Category: Ministry (Page 33 of 35)

Rosemont Stepping Out Big Time!

November 15, 2007 / Allan / 1 Comment

How about a one thousand member Spanish-speaking congregation in south Fort Worth?

The Rosemont Church of Christ, established in south Fort Worth back in 1952, has donated all of its building, every bit of it, lock, stock, and barrel, and everything inside to Continent of Great Cities to plant a brand new Spanish-speaking congregation. There are over 100,000 Spanish-speaking people within a four-mile radius of that building, which is also right across the street from Rosemont Park. And Continent of Great Cities is raising a spanish-speaking mission team right now to begin work there in January. Their plan is to make the Rosemont plant a pilot program that will be implemented in the cities of our country with the highest Spanish-speaking populations. Los Angeles is the top city. But our DFW area is the second, with over 30% of our population of Hispanic origin.

Praise God for the vision of the Rosemont leaders and the folks at Continent of Great Cities. What a wonderful concept: reaching out as missionaries to the people in our own neighborhoods!

We live in a mission field. You know that. And I’m glad to see others recognizing that and doing something about it. Something big. May our Lord bless their efforts. May he give us his vision so we can see things and people and situations the way he sees them. May we rejoice in the things that bring God joy. May we mourn in the things that grieve God. And may many, many of his children be reconciled to him through the love and care of the Christians in the Rosemont area.

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***Legacy Construction Update***

It’s been a while since I posted pictures. (Click on each picture for the full size.) And there’s been a whole lot of activity lately. The exciting thing this week has been the installation of the steel support columns in the new worship center. And look at the size of these steel trusses. They’re all over the place.

The Youth & Benevolence Center is also coming along quite rapidly. Most of the exterior walls are up and the inside work is progressing quickly.

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“Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. The commandments, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ ‘Do not murder,’ ‘Do not steal,’ ‘Do not covet,’ and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.” ~Romans 13:8-10

Peace,

Allan

The Cup of Blessing

October 19, 2007 / Allan / 1 Comment

“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”

The central image in the great 23rd Psalm is the prepared table, an obvious symbol of provision and honor. The fact that our Shepherd / King provides for us and honors us “in the presence of my enemies” paints a beautiful portrait of our God’s protection and blessing while we journey through life on earth. A life lived in the presence and power of God is still a life lived in a world not yet restored to the wholeness God intends. So, even though we presently experience divine presence and reward, we are still among the enemies.

We should recognize that being in Christ doesn’t mean the troubles, cares, pains, and dangers of this world are removed from us. We remain “in the presence of” our enemies. However, we should ask ourselves and reflect on the ways, day after day, our Father is setting a table for us in the presence of those enemies.

One of the ways our Lord protects us and provides for us is in acts of love and service done for us by our Christian brothers and sisters. When the culture and the world seek to taunt us and tear us down, we find comfort and strength in the handshakes of friendship, the caring hugs, the community of fellowship, and the unity we share in the blood of Jesus.

These acts of love toward us become tables prepared by God — and his people — in the presence of our enemies who want to ridicule us and shatter our hopes.

God prepares the table of provision and protection and honor. I challenge you, today, to become a caterer at that table to those we know and love who are surrounded by enemies.

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We’re preparing now to take Legacy from a church that does small groups to a “Small Groups Church.” And it seems the biggest hurdles here in making that transition are related to the concept of breaking down the already established larger groups into smaller groups so more people can be invited in. This is a church-wide struggle here. It’s not just one age group or demographic. Young, old, in-between — there are lots of people here very worried about breaking out of their comfort zones and their comfort circle of friends and engaging other brothers and sisters in the congregation who don’t have those kinds of friendships and connections.

In our congregational informational meetings (the next one is set for Tuesday evening, October 23) everyone completely buys into the concepts of applying the Word, connecting as a family, and evangelizing our community through Small Groups. But lots of people don’t seem to understand how it’s up to the established groups, who already see the significance of what we do, to lead the other 65-70 percent of the congregation in the same direction. I keep hearing that they’re afraid they’re going to lose their friends if they begin a new group. I keep hearing that what they already have as a group is so special, so meaningful, so deep and intimate, they don’t want to lose it.

