Pastor Dan's Life @ Lifegate

The End

2012-03-12T16:40:00.002-07:00

I've been putting this off for quite a while, but I need to do this.

Lifegate Baptist Church closed it's doors on January 29, 2012. This blog has been about my journey as pastor of Lifegate and the church's journey from an older, traditional congregation to...? Well, what did we become? In the end we were a small church with a number of very committed people who simply lacked the resources (financial and otherwise, but mainly financial) to continue on in ministry.

These last 6 years have been full of many ups and downs-it has been a bumpy road, but I can take comfort in believing that God brought the ministry at Lifegate to a close because He had accomplished His purposes for that church & now He is moving all of us on to new churches, new places of ministry, new places to worship so that we can continue to accomplish His purposes there and in His time He will bring new people into to restart a ministry here, to this neighborhood that will, Lord willing, be very successful.

So, in keeping with the name of this blog-Pastor Dan's Life @ Lifegate is dead. This will be the last time I plan to post here, because it is time for me to move on. Move one to what, I have no idea. That is why I'll be starting a new blog to document this time in between. And if you want to continue to follow me on this new leg of my life's journey come join me on my new blog-Neither Here Nor There.

Thanks for coming with me on this leg of the journey. To all of you who were a part of Lifegate, thank you for your service, for you support & most of all thank you for allowing me to be your pastor for these last 6 years. I pray that we brought a bit of Shalom to a dark place & that together we all grew and became more like our rabbi.

Go in Peace,
Pastor Dan

God, where are we going?

2012-01-05T14:31:00.000-08:00

This post from Jonathan Herron is a great reminder that no matter how bleak things seem or how bad things have been, we cannot live in the past, we cannot dwell on our regrets. Keep moving forward, seeking God, asking Him what are you calling me to do today & then step out in faith and do it.

That's my question for 2012-God what are you calling me to do this year? I can't wait to hear the answer.

Occupy the Church

2011-12-14T11:14:00.000-08:00

Came across a thought provoking post from Jonathan Herron this morning. He was writing about Time Magazine's choice of the Protestor as the 2011 Person of the Year.

It was this thought particularly that got me thinking, Jonathan wrote:

Jesus attracted revolutionaries.
The Scriptures acknowledge that the system is scratched and broken.
The heartbeat of the Church is a battle cry for mavericks:

Things don't have to be this way!
We are FOR the beat-up and broken!
There is always room for more to join our movement!
You like celebrations? We rally behind a Dead Guy who's Alive!
Let's make heaven crowded!

You can read the rest of his post here. But that got me to thinking about what we stand for and what we stand against as the church. The reason people stand up and protest is because the believe that something is broken, something is wrong & they are willing to challenge the status quo to try and change it. Well, church-wake up-look around-the world we live in today is broken, something is wrong, people are hurting, hungry, homeless, abused, sick and dying, there are people today who will starve to death, who will die because they don't have access to clean water & what are we doing?
When Jesus came he proclaimed that the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand-a kingdom where God rules & everything is as it should be, no hunger, no poverty, no sickness, no death, no tears, no injustice. When we came to Christ we became part of that kingdom, we are as Paul says "Citizens of heaven" & in the same way that Jesus worked to bring those kingdom values into the world we need to do the same. Things don't have to be this way, things shouldn't be this way, but the sad truth is far too many of us in the church like the nice, easy, comfortable lives we've built for ourselves. We say, "I'll help, just as long as it doesn't inconvenience me too much." Jesus was for the beat-up and broken & we should be too.
When we reduce the gospel to believe in Jesus so you can go to heaven when you die, we're only getting part of the message. Yes, Jesus died so that we might be saved, but not just in the future, when we die-Jesus died so that our lives might be changed, so that we might be part of His kingdom & live like citizens of that Kingdom every day, asking Him to work through us to be a part of what He has called the church to do since the book of Acts-be His change agent in the world. Be His body, living out His kingdom Values every day.
It's way to easy for us to build our nice buildings, dress up and play church every week. Trying to create our own safe, secure little Christian sub-culture where we don't have to worry about all of the problems that are out there. But that was never what Jesus intended for the church to be-we are His body called to go out & stand against-protest- all that is wrong & work to share in word & deeds the good news of the gospel. Giving people small glimpses of what the future Kingdom will be like & inviting them in to come & follow Jesus, be part of His kingdom & be part of what He is doing to change the world.

