Moving from "No-Names" to "Knowing Names," part 2

In trying to move from No-Names to Knowing Names, I recognize that there are several factors that contributed to where we now are as a church.  No 'one thing' pushed us away from each other, and no 'one thing' will effect a silver-bullet change.  However, we can take steps.

This coming Sunday evening at 6pm (9/18), I am anticipating a step in getting to know each other a little better.  We are launching INFOCUS.   This will be a gathering of Ogletown three times this fall, so that we can connect through the Word, testimonies, music, prayer, and fellowship.

I anticipate several ways that God could use this in the life of our church.

• While our church has many subunits, often our church as a whole often feels disconnected. This would gather us together in one place at one time.
• Our size (and subsequent formality) often doesn’t allow us to know each other in a more personal way through our Sunday morning worship service. In a less structured, less formal way, this would allow us to meet each other and hear from each other about how God is at work in our church.
• We need avenues to pray for each other. This will provide an opportunity for us to truly pray for one another on the spot.
• We need to get together more. Many Ogletown attenders spend 1.25 to 3 hours (of their 168 hour week) with other Ogletown people. This would open more quantity time as well as quality time.

I hope to see you here.

Moving from "No-Names" to "Knowing Names"

This past Sunday (9/11), I spoke to our church about our need to get to know each other.

It is not simply that we don't know everyone's name who is a part of the Ogletown family.  That would most likely be impossible for most of us.  I am more concerned that we are often not working hard to get to know those who God has brought to our church.  We see people here.  We pass by them, but to often they are "no-names" to us.  I believe as a church we have grown too comfortable going to church with hundreds of family members who we do not know.  We need to work hard on "knowing names."

So, where do we go from here?  I made a couple of suggestions on Sunday.

1. Be here more often.  I am not sure how you can get to know more people, if you don't put yourself in a place to meet them.  I think that is the intent of Hebrews 10:24-25.
   
   
2. Go out of your way.  You may have to suffer a little discomfort and awkwardness.  You may have to introduce yourself to someone.  You may have to write yourself a note to remember someone's name.  God will use the risk you take in this arena.  FYI, this article is a great catalyst to re-think how you prepare to meet with God's people.
3. Don't just sit in rows, sit in circles.  In other words, attend a Sunday School class, attend a small group Bible study.  Learn some names of new friends.  Make yourself conspicuous rather than anonymous.

The potential results from a shift from No-Names to Knowing Names are mind-blowing.  And, as I have come to realize, I don't believe Scripture has given us an "opt-out" clause for caring about one another.

Some Priorities (in retrospect), part 4, cont.

Yesterday, I spoke of our front door of membership. I also wanted to take a moment to look at our front door of baptism.

Our front door of baptism – We also have adjusted our baptism practice at Ogletown. In truth, we are more in line now with our Baptist heritage. Traditionally, Baptists have taken the practice of baptizing believers very seriously (not surprisingly). Yet in recent days unfortunately in the US, often it has not been carefully practiced. In Scripture, baptism is not only a symbol of Christ’s death, but an ordinance that marks off who is a believer and follower of Jesus Christ. Our practice of baptism unifies our church. As we observe another Christian being baptized, we identify with the one who is identifying with Jesus Christ. He is our Savior as well.

We have started the practice of asking that those who are getting baptized prepare a testimony of their faith in Jesus Christ. We ask that either they share it themselves, or that they have someone share it for them. This happens right before they are baptized. Our entire church receives the blessing of hearing of faith in Jesus Christ directly from the person getting baptized. People come to Christ due to so many different earthly factors. Hearing these factors always amazes me. Since I have the privilege of participating in so many of these services, I can speak to the emotion of these moments. I rarely have a dry eye when leaving our baptism services. My faith is stirred, and I count it a privilege to be a part of a church that attempts to take baptism seriously.

Some Priorities (in retrospect), part 4

#4 - Closer look at the “front door”

Throughout these series of posts, I have tried to think through what my initial priorities were in coming to Ogletown four years ago. Today, I want to share about the priority of the “front door” of our church. By the front door, I am referring to how someone enters our formally enters the fellowship of our church, whether it be through membership or baptism.

Our front door of membership – Over the years I have been in ministry, I have realized the importance of meaningful membership in a local church. Churches (Baptists, especially) have not always done a great job of marking off who is truly a part of the church and who is not. Often, our membership rolls are large, but many of those on the roll haven’t attended our church in a long time. Some of this could easily be a reality because the responsibilities and privileges of membership were not explained to them in the first place. They “joined the church” but never really knew enough about the church’s beliefs, covenant, practices, etc. to make the best decision. They responded well to some good spiritual impulses, but the church didn’t follow up in the best ways.