If it’s that special and meaningful and deep and intimate, why in the world wouldn’t you want to share it? Why wouldn’t you want to grab three or four other families in our church and help them experience the same thing? Why wouldn’t you do everything you could — if it’s really that great — to mentor others to help them grow and minister in the same ways you have?

You must read Jennifer Green’s blog post from yesterday. Click here. She and her husband Aaron see the benefits of Small Groups. And while they’re deeply connected to an existing group in our Young Families Class, they’re determined to start a new group in January so they can involve other people in our church who need it just as badly as the rest of us. They already have in mind a couple of neighbors on their street they’re going to invite and involve. They’ve been praying about it for weeks. And they can’t wait for January. They’re already inviting people to join them. They’re encouraging the entire class to follow their enthusiastic example.

If you’re nervous about commiting to a new group or leading a new group or breaking your existing group up in order to minister to others, Jennifer’s blog will inspire you. Read it.

Thank you, Aaron and Jennifer. And thanks to all who are jumping in.

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The Cowboys’ last two games have been decided in the 4th quarter. In both of those 4th quarters, combined, all 30 of the closing minutes against the Bills and Pats, Terrell Owens was thrown to five times. He’s seen five 4th quarter passes come his way in the past two 4th quarters. He dropped one. Two were intercepted.

For the entire season, Owens has only three 4th quarter catches.

And here’s T.O. from Wednesday:

“That’s all on the quarterback. All I can do is run my routes. Look at the film and there’s some situations and opportunities for me to get the ball.”

Let the turmoil build.

Minnesota has the league’s worst ranked defense against the pass. You think Romo’s going to be throwing the ball all over the place Sunday? The Vikings also have the #1 rushing offense in the NFL. I’m thinking the Cowboys are going to lose the time of possession battle as badly as they did against New England. And if they’re throwing 75-percent of the time, that’s not going to translate into a win.

Peace,

Allan

No One Leads Alone

October 12, 2007 / Allan / 0 Comments

God’s call is never misunderstood. It’s not vague or ambiguous. The question in Scripture and in our own lives is never in discerning God’s call. It’s clear.

He tells Abram, “Go!” He tells Moses, “Speak!” God tells Joshua, “Lead!” He tells Gideon, “Fight!” He tells Samuel, “Serve!” God tells Isaiah, “Prophesy!” He tells Jeremiah, “Preach!”

And none of it’s easy. None of it’s appealing. And they balk at first. They throw up excuses and reasons for not answering the call. And every single time God tells them, “Hey! It’s not about you. It’s about me.”

“If I call you to do something,” God says, “I’m the one who’s going to do it. Not you. Don’t be afraid. I’m with you. We’re in it together. I’m God. Trust me.

The question in God’s call on our lives and in the life of his Church is never “Can you hear me now?” It’s always, “Can you trust me now?”

Sunday morning at Legacy we’re looking for 100 men and their families to sign up as Small Groups Church co-leaders. We’re establishing 50 Small Groups to meet weekly on Sunday evenings beginning in January. Each group is to have two co-leaders — no one leads alone — and so we need 100. Building up to those sign-ups, we’re going to explore God’s call to Moses here at Legacy Sunday morning.

But let me point out this today. If you’re a member at Legacy, think about this in terms of your place here in the body and your role in the opportunities the Lord is setting before us, specifically as it relates to our clear mission as the church to Apply the Word, Connect as a Family, and Evangelize our Community. If you’re reading this from somewhere else, chew on this in terms of whatever it is God is calling you to do right there wherever you are.

The task Moses was given to confront Pharaoh was not to be undertaken alone. Rather, he and the elders were to go to Pharaoh and demand the release of the Hebrew slaves (Exodus 3:18). At the same time, God provided Aaron as a helper to carry out God’s plan. Both Aaron’s role and that of the elders emphasize the role of the group in carrying out God’s will. Moses doesn’t do any of it by himself. He works for the group by working with the group.