The Discipline of Celebration

2011-12-08T14:40:00.001-08:00

Joy is at the heart of God’s plan for human beings. The reason for this is worth pondering awhile: Joy is at the heart of God himself. We will never understand the significance of joy in human life until we understand its importance to God. I suspect that most of us seriously underestimate God’s capacity for joy.-John Ortberg, The Life You’ve AlwaysWanted

This Sunday at Lifegate we are wrapping up our series on the Spiritual Disciplines, Basic Training. As we finish this series off we are going to be looking at a few of the Corporate Disciplines. No, those are not disciplines for corporations, they are the Spiritual Disciplines that we practice when we come together as a church. Specifically, we will be looking at the Disciplines of Worship, Celebration & Fellowship. I've enjoyed preparing for speaking on all three of them, but the one that seems to be neglected, or maybe downplayed the most, at least in my experience, would be Celebration.

I think that Celebration gets a bad rap sometimes, where did we get the idea that to be truly spiritual we have to be serious & strait laced? What about the command in Philippians 4:4 to "Rejoice in the Lord always, again I will say rejoice."? Why do we have such a hard time letting ourselves experience joy?

This year I've had a number of fantastic experiences that were filled with joy. I was able to experience things that I fully enjoy & do them with people I love. But on more than a few of those occasions those experiences were not cheap and there was a small part of me that felt guilty about spending that much money on something that was just for fun, something that I would enjoy. Then today as I was reading about joy & Celebration I came across a few verses in Deuteronomy 14 where God instructs the children of Israel that they are to set aside a portion of their crops & wine & oil & cattle & at the appointed time make a trip to Jerusalem & enjoy what they had set aside. Or, if it was to far to take all of that, sell it, take the money & get this "spend the money for whatever you desire-oxen or sheep or wine or strong drink, whatever your appetite craves. And you shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice." (Deut. 14:26) God wanted them to save up & then take time to enjoy what they had, enjoy life & the purpose of enjoying it was "that you may learn to fear the Lord your God always." (Deut. 14:23) Enjoyment of what God has given us, enjoying the blessings that we have isn't wrong-but it should all be as an act of worship, celebration of who God is and what He has done.

One last thought about joy before Sunday. Have you ever noticed that kids have no problem enjoying life. They love life & they seem to enjoy every minute of it that they can. So what can we learn from kids about joy. Here's what I wrote today as I was preparing for Sunday's sermon. Consider this a brief preview:

I believe that one aspect of the childlike faith that X calls us to is joy. Life for children is a series of moments, each moment filled with possibility and each second opportunity for the expression of the joy that is in them. Before their lives have been consumed with hurry & worry & stress-children are free to enjoy each moment for what it is an opportunity to enjoy this gift of life, to revel in a new experience, to lose themselves in the embrace of a loved one, to dream of what could be, to imagine what is beyond the horizon, to marvel at the beauty of creation, to celebrate all that is right & pure & good & lovely.

We would all do well to take a lesson from our children & worry less & enjoy life more. Look for the opportunities to Celebrate all that is right and pure and good and lovely around you for what it is, a gift from God.

Basic Training-Week 4: Silence & Solitude

2011-12-04T08:35:00.001-08:00

As we continue our series on the spiritual disciplines this week we come to silence and solitude. Probably not the most popular or widely practiced disciplines in our rush, rush, let's see how fast we can get this done world.
Truth is, if we are going practice silence and solitude, most of us don't really know how-we might need some help, so here are a few links to some articles on line that can get us started.

