Thursday, May 23, 2013

A Replenishment Strategy

To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.  Romans 8:6
 
Sometimes the external part of a church leaders life appears to be incredibly fruitful; people are joining small groups, people are abundantly serving the community and helping those in need, new ministries are being formed to open doors to new opportunities to grow the church, everything “appears” to be prosperous.

The part that no one can see is the viciousness of a leader’s interior life. An ever revolving and often tormenting questioning, “Am I doing this for me or fulfilling requests made by others? (or) Am I doing this because the Holy Spirit desires it to be so?”  The internal can’t be measured on charts and graphs, so it goes unnoticed and is not considered to be harmful; mainly because all the externals are positive.

However, this internal battle of Self vs. Holy Spirit is something that can cause potential burnout – not only to the leader but also to the church as a whole.  Others say “do more, we are doing great!”  So we continue to do more even when the Holy Spirit desires for us to rest and live life in a state of peaceful abundance.

We can be growing our churches and it’s not the glow of God at all.  We need to remember that the pace at which we grow does not necessarily ‘honor’ God.  There is honor in transforming hearts through Christ only, a gift that gives eternal rewards.

Living life in the Spirit and feeling a sense of peace requires an adequate replenishment strategy.

You start every day in devotion to God, centering yourself to do God's Will and not your own.  Invite the Holy Spirit to be present within you.  When you are good with God, you are good with your family, you live at your very best when you are filled-up; there becomes a sense of peace instead of anxiety that carries you throughout the day. 

What makes church leaders different than leaders in the corporate world is that they lead out of a deep interior life that is aligned by the Holy Spirit.  Doing God’s Will is success, not numbers.  It is not buildings, it is not how many small groups are offered, it's really “Am I doing God’s Will?”, “Is our church doing God’s Will?”  So the fact that we (as a church) can do something like increase our staff by adding another Pastor or funding a new ministry, doesn’t mean it’s God’s time to do it.

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. Romans 8:5-6



Friday, May 17, 2013

A Renewed Focus, a purpose much greater than ourselves...

 
(Acts 2) When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting...

Pentecost is the day that the church was born. Christ was crucified, rose again, spent forty days with his disciples, then ascended to heaven. Pentecost immediately followed. For two millennia, Christians have been celebrating the church's birthday with joy and exuberance. Pentecost takes place 50 days after Easter Sunday and will be celebrated across the globe this Sunday, May 19th!

Story of Pentecost
According to book of Acts, the Church came into being on the day of Pentecost. As worshipers, including the Disciples, were fasting and praying in an upper room in Jerusalem, the Holy Spirit descended upon them in a violent rushing wind that was heard throughout the city. Small flames of fire rested upon their heads, and they began to speak in other languages. As crowds came to investigate the commotion, the Apostle Peter spoke to them about Jesus and exhorted them to repent. From the crowd of Jews and converts, thousands realized the truth of his words and became followers of Jesus.


Pentecost Today
The purest meaning of Pentecost is that of a time of renewal for Christian believers. There is a renewed focus on evangelism, empowerment from the Holy Spirit, deeper intimacy with God, and fellowship. For Christians, the celebration of Pentecost imparts faith, hope, a sharing of community, and an awareness of a purpose much greater than ourselves.


Share a time of feeling embraced by the Holy Spirit with your family & friends.  Share your faith and help others know God's love through Christ.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

How We Worship in the Evangelical Lutheran Church

How We Worship

Be a part of God's saving story

 
ELCA Quick Facts
For Lutherans, worship matters. In fact, worship lies at the heart of how we understand ourselves together. While some of the approaches to worship may differ from one congregation to another, we hold certain things in common. There is a basic pattern for worship among Lutherans. We gather. We encounter God’s Word. We share a meal at the Lord’s table. And we are sent into the world. But we do not think about worship so much in terms of what we do. Worship is fundamentally about what God is doing and our response to God’s action. Worship is an encounter with God, who saves us through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Think about it like this. God’s Spirit calls us together. God speaks to us through readings from the Old and New Testaments of the Bible, through preaching, prayer, and song. God feeds and nourishes us in a saving way. And God blesses us and sends us in mission to the world.
Taken together, the Word proclaimed and the Sacraments -- both Holy Baptism and Holy Communion -- are called the means of grace. We believe that Jesus Christ is present in these means through the power of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we describe worship as a “gathering around the means of grace.” This is a way of saying that we trust that God is genuinely present with us in baptism, in preaching, and in sharing the bread and wine of Holy Communion. In that sense, Lutherans believe that God’s presence permeates all of Christian worship.
The cross is the central symbol that marks our worship spaces and when Lutherans worship, singing fills the air. The voices of all the people joined in song and the participation of all the people in the worship is a witness to our conviction that in worship we are being drawn in to God’s own saving story.

www.elca.org