Being A Pastor of a Small Church

My son, Taylor, asked me to complete the following questionnaire to assist him with a class project.  It has to do with being the pastor of a small church and I thought some others might be interested in reading it.  Taylor gave me permission to post it on-line, so, here it is…

Questionnaire:

1.  What is your role at the First Church of God?

Answer:  I’m the pastor of the church.

2.  How many people on average attend FCOG on any given Sunday? (not

including Holidays or special occasions)

Answer:  Approximately 300 in attendance.

3.  What are some positives about being a pastor at a smaller

church?

Answer:  At a smaller church the pastor can have a first-hand relationship with, relatively speaking, a higher percentage of the people in the church.  I have found this relational connection to be of value, particularly when people are dealing with trouble or stress.  It can be helpful and comforting to have a pastor at your side who genuinely knows you on a first name basis during times of difficulty.

Here’s another potential positive to being a pastor at a smaller church.  (Actually, I’m guessing here a little bit, but since I’m assuming this paper is asking for my OPINION, I’m offering my opinion.)  I would think that it would be very tempting for a pastor to start to grow in importance, in his own heart and mind, as his church grew to a large size.  Knowing the pride in my heart, that would be a temptation for me.  Being a pastor of a small church might help to temper that tendency toward grandiose self-importance that could possibly stir in the heart of the pastor of a large church.  (Obviously, I’m not suggesting that the pastor of a smaller church is immune to pride or other related issues, but the tendency to think of yourself as a, sort of, local celebrity is diminished when there’s only 75 people in your church.)

In some ways, I think it could be possible for a smaller church to have a more effective focus, in terms of ministry objectives.  Smaller churches do not have the number of people or other financial resources to offer lots and lots of ministry options or other types of programs.  However, I think this can create the possibility for the effective smaller churches to focus tightly and do the few things that they do, well.  (Notice, I suggest that this sharp focus is a “possibility”, I don’t mean to indicate that it’s always a “reality”.

4.  What are some negatives about being a pastor at a smaller

church?

Answer:  In some ways, it wouldn’t be far off for me to say that the opposite of the positives that I listed above are also potential negatives for pastors at smaller churches.  But you might think I was copping out, then, huh?

One very practical problem that can arise is that smaller churches have, by definition, fewer givers and, therefore, they can often deal with financial problems that can feel very threatening.  Because of God’s goodness and grace we have not had to deal with that kind of financial stress, but I know a number of smaller church pastors who have felt that pressure.

Here’s another issue: I meet on a regular basis with a group of ministers who pastor very small churches.  My church, at about 300 in attendance, is actually the BIG church among this group.  So, I can report from my own experience and from the experience of many conversations with other pastors of small churches that there can be a sense of hurt and disappointment and frustration with which pastors of small churches struggle.  Often times these are good, sincere, intelligent men who love God and are doing their best to be obedient and to lead their churches faithfully.  And, yet, we recognize and honor and celebrate the big mega-church success stories (actually, I think this attitude is possibly shifting a bit, but I’ll continue my sad tale, anyhow).  So, pastors of smaller churches sometimes wonder: “What am I doing wrong?  What’s the problem?  Why is our church not growing?  Why doesn’t God seem to be blessing this church?”  Obviously, not all pastors of smaller churches wrestle with these questions to the same degree.  But I think many (most?) pastors of small churches, if they will be honest, ask these kinds of questions somewhere along the way.

Another issue that can be a problem for smaller churches is, in some ways, the flip side of one of the positives of smaller churches that I mentioned above.  Smaller churches do not have the people or financial resources to offer lots of programs.  This can result in a frustrating catch-22 for smaller churches that works like this:  People come and say, “We like this church, but do you have this XYZ-type of program?”

“No, we don’t have the XYZ-type program.”

“Oh, that’s too bad.  Because we like this church and we’d like to attend here, but we really need the XYZ-type program.”

The smaller church could possibly offer the XYZ-type program if they had more people.  But they may find it difficult to attract and keep more people because they don’t have the XYZ-type program.  It’s a catch-22.  I know from many discussions that pastors of smaller churches can really experience frustration over this kind of issue.

One more issue.  Pastors of smaller churches often, by necessity, wear many hats.  This can be tiring, and can, at times, spread the person thin dealing with multiple issues that span a wide range of subjects.  It’s not impossible for the pastor of a smaller church to be called upon to offer some type of expertise or render decisions on matters ranging from church history, substance abuse counseling, theological/doctrinal issues, conflict resolution, office technology matters, group leadership dynamics, building/site maintenance issues, benevolence assistance to the needy, and helping students with English papers, all in a single day.  That can be very challenging.

5.  What is one of your favorite stories (funny, emotional, scary or

anything!) that has happened while being at FCOG?

Answer:  Here’s a story that happened at our church just last Sunday (April 25th).

[ NOTE:  If you are reading this on Facebook or on my blog, you may have read this story already.  If so, you may want to scroll past this story to question number 6. ]

There was a popping sound and suddenly the lights went out, the electric guitars went dead, the sound system shut down, and the emergency lights in the church building flashed on.  It was about 7:55 am.  Our worship team run-through happens at 8 am.  The first of our two morning services starts at 9 am.

Mike, who was running the sound board, is an electrician.  As he came walking down the aisle of the church, he said, “The whole building is out.”  We quickly discovered that it wasn’t just our church building.  There was some type of power outage affecting the area.