The first 2 are on how to spend a day in prayer. This is an article from the Navigators website on How to spend a Day in Prayer. The second is an article from the CB Northwest website on Spending a Day in Prayer by Lorne C. Sanny, if you want to do more reading on prayer/spending a day in prayer check out some of the links at the bottom of the article.

These are a few articles I found that specifically deal with spending time in silence and solitude:
-From Marc Driscol
-From Bill Gaultiere and his blog Soul Shepherding
-From the reading room @ the Water's Edge

I would encourage you to carve out some time to engage in some silence and solitude in the coming year.

Friday Favorites-12/2/11

2011-12-02T06:00:00.000-08:00

One thing I love about the internet is the way it can open our eyes and ears to new voices, new ideas, new thoughts about life, ministry & so many other things. For example-2 of my favorite blog posts this week come from someone I had never heard of on Monday. Her name is Sarah Bessey & she runs the website www.emergingmummy.com and works part-time for Mercy Ministries of Canada.

This week one of my friends on facebook posted a link to this post from Sarah on Why We Don't need Women's Ministry. I'll be honest, most of the things she says could be applied to Men's ministry, youth ministry, seniors ministry, etc. We aren't in the entertainment business, the church doesn't exist to provide you with a safe Christian alternative to the world. The church exists as the body of Christ & we have been put here so that God can use us to change the world.

Anyway, that post led me to her website where I found this post on Advent. I've since added emerging mummy to my list of blogs that I will be reading regularly.

I Wanna Be A History Maker

2011-12-01T06:00:00.000-08:00

"As children we assume that greatness is within our grasp. Whatever inspires us, we begin to dream that one day we will be the best. It is only as we lose our childlike innocence that we begin to settle for far less. A part of growing up seems to be acquiescing to mediocrity. It's easy to say that we're just becoming realistic, that it's just a part of growing up. But, in fact, it's the death of our souls. When we stop dreaming, we start dying. For some of us, it has been a slow, painful death. Others are just the walking dead. They died a long time ago, and it's nothing less than a freak of nature that they're still breathing."-Erwin Raphael McManus, Soul Cravings-Destiny, end of Entry #3

As Erwin writes about Destiny it seems each day there is something that resonates with me. Probably because I have been struggling with feeling like I'm losing that inspiration, that ability to dream. I don't want to become a realist, I long to be an optimist, someone who continues to believe that God can use me to do great things. I refuse to believe that the best option I have is just to simply live out the rest of my days getting by, just hoping to bring in enough money to pay the bills, stay out of trouble & if it all works out well, retire in comfort.

About 9 years ago, I had an opportunity to work with an incredible team of people launch EPIC, a worship gathering for folks who felt like what was happening on Sunday mornings at our church wasn't really connecting with where they were at. Looking back, it was one of the most rewarding experiences I have had in ministry to this point in my life. It only lasted about 18 months, but they were glorious. Every month God was glorified in creative, exciting & different ways. One of the memories that I will always carry with me was the month our gathering was focused on the theme of extreme courage-the message was from Acts 4 where Peter and John were arrested and told not to preach anymore about Christ & say, to the same people who not long before had crucified Christ "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard." We closed that gathering by singing "History Makers" & I think we all believed that, yes, God could & would use us to make history if we would only follow Him & serve Him with our whole hearts.

I know that God has taken a number of people who were there that night and he is using them to make history. Changing lives in Africa, changing lives as teachers, on missions trips, caring for and advocating for those who are vulnerable, using their unique gifts in ministry literally all around the world. But there are days, for me, in the midst of the fight it is a struggle to keep that dream, that vision, that hope alive. On days like that I am thankful for those that continue to inspire me not to give up. I'm thankful for authors like Erwin & John Eldredge & Francis Chan. I'm thankful for friends that inspire me to press on, to believe that God can still use me as part of His plan to change the world-friends like Rich & Rob & Thomas & Mark & Jessica & Dan, to name a few. I'm thankful for a wife that believes in me & has continually stood by me as a partner in life and ministry through whatever craziness I've led us into. And most of all I'm thankful that we serve a God that doesn't give up on us, that has chosen-as crazy as it sounds-to work through us, His people, to bring about His plan for the world. That is truly humbling and inspiring.

