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At the door…Salvation comes. (Poem)

Dear Lord, 

you know these feeble hands

and waning strength

ebbing away as the ticking hand progresses

You know my thoughts 

and how they stray wondering 

further then a troubled runaway…

I can’t pretend in your presence

I can’t put up a front before you

You see right through me like 

a window pane freshly washed

this house is open, doors unlocked

I cannot hide from you 

not deny any skeletons yet residing.

yet you come to me

you still come to my level

and embrace me like everything

is alright…I know it’s not

and yet you remind me again

that your sacrifice has made me clean

you have made it right

made it right for me…

how can I accept this? 

when I know i’m a mess? 

How can I agree to this

when I can’t forgive who I am 

the battle isn’t about what you are

and what you’ve done

but what I am and where I’ve been…

how can I let you in? 

How can I let you see me like this? 

Yet your grace, your face

your love your hope 

surrounds me completely.

It’s too good for me and yet

you let me see that you grant 

this gift to me freely!

Such amazing love,

such unmerited grace

falls upon me in this place

and I am whole again

I am so much more than I used to be

you have mended me 

you have set me free…

and so I no longer let you stand

at the door on my front porch

but I let you in and let this 

salvation thing in me begin.  

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Ashamed? Hell No!

2 Timothy 1:5-8 (NIV)
5 I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. 8 So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God,
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I hope I didn’t offend you…not my purpose.  My purpose in my title is to ask which do we prefer Eternity in Heaven or Eternity in Hell.  My choice?  Hell?  NO!  Heaven?  Yes!  From this perspective I will not be ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ!  I know in whom I have placed my trust and I will not back down from that!  

The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy to remind him to carry on the mission of Christ…to fan it into flame to ignite others and to never be ashamed of the Lord.  I can imagine the early Christians facing all kinds of ridicule, mockery, imprisonment and death…Paul’s words go beyond basic embarrassment or  shame it picks at the very heart of being a Christian.  We are to be in essence gate keepers of heaven…guides if you will to the one who holds the keys of heaven and eternal life – Christ himself.  

When we shy away from this role, when we passively allow injustices to occur and we look the other way because we’re afraid to get involved or how it will look we may as well be gate keepers of hell.  I know that sounds pretty harsh but we have to stand for something or else we’ll fall for anything or allow anything to go in this life.  And if we’re wise in our understanding of scripture we ought to acknowledge that scripture certainly doesn’t endorse an ‘anything goes’ notion in this life.  

Timothy took up the gauntlet from the Apostle Paul.  He did continue in spreading the word of Christ to all the world.  He was a pivotal early church leader.  

In our lives are we ashamed of Christ?  Are we afraid to share our faith of Him to those we meet?  I’m not talking about handing out “Get Saved Or Else” pamphlets here.  I’m talking about developing trusting relationships with people so that when you present the gospel you are making a lasting impact on them.  Being unashamed is a part of the role of a Christian.  We can’t do this in our own strength however.  We need the strength and power of the Holy Spirit to get it right and to be effective.  

Ashamed?  If we allow hell to prevail…I say Hell no!  Stand up, be bold, be unashamed..and heaven Yes!   

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YOLO?

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It’s been around for a while, but I think the significance of this four letter acronym should be explored.  “You only live once” is what it tells us.  What does it mean?  People have used it as a hashtag signifying & justifying poor judgement and bad decisions with this excuse “you only live once”.   There is even a ‘YOLO’ clothing line that has been started.  We’ve gone from ‘Just Do It’ and ‘No Fear’ to ‘YOLO’.  Hmm…it seems to me that what culture is telling us is that it’s okay to do what you want, when you want, where you want because you only live once.

I recognize that everyone makes mistakes in this life but if we don’t learn from them and acknowledge that we’ve made them we run the risk of never growing and maturing.  As a Christian I don’t believe that I am going to live just once and then nothing, I believe that there is an eternity and that this life we live leads us to the next, and what we do here and now counts…it matters!  So if I adopted  ‘YOLO’ as my philosophy , what I’m saying essentially is that the only thing that matters in life is the ‘here and now’.  The problem with that is that it doesn’t account for the consequences.  For example if someone sleeps around aren’t they more likely to contract an STD than someone who waits until marriage?  If someone starts smoking and burns through at least a pack a day aren’t they opening themselves up to a slew of medical problems down the road the worst being cancer and death?   I could add so many more examples of choice = consequence here but these are just two examples.