This was not very good timing.  People would begin arriving for the 9 o’clock service in less than one hour.  The most obvious and most pressing question became, “What are we going to do?” 

Can a church that relies heavily on electronic sound equipment and instruments; and projection devices and computer technology, provide a worship service in a dark building with no electrical power?

Teresa had placed a call to Com Ed, our electric utility, and was told that they expected to have power restored by “somewhere around 10 o’clock.”  Hmm, our first service begins at 9.  This was not very good timing.  Oh yeah, I mentioned that already, didn’t I?  So, we went and found lots of candles.  We grabbed the acoustic guitars.  We opened the skylight in our sanctuary—which we normally keep closed because the light from it washes out our projector screen.

Our church drum kit is electronic.  I thought about seeing video of people playing overturned buckets out on the streets, as percussion instruments, so we grabbed a bunch of buckets of various sizes and Bob set those up.  He played “the buckets”!  Really!

By about 8:15 we were ready to try a run-through with our new make-shift set-up. 

Guess what?  It was fun.  It was different.  We were flying by the seat of our pants and we were loving it.  Several early birds had already arrived as we finished our run-through and they said, “Hey, that was great.  It sounded terrific.  We love the un-plugged, acoustic feel.  It’s really neat.”

When we gathered for prayer, as we usually do, just before the start of the service, Rose led us in a wonderful prayer.  I could sense that God was going to do something terrific.

And He did.

In fact, we had such a blast in our candlelit 9 o’clock service that when the power came back on around 10:30, several of us from the worship team huddled up and decided we would go ahead and do a candlelight, un-plugged service at 11 o’clock, too.  Why not?  It was such a neat experience at 9 am, we figured we should give the 11 o’clock folks the experience, too.

After both services, numerous people came to me and said things like this:

“We should do that again.  It was fantastic.”

“The Spirit in the service was so powerful.”

“I love the candle light, it creates a nice soothing atmosphere for a nap.”  […Okay, there’s always one or two wise guys in every group.]

I said to several people today, “You know what? Christianity has been around for over 2,000 years.  For the vast majority of that time there was no electricity and, yet, people managed to gather together to worship and praise God.  We’ll figure out how to do this without electricity.”

And we did….well, with God’s help, we did.

Jesus said this phrase:  "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." Matt.18:20.  Today, we were reminded that we don’t need technology or electricity to have a rich and meaningful time of worship.  We just need willing hearts and the presence of God.

It was a great day!

6.  What is a little background information about FCOG? (Anything

you’d like a person who’s never attended the church to read)

Answer:  Our church began over 100 years ago in the late 1800’s in the city of Chicago.  Since that time we have been in 3 different locations.  Currently we meet in the south suburbs of Chicago, the name of the town is Oak Lawn.

We believe that God has given us a mission to reach out to those who don’t go to church or those who have been hurt—perhaps even hurt by religion—and help them come to know Christ and to grow to maturity in the faith.

We have a contemporary worship style (that information seems to matter to some).  We have been told on more than one occasion that there is something special, distinctive, and noticeable about the love of our congregation.  I believe that is true.  (I genuinely hope and pray that is true.)

Our church is far, far from being a perfect group of people, but I genuinely believe that it is a wonderful group of people, who love God, and want to serve Him.  They are an incredible blessing to me.

Dan Marler

First Church of God

Oak Lawn, IL

Grace Must Be Present In Order For Masks To Come Off

Honesty and transparency are absolutely vital to spiritual growth and, yet, they only happen in an environment of truth and grace.  One of the ways that we know that real grace is present within a community is when people begin to take off the masks that they wear and open up and tell the truth about who they are. The presence of this kind of grace is powerful and it indicates that God is at work.

Spiritual Leadership, 2

What are spiritual leaders supposed to do?  Pt 2.

Spiritual leaders are actually SERVANTS who are called to help people come to God’s kingdom through EXAMPLE, teaching, encouragement, and wise counsel.  Spiritual leaders are called to set the example of trying to live their lives—with the help of God’s Holy Spirit—the way Jesus would live their lives.

Spiritual Leadership, 1

Question: What are spiritual leaders supposed to do?  Answer: Spiritual leaders are supposed to walk with God and be directed by his Holy Spirit. They are called to act with grace, mercy, fairness and compassion, speaking the truth in love, and proclaiming the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  They are called to BE, themselves, what they are challenging others to be. […More to come…]

Today, Tomorrow, Yesterday, And Worry....What?

“Today is the tomorrow that we worried about yesterday…” [James Bryan Smith]  And did you notice that worrying about today, yesterday, accomplished nothing productive? Yep!  That’s why Jesus said this: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” Matt.6:34.  Then what should we do? Jesus’ answer: Seek God’s kingdom.

Spiritual Development Concerns Every Area of Life

Our spiritual development is not just about giving occasional attention to one area of our lives that we have designated the “spiritual dimension”. Rather, spiritual development is about every area of our lives. “Care of the soul is a continuous process that concerns itself not so much with ‘fixing’ a central flaw as with attending to the small details of everyday life…” [Thomas Moore]

Who Needs Electricity?

There was a popping sound and suddenly the lights went out, the electric guitars went dead, the sound system shut down, and the emergency lights in the church building flashed on.  It was about 7:55 am.  Our worship team run-through happens at 8 am.  The first of our two morning services starts at 9 am.