Book Review: Unleashed by Erwin Raphael McManus

2011-11-30T06:00:00.000-08:00

When Christ called His first disciples he didn't call them to a safe, comfortable, easy life with no worries, no troubles & a healthy 401k. He called them to a life of walking by faith, suffering, struggle, uncertainty but it didn't matter because they knew they were following Jesus & doing His will & that life would be filled with joy, peace, love, community in the midst of the "adventure, uncertainty & unlimited possibilities." That contrast is at the core of Erwin Raphael McManus's book Unleashed: Release the Untamed Faith Within. Erwin states (correctly I believe) that "for those of us who embrace the cause of Christ, the cost to participate in the mission of God is nothing less than everything we are and everything we have." Why then, he asks, has the church today become so "civilized."

I read this book a few years ago when it was given to me as a gift by a new member at our church and I loved it. At that time it was called "The Barbarian Way." Since then it has been repackaged and retitled "Unleashed", because apparently "The Barbarian Way" was seen as having been written for men. (Which is funny because it was a woman who gave it to me and it is her favorite book) So, needless to say, I still love the book. I love his challenge to move beyond the safe, comfortable brand of Christianity that is being peddled in far too many churches today & step out in faith to really follow Christ in a risky, dangerous adventure. It is a great challenge to truly love God with all that you are-every fiber of your being & follow Him no matter the cost.
I would definitely recommend this book to others and give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Don't Let the Fire Die

2011-11-29T13:05:00.001-08:00

"We are born with an instinct for not only survival but also accomplishment. There is a fire inside every one of us that propels us forward. We are designed to learn, to adapt, to grow, to change, to develop, to progress, to become."-Erwin Raphael McManus, Soul Cravings

I've been reading Soul Cravings for a while now. Erwin's broken it up into 3 parts each dealing with a different craving that we all have, that we were created to need-Intimacy, Destiny and Meaning. A few weeks ago I finished the section on Intimacy-lot's of great insight about community & love & how much we need both. I posted a few quotes on my facebook.

Last week I started part 2-Destiny & today I came across the quote I started this post with. As I read that it struck a chord for me because that fire-to move, to learn, to grow, to build, to become something, to accomplish something-that fire is something that will die if we don't continually feed it.

When we are young that fire burns bright, we believe we can do anything, accomplish anything-we still believe that God can use us to change the world & so we will try great things for Him. As we get older sometimes that passion starts to fade, people tell us we can't do that & we start to doubt. We hear people say "God doesn't work like that anymore" & we decide not to step out in faith & trust Him. We fail a few times & we're not so quick to get back up and try again. We stretch a bit to much, take one too many risks and get slapped down and are tempted to think "Maybe the status quo isn't so bad after all." And slowly but surely, the fire starts to die, we start to think "Maybe I wasn't ever called by God to do something great, to make an impact, to change someone's life-maybe all there is for me is just to get by, just to exist & hope I don't get crushed in the process."

But is that kind of passion only for the young or do you believe that we were created to have a passion, a fire to learn and grow and change? Because if that's how we were created, it doesn't stop when we reach a certain age. I have known many people who have carried that passion all of their lives & we learning and growing and stretching and being used by God until they died. Don't let the nay sayers & doubters drag you down. Don't let a few failures keep you from continuing to try. Ask God to rekindle that fire in you. Ask Him to show you how He wants to work in your life, how He wants you to grow, what He wants you to become & how He can use you as part of His plan to accomplish His purposes in the lives of others.

God can use you to change the world & don't let anyone tell you differently!!