YOLO isn’t really a new phrase, it’s just wrapped in new packaging.  Some have taken scripture out of context as well when they quote passages like “Let us eat and drink,” you say, “for tomorrow we die!” Isaiah 22:13 (NIV)  The meaning behind it has been eliminated and taken to mean ‘well what the heck, we can do what we want because we know we’re all going to die someday’.  

I’m not too keen on living that way because I recognize that one day each person is going to have to account for the life that we’ve lived before the Father in heaven.  That doesn’t mean that we can’t enjoy life, on the contrary God has given us this life for enjoyment and pleasure but we ought to recognize that He also wants us to include Him in our lives.  When we forget consequences and forget about the future, we lose focus on what is at stake.

One of my favorite bible verses is a good guide for each of us in how we ought to live.
“He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” Micah 6:8 (NIV)  If we are walking humbly with our God we will enjoy this life so much more than the emptiness of comes knocking on our doors after we have lived it up and gone down roads that we now regret.  

On the plus side, perhaps there is merit to ‘YOLO’…perhaps you can take this phrase to mean ‘hey you only live once in flesh and bone so make it count, do what you can to live a godly life and glorify the Lord in your living’!  I think if I were to embrace YOLO that is what I would take it to mean.  Will I make it count?  Can I live a God pleasing life?  Can I help lead others to Him along the way?  ‘YOLO’!

-Just a thought for today!

Here’s some humor for your Monday:

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Sermon Podcast: A Mother’s Heritage

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Sermon Link via Podomatic:

http://scottstrissel.podomatic.com/entry/2013-05-12T13_07_09-07_00

Also podcasts are a available free by download via iTunes: key word: brainerdcorps
Sermon Scripture Passage:

2 Timothy 1:3-8 (NIV)
3 I thank God, whom I serve, as my forefathers did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4 Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. 5 I have been reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. 8 So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God,

3 Marks of Love (A Mother’s Heritage to pass on to her children):

1) Knowledge of a Savior

2) Knowledge of the Scriptures

3) A Passion to Serve!

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On-line Bullies…let me at em!!

A Story about the effects of Bullying:

Star Wars Kid Years Later Talks about his horrific experience:

I’m sure almost everyone has seen the star wars kid on youtube and other viral video sites…did you know that he was mortified when this video was released without his knowledge or permission?  And because of it he had to change schools and suffer the behind the hand snickers and ridicule of being an unwanted celebrity.

The new forms of bullying is truly alive and well on the world wide web!  Can I make a confession?  I hate bullies.  I know hate is a tough word but seriously bullies are cowards that pick on their victims…it’s painful and I absolutely can’t stand people who conduct themselves in this manner.

Perhaps you’ve been there as a child or even as an adult…we should be mindful of the viral world that our children are exposed to in this world and be vigilant in protecting them along with others who are incapable of protecting themselves.   Be the difference in your children’s lives and those that you are able to protect!  Stand up to bullies!  This is more than just a PSA, this should be a way of life!   Be a change maker in the lives of those who are being picked on or bullied!   Stand up and make a difference!

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Sacramental whether we like it or not

“As his sacramental people, we find him living and at work in our own life-experiences. We celebrate the presence, the gift, the healing, the reconciliation, the joy in our own life by connecting it with the earthly life of Jesus. We are a sacramental community because our life, our work, and our celebrations centre on Christ, the one true Sacrament. Our life together is sacramental because we live by faith in him and our everyday lives reveal and offer unexpected grace, his undeserved gift again and again.” (The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine, p.270)

Concise Dictionary of Religion calls a sacrament “a Rite in which GOD (or Gods) is (are) uniquely active”.

By this definition of what sacramental means every Christian church on earth is sacramental. If we invite the holy presence of God to meet us in our worship, which is usually the case in times of worship for without His presence in what we do, church is meaningless and should be regarded as social hour instead of worship. We do not pray to each other, so God becomes active in prayer therefore making it sacramental within our worship. When we read from His word, which we attest to being living and active and the only source of Christian faith and practice, we acknowledge that His word is vital and applicable to godly living therefore God is again active in our worship. By this definition alone we attest that we are sacramental people who wish to interact with a living and Holy God.

Sacramental living has unfortunately been compartmentalized within church to be specific actions or rituals in which we do or do not participate in, such as Communion or baptism. While these two specific acts of worship have the potential to be sacred moments in Christian living, they hold no more or less sacred value than that of corporate prayer or the call to salvation in an altar call setting. One could argue that we have been instructed through scripture to “do this in remembrance of me” (Luke 22:19) But many fail to realize the context in which Christ was instructing…what does remembrance mean? Where was Jesus and the disciples when he gave this command. Many would argue that it is strictly the breaking of the bread and the drinking of the wine, but if we were to explore further in this context of this scripture the entire ecclesia of believers/disciples were gathered together over the dinner table and fellowshipping with Christ. This too is divine interaction in the context of worship! A meal together in the corporate sense of worship is sacramental as well, not just the breaking of bread and the passing of the cup…I believe historically we as Church have only scratched the surface of the sacraments when we only take a portion of the passover meal in the two elements and make it something more than it should be. Dare I say it’s a misrepresentation of scripture to evoke one segment of this meal with his disciples to be more important than the entirety as a whole.