Mike, who was running the sound board, is an electrician.  As he came walking down the aisle of the church, he said, “The whole building is out.”  We quickly discovered that it wasn’t just our church building.  There was some type of power outage affecting the area.

This was not very good timing.  People would begin arriving for the 9 o’clock service in less than one hour.  The most obvious and most pressing question became, “What are we going to do?” 

Can a church that relies heavily on electronic sound equipment and instruments; and projection devices and computer technology, provide a worship service in a dark building with no electrical power?

Teresa had placed a call to Com Ed, our electric utility, and was told that they expected to have power restored by “somewhere around 10 o’clock.”  Hmm, our first service begins at 9.  This was not very good timing.  Oh yeah, I mentioned that already, didn’t I?

So, we went and found lots of candles.  We grabbed the acoustic guitars.  We opened the skylight in our sanctuary—which we normally keep closed because the light from it washes out our projector screen.

Our church drum kit is electronic.  I thought about seeing video of people playing overturned buckets out on the streets, as percussion instruments, so we grabbed a bunch of buckets of various sizes and Bob set those up.

By about 8:15 we were ready to try a run-through with our new make-shift set-up. 

Guess what?  It was fun.  It was different.  We were flying by the seat of our pants and we were loving it.  Several early birds had already arrived as we finished our run-through and they said, “Hey, that was great.  It sounded terrific.  We love the un-plugged, acoustic feel.  It’s really neat.”

When we gathered for prayer, as we usually do, just before the start of the service, Rose led us in a wonderful prayer.  I could sense that God was going to do something terrific.

And He did.

In fact, we had such a blast in our candlelit 9 o’clock service that when the power came back on around 10:30, several of us from the worship team huddled up and decided we would go ahead and do a candlelight, un-plugged service at 11 o’clock, too.  Why not?  It was such a neat experience at 9, we figured we should give the 11 o’clock folks the experience, too.

After both services, numerous people came to me and said things like this:

“We should do that again.  It was fantastic.”

“The Spirit in the service was so powerful.”

“I love the candle light, it creates a nice soothing atmosphere for a nap.”  […Okay, there’s always one or two wise guys in every group.]

I said to several people today, “You know what? Christianity has been around for over 2,000 years.  For the vast majority of that time there was no electricity and, yet, people managed to gather together to worship and praise God.  We’ll figure out how to do this without electricity.”

And we did….well, with God’s help, we did.

Jesus said this phrase:  "For where two or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst." Matt.18:20.  Today, we were reminded that we don’t need technology or electricity to have a rich and meaningful time of worship.  We just need willing hearts and the presence of God.

It was a great day!

God Doesn't Want Us To Live In Fear

People use fear to draw our attention to their services—particularly the media. “Between 1990 and 1998, when the nation’s murder rate declined by 20 percent, the number of murder stories on network newscasts increased 600 percent.”  [Glassner]  Let’s be discerning in our consumption of fear-based media. It is not God’s intention that His children live in fear.

E-Flash From Dan, April 24, 2010

Dear E-Flash Friends;

Did you ever read something that surprised you, in a good way?  That’s what happened to me when I read the following quote that I’m going to share with you.  It’s so common that the general state things are described as dismal, and our current situation is suggested to be much worse than ever before.  Is that true?  Are things really that bad?  Here’s what I read…

“It is a fact of life that people love to complain, particularly about how terrible the modern world is compared with the past.

They are nearly always wrong.  On just about any dimension you can think of—warfare, crime, income, education, transportation, worker safety, health—the twenty-first century is far more hospitable to the average human than any earlier time.”

Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner

As an example, Levitt and Dubner go on to cite data regarding childbirth.  One hundred years ago, the rate of maternal death during childbirth was more than 50 TIMES HIGHER than it is today in industrialized nations.  Things are much better in this area, these days.

To be honest, I don’t really know for sure if everything is much better now than it used to be.  Although, I suspect that in many of the ways Levitt and Dubner mention, the statistics would be hard to argue with.  But the main reason I shared that quote was because I figured we could all use a little encouraging news once in a while, rather than negative news.

One of the things that I love about the Christian faith is that it is, ultimately, HOPEFUL and OPTIMISTIC.  I’m wired up in such a way that I need some good news on a regular basis.  I have a hard time taking a steady stream of negative information.  (That’s why I weigh myself infrequently.)  As followers of Jesus Christ, we have great reason for joy and hope. 

How does the future look?  Well, if you’re a follower of Jesus it looks great!

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”  Romans 8:28

“For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.” 2 Corinth. 4:17

“Those who trust in the Lord are as secure as Mount Zion; they will not be defeated but will endure forever.” Psalm 125:1

How about one more?  Sure, why not…

“’For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘Plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.’” Jeremiah 29:11

I know there are difficulties and troubles in life.  I’m not recommending a head-in-the-sand approach to reality, that would not be honest (and it ruins your hairdo).  But, hey!  We know how things work out in the end.  Right?

“I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God so that YOU MAY KNOW that you have eternal life.” 1 John 5:13

There is victory in Jesus!  I thought that might be a nice reminder for you.

Hope you’re having a blessed day!

Dan

P.S.  And I hope to see you at church tomorrow (I’m assuming you might read this on Saturday afternoon/night).  I believe you will be blessed if you come!

*NOTE:  If you would like to have the E-Flash From Dan sent directly to your e-mail, send an e-mail message to:   cog111st@aol.com

and write, “Send me the E-Flash” in the subject field.