Basic Training: Week 3-Prayer & Fasting

2011-11-26T15:01:00.001-08:00

This week we are continuing our series on the Spiritual Disciplines-"Basic Training". We have been talking about how God can use the different Spiritual Disciplines in our lives as part of our training to be like Christ. This week we are looking at the disciplines of prayer and fasting. Most of us engage in prayer on a regular basis, maybe not as a consistent Spiritual Discipline, but we are familiar with and know, more or less, how to pray. Fasting-not so much.
Fasting is one of the Spiritual Disciplines that we don't hear much about today and probably practice even less. So, if after hearing the message tomorrow (or if you missed it listen to it online here), you feel that God may be leading you to begin to practice the Spiritual Discipline of fasting, here are some resources that may help you get started.
1. I would recommend reading the chapter on fasting in Richard Foster's book Celebration of Discipline. While I don't agree with everything that Foster writes in this book (much of it is just a bit to "mystical" for me), I appreciated what he had to say about fasting. Particularly towards the end of the chapter where he gives some very practical tips for how to get started in this Discipline.
2. Dr. Bill Bright has a good article about Fasting on the Campus Crusade for Christ website. He also has a shorter article that outlines what he believes are seven basic steps to successful prayer and fasting.

Friday Favorites 10/14/11

2011-10-14T06:00:00.000-07:00

Time to revive my Friday Favorites posts-a collection of the best blog posts I've read this week.

-Take a minute to read this post from Ed Stetzer where he shares some of his conversation with Darrell Guder the editor of Missional Church. I especially loved this quote form Guder : "The gathered life of the Christian community is, then, not an end in itself but the way in which God's people are equipped for their vocation as witnesses in the world. I would insist that we consider every action and activity of the gathered church in terms of its missional vocation: how does what we are doing together "equip the saints for the work of ministry, the building up of the body of Christ," which happens as the church is scattered in the world like salt, leaven, and light?"

Book Review of The Sacred Meal by Nora Gallagher

2011-04-06T12:51:00.000-07:00

In The Sacred Meal, Nora Gallagher shares her thoughts & reflections on the Christian practice of taking Communion. She shares stories about times she has taken communion that have held special meaning & brought her new understanding about the "sacred meal." She also talks about different ministry opportunities and life experiences that have helped her see the experience of communion in a new light.

Frankly, I was disappointed in this book. I had chosen to read & review it because, as a pastor, I have the privilege of leading our congregation in communion every month & I am always looking for a fresh way to talk about the meaning of the Lord's Supper or a engaging reading to lead into the ordinance. I also was hoping for some interesting reading about the history of and biblical meaning of communion. I came away from this book feeling like I found none of that. It may have been my own misconceptions of what the author was trying to communicate, but I felt like each chapter was simply her sharing some vague thoughts and ideas, some of which were related to communion and some that weren't. For me wading through the book was a struggle. There were parts of a few chapters that I enjoyed, particularly when she wrote about the movie Babette's Feast, but if I hadn't been reading the book to review it, I would not have finished it at all. On top of all that, there were at least 2 different places where I had serious theological issues with what she wrote-particularly in chapter 10 where she writes "We have known for some time that the Gospel's were written long after the death of Jesus and were compiled by men who lived long after him, from stories and scraps of history." I'm sorry, I don't "know" that, I firmly believe that the Gospels were written by eyewitnesses to the life of X (Matthew & John) or by those who talked to eyewitnesses (Mark & Luke). If you haven't figured it out by now, I would not recommend this book to anyone.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Book Review of Love & Respect by Dr. Emerson Eggerichs

2011-02-15T10:21:00.000-08:00

Why do half of the marriages in America today end in divorce? Why is the percentage of divorces for couples inside the church roughly the same as the percentages for society as a whole? What is it that is missing in so many marriages today? In his book Love & Respect , Dr. Emerson Eggerichs writes that the key is found in Ephesians 5:33 "Each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband." Husbands unconditionally loving their wives and wives unconditionally respecting their husbands are, he says, the key to getting off the "crazy cycle."

