Daily Scripture Readings Leading to
Sunday April 02, 2006
Monday:
Proverbs 2:1-22 The Search for Wisdom
Consider these words as a path upon which we might walk toward wisdom in our lives.
Tuesday:
Acts 21-23 Understanding Paul
Paul shares the story of his conversion. Notice how Paul uses the gifts offered to him by his upbringing and family. Also notice the gifts Paul uses offered by the Holy Spirit, such as boldness in speech.
Wednesday:
Acts 24-26 Paul and the Early Church
By reading through this trial of Paul with all the twists and turns, we can see the hand of God working to offer faith and grace to even those who stand in a place of judgment. If you like, continue reading and finish the book of Acts.
Thursday:
John 21 Epilogue to John’s Gospel
This fishing story has always offered great hope to me. I find my place among the disciples, as we toil away the hours not seeing the harvest we expected. And all the time Jesus is watching and appears when we are at the end of our wits offering a new plan, a new path and a bite to eat.
Friday:
1 Timothy Paul Instructs Young Timothy
Paul takes Timothy under his wing and offers sound advice. We can also learn from Paul’s lessons.
Saturday:
2 Timothy Lesson in Leadership
Timothy is leading a group of churches and will be charged in keeping them from destructive influences and theological problems which might arise from within. He is not alone in this task.
I want to center my thoughts on Sunday in the first five verses of Chapter four. We must focus our message to the world in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Why is so much of our lives spent off working in a dark corner on a marginal project. While real needs go without.
It seems so easy to focus our Christian walk in ways and places that require almost nothing of us. I can talk the talk and then go hide in the weeds, really not living in the very power I claim. Stay on task. Know the primary goal. Offer the main message of salvation.
Sunday: Reflect and Worship
Scripture: 1 Timothy 4:1-5
Sermon Title: “Don’t Wander Off”
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Thursday, March 16, 2006
A Little Closer to Home...
A Little Closer to Home…
Have you noticed the little growth spurt Salem is experiencing? Our worship attendance will average over 425 per Sunday for the first quarter of 2006. This is the first time in the history of the church Salem has been over 400 for an entire quarter. The odd thing as I look at the data is that Easter, with it’s traditionally large numbers, is not until the next quarter. This growth is happening without either of the big holidays of Christmas or Easter.
As you know this church has been on a pretty steady growing curve for over five years. In fact most everything that really matters, from the attendance, to the finances, to the building has about doubled. I believe all this activity is really a function of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives. I believe it is our relationship with Jesus Christ, each other, and our neighbor which is the real muscle at work behind the scenes. Yet what we can measure, which surely must reflect the Spirit, are things like attendance and giving.
All churches go through seasons of up and down. Salem has not experienced a spike of growth every quarter, some are more level and adjusting than other quarters. But just know that this past quarter has been very special. As we look to the future we see the Children’s Worship Design Team hard at work. We know that the JAM (Jesus and Me) children’s worship beginning this September will also offer further growth into our congregation. We see that the Manna Project continues to offer grace and love into the community and the path towards establishing a more permanent ongoing presence offsite in Manawa proper may be only months away. That will also mean a new and different type of growth for Salem. Did you know Salem is in the preliminary stages of visiting with our architects again to vision a new Sanctuary for our current setting. This three to five year project will accommodate our continued growth and spur on additional new growth. We are currently working with the SPRC to add additional staff to keep up with the changes taking place. We are also very interested in ways to assist the membership to grow in their leadership. We will need to grow more leaders and provide opportunities to experience ministry firsthand.
This June, I will be finishing six years as your pastor. When Cheryl and I arrived the worship attendance was about 180, today it is over 425. We continue blessed and amazed at the ways God works through this congregation. When we arrived in June of 2000, the budget was about $190,000 with no apportionments paid for the year. Today our budget is about $475,000 (with much of this going directly to missions) and all the bills are paid. And as a note, Salem is making good and steady progress on the building loan. Our financial position is as strong as anytime in the last six years.
All this to say, “God is not done with us yet.” We will continue to grow and reach out and gather in the Holy name of our Savior Jesus. The vision I have been given and offer to you is a church preparing to become more than we ever imagined. We are going to reach 500 new folks for Jesus by the year 2010. It is to this end we pray, and plan, and prepare. And we acknowledge it is not in the attaining of our goals in which we are given new life, it is the blessing of the journey together. This expanding relationship is where we will find our real growth that the numbers will never be able to discern. This is going to be something! See you on Sunday. Dave.
Have you noticed the little growth spurt Salem is experiencing? Our worship attendance will average over 425 per Sunday for the first quarter of 2006. This is the first time in the history of the church Salem has been over 400 for an entire quarter. The odd thing as I look at the data is that Easter, with it’s traditionally large numbers, is not until the next quarter. This growth is happening without either of the big holidays of Christmas or Easter.
As you know this church has been on a pretty steady growing curve for over five years. In fact most everything that really matters, from the attendance, to the finances, to the building has about doubled. I believe all this activity is really a function of the Holy Spirit at work in our lives. I believe it is our relationship with Jesus Christ, each other, and our neighbor which is the real muscle at work behind the scenes. Yet what we can measure, which surely must reflect the Spirit, are things like attendance and giving.