Trying To Be Tender-Hearted and Caring Without Being Gullible

Christians are challenged to exercise wisdom, discernment, common sense and perhaps even just a slight touch of healthy skepticism while negotiating life. However, we are called to do this while at the same time being caring, tender-hearted, helpful, and loving towards others.  “…Be as wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” [Jesus] Matt.10:16.

After The Procedure

Some of you are probably wondering, “Hmm, is Dan alive?  Did he survive his procedure this morning?”  Well, the answer is “yes”.  See, here’s a picture of me right after the colonoscopy.

You say, “Dan, how can you look so happy and brave and calm and peaceful after such a harrowing ordeal?”

No, no.  Please, I’m not a hero.  That’s just the kind of courageous, spiritually-centered guy I am.

[By the way, a little commercial break here.  I’m going to be preaching on the subject of “Humility” this Sunday.  You’re all invited.  I don’t know, that seemed relevant at this point in the story.]

Just minutes after this picture was taken, the doctor who performed the procedure came and told me that everything was fine.  He said, “You’re actually in excellent shape for a 79 year old man, Mr. Marler.”

I said, “I’m 51 years old.”

He looked down and wrote in his chart and said, “Oh!  That’s a darned shame. You have my sympathies.” Then he said, “How do you feel?”

I said, “I feel fine.”

He said… [I’m not kidding, he really said this]… “We pumped air into your colon.  So, you might feel stress or cramps in your abdomen until the air is released.”

I said, “How is it released?”

He said, “The natural way.”

There are several different punch lines that come to my mind following my doctor’s comment, but, as you know, I’m far too mature and intellectually sophisticated to stoop to such adolescent humor.

Okay, gotta run.  I still have work to do on the “Humility” sermon.  Then some of my buddies and I are going to build a really cool fort.

We Can't "Argue" Someone Into Faith In Christ

It’s possible that we might be able to assist a person in understanding something about belief in God. Or, we might have thoughts or insights that could be—to some degree—persuasive when it comes to faith in God.  But I think it’s very unlikely that anyone ever “argues” another person into a genuine faith in God.  It is more persuasive to BE an authentic Christ follower than it is to argue about Christianity.

Shooting The Slingshot With Rachel

I was shooting Rachel’s slingshot at a barrel out in the woods by Dave and Roxanne’s house.  (Dave and Roxanne are our friends who live in northern Wisconsin.)  Out of about 30 shots, I hit the barrel 3 times.  I kept missing the barrel over and over again.

(I think their water may be spiked, but I’m not sure.  I kept seeing two barrels even though I know there was only one.  There may be “something” in the water.  I told Dave he should look in to it, but he said he liked the water just the way it was.  Then he laid down under a tree and took a nap.)

Rachel came outside and walked over to our slingshot shooting range and I gave her the slingshot to let her have a go at it.  She was having a little bit of trouble loading the marble into the pouch that holds the slingshot ammo, so I was thinking to myself, “Oh boy, I wonder if she’ll even be able to shoot this thing.  I hope she doesn’t get frustrated and just give up.”

On her second shot, she hit the barrel.  It took me about 10 shots to hit the barrel one time.

I said, “Wow, that was a good shot, Rachel!”

She said, “I know.”

Now look, I know God likes humility.  I know that it’s a characteristic that he wants to develop in each of us.  But, really.  Come on.  Am I such a slow learner that he even has to use a little target practice with a slingshot, out in the woods, to humble me?

(Apparently, the answer to that question is: “yes”.)

A few moments later, we heard some rustling over in the weeds and all of a sudden we saw a bear stand up on its hind legs.

Dave said, “Don’t move.  Remain motionless.”

Our hearts were gripped with fear as the bear was looking around.  He looked hungry.  (I could tell because it’s very rare that you see a bear wearing a bib.)

Very softly, Dave said, “Dan, slowly hand the slingshot to Rachel.  She’s our only hope.”

Now look, I know God likes humility.  I know that it’s a characteristic that he wants to develop in each of us.  But, really.  Come on.  Even in a life or death situation, I still have to be humbled?  Really?

So, the bear came walking over our way.  Pretty soon he was just a few feet away from us.  We were frozen in place.  Not moving a muscle.  Our breathing had practically stopped. The bear was sniffing my shoe.  And then he looked up at me and said, “Man, you are terrible with that slingshot.  Did you even hit the barrel one time?”  And he started rolling on the ground, laughing.

Now look, I know God likes humility.  I know that it’s a characteristic that he wants to develop in each of us.  But, really.  Come on.  Even a bear in the woods gets some zingers in on me?  Really?

So, I drank some more of that water and took a nap.

Sin Happens When "Good Things" Are Corrupted

When God created the world He declared that it was good.  So some experts say that sin occurs when things that are good are abused or misused or warped. In other words, “sin” is something “good”, gone “bad”.  Likewise, it is said that “evil” is not a created thing, rather, it is a corruption of what was originally created “good”. Anyhow, I’m going to take a nap, because I rarely get into trouble doing that.

Coming To Our Senses

When you and I realize that we need God, that is not a moment of weakness or stupidity or intellectual foolishness. Coming to see that you need God is not a matter of telloing yourself a lie in order to make yourself feel safer about this big scary world. When we realize we need God, we have just experienced a profound moment of clear thinking. Jesus calls it: coming to our senses.