I enjoyed the majority of this book. To be honest, it started a little slow for me. Part 1, where Dr. Eggerichs explains what he calls the "crazy cycle" (without love she reacts without respect, without respect he reacts without love), seemed to drag on and on. He spends 7 chapters answering various arguments men mighty have against showing unconditional love and women might have against the ideas of showing unconditional respect, but if you accept his premise that mans deepest need in the marriage relationship is for respect & the woman's deepest need is for love & are committed to trying to follow the biblical command from Eph. 5:33-then you will be anxious to get to part 2 on the "Energizing Cycle". This is the part of the book that I thoroughly enjoyed as it was filled with practical ideas that can help me love my wife & communicate that love to her in ways she will understand. There are also a number of chapters for wives to help them understand ways that they can show respect to their husbands in ways he will understand. I especially appreciated the section at the end of each chapter where he lists specific ways to communicate love in ways your wife will understand.

So, if you are married or hope to be one day, I believe that there are some great biblical principles here than can help any marriage not just survive but thrive.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com> book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html> : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Be The Church

2011-02-03T09:51:00.000-08:00

This Sunday we are wrapping up a small group study we did as a church coming out of our SHALOM series. We had all of our small groups go through the study The Tangible Kingdom Primer.

It has been a study that has stretched most of us as we have been forced out of our comfort zones and stop just going through the motions of going to church & trying to say and do all the right things & start actually trying to live like Christ & live out the mission that He gave us "go and make disciples." But to do that step one is we have to know some people who aren't disciples and love them & build a relationship with them where we can show them God's love & talk to them about the Gospel. It sounds pretty simple, like something all know we should be doing, but the reality is, most of us aren't living that kind of incarnational (living like Christ), missional (living to fulfill the mission He gave us) life. Why not? Why are most people who call themselves followers of Christ content with just going through the motions-showing up on Sunday, saying all the right things, but not really living the kind of radical, sold out, totally committed life of discipleship that Christ has called His followers to?

I came across this post today from Mark Waltz.
In it he talks about Granger Community Church and the new 5 year vision they are rolling out. Part of that includes the following statement:
"By 2016 the number of people being the Church in their neighborhoods, schools, cafes and communities seven days a week will outnumber the number of casual Christians just going to church."

What would that look like if that were really to happen in our churches? What if there were more people at Lifegate who were committed to really being the church everyday than just showing up on Sunday? How might we see God work if we really lived that kind of life?

Friday Favorites-10/22/10

2010-10-22T11:20:00.000-07:00

I'll take this opportunity to revive an old series of posts-Friday Favorites. Most Friday's I'll try to put up some links to some of the best blogs I've read during the week.

This week there's just one:

Take a minute to read this post from Donald Miller and think about who you have in your life that will tell you the hard truth. I know I need more people like that in my life, true friends who aren't afraid to say the hard stuff.

Thinking Biblically?!?

2010-10-20T13:55:00.000-07:00

Take a few minutes to watch this clip of Francis Chan talking at this years Catalyst conference and then stop to think about your life. Are we really thinking and living Biblically? Not just what 21st Century American Christianity says is Biblical, but based on what the Bible really says, how those in the Bible really lived-are we living and walking daily by faith-following Jesus, even when it doesn't make sense or are we content to keep on with our safe, happy, comfortable lives.

You could help Lifegate win $1,000

2010-10-15T16:38:00.000-07:00

Would you take a minute to help Lifegate Baptist Church win $1,000?

GoodSearch.com is sponsoring a contest that will give an extra $1,000 to each of the five organizations that have the most toolbar downloads (and $100 to each of the first 100 charities to reach 100 downloads!) With the GoodSearch toolbar, every time you search online or shop at more than 1,500 stores (from Amazon to Zazzle!), a donation will be made to Lifegate Baptist Church — all you have to do is add our toolbar to your computer.

Please help us be one of the lucky charities that will receive these much needed funds!

Here's how:

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1. Click http://www.goodsearch.com/toolbar/lifegate-baptist-church

2. Download the Lifegate Baptist Church toolbar

3. "Share With Friends" on our toolbar download page so that others can get involved!