Moses’ problem is that he looked at God’s call on his life only in terms of what he, Moses, could accomplish. Instead of viewing the call in terms of God’s power and will to accomplish the task, Moses saw only his own gifts or talents, or lack thereof.

Consider the call of God to serve the body of Christians and the community in the name of Jesus. And if we reflect on God rather than ourselves, we’ll approach that call with a peace that passes all understanding.

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We’re less than 24 hours away from Legacy’s 21st annual Give Away Day. And it looks like everything’s just about ready. The concourse is crammed with rows upon rows of racks loaded with clothes, sorted and sized for whoever needs them. It looks like we have more blue jeans than ever before, most of them brand new! We’ve had dozens of volunteers up here for the better part of two weeks sorting through all these things. But it’s still beyond me how it all comes together.

Every one of our downstairs classrooms is a designated “shopping” area. Some for shoes—again, most of them brand new—some for dishes and household appliances, and the others for more clothes.

We’ll have over 2,000 folks from our community in here tomorrow morning before 7:00. Everything’s given away free of charge. Everyone’s welcome. No questions asked. So many people will be touched by the love of Jesus. The stories we’ll be telling and re-telling for the next few weeks will be heart-warming. And I’m certain, just like last year and all the previous years, we’ll be impacted for the good much better than the ones we serve.

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As always, I’m not cheering for the Cowboys Sunday. But, at the same time, I can’t root for Bill Belichick and the Pats. It’s a combination of never wanting to root for the overwhelming favorite and current dynasty and some of that wanting to see history thing at work. It’s like rooting for the opposing pitcher in the 9th inning when he has a no-hitter working against your team. It probably would be really cool to see the Cowboys do something NOBODY expects them to do.

But I’m not rooting for them. I just want to see a good game. Part of me thinks the Pats will win 45-10. But I’ve been wrong on most things so far this season.

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Our dear sister in Christ, Sue Godwin, passed away at her home yesterday afternoon, surrounded by her family and great friends. What an inspiring picture of Christian perseverance and character. What a truly wonderful model of faith in her Lord. The times I visited her and prayed with her, she always told me she was ready to go, but scared. She knew exactly where she was going, but she was worried about getting there. In the name of Jesus the Christ, we again commit the care of her body and soul to our God. The One who calls us is faithful. And he will do it.

Peace,

Allan

A Kingdom of Priests

October 10, 2007 / Allan / 0 Comments

One of the things I tend to emphasize in my preaching and teaching is that we are all, every one of us, ordained ministers. We’re ordained at our baptisms to minister to each other and to our neighbors in the name of Jesus Christ. I love that imagery. I love the way it shapes us as a church family, sharing and meeting each other’s needs and having all things in common. We minister when we put the interests of others ahead of our own.

During last night’s congregational informational Small Groups meeting here at Legacy a different, but related, thought came to mind. We claim to be a Kingdom of Priests. We’re a priesthood of believers. But what does that mean? Does the priest image communicate to us a different concept than the image of Christians as ministers? Is it deeper? How is a priest different from a minister? Have I been using the wrong image to communicate the way we, as believers, are to act with one another and within the community?

I think the “priesthood of all believers,” which actually comes straight from Martin Luther and the Reformation, has probably been distorted by a lot of us. As a concept, I think we see this “priesthood” in terms of individuals functioning as our own priests. We assume — or even worse, insist — that, “I don’t need a priest. Jesus is my priest. It’s just him and me. I can do OK on my own.”

That distorts the true nature of the Biblical concept. “Kingdom of Priests” (Biblical term) and “Priesthood of all Believers” (Reformation term) means that we are all priests, not for ourselves, but for one another. The idea should be more like, “I need you for my priest. And while we’re at it, I’m available to you as your priest, too.”

Eugene Peterson puts it this way in his latest theological work, The Jesus Way:

“The priesthood of all believers is not an arrogant individualism that, at least in matters dealing with God, doesn’t need anyone. It is a confession of mutuality, a willingness to guide one another in following in the way of Jesus, to assist and encourage, to speak and act in Jesus’ name. In the community of the baptized, there is no one, absolutely no one, who is not involved in this priestly function of leading and being led.”

