited into their lives.

It's also an enormous responsibility.

"Not many of you should desire to be teachers..." most of us remember from the Scriptures, and it's true. But somewhere in the margin everyone should write "and whatever you do, if you can do ANYTHING other than be a pastor - do THAT."

This isn't to trivially joke about the job. No, I'm very serious. The job is all encompassing. It's 24/7 and 365. It takes place at times when your family needs you. It takes place when you are ill. The telephone rings an hour after you get home from one ministry call and you instantly need to be at the top of your game in every way. Most jobs, when you are home - you're home and the job is back there. Not this one. The stakes are the highest they can be, so you will push yourself again and again to meet the needs. Oh and the joys - are the most fulfilling of any job. To see God at work - changing lives? Priceless. Worth it. Totally.

And yet, you need to set limits. Bunny asked me last night on our way back from praise band practice "How many hours a week do you work - 80?" Coming from her, who sees the 24/7 nature of ministry work play out every day, that was a shock. I really haven't given it a lot of thought. You do what you have to do to accomplish the mission. People around here do that all the time - when they are deployed they do it with mortar shells raining, and the ever present chance of ambush or IEDs. It's what you do when the mission matters so much.

Yet the military leadership knows that such actions cannot continue forever. As the leader of a church that does a lot more than people would expect, I'm wondering where the line should be drawn. If an activity isn't a clear win - in other words if it doesn't contribute directly to the mission - should we be doing it at all? Or should we relegate such activities to an occasional frequency and program them far enough out to manage the impact they have on people. I think one of the good things that come out of the church planting experience is the focus on the essentials. Thom Rainer's "Simple Church" model played a variation on that theme. What is New Hope doing that it doesn't need to be? And what could our people be doing if we dropped something that WOULD matter?

As for me, I'm beginning to grasp the concept of "sabbath" as being just as important as the Scriptures make it. If I were to take all the vacation I haven't taken through the years, I probably could be off from September to Christmas. But the work was always there and the resources haven't always been. I'm laying out some new boundaries though, and looking for times and places for Bunny and me to step out of the traces and rest and renew on a regular basis. Even just a trip to Destin's shores for an hour can make a difference.

Any of you who know of places we would enjoy that are within reach, shoot me an email. Pastor friends, if you know of one in your area I can get to, I'll be happy to give you a morning off and preach for you. Of course your congregation may never recover... but. :)