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The contest ends on Oct. 31 so please add the toolbar NOW and spread the word to as many people as you can! For more information, click http://www.goodsearch.com/goodsearchgiveaway/.

Thank you for your support!

2011 by 2011

2010-10-14T16:28:00.000-07:00

One of our ministry partners at Lifegate has been Second Stories and as part of our Shalom series this month we would like to help them out with a fundraiser they are doing for the rest of 2011.

Second stories is a ministry that is committed to transforming neighborhoods by equipping churches to initiate community partnerships in 6 areas: hunger, health, homeless/vulnerable, school support, creation care and asset based community development.

Their goal is to recycle 2011 cell phones by 1/1/2011. This will help them further their work of transforming neighborhoods. If you have an old cell phone or used laser/ink jet print cartridges that need to be recycled you can drop them off in the drop box at Lifegate on Sundays during the month of October.

Appreciating Your Pastor, Part 3-Don't forget His Wife

2010-10-12T06:00:00.000-07:00

I am very honored to have, as my first guest blogger, my wonderful wife, Melea, to offer a pastor's wife's perspective on Pastor Appreciation.

I am writing this to add to my husbands post, which is very thorough but I want to remind you of the "pastor's wife". Sometimes she can feel forgotten. She is an important part of your pastor's ministry. She is a cheerleader, sometimes a secretary (I just proofread his blog), and gives support to her husband. I have received cards and gifts (girly stuff ie. lotion, candles, CHOCOLATE!!!!) as well that were directed to me and that made me feel encouraged by those blessings and not forgotten because sometimes we do get forgotten when it is our husband in the forefront. (On the other hand, we usually don't get as much criticism). Just a good reminder to give a blessing to the pastor's wife, too (actually just refer to her by her name instead of calling her the pastor's wife).

Appreciating Your Pastor, Part 2

2010-10-11T06:00:00.000-07:00

Disclaimer: I feel the need to say this right up front-This post is not meant to be a criticism or reflect negatively on anyone or any church that I have served in. Each church has shown their appreciation in their own unique way and for that we are thankful. I simply hope that this post can be helpful to all those who are looking for ways that they can do a better job at caring for their pastors.

Every once in a while I enjoy looking at some of the stats for this blog just to see where some of you come from, what brings you here, and what you read the most. One stat I check from time to time is what searches people do that bring them to my blog. The last time I checked that I was surprised to see that there had been a number of people searching for ideas on "caring for your pastor" that had ended up here. So in honor of October being Pastor Appreciation Month, I thought I'd post a few ideas I have from a pastors perspective on how you can care for your pastor and specifically what you can do this month to make him feel appreciated.

After over being in ministry for over 20 years I have seen a wide variety of ways churches try to show appreciation to their pastors-some good, some well intentioned but missing the mark a bit. I think one reason for that is because we all feel loved and appreciated in different ways (if you want to learn more about his read The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman). So the best advice I could give-if you are really serious about showing love and appreciation to your pastor-try to understand what his love language is.

On the practical side-step one, just do something. I've been in churches that do nothing for Pastor Appreciation Month & I've been in churches that have done a lot. Guess which one I enjoyed serving in the most? When your pastor feels loved and appreciated there is a greater sense of loyalty & commitment, it fuels his passion to serve, it refills his tank. If you want to help make your pastor the best pastor he can be-encourage him. (Read how this impacted another pastor here) I guarantee you he hears about it every time the music is to loud, someone is upset at him, there's a problem in the nursery, etc. He hears plenty of the negative, but very little positive encouragement. Do something.

What can you do? The thing that my family has enjoyed the most was when the church we served in California encouraged everyone to write a note of encouragement to each of the staff members. During Pastor Appreciation Month they put a basket in the entryway for each of the staff members and the members could simply drop their card/gift in the basket any Sunday that month. Every week for a month it was like Christmas for our family. We would come home with 10-20 cards and gifts and spend an hour after lunch that day reading them and being encouraged. Some had money, most had gift cards to restaurants or stores we liked, but they all had great words of encouragement for us about how our ministry had helped people in ways we would have never known otherwise.