Where Our Values Are Revealed

What we truly value can be expressed in words but it is often revealed most reliably in these two areas: 1) where we spend our time; and 2) where we spend our money. If a determination was made based on "where your time was spent" and "where your money was spent", what would we determine to be your values?

Did You Ever Think of Yourself As A Poem?

“For we are God’s workmanship…” Eph.2:10.  “The word ‘workmanship’ comes from the Greek word poiema, from which we get the word ‘poem.’ So we can say that God creates each of us as a piece of art, as a piece of poetry.” [Kimball]  That’s a neat way of thinking about that passage, isn’t it? We are each a poem lovingly and creatively crafted by the Master Artist.

Nadia, Rachel and Dan Are Living It Up In Madison

Nadia, Rachel, and I are spending the night in Madison, Wisconsin.  I know, you’re probably thinking to yourself:  “Man, those three really know how to live it up!”

How true.  The deal is that we are on our way to our friends’ [Dave and Roxanne] house for a few days but we had to stop for the night.  After leaving home this afternoon, we made a stop near Milwaukee to hear acclaimed theologian and author, N.T. Wright speak at the Elmbrook Church.

I enjoyed his talk.  It was interesting and substantive.  His talk was based on his most recent book, titled:  “After You Believe: Why Christian Character Matters”.  The basic subject is the development of Christian character.  Paraphrasing Dr. Wright:  Vice comes to us relatively easily, but we must grow up into the virtues. 

The development of virtue requires effort.  It’s not that the Holy Spirit is not involved, of course, He is.  But He develops virtue in us, in part, as we engage in spiritual disciplines.  In a certain sense, says Dr. Wright, the development of virtue takes practice.

Dr. Wright took questions from the audience after his talk and a couple of folks in the audience had him stumped, several times.  Fortunately, I was there, and was able to step to the platform and handle some of the more difficult questions for him….

…Oops, sorry, during those last two sentences I had some kind of neurological episode and entered that make believe world that I occasionally drift into, where I’m completely divorced from reality.  I apologize.

Anyhow, here I now sit at a Best Western Hotel in Madison, Wisconsin.  Nadia and Rachel are arguing about what to watch on TV and it’s getting harder and harder for me to keep my eyes open.  It’s been a long day and we need to get up and get going in the morning.  So, I’m done.  Oh…listen, yep…yep, that’s my phone ringing.  I should have known.  It’s N.T. Wright calling again with some follow up questions.

You know what?  I’m tired.  It must be another one of those episodes happening.  I’ll apologize for that last paragraph in the morning.

Freedom In Christ

There are forms of freedom that can be given and taken by men. These are significant matters and should be taken seriously. Some have given their lives to protect these freedoms. That’s a big deal. But there is a more important freedom that is only found in Christ and it is of highest value.  “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” John 8:36

Do You Want To Show Someone Your Love? Pay Attention

An important aspect of love is “attentiveness”.  One of the most loving things we can do is to give someone our complete attention. Turn off the TV, or the radio; turn from the computer screen or magazine or book; look at the person and really give him/her your full attention. Listen to what he says. Care about what she says. “Attention” is a valuable and potent aspect of love.

When God Is At Work, We Can't "Explain" Everything

One time I heard someone say that if God is at work in a church and everything that’s happening can be rationally “explained”—then it might be that something isn’t quite right. In other words, when God is at work in a church there should be aspects of what is happening that are supernatural…that defy our tidy, self-assured explanations.

To Be Honest About Ourselves, We Need A Standard Outside Of Ourselves

It is often very difficult for us to be totally honest about ourselves. There is much about our basic nature that is inclined to see ourselves as better than we actually are, particularly when we follow the very human practice of attempting to measure ourselves against others.  That’s why having a “standard” outside of ourselves—the Bible—is so valuable for honest self-evaluation.

As Our Experience of Life Increases, Our Trust In God Needs To Increase

As we get older our experience can serve us well.  Our accumulated experiences can provide a deep reservoir of knowledge that contributes to our wisdom.  However, experience can also result in increased fear because we’ve seen and experienced many ways that things can go wrong. So, with experience, it is even more important for us to trust in God’s goodness and care and His divine purposes.

Everyone Has Exclusive Beliefs

Some people don’t like Christianity because it claims to be the only way to heaven…it is “exclusive”.  But everybody “believes” something. It is impossible not to hold beliefs. And whatever a person’s beliefs are, there are others who do not share those beliefs.  So, the beliefs that are held by ALL OF US “exclude” some people.  Having exclusive beliefs is not only an aspect of Christianity, it is a reality of life.

True Influence Flows From Our Character

Genuine influence on others is a significant matter. So, it shouldn’t surprise us that profound influence flows from our CHARACTER, even more so than our actions.  Influence has to do with “who we are”. God has designed us in such a way that we “influence far more out of who we are than what we do.” [Thrall, McNicol & Lynch] So then, WHO are you? That’s the influence you’re having.

A Doll Gets A Shampoo

Many years ago, when I was a kid—perhaps six or seven years old—my family was on Christmas vacation down in the south with my dad’s family.  There were always lots of people around, my dad has a big family.  During that vacation time, I noticed that one of my many cousins had a doll that I had seen laying around my grandmother’s house, here and there. 

I don’t recall anything particularly unusual or noteworthy about this doll, but for some odd reason…I don’t know why…I cannot explain this strange thing that I’m about to tell you…this doll caught my attention.  And I thought to myself, “I’m going to shampoo that doll’s hair.”