Oh, man, does that work well with what we’re trying to do here with Legacy Small Groups Church.

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***Legacy Construction Update***

The steel beams are going up. Two floors on the new youth and benevolence center are clearly established. It looks like this may be the quickest part of the construction process. Or it may just be that it’s the most visible.

Peace,

Allan

That Thing God Does & Old Friends At ACU

September 18, 2007 / Allan / 0 Comments

In response to Gary’s comment from yesterday: What is “God, do that thing you always do?”

It’s our loving and compassionate Father whose eternal nature is to save us and redeem us and reconcile us back to him moving among his people to be present with them and in them. And that presence is then powerfully manifested in an outpouring of confession and prayer and connection and change.

It’s God overcoming my weakness and my sin and my lack of vision and understanding to blow our doors off with his message of forgiveness and hope. It’s when he causes something incredible to happen in an assembly of his people — something that nobody can plan or predict. He puts his message directly into people’s hearts. He pours his love straight into people’s souls. And then amazing things happen.

It happens at retreats. It happens at workshops and seminars. It happens in living rooms and around kitchen tables. It happens on Sunday mornings Friday nights. And I can’t explain it.

It’s revival, maybe. It’s a reawakening to the Holy Spirit of God and the power he gives us. It works through intentional prayer and sacred songs and confession of sin. It works when God’s people truly humble themselves before him, recognizing their sin, and whole heartedly submitting to his Lordship.

I don’t know exactly what or how it is.

But I do know it’s our God who does it. He just jumps right into the big middle of everything we’re doing and almost disrupts things with his presence. And his people respond to that presence with tears of joy and sorrow, with prayers of confession and thanksgiving, and with an outpouring of love for each other.

And I know our God is present with us everytime we come together. But sometimes it’s more powerful than at other times. The feeling, not the presence or the power itself. Are we more in tune with our God and his presence and power at those times than at other times? Are our hearts more open and our minds more clear and our souls more ready? Or is God revealing himself in different ways at those times? Is he moving in us and through us differently during those times? I don’t have an answer. It’s a combination of all of it, I suppose.

All I know is that it happened Sunday morning and again Sunday night at Legacy. He’s getting us ready. He’s transforming us. And I’m convinced anew and more than ever that our God is going to do some powerful things in us and through us for the Kingdom.

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I don’t have time or space to tell you all the wonderful things about Day One at the ACU Lectureships. Randy Harris’ session on humility sparked much conversation and debate and reflection for the rest of the day and night. Billy Wilson’s presentation on the blessings of God found in the great Psalm 23, I think, is going to show up in at least a couple of sermons at Legacy. A panel discussion between us old guys and a bunch of college students was eye-opening as to why a lot of them are jaded by our Church of Christ fellowship. It’s nothing we don’t already know. But it really pushes some of our shortcomings to the front. And then Landon Saunders nailed it at last night’s keynote with a call from Micah to reach out to the people in our communities who make churches uncomfortable. The people in our town who are dying for forgiveness, longing for connection, yearning for love and acceptance. And he puts church leaders — you and me — squarely in the cross hairs of Micah’s message.

Day Two is upon us. I’m refreshed and ready to go.

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I hadn’t been on campus five minutes when I ran into Kirk Eason from Austin Grad. Stan Reid is also here and we visited a bit after last night’s session. I’ve also spoken with Dan and Reba Bonner, two wonderful people who went with us on our trip to Israel in January. Jim Martin, a godly man and gospel preacher in Waco and a longtime friend of the family sat two seats down from me during the morning keynote. Grady King from South MacArthur and Danny Sims from Alta Mesa are running the roundtable with the college students. Sid and Janetta Allen sat down right in front of me at last night’s keynote, dear friends from North Davis who were honored by ACU last night for their decades of Kingdom service in North and South Korea. Shannon Jackson’s here. Kyle Smith, one of our kids from Marble Falls hollered out “Larry!” out in the campus yesterday and I turned around. Of course. Later on, his brother Ryan and David Griffen showed up at Moody for the keynote. And I’ve seen Mackenzie Lewis, but I haven’t been able to visit with her yet.