All churches go through seasons of up and down. Salem has not experienced a spike of growth every quarter, some are more level and adjusting than other quarters. But just know that this past quarter has been very special. As we look to the future we see the Children’s Worship Design Team hard at work. We know that the JAM (Jesus and Me) children’s worship beginning this September will also offer further growth into our congregation. We see that the Manna Project continues to offer grace and love into the community and the path towards establishing a more permanent ongoing presence offsite in Manawa proper may be only months away. That will also mean a new and different type of growth for Salem. Did you know Salem is in the preliminary stages of visiting with our architects again to vision a new Sanctuary for our current setting. This three to five year project will accommodate our continued growth and spur on additional new growth. We are currently working with the SPRC to add additional staff to keep up with the changes taking place. We are also very interested in ways to assist the membership to grow in their leadership. We will need to grow more leaders and provide opportunities to experience ministry firsthand.
This June, I will be finishing six years as your pastor. When Cheryl and I arrived the worship attendance was about 180, today it is over 425. We continue blessed and amazed at the ways God works through this congregation. When we arrived in June of 2000, the budget was about $190,000 with no apportionments paid for the year. Today our budget is about $475,000 (with much of this going directly to missions) and all the bills are paid. And as a note, Salem is making good and steady progress on the building loan. Our financial position is as strong as anytime in the last six years.
All this to say, “God is not done with us yet.” We will continue to grow and reach out and gather in the Holy name of our Savior Jesus. The vision I have been given and offer to you is a church preparing to become more than we ever imagined. We are going to reach 500 new folks for Jesus by the year 2010. It is to this end we pray, and plan, and prepare. And we acknowledge it is not in the attaining of our goals in which we are given new life, it is the blessing of the journey together. This expanding relationship is where we will find our real growth that the numbers will never be able to discern. This is going to be something! See you on Sunday. Dave.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
A Little Closer To Home
A Little Closer To Home…
When Jesus gets hold of us things change. We may not want our lives to change, it may even cause new issues to arise. However we can be clear that as we grow in Christ Jesus our lives will change. If after reading these three sentences you beg to disagree, and after some prayerful thought on the subject decide that your life is not changing, I would pastorally suggest you also are not Spiritually growing. I am unable to find one time in the Bible where Jesus came into contact with folks and their lives did not change. Some lives changed by miles others by only inches, but contact with the Messiah offers change.
While I am on my soapbox also hear this; I do not love Lawrence Welk. It does not matter how long I listen to the champagne music makers I will not love their music. We are told, and even come to believe, that if we just listen to Welks’ music long enough we will finally come to appreciate and even love it. Nothing could be further from the truth for me. Welk was a man of his time, contemporary for the day in which he lived. My music, the stuff that moves my soul, came along a couple decades later. Using the same thoughts I must also agree that my music will not move the soul of many who come after me. No matter how much I play my music, my grandchildren are not going to “get it.” And so it goes.
Some good news is that we believe God sorts out all the change in our lives. We believe that which changes is the medium, not the message. It is not a problem that our contact with God changes us. God contact can be uncomfortable perhaps or a new learning curve but should not be a big problem. What would be problem is if God were changed by contact with us. Whoa Nellie…, now that would be a big problem. God becomes like humanity, film at 11. It is we who are made in the image of God, not the other way around.
What if every time I heard Lawrence Welk he became a little more like Eric Clapton or Carlos Santana? Now that would be really weird. So I guess it is good God does not change. Because if you like Welk, I am glad and never want his music to be anything but that which makes your heart sing a song of life to the world. Same for other types of music, and the same is true for the church and the ways we go about offering love and grace to a hurting world. Change in our lives is expected. The ways we offer Christ to the world will certainly also change. What will never change is love and grace of our God. The substance of our God is static and without compromise. Our God is an awesome God.
When Jesus gets hold of us things change. We may not want our lives to change, it may even cause new issues to arise. However we can be clear that as we grow in Christ Jesus our lives will change. If after reading these three sentences you beg to disagree, and after some prayerful thought on the subject decide that your life is not changing, I would pastorally suggest you also are not Spiritually growing. I am unable to find one time in the Bible where Jesus came into contact with folks and their lives did not change. Some lives changed by miles others by only inches, but contact with the Messiah offers change.
While I am on my soapbox also hear this; I do not love Lawrence Welk. It does not matter how long I listen to the champagne music makers I will not love their music. We are told, and even come to believe, that if we just listen to Welks’ music long enough we will finally come to appreciate and even love it. Nothing could be further from the truth for me. Welk was a man of his time, contemporary for the day in which he lived. My music, the stuff that moves my soul, came along a couple decades later. Using the same thoughts I must also agree that my music will not move the soul of many who come after me. No matter how much I play my music, my grandchildren are not going to “get it.” And so it goes.
Some good news is that we believe God sorts out all the change in our lives. We believe that which changes is the medium, not the message. It is not a problem that our contact with God changes us. God contact can be uncomfortable perhaps or a new learning curve but should not be a big problem. What would be problem is if God were changed by contact with us. Whoa Nellie…, now that would be a big problem. God becomes like humanity, film at 11. It is we who are made in the image of God, not the other way around.
What if every time I heard Lawrence Welk he became a little more like Eric Clapton or Carlos Santana? Now that would be really weird. So I guess it is good God does not change. Because if you like Welk, I am glad and never want his music to be anything but that which makes your heart sing a song of life to the world. Same for other types of music, and the same is true for the church and the ways we go about offering love and grace to a hurting world. Change in our lives is expected. The ways we offer Christ to the world will certainly also change. What will never change is love and grace of our God. The substance of our God is static and without compromise. Our God is an awesome God.
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