We have worked at Ogletown over the last few years to establish an ongoing Membership Matters class. In that class we talk about our core values and beliefs, our covenant, mission, and certain things unique to our church. We want to ensure that those who are entering the church have sufficient knowledge to make the decision to invest their lives with this faith family. By having this class, our membership process is somewhat slower, but I have a greater confidence that those who are coming into our church are ready to make a commitment to our church. We have begun to think of membership more as partnership and less of belonging to a club (paying dues and receiving benefits).

We have seen the rewards of this as a church. Those who have been through the class, who have invested the time to learn more about Ogletown, come with hearts ready to serve! We follow the class up with an ‘interview’ (a half hour or so) so that we can learn the story of those coming to unite with our body.  We then present the candidates for membership to our church family (often at our baptism service).  I am grateful for the way that God has used this ‘tweak’ to grow our church family.

Some Priorities (in retrospect), part 3

Continuing on from a series of posts (part one, part two)

“There really is no such thing as a herdsman who takes care of a generic herd.” I think those were the exact words that my friend Mike used when describing West African herdsman. He should know. He has lived there for a long time. The herdsmen know their herd, know their cows/animals individually, know who’s a part of the herd and who’s not. If they don’t know their herd, they really aren’t herdsmen! I’ve not forgotten the conversation. It reminds me of the calling I have to Ogletown, and certainly has shaped my priorities in being here. I was not called to pastor a theoretical flock, or a generic flock, but was called to be here, with these particular sheep that comprise our church.

I have mentioned in recent days that the process of being called here was somewhat of an “arranged marriage.” I didn’t know the congregation well, and the congregation did not know my family well. However, in one day (and one vote) our spiritual lives were knit together. In an arranged marriage (at least some of them), I would imagine that it takes some time to get to know each other. I KNOW it takes time, because my marriage wasn’t pre-arranged by my parents, and it has taken me time to get to know Shawna.

The last four years that I have been at Ogletown have been a season of getting to know each other. It hasn’t been entirely easy because of size and the fact that we live in four states. There are a lot of people who call OBC home, and often my only interaction with many of these people is on Sunday morning (which always seems busy). Every now and then, I will be able to sit down during the week with someone and hear their own personal story of faith, and many aspects of their journey. I have valued those times, and believe that God has drawn me closer to this congregation as a result. I am glad for the times when I can speak to individuals. My prayer (and hope, and ambition) has always been that I won’t fall in the rut of being a “generic” pastor.

In addition, I have prayed often that God would give me insight into OBC as a whole: that I might be able to discern our church’s strengths and weaknesses. That I might know when we need still waters or the rod/staff. That I might have understanding as to why God has placed us here and what specific purpose we might fulfill (as well as the purposes that God has called all churches to fulfill). I feel like if I am just someone who can ‘plug and play’ readily in any church environment, I would miss a vital aspect of my calling here. I am called to THIS church for THIS season to grow together with THESE sheep. I am grateful for the opportunity.

Some Priorities (in retrospect), part 2

A few days ago, I shared that one of the priorities that I had in coming to Ogletown was to lay a gospel foundation for future ministry. But, there have been other priorities as well.

#2 – Preaching the Word and Sturdy Theology
Because of so many good influences on my life, I had many opportunities to speak and preach even before I became pastor of Ogletown. And yet, the preaching here has been different.

• First, I feel much more of a weight of responsibility for giving God’s flock at Ogletown a steady diet. I realize that as a teaching pastor here, it is my privilege and charge to lead God’s people to green pastures and still waters. Those pastures and waters are found in God’s Word, not my own personal experiences. I have tried to make sure that the teaching ministry of Ogletown provides a balanced diet. Mostly I have taken chunks of Scripture (i.e. in 2011 we have been in Ruth, Proverbs, Mark, and Revelation) from both the Old Testament and New Testament, and worked through them in the Sunday morning teaching time. However, a balanced diet also means preaching to the head, the heart, and the hands. So, there are times God wants us to think differently, and times God wants us to value/desire/feel differently, but there are times God wants us to act differently. Scripture points us to all three.
  
  
• Preaching at Ogletown has also been a unique experience in that on any given Sunday morning there are likely to be godly, retired pastors in our congregation, sitting near or next to agnostics, skeptics, and even atheists (and everything in between). There are many who would classify themselves as religious, but there are many who would not. The same message from God’s Word is heard by all. That has been challenging, but it has also been very rewarding. It pushes me to make sure I am respecting another’s opinion and even understanding it accurately, while maintaining core biblical convictions. Ogletown does not have the option of just preaching to the “already-convinced,” and I am grateful for that.
  