Well, there it is.  I felt an urge to shampoo the hair of that doll.  Go ahead and laugh.  Sure, I know, it’s a bit strange.  I hasten to tell you that I’ve never felt the urge to shampoo anything ever again.  I don’t think I have a deep-seated shampooing addiction.  (Although, when I told this story in church today, I did notice that people were looking at me with a mixture of confusion, sadness and pity.)  Again, I can’t explain it.  I just wanted to shampoo the hair on that doll. 

So, I didn’t ask my cousin—in fact, I felt a little embarrassed about wanting to do this—I secretly took the doll and I went into the bathroom.  And in the bathroom sink, I shampooed the doll’s hair.  I think it was a pretty good job of shampooing, if you don’t mind my saying so.

There weren’t lots of hairdryers in those days, so, I simply took a towel and dried the dolls hair.  And then I put the doll back on a bed in one of the bedrooms where I had gotten it and I, sort of, forgot about the whole matter for probably about 10 or 15 minutes.  But then, while I was playing, I heard my cousin’s voice from the other room saying, “Who ruined my doll’s hair?  Hey, what is this?  Who ruined my doll’s hair?”

Pretty soon a couple of adults were involved in asking the question.  “What happened to this doll?  How did it get wet?  Someone was messing around with Donna’s doll, who did this?”

Suddenly I felt very panicked.  “Oh no.” I thought, “What did I do?”  My mind began searching for excuses, “I just gave the doll a shampoo, that’s all.  I didn’t mean to ruin the doll’s hair.”

While questions about the strange condition of the doll continued inside the house, I ran outside, crying, and hid in the forest.  I knew that I needed to stay gone for a while, a crime of this magnitude would bring severe consequences.  So, I hid in that forest for…oh…probably…I don’t know…like, 9 or 10 days, living on tree bark and swamp water and Hostess Twinkies that grow wild on the trees in that part of the country.

(I’ll admit that my memory is a little bit foggy on this part of the story, but I probably only hid in the forest for about 30 minutes, or so.)

This all happened a long time ago and I no longer remember the details of what happened after this point in the story, but I know this:  I’ve never told that story to anyone until I told it as part of a sermon illustration today at church.

For forty-something years, I have held that secret inside and I’ve never confessed that I was, in fact, the one who shampooed that doll’s hair.

But something happened at church, today.  When I told that story, it was as if a weight was lifted off my shoulders, a weight that I carried for, lo, these many years.  And in that act of confession I felt the warmth and forgiveness and love of my church family and I saw people wiping away tears of joy as they, too, shared in a newfound sense of grace and forgivene…..

Oh, who am I kidding?  That’s not what happened.  The people at church laughed at my odd little story and after the service a petition was quickly drafted and signed by many, calling for me to seriously look into counseling. 

See?  They do care about me.

I know, this doll doesn't have

any hair to shampoo. But she

was the only one I could find

who was available for a "photo

shoot" on short notice.

Is Coca Cola Really "Awesome"?

Because so many voices in our culture are vying to be heard and noticed we have diminished the potency of certain words that should be used sparingly, and with care and discernment.  If a brand of cola that’s being sold is “awesome” and God is “awesome” we lose the sense of what the word “awesome” is really communicating. Strictly speaking, the cola is not awesome.  God is.

The First Day In Heaven

You know what’s great about the incredible wonder and joy and happiness and peace and excitement and pure bliss that we’ll feel on that first day we spend in heaven?  What’s great is that we will still feel those things with equal fervor and intensity on our 1,258,732,649,873,192,755^th day in heaven!  That’s pretty cool, huh?

E-Flash From Dan -- Is It Okay To Worship God And Have Fun, Too?

Dear E-Flash Friends;

It’s difficult to sing and play the guitar and laugh really hard all at the same time.  That’s what was happening to me on Wednesday night when the guys were rehearsing in order to lead the time of worship on Sunday.  We were having a blast, but I started to think that maybe I wouldn’t be able to play with the group on Sunday.  After all, I can’t participate if I’m just going to be cracking up the whole time.  That’s too frivolous.  Plus, the guitar playing gets way too sloppy.

In fact, after quite a few moments of my silliness, I started to feel guilty.  And it occurred to me that I should tell the guys, “Hey fellas, look, I’m not going to be able to play this Sunday.  I’m of no value to you guys or to the congregation if I’m laughing uproariously the whole time.  What kind of leadership is that?”

And then, it hit me.  “Wait a minute!  This JOY might be just the right thing.”  I thought, “If the congregation on Sunday enjoys the time of worship as much as we’re enjoying this practice time, it’s going to be a great day!”

You say, “Hold on, Dan.  Hold it just a minute, bub!  Is it…well…LEGAL, in church, to laugh and feel joy and worship God all at the same time?  Doesn’t the Bible prohibit that kind of thing…you know…somewhere in one of those Old Testament books?”

Nope, there’s no biblical prohibition against laughing and feeling joy and worshiping God all at the same time.  After all, who do you think created joy and laughter?  (If your answer was *“George Burns”, you’re close but not quite.)

So, this is my special invitation to you.  Please make plans to be with us this Sunday.  We will worship and honor God.  He is deserving of our adoration and praise!  He really is.  And I believe we will experience great joy as we worship Him.  There is definitely a sense in which worship is serious business and our times together on Sunday need to challenge us to deeper levels of spiritual growth…but that doesn’t mean we can’t have some fun, too!