We are sacramental as a people because of the unity of the body through Christ Jesus. When we as His people participate unified in the corporate setting we are doing this in remembrance of Him. Our worship is never perfect, we all have our hang ups, but when we invite God to partake in our prayers, songs, scripture readings, message, meals we are practicing sacramental living.

Holy living within the context of partaking in these sacred moments is the result of our invitation and reception of His presence. We enter into His presence not only in church but in our private prayer closets and daily devotional lives. We have received his holy presence at salvation and the work of the Holy Spirit prods us onward in becoming more like Christ in our new creation through continued surrender of every fragment of our being. Submission or fully surrendered lives to the Holy Spirit is by far the most sacred sacrament we partake in within our human existence.

We are sacramental in word and deed whether we like it or not…but I’m willing to venture a guess that upon receiving and accepting His presence in our lives this realization becomes all too clear through our surrender and His love which permeates every fiber of our transformed lives.

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An Angelic Prison Break

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Jesus had told him that he would go where he didn’t want to go and be led to places he never wished to be…but Peter wasn’t quite prepared for the violent onslaught the seemed to never end for his fellow apostles.  Stephen had seen a horrific end, though many had believed.  Now, sitting in prison in chains, surrounded by guards Peter considered that this might be the end of his journey too.  After all, just hours ago Herod had executed James the brother of John by the sword and Peter though full of faith, wept for his family.  In a very small corner of his mind he ponders just for a brief second what may have taken place had he left Jesus when he had had the chance.   Yet, Peter quickly pushes that thought aside as an overwhelming warmth of love fills his body when we remembers the master’s face.  He remembers what forgiveness felt like on that beach after he had denied Him three times.  His love poured out undeservedly upon Peter.  “No I would not change a thing”, Peter says to himself.  No second guessing, no self-pity, no turning back!

The chains jingle as Peter, a little bruised and tender, shifts position in the dingy rank cellar of a prison.  The guards are positioned all around him, as if Peter were some sort of Samson-strong man who could take down a regiment of soldiers with just a jaw bone of a donkey.   The guards eye him carefully as he shifts in his chains, King Herod had been explicitly clear that this man had to be watched and that if anything happened to him they would pay the price with their lives.  King Herod was a vicious man not to be trifled with or taken lightly.

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Minutes pass that seem like hours, as the torches on the walls flicker casting shadows on the molding green stones of the cell.  Peter, slumped and weary, closes his eyes intent on praying but too emotionally drained falls quickly into a fitful sleep.   It seems like a second passes when someone strikes him on the side to awaken him.  At first Peter thinks it’s one of the guards and he wonders to himself, “is it time?”  Looking up he finds not a solider dressed in military garb, but rather an Angel luminescent and powerful to behold.   As Peter looks at the angel, sleep blurred and groggy, the angel looks fiercely back at him and says, “Quick, get up!”  Thinking it a vision, Peter doesn’t hesitate or ask any questions and as he moves to pick himself up off of the damp floor, the chains fall off of him as if they had never been clasped tightly around him at all.  Bewildered and yet unsure of what this was real or a vision, Peter stands before the Angel.

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“Put on your clothes and your sandals Peter!”   The angel continues his instructions to Peter, “wrap yourself in your cloak as well!”  Peter doesn’t waste any time in protesting, he’s learned long ago not to question but to obey.  After dressing and putting on his cloak, the angel instructs him, “Follow me.”  Again Peter, thinking this to be a vision, does what the angel says and puts one foot in the front of the other and walks right out of the prison.  He walks right past the guards who had been keeping a careful watch over him and they do not even respond to his passing.  He follows the angel through the metal doors and past the outer door that leads into the city.  The door even opens by itself.  After Peter has walked with the angel for about two city blocks, suddenly two things dramatically occur: The angel disappears, vanishes completely from sight.  The second thing that amazes Peter is that this isn’t a vision at all.  This is very real…and he is now free!  What started out as a death row vigil has become a divine prison break!