In essence, my goal in both preaching and teaching has been that this ministry be built upon something sturdy (much like Josh Harris speaks about in Dug Down Deep). Life is too hard and complex for simplistic answers or Christian clichés. God’s Word gives us more than shallow thoughts. There are deep life-sustaining truths, and honest stories. The characters in the Bible, and the propositions of Scripture reveal to us a God who does not shy away from hard questions, apparent inconsistencies, and a painful world (e.g. Job, Psalms, and Lamentations). The message of the gospel itself is not simplistic, but profound, and it does Christians a disservice when we don’t push ourselves toward sturdy truth.

Some Priorities (in retrospect)

As I reflected on serving at OBC for the last four years, I took some time to look back on what some of my priorities have been. I really didn’t come to Delaware with a clearly defined 5-year action plan of programs, change, and transition. But, I did have some core convictions and philosophical bents, and as I look back those have (hopefully) been evident.

#1 – The Gospel
Because of what I believe in my heart and what Scripture convinces me of, I have desired to keep the gospel in a prime place in our church. I knew this would not be unfamiliar to Ogletown, but still I felt convicted that our gospel-legacy should be held in tact. As I look back on how I tried to make it a priority, it has come out in a number of ways (here are just a few):

• The message I shared on my first Sunday was called “Of First Importance” and the text was 1 Corinthians 15:1-3. It seemed then, as it does now, that if we get the gospel (the good news) wrong, we are vulnerable to many other distortions of Christianity.
  
• On Wednesday evenings last summer, we spent time in a series called “The Gospel-Centered Life.” This summer, we grew through a series called the “Gospel in Life.”
  
• Each week we sing the gospel, pray the gospel, teach/preach the gospel, and many weeks we ‘see’ the gospel (through baptism and Lord’s Supper).
  
• On our Book Table each Sunday, you can purchase books that describe and define the gospel, that apply the gospel to life, to marriage, to discipleship, to parenting, to church life, to relationships, etc.
  
• As we speak of the gospel in our Membership Matters class, we share that the gospel is not just the ABC’s of salvation, but encompasses the A-to-Z of the Christian life.
  
• This past Sunday, I alluded to an identity statement that said “Ogletown Baptist is a family of redeemed sinners seeking to display the glory of God among our neighbors and nations by being a gospel-shaped, gospel-sharing people.” Shaped by the gospel and sharing the gospel describe what our culture and mission should be as a church.
  

The reality is all that passes for truth is not truth, all that passes for ‘Christian’ in a Christian bookstore is not Christian, and all that passes for the gospel is not the gospel. There are watered-down gospels, prosperity gospels, do-better and try-harder gospels, political gospels. The gospel has almost become a buzz-word that is misused, misunderstood, and ill-defined. But, simply stated, the gospel is a simple message about the promised God-man who lived perfectly, died on the cross as a substitute for our own sin, came back to life on the third day, and offers forgiveness from sin, refuge from God’s wrath, and reconciliation with God the Father for those who turn to Him and trust. This has revolutionary effects on our life, on our church, and on our world.

We cannot improve on this message. We should not try. We need not soft-sell it or think it needs to be made more palatable. It is the power of God to save us (Romans 1:16).

Looking forward to Sunday

This Sunday, I begin a series of messages called "Where Do We Go From Here?" Last night, I was going through some of these things with my wife. She asked, "So how long have you been working on this series?" I don't think the answer surprised her. I guess in some ways, I would have to answer that I have had these things in my heart and in my mind this entire summer. But, even beyond that, I believe a lot of what I hope to share has been shaped in my heart over the last four years (since I first had the privilege of serving as pastor at Ogletown).

So, as I look forward to this weekend, and beginning a discussion with our church family, I find myself grateful for several things:

• The person who reminded me of Psalm 146. That Psalm brought me fresh joy yesterday in God who is my help and my hope. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down!
  
• The support I feel from so many who are a part of the OBC family. I don't just have fellow church members here. I have friends that feel more like family than mere acquaintances. Unfortunately, I imagine that many (most?) pastors do not have the privilege of being loved (and having their family loved) as I do. I am grateful.
  
• The encouragement I get from other pastors in our area. I emailed a few friends who are pastors of sister churches in our area. I asked them to pray for me, and pray for our church in the upcoming weeks. ALL of them responded with assurances that they have prayed and will continue to pray that God works at OBC. Sadly, churches often compete and try to one-up another church. Yet, the humble spirit of these men means they are more interested in the kingdom expanding, than they are building their own empire. Thank you, Jesus for these friends!
• The clarity that I have felt. Ideas, concepts, word-pictures, Bible reading, conversations, emails, have all been helpful in sorting through my thoughts. When you have a lot you want to say, it is a blessing to get clarity on how to say it (and how NOT to say it).
  
• The confidence I can have in a God who is more interested in our church, me, my family, than I am. He has promised His church will succeed, and has promised to be present as we live out gospel-shaped, gospel-sharing lives.

I look forward to Sunday, mostly because it seems like we are turning a fresh page in the story of God's church here at Ogletown.