Our Hangout

Executive Meetings

Fun exec meeting tonight. Began with a very tangible sense of God's presence in the place. Also a sense of acceptance and love between the people involved. That and a reminder that it is our love for each other that will show the world that we are Jesus' disciples set the meeting off on an awesome note. We talked through the challenges facing us, but there was a real sense that these are the challenges facing God, this is his thing, we're here, willing to be used by him. People Empowered by the holy spirit to do his work, what better place to be at????

None!

Good friends, good times

James and Monica dropped by on the weekend for a visit. No they didn't come by canoe, but it was raining enough that had they tried, it might have worked.

James and Mon are good friends. When I met James he hadn't become a Christian yet and Mon was just a dating interest, to James. Well it's been three or four years, five? And it's been fun. It's been really cool to be part of their individual and joint journey. They are incredible people and incredible friends. On several occasions they've dropped by (when we lived closer) with a Wok in hand, and everything needed to make a great dinner.

It was good to have them over and we talked 'till the wee hours on Saturday night. James and Monica have also been our first friends from Richview to visit and get a taste of POG. We were glad to share that too. On the other hand, Monica brought the cultural diversity element to our service this weekend. Everybody contributes around here :)

Up for air...

It has seemed that the last few months I really haven't been able to share about the things that have been front and center in my life and in my heart.

Today, six years after I started at Richview as the Pastor of Outreach and Discipleship, I resigned. It was a sad time. Many friends stung by the pain of being left, but still encouraging of what God might do in and through me in the future. I was truly thankful for the sending moment we had, especially when Steve, a mentally challenged young man in our congregation came to be part of the laying on of hands ceremony by staying close and just hugging me through the whole thing.

What will I miss? I will miss the people and the friendships. Someone else, a great friend turned to me just before he hugged me and said; "From Pastor ed to Eddie Baby!" We laughed and hugged really hard. He had been someone that had said he'd never be able to call me anything other than pastor 6 years ago. Eddie baby is a far cry from pastor, but I know there's more respect in that terms than perhaps in all the pastor ed's combined. So many people hugged, and lingered, some which I didn't expect, but it was clear their lives had been impacted. I will miss all the people at Richview. Yes, all of them...Richview is this whole group of people and it's been a joy even with it's difficulties at times to work through life together, seeking his will for all of us. I will miss this. I will also miss being part of shaping what Richview could become. I pray Richview goes on to new reformations, times of deeper commitment to each other, community and generation. As I leave there's a void.

But I leave for Port of Grace. A community church in Port Colborne. 20 minutes from St. Catherines, Niagara Falls, at the mouth of the Welland Canal on Lake Erie.

This hiring was by far the most strange thing I've ever gone through almost from day one.

It had at it's inception conversations from the blogging world. On this internet world, one friend asked a few other friends if they knew of someone that would fill the role their church was looking for, eventually getting to me, who got very excited at what I was reading. I got in touch with the church and a little later (a month or so later) I found myself invited to come and speak at the church. I had a rush meeting with the leaders of the denomination just before I went to the church and had a wonderful weekend. With one exception, I was never interviewed. That's right, I spend the weekend there, met people, went out with people, travelled the town, heard the leaderships thoughts on the church and on the town, preached, had a potluck and was invited to be the pastor. However, things weren't that simple, Port of Grace is part of the United Brethren Denomination and as such are not autonomous, meaning that the church didn't have the authority to just hire me, still by this point we were pretty confident of how God was leading. The process was asked to proceed as there were two more members to come through, long story short I was on the block again. And so I went again, and played baseball and ate some more and preached and left. A vote one week later confirmed the church's desire for me to assume the role of lead pastor, but the bishop was on holidays and I wouldn't hear from him until last week with the official denominational word.

Aside from all this, our kids had to start school in September and even without a final word we had to make a decision in terms of moving and buying a house so that those things could happen, and so, partly out of faith, partly out of a strong leading that this was where God was leading us, we sold our house in one week, and bought a home in POrt Colborne equally as fast. All confirmation to us that God's hand was in this.

Finally all the words came through and everything is set.

Port of Grace is a beautiful community. There are lot of needs but a huge heart reaches out to the community, that huge heart is causing people to reach and surrender to Christ.

I'm excited at the privilige of what the future holds for us. Yes, at this time we will miss our friends and where we are dearly, still there is an anticipation that is pulling, drawing us really toward a place where God is doing some really neat things. Some things, we as a family are looking forward to being a part of.

Is this the first blogging related hiring? Maybe. It certainly is a different world.

