Jul
03
2008
I was talking to a friend of mine the other day about, among other things, church leadership in large churches. We were talking about the difficulties of keeping the evangelism flame alive in a large church. I said something like, "When Evangelism is your job, you are in trouble."
I think the same could be said about being a preacher, worship leader, or other paid staff member of a large church. So many influences come into play when you get your paycheck as a result of being successful in an endeavor that is primarily an activity of the Holy Spirit or it’s influence in our lives. And, for God’s sake, what do you do when everything you used to do in your "job" stops working?
Of course, there is plenty of information out there on the subject "Why Evangelism Doesn’t Work," and I think it is fair to say that the entire process has become much more difficult, at least in the North American culture I live in. For those of us who are not "professional" evangelists, preachers, etc., let’s pray that the Holy Spirit would breathe new life into the work of those who make their living from these endeavors. Burnout is inevitable, fresh infilling is a necessity.
Jan
28
2008
Two top leaders at the Willow Creek flagship campus have announced their departures. Bill Hybels has stepped back into the top leadership role. I will have to admit, although I am far removed from the corporate style mega church model of ministry, I am fascinated about what all of this means. Gene Appel, the pastor who assumed the lead role from Hybels in 2003, will "move toward being the senior pastor of a local church again."
Willow has been the target of Harvard Business School case studies in the past. The inability to make a successful transition to a new generation of leadership will provide ripe fodder for further analysis I am sure.
Jan
27
2008
Please don’t get offended. But I really liked Mrs. Clinton’s "moment" in the New Hampshire campaign. In the short video clip I saw, she seemed real, her voice sounded soft and kind, it really felt authentic. But I have to confess. I really can’t stand it when she "goes big" during her speeches. You know what I mean. The crowd is applauding and responding and she is getting higher and shriller in her vocal tone. You would think that with all of the millions of dollars being spent on her campaign that they would hire a vocal coach and have her practice with a microphone.
In addition, I am almost positive that most of her public address setups do not have a "monitor" system that would allow her to hear her own voice. It’s not as though this would cost billions to fix. If anyone close to Mrs. Clinton reads this post, I implore you, do something, please!
Jan
15
2008
There are people who claim to speak for God. Depending on the charismatic quotient of your church fellowship this may happen to a greater or lesser degree. Some bible scholars or teachers who feel that they have an excellent, all-encompassing knowledge of the scripture are able to tell us what God meant when he inspired the writers to write.
One week I was preaching on the following text:
1 In the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch) and Saul. 2While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." 3So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them and sent them off. NIV [Emphasis added]
I asked the question, "How did the Holy Spirit speak?" And the answer came, through the prophetic word. I have a wish I wish could be granted. I wish all of those who claim that they speak for God truly did. I wish all of those who claim they speak for God were kind and loving. I wish all of those who claim they speak for God would be encouraging and positive. I wish leaders would really take the time to listen before they start to tell followers what they "should" do. All the rest? I wish they would just shut up! 