Full of joy and renewed mission, Peter makes his way to the house of Mary, mother of John Mark.  His fellow brothers and sisters in Christ were gathered there earnestly praying.  And as Peter knocks on the front door, a servant girl answers and is shocked to see Peter there in front of her.  She is so shocked by his appearance there that she shuts the door on him and runs off to announce his arrival.  A fugitive, by the name of Peter, is standing outside in the open air while the small house church is made aware of his escape and arrival!  At first they don’t believe the servant girl, “how could this be?”  One apostle asks.  “She’s just making up stories!” Another voice calls out from the back of the room.   Then another Christ-follower offers another conclusion of who it might be; “It could be an angel” He says.  Now curious what or who has caused this commotion, they all rush to the front door and find out for themselves that it is in fact Peter who is still knocking at the door.  Peter is standing there and he is free!  They are amazed at this miracle!   For hours they had been gathered in a small room made sacred by their continued prayers.  Their faith, love and intercessory prayers had been answered!

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Peter, though prison weary, recounts the miracle and the angel and all who hear rejoice and are amazed!  Knowing he is now a wanted man who is an escapee from prison, Peter leaves their company quickly and without delay before the sun even has a chance to crest over the city walls.

Does God answer prayer?  In the midst of our deepest struggles and in the midst of our trouble lives the answer is a resounding ‘YES’!  Though there will be times that He doesn’t answer the way that we think He should, what we are called to be is faithful!  Will the dangers be lifted from us?  Not always.  We may still have to endure the valley of the shadow of death a time or two…but know that we never walk these paths alone!  God really means it when He says that He is our shepherd and we are under His care!  Believe it and received it today!

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Jesus Wept

Jesus wept…

did He weep for me? 

Was He weeping

for Himself? 

Was He afraid

knowing the path 

that lay ahead…

it says he sweat 

like drops of blood

was He conflicted

before the tree? 

Was it a conflict 

that He should die for me? 

Two simple words

that pierce my heart

carrying with it a weight 

of power and a wealth of love…

was I on His mind – with future

edging in, threatening Him? 

Jesus wept…two words

that form on my tongue

and creep deeply in my soul

knowing in His tears he 

carried my burdens 

and washed them away. 

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Whispers or the love song? (Poem)

There is a whisper 

breathless and full of repine 

counting down the ifs

the and couldas and the shouldas…

the well is full of these regrets

with night as black as coal 

and eyes that stare menacingly back

as if in reproach and in contrition. 

Were it so and the hands of time

were to cooperate 

the hands of man might undo

that which enslaves the mind, body and soul.

We are all slaves. 

Shackled, broken, held against our

will, our identities wiped away 

how wretched it must be

to remain if freedom loomed 

with open door and nail pierced hands.

Though the whispers may continue

we do not have to listen anymore.

For there is a far better song

a lyric sewn with love

webbed with compassion 

and grafted like our blood line

to our Father. 

Yes, the whispers might continue

but give ear to the song of love

for it beckons and grants a much kinder 

destination without chains or remorse. 

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Church Practice…Mission & Vision Pt. 2

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Church Practice pt.2:

Assessment & Strategy

“Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction.” Proverbs 29:18

How do we begin to set our sights on new ventures and capture victories in our church?  Or perhaps how do we recapture the vigor and passion our church once had is a better question?  All too often organic ministry takes shape, spontaneous growth occurs and we just don’t know what to do next.  We say that we want more people coming to church but when they start coming many of us don’t know what to do with them.  Sure some might say, “well we love them.”  And that may be so, but without purpose behind ministry we run the risk of losing these new people because there is just nothing that keeps them coming back.  It’s the work of the Holy Spirit to convict and save, but it’s the church’s responsibility to love them and accept them into the family.  Without acceptance and then provided roles and duties a new member may begin to feel like the third wheel, unwanted and might be eyeing the exit sign.

Questions to consider:

What is your Church’s Mission & Vision?

Do you have these written down?

Have you shared them with your congregation?

Are they posted in a prominent place within your church so that all can see them?

If your answers to these questions is “I don’t know” and “No”, then dare I say that perhaps it’s time to get started on articulating what it is your church wishes to accomplish, what your vision needs to be and how your mission might be accomplished.

How Do We Get Started?

Scripture tells us that people without vision will perish.

1)    Pray:

So perhaps the very first thing you ought to do is pray.  This could be done individually at first then corporately with your core group of leaders.  But prayer is our direct connection with the one who makes all things possible and the only source of our true power and wisdom in this process.  Vision casting cannot effectively take place within the church without first inviting God’s Holy presence to partake in the planning process.  Prayer should not be taken for granted or taken lightly.  Without His wisdom and direction our Mission and vision for our church will not succeed.