May God bless us with a fantastic week in his service.

Peace,

Allan

Spirit-Empowered Christian Ministry

August 28, 2007 / Allan / 3 Comments

“Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” ~Ephesians 4:30

In the middle of Paul’s instructions to the brothers and sisters in Ephesus regarding the “new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” and practical ways that new self is demonstrated in everyday life, he exhorts us not to grieve the Holy Spirit. The verb “grieve” and the pronoun “whom” are very clear in communicating to us that the Holy Spirit is a person, not just an influence, not just our conscience, and not just a power. The Spirit is a “he,” a “him.” And it’s through him that our Christian ministry receives its authority and its might.

The Holy Spirit of God who brought Jesus out of the tomb lives in us to empower us to do the things he calls us to do. That power is the grace by which we are called and the authority by which we speak. I appreciate the way Eugene Peterson speaks of the Spirit in Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places: he says the Spirit “is not marginal to the main action, it is the main action.” All of creation, all of salvation, and all of community takes place because of the Spirit of God.

God’s Holy Spirit produces in us the character traits and the confidence necessary for Christian ministry. The Spirit intercedes for us to our Father in words we can’t begin to express. God’s will is revealed to us by the Spirit. The Spirit gives life and guidance, purpose and protection. The Spirit of God lives in us to accomplish what is impossible without him. It’s beyond our capabilities as humans to keep God’s commands, to follow Christ perfectly, to spread the Gospel message to all the world, to redeem the lost back to God. We’re only human.

Not so with the Spirit. We’re super-human. God-filled. Able to do all things. Undefeated. Inspired. Invincible.

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For a thought-provoking column on what worship is NOT, check out this recent entry on the blog of my great friend Jim Gardner.

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Just two more days until football season officially begins! And I’m happy to report, no more kickers or punters remain in the countdown. Today’s #2 is one of the all-time greats in college football and the only player in NFL history to return eleven kicks for touchdowns: Eric Metcalf.

As a halfback/receiver/returner Metcalf set the all-time Southwest Conference record for most all-purpose yards (5,705) and was the SWC MVP as a Texas Longhorn in 1987. He set the school’s single season all-purpose yards mark that year (1,925) and is the only player in Longhorns history to lead the team in all-purpose yards four years in a row (1985-88). During his time in Austin, Metcalf also won the national championship in the long-jump. Twice.

Metcalf’s eleven year NFL career was spent in Cleveland, Atlanta, San Diego, Arizona, and Baltimore. He’s the all-time NFL leader in return yards (6,982) and #13 all-time in combined yards (14,434). He was quick and elusive and deceptive as a runner. But he just wasn’t big enough (5-10, 188) to do much of anything else but return kicks in the pros. Eric Metcalf is the all-time best to ever wear the #2.

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Sorry I was so late in getting the Cowboys predictions posted yesterday. If you haven’t seen it yet, go back to yesterday’s entry. I’d love to get your feedback.

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As an encouragement to all preachers and elders and church leaders, I leave you today with the words of Augustine to Valerius on his ordination at Hippo in 391 A.D.:

“First and foremost, I beg your wise holiness to consider that there is nothing in this life, and especially in our own day, more easy and pleasant and acceptable to men than the office of bishop or priest or deacon, if its duties be discharged in a mechanical or sycophantic way; but nothing more worthless and deplorable and meet for chastisement in the sight of God; and, on the other hand, that there is nothing in this life, and especially in our own day, more difficult, toilsome, and hazardous than the office of bishop or priest or deacon; but nothing more blessed in the sight of God, if our service be in accordance with our Captain’s orders.”

Peace,

Allan

Category: Ministry (Page 33 of 35)

Rosemont Stepping Out Big Time!

The Cup of Blessing

No One Leads Alone

A Kingdom of Priests

That Thing God Does & Old Friends At ACU

Spirit-Empowered Christian Ministry

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