MOre later, I'm sure

Over as soon as it starts

I'm home. Just arrived an hour or so ago.

Pastor's conference was good. James McDonald was better than I expected. I confess, not my prefered style, but honest and real and true to who God has made him and I think effective.

It was good to talk to old friends and see how they're doing. Lots of talks, lots of listening.

For the first time ever I actually didn't buy any books, although we were given one for free, and I did read and finished a book that I took up. Monster-Peretti's latest. Good, but no comparison to his earlier work or The Oath.

But, as soon as it started, it ended and now I'm home. And I just realized, when you arrive from a vacation you usually feel wiped out, interestingly enough, I feel that way right now. Like I could hit the bed and sleep for several hours. I won't do that because I don't want to be up at 4am. Still, I'll probably hit the sheets early tonight.

All in all, a good time.

More on Pastor's Conf.

After my last post I felt I needed to say something more.

I'm always talking about how we need to be gracious towards one another as we seek in the way that we've been gifted, to do what God has called us to. But more importantly how we need to be gracious to those we disagree with or don't see things along the same lines. After all Jesus did say that it really didn't mean much if all we did was love the people that loved us, or in this case agreed with us.

My last post was less than gracious. James McDonald's style might not be my prefered style...and I might even disagree with him on some points...but James has a heart for God and a desire to listen to Him and obey him and is having, I believe, Godly influence doing that because he's doing it to the best of his ability, faithfully and with conviction. And that needs to be said.

He's very strong, confident, even confrontational...the struggle, that puts people of different temperament up against a wall, and looks like lack of graciousness and a lack of humility. Still, God knows him and his heart...and I really do believe he's serving Him with all his heart, strength and mind, and being blessed for it.

May God continue to bless him and work through him. And as he does, may God do in and through him all that he's promised to do. Even as he longs to do the same thing, in many different ways, in all of us. And may he continue to grow him in the areas in needs to grow, just like us, in the areas we need to grow.

Church, system & Leadership...

There were a few posts over at Resonate that got me thinking, I was going to post there, but eh, I haven't posted here regularly...

We love to talk about the broken system (churches that are just not going anywhere, not following as it were)...why is it broken...why is the damage seemingly so irreversible? Why does it seem like the only solution is to leave sometimes?

This is very limited, and not the last word by any means, but I'd like to point out one of the reasons the church finds itself where it does.

Years and years of leadership that is afraid to fight for the heart of the church. Years and years of trying to build models and systems and strategies build on world systems than on Kingdom values.

Several years ago I listened to a message that literally changed my life. Erwin Macmannus spoke on what it means to fight for the heart of the church. Nothing new, but simply put it's to be willing to serve and love the church to the point of dying for it. (speaking as a pastor here). The point, the responsibility falls on the leader...not because they're better, not because they're even the most spiritual, but because they've been called.

The institutionalized church comes with a whole lot of problems. The biggest of which in my opinion, is having scores of pastors that fought for teaching the people the right things, without getting them to care about any of it. Worst, because many of them never really cared about it themselves. They just repeated what they learned. So today, we have a church that is anemic. That has little passion for the world. That has taken the minimum standards of what it means to follow Jesus and made them the high standards. You only have to love if it suits you, you only have to forgive if you weren't wronged too bad, you only have to follow as long as it doesn't interfere with your schedule. (very generalized)

I believe and have believed for a long time...the weight is on the shoulders of those who have been called to leadership...first to do a heart check and to see whether they really are willing to die to themselves for the sake of the church (if not I believe they should go sell insurance - myself included). Secondly I believe God wants men and women whose hearts is all for Jesus, hearts that are in their deepest parts learning what it means to follow Him, before learning how to be great leaders, how to serve before telling others to serve. Men and women who will live the life, mirror the glory, who will be visual aids of the very things they're calling their people to.

Leaving the system can be dangerous because it can be about us. Making life more comfortable for us etc. However, leaving the system is sometimes necessary, if you've tried and really can't influence the system. But whether you leave or stay, the most imporant thing is how you'll follow, and how you'll fight for the hearts of those God's entrusted to you to help them follow him.

I don't think we're talking rocket science, but we're talking sacrifice, we're talking pain, we're talking confrontation with the Devil himself. You must die to enter these places because these are the places that only dead men and women can go. And it's the place where the Kingdom is alive and breathing wholeness and peace and community.

There's more I could say...so much more, I know I just scratched the surface on very tough issues...but it rises or falls on leadership that's totally or not surrendered to Christ...fighting for what Christ died for. If you're, If I'm not there, we've either got to surrender and die to get there, or go do something else.