 

2)      Look Back:

I don’t say this so that we will remain there in our past, but rather we might begin to identify exactly why something became successful in your church in the first place.  You might be surprised as to why a program or ministry flourished or grew.  Was it because of the leadership present at the time?  Was it because of the community dynamics?

The whole reason to look back at past victories is twofold.  The first reason is because we need to recognize that God was present in the past and He is here in our present planning.  He has granted us these moments of refinement and we ought to celebrate them!  So we recognize that God was involved in the victories.  The second reason we look back is to identify our victories which will motivate us and cause us to believe that these victories are still possible in this present day!  Be mindful though, that what worked in the past might not work in the present.  This is simply an exercise to identify the victories and the successes so that we can possibly recapture or claim new victories through the planning process.

3)      Know Your Community!

There are any number of statistical web sites out there that can give you vital information regarding the demographics of your community.  Not only will they provide you with the breakdown of ethnic groupings but also median age, education, house hold incomes, and even a statistic of single parents in your neighborhoods.  This information is crucial to recognizing who is living in your church’s radius.  When we can analyze this data we can begin to identify what our mission to our community should be.  For example if there is a high percentage of single parents living in your community you might begin to use this information to craft applicable ministries to meet the needs of single parents.  It is important that as you begin to craft your church’s mission and vision that you have a good understanding of your community and that of its needs.

4)        Know Your Church

This isn’t to mean that you are limited to just the people in your church, but rather to be wise and know who makes up your church and its current ministries.  When you know your church, its specific dynamic, good & bad, generational demographics, educational demographics, then you will begin to see what their needs are also.  From this study you will then also be able to draw from those resources to better help you devise your strategies as you move forward.  With your Core group of leaders you can identify church members who could be utilized in any number of ministries and that of their potential.  It is important to know what you already have and who will support your church’s mission and vision.

5)      S.W.O.T. Analysis

There are other means of analyzing and planning your mission & vision, but this is one tool that I have used and have seen success from.  In your Core group, set aside an hour or two to sit down and do a S.W.O.T. analysis of your church while having your community demographics information at hand.  What is S.W.O.T.?  It is a tool to identify you Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats.  Here is a web link to read up further on this vital tool:  http://ctb.ku.edu/en/tablecontents/sub_section_main_1049.aspx

As you get together have some big poster board paper handy, or a couple of dry erase boards available to that you can discuss and identify your church’s strengths and weaknesses, its opportunities and threats.  Write them down as you share, post them on the wall so you begin to see the big picture as you proceed forward.  When these are visible you will begin to grasp where your Mission is, what it looks like in your specific community and then you can cast your vision.

6)      Identifying your Mission

There are many ways to do this, but with the information you have now already done, you can begin to see what it is God is calling your church to be and do in the community He has placed you in.  But be mindful, you must not mistake your vision statement for your mission statement.  These two things are not the same…they are hand in glove but the Mission statement ought to come before the Vision statement.  Your mission is what you do every day, while your vision is what will take place in the future because you are living out this mission every day.  Does that make sense?  Mission is intrinsically who you are, while Vision is where you’d like to be because of who you are.  Mission =Identity, Vision=future.

Since there are a lot of mission statement helps out there, we don’t have to reinvent the wheel here…use some of these resources to help you.  Do some research!  Here is a great tool to help you with your mission statement:   http://www.firstthird.org/eym/EYM-Tool-2-Identifying-Your-Churchs-Culture.pdf

7)      Vision Statement:

Again make sure that you have your mission statement for your specific church nailed down before tackling the vision statement.  It’s like trying to build a house without the foundation.  You need your mission statement to be clear before you can identify where you want to go.  Vision casting might take some time; some continued prayer will be involved.  But remember this is your church, your future and good things don’t come from poor planning or no planning.  It will take some sweat and possibly tears to get there.

http://scottjeffrey.com/2010/01/how-to-craft-a-compelling-vision-statement/

Video Helps:

http://youtu.be/ioY-YSOKBtY

http://youtu.be/7orBFwkziyg

http://youtu.be/HOSpEFyGWLQ

When I went to college for organizational leadership, I learned this process and it struck me how simple it can be but many times we make it out to be so complex.  With your Core leaders there has to be no ego, no sugar coating, just humble servants wanting to invest in what God has given you and your church ministries.  When you put your church and community under the microscope it might be painful, yet endure the uncomfortable nature of this process because great things can and will take place if you allow God to use you and your church for His purposes alone!

Feel free to send me questions or feedback if you are interested in starting this process with your church.  I have a real passion for churches going through or needing to go through this planning process!

scottstrissel@yahoo.com

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