Other ideas I've seen/received:
-A love offering/check for our family. The money is always nice, but after you pay a few bills or buy something fun for the family with it, it's gone-I still have most of the cards that people have given me.
-A gift certificate for a weekend away-Great for a pastor & his wife if there are no kids to worry about, but if your pastor has a family-either give them a trip they can all go on or arrange for childcare-otherwise the trip will probably never be used.
-If your pastor has kids offer free babysitting.
-A plaque with a "special inscription"-some people might feel honored by this, but the one's I've received are still in a drawer or box somewhere.
-Food-Understand, when I'm talking about food here, I'm talking about groceries for your pantry. This one can by tricky. If you want to do this for your pastor, I'd recommend gift cards to where ever they buy groceries, that way they can get what they want and what they need. We appreciate it when churches have done this for us, but there can be problems. Sometimes, well intentioned people simply clean out their pantry and give what they don't want to the pastor (kind of like giving the clothes we are tired of to missionaries). When that has happened to us, we have ended up throwing out at least half the food because it had expired/gone bad. Other times we have received a large quantity of one item (20 boxes of saltine crackers). It can work, but takes extra effort and coordination to really be effective.

Bottom line, whatever you do, it is the time and effort you invest that will show your pastor how much you appreciate him. Why do I say that? Because I sit here writing this looking at a quilt I was given when we left SCBBC (now Lifehouse Church). There was planning that went into making that, effort that went into having everyone sign it without my knowledge and I now proudly display it on the wall of my office. Every time I look at it I remember our farewell evening at SCBBC and I knew that we were loved and appreciated. Take some time to let you pastor know.

Shalom

2010-10-09T21:53:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow we kick off our new sermon series at Lifegate "Shalom". Watch these two videos to get a preview of tomorrows message and see if you can figure out what either of them have to do with Shalom.

Did You Know?

Woman at the Well

Appreciating Your Pastor

2010-10-08T15:52:00.000-07:00

Some time ago, someone, somewhere (I believe it was Focus on the Family, but can't say for sure) designated October as Pastor Appreciation Month. I've written a few posts about this over the past few years and they have consistently been some of the most read things I've written. So in honor of Pastor Appreciation month this year I am going to re-post them over the next few days.

If you've been thinking/wondering about what you could do to show your Pastor how much you appreciate him, maybe these posts will give you a few ideas.

As a pastor I can honestly say I've been in churches that were great at this and some that weren't and a pastor that is well cared for and know he is loved by his congregation will stick around and be able to minister with passion much more effectively than a pastor who feels taken for granted or abused.

Friday Favorites-4/30/10

2010-05-07T06:00:00.000-07:00

Seth Godin: I enjoyed this post from Seth about an encounter he had with David Byrne (I'm guessing half of you who read this blog have no idea who either Seth or David are). Check out Seth's insights regarding how wrong our perceptions of how people react to us can be. Remember, it's not always about you.

Rediscover: Week 4-We Value Reaching out to our Community with the Good News of God's Love

2010-04-30T14:39:00.001-07:00

This week we look at importance for us as believers of sharing the Good News. Here is how you might do it if you were Jack Bauer.

Thanks to Jonathan Herron for the picture.

How are You Gifted?

2010-04-29T11:35:00.000-07:00

Sunday was the third message in our series on our Core Values as we looked at the value that says "We Value People's Giftedness." To follow up on that here is a free spiritual gift assessment that I found through Tony Jones' blog.

If you have struggled with figuring out what your spiritual gifts are this tool might help you know where to start. No assessment can tell you definitively what your gifts are, but it can be a tool to point you in the right direction.

I took the test today and here are my top 5 gifts according to the assessment:
1. Teaching
2. Shepherd
3. Knowledge
4. Service
5. Faith

How has God gifted you?