And I’m hoping you might even invite someone to come with you.  Everybody could use a little more joy, right?  And ULTIMATE joy is found in God!

See you Sunday.  (I’m really thinking that I’ll be able to control myself by then.)

Dan

*NOTE:  I know, I know, some of the younger folks reading this memo do not know who George Burns is.  Fortunately, they can go straight to Google and do a search to find out.  Hint: He played God in a couple of movies way, way, way, waaaaaaaay back in ancient history…the 80’s.

**NOTE:  If you would like to receive the E-Flash From Dan directly to your e-mail address just send an e-mail message to:  COG111st@aol.com

And write: "Put me on the E-Flash list" in the subject field.

I took this picture of a few of the guys on our

worship team, right after we finished our

rehearsal.

Clever Words Won't Do It

A lot of ministers, like me, are really disappointed when we discover that every misunderstanding or false belief or painful situation can’t be fixed with clever, smart, insightful, persuasive words.  Some things that we come to understand won’t come from more talking or better explanations, they will come from a direct work of God’s Holy Spirit…or they won’t come at all.

We're Not In Control...So Trust God

There are some areas of our existence in which God allows us to have a measure of “control”.  But, by and large, much of what happens in our lives is beyond our control.  That’s okay.  He promises to provide our needs, He promises to love us no matter what, He promises to always be present with us.  So, our lack of control helps us learn to genuinely trust Him.

Reading Recommendations -- Love God With Your Mind

I administer a Facebook page titled: "Love God And Love Others...The Greatest Commandment". Recently, I wrote a post on that page regarding the subject of loving God with our minds. In response to that post, I received a request for some reading recommendations. Well...since I typed up a list, I figured I might as well publish it here, too. Hey, if I'm going to type, I want to get some use out of it! Here are some books that I highly recommend…

Total Truth, Nancy Pearcey

TruFaced, Thrall, McNicol and Lynch

Crazy Love, Francis Chan

Revolution Within, Dwight Edwards

Boundaries, Cloud & Townsend

How People Grow, Cloud & Townsend

Why I Still Believe, Joe Boot

What’s So Great About Christianity?, Dinesh D’Souza

The Pursuit of God, A.W. Tozer

Can Man Live Without God?, Ravi Zacharias

Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis

Messy Spirituality, Mike Yaconelli

The Long Journey Home, Os Guinness

These books are all outstanding, in my opinion, but not all for the same reasons.  Some are a little bit weightier than others but I believe they are all accessible.

If you are specifically interested in the subject of “leadership” here are a few recommendations…

Spiritual Leadership, Henry & Richard Blackaby

Good To Great, Jim Collins

Deep Change, Robert E. Quinn

Building The Bridge As You Walk On It, Robert E. Quinn

Leadership and Self-Deception, The Arbinger Institute

Spiritual Leadership, J. Oswald Sanders

Integrity, Henry Cloud

The Emotionally Healthy Church, Peter Scazzero

Here are some titles that are not specifically “Christian” books and I do not necessarily endorse everything that these authors write, however, they are, to me, excellent books with very interesting and helpful insights…

Talent Is Overrated, Geoff Colvin

Learned Optimism, Martin Seligman

Night, Elie Wiesel

The Road Less Traveled, M. Scott Peck

Made To Stick, Chip and Dan Heath  (For Those Interested In Communication)

Hope this is of some value.

Dan M.

P.S. If you are on Facebook and are not already a fan of "Love God And Love Others...The Greatest Commandment", I hope you will consider becoming one. Here is a link:    http://www.facebook.com/pages/Love-God-And-Love-OthersThe-Greatest-Commandment/236001620687?ref=ts

Courageous Surrender

Real Christian faith requires that we yield completely and totally to the will of God.  It is an act of surrender, but not a cowardly act of surrender, rather, a courageous act of surrender.  It comes from recognizing that God’s ways are better and higher than our ways.  “We must surrender and God must have his way.  His glory and our eternal welfare require that it be so.” A.W. Tozer

A Hands-Off God Or A Hands-On God?

Some Christians believe that God is “there” and He is all-powerful but that He’s, sort of, hands-off and uninvolved in His approach to our day-to-day lives.  Others believe that He is very present and active in our lives and that He is ready and willing to make His power available to us and to work through us.  I’m in the second group.  How about you?

The Question of "Something More"

Many wise people who have spent a lot of time thinking deeply about the idea of SOMETHING MORE have come to the conclusion that there is only SOMETHING MORE to this life if…IF…there is an infinite, all-powerful, all-knowing, eternal, loving, personal God.  There is only something lasting, something that goes beyond, if there is a God.  And we will only experience true meaning and purpose in this life in connection to that eternal, transcendent God.

Happy Easter To You!

What happened on that Sunday morning, long ago, has been so pivotal to human existence that the eternal destiny of every single human who has ever lived or will ever live hinges on this incredible event, and how we respond to the reality of it.  Jesus Christ is risen indeed!  I hope that truth has gripped your heart and that the living Christ has gripped your life. Happy Easter!

Freedom Is Available!

I find that I really dislike the idea of admitting that I’m “in bondage” in any way.  But one of the key truths of the Christian faith involves admitting that, without the grace of God, we are bound to sin.  It pulls and tugs us, it woos and cajoles and convinces.  We feel like we’re “in control” and the sin is optional.  But we are not free, we are bound.  Freedom is available. It is found in the Amazing Grace of Jesus!

Practical Wisdom: Weep With Those Who Weep

The Bible advises us to weep with those who weep.  This is a terrific example of practical wisdom, because I have found that often when people are hurting and grieving there are no words that are sufficient, you might say: words fall far short.  However, when we weep WITH those who are hurting, we communicate an authentic form of care and compassion that words simply cannot express.

A Question From Lindsey Re: Matt.26

My niece, Lindsey, sent the following post to me on Facebook.  I am re-posting her question and my answer here, with her permission….

Hey Uncle Dan! I have a question for you. I have been reading the Easter story from the different books in the gospel this week to reflect deeper than I have in the past. Something that stuck out to me more this year than ever before was Matthew 26 where Jesus was annointed at Bethany by the "unknown woman." What are your thoughts about this interaction? I've read a few commentaries and have become more intrigued daily. More specifically, Jesus' comment about the poor always being with us, but him not being on earth much longer caught my "special attention." =0) I want to know the significance of this interaction because it was so important to Jesus. You don't have to get back with me right away. But I am looking forward to your thoughts as I continue to study this. Love you! =0)

[The passage Lindsey refers to can be found here:  Matthew 26:6-13.]

Here was my response (which I am re-posting after getting written permission from myself)….

Lindsey,

Thanks for requesting my opinion, it feels nice to be asked.  It’s an interesting passage and here are a few thoughts.  [You may need a couple of minutes to read this, my answer turned out to be a little longer than I expected.  …..Sorry.]

What is most striking to me about the passage is the woman, herself, and what she does.  Her love for Jesus could almost be described as “reckless”.  She, apparently, does not consider other ways that the expensive perfume, or the proceeds from the expensive perfume, could be utilized.  She just launches into this extravagant action.  And it seems, her motivation is a genuine love for Jesus.  Again, I think it might be fair to call it a reckless love. 

But perhaps the lesson we might learn from her is that when it comes to loving God it might be possible to be too constrained and analytical.

The disciples almost seemed to be looking for a cost/benefit analysis of her actions.  She didn’t approach the matter that way.  She just acted on her love of Jesus and He said that she did the right thing.

Alright, that was one thought, now, here’s a more spiritual take on it.  I don’t know if this is right, or not, this is just my “Oh-Boy-Dan’s-Getting-All-Spiritual-Again” thought about the passage.  So feel free to take this with a grain of salt.

I think there’s a good possibility that the woman was prompted by God’s Holy Spirit—along with her motivation of love for Jesus—to do what she did.  In other words, thoughtful analysis had nothing to do with it, she was simply being obedient to a leading from God.  We believe God does that kind of stuff, right?

And I think, it’s POSSIBLE, that as soon as the disciples saw what she did, they realized that that’s what they should have done but they ignored the leading of the Spirit.  So, what happens?  They’re embarrassed.  They could tell she did the right thing—the thing they should have done—and they’re standing there looking like they’ve missed the boat.  So, instead of commending her for doing a beautiful thing, they start criticizing her actions.

Lesson:  Anytime anyone takes ANY action, it can be criticized by the people who aren’t doing anything.  Any action can always be second-guessed and criticized after it occurs…again, this is true of ANY ACTION.  The longer you serve in leadership, the more you will discover the truth of this.

The disciples weren’t that concerned about the poor.  And we know for a fact that Judas wasn’t very concerned about the poor.  He was Jesus’ treasurer and he was ripping off the funds for his own use.  Their self-righteous talk about the poor was just an effective way for them to criticize this woman’s loving, obedient, action toward Jesus.  (Again, an action that probably embarrassed them.)

When Jesus talks about always having the poor among you, he was not objecting to helping the poor or suggesting that it was a bad idea to help the poor.  We know from his other teachings that he strongly encouraged helping the poor.  That message made up a significant aspect of his teaching.  He was simply making the point that this was a very specific instance in which this woman did something important, necessary and meaningful.  She probably didn’t realize when she initiated this action that it would be a part of Jesus’ preparation for burial.  Again, this suggests the Holy Spirit’s involvement in all of this.

Taking care of the poor is a good and important thing and God wants us to do it.  However, in all of human history God’s son only comes to earth and dies ONE TIME.  It is, arguably, including the resurrection, the single most important event of all time.  She knowingly-or-unknowingly played a role in preparing his body for burial.  What she did was an act of monumental significance.

Jesus’ point was this, if you’ll allow me a very rough paraphrase:  [To disciples]  “Hey fellas, shut up with your fake concern about the poor, this woman has done exactly what the Holy Spirit prompted her to do.  She has done the right thing.  And her act will never, ever be forgotten.”

And just think about it, here you and I are in the Easter season of the year 2010, in some obscure little Facebook postings, still discussing it.  Pretty cool, huh?

Thanks again for asking.  Hope things are well.  Hope you have a WONDERFUL Easter.

I love you,

Uncle Dan

Seeking Answers From Jesus

Frequently, in the gospels, we find people asking Jesus questions. It’s interesting to note how his teaching is often initiated by someone first asking him a question. People wanted to hear Jesus’ opinion on all kinds of subjects. His insights were greatly valued because people could recognize a profundity and depth that was unique, special, extraordinary & true. Are you seeking answers from Jesus?