Outward, Missional, or Gone Fishing...It's all the same

The link below is a fabulous blog that really speaks of my heart as well.  Having asked numerous times, "Are we fishers of men or keeper's of the aquarium", I encourage you to follow the below link and prayerfully consider the possible way that God is calling you into the ministry at Campbellsburg Baptist Church.

http://www.kyandbeyond.org/is-yours-an-innie-or-an-outie/

Transgender Today

In light of the latest news regarding the Obama administrations transgender policy, there is a clear confusion regarding this issue by many that I have spoken to.  Many concerns and confusions are centered around the legality of this policy and the magnitude in which this moral shift will eventually invade every home.  Out of love and grace, let me say that the purpose of this post is not to speak Biblically to the issue; but rather, to provide information to the reader by clarifying the many terms of the transgender movement, while identifying the legal rights that are being infringed upon by our government.

For now, I am going to direct you to a post that accomplishes the above for us.  Please click here to read the post by the ERLC of the SBC.  This post provides clear definition of what is happening.  Although this post contains occasional legal jargon that can be a bit confusing at times, all in all, the ERLC provides a simplistic understanding regarding the policy that many seem to be concerned with.

In future posts we will decipher what the churches responsibility is concerning the issue of transgender, while continuing to be salt and light within our home, church, community, and schools.

Hospitality

Hospitality has become a lost art.  There are many reasons for which we could lay blame for this, but fellowshipping with our neighbors has become almost non-existent.  A big reason for no longer opening our homes to our neighbor is that society rarely views the world as God would have us to.  As this paragraph may sting a little, I urge you to continue reading.

The Bible has much to say regarding hospitality; in fact, God goes so far as to write entire books within the Bible on the subject.  Hospitality is one way in which the believer lives out the Gospel, as well as being on mission in our community.

As I could spend the time - and by not doing so is not belittling the importance – in showing how Scripture instructs hospitality, I feel led to discuss a few ways that we can be more hospitable.  And this fits into the mission of our church for 2016.

At the beginning of 2016, we discussed the mission and ministry of Campbellsburg Baptist Church.  In doing so, through the means of our newsletter, we have challenged each member to be on mission in various ways; such as prayer walks throughout our community, and actively inviting people to church.  While continuing to challenge our church with this mission, it is necessary to stress the importance of engaging our community.  And in order to invest in people’s lives with the Gospel, there are a few things to consider.

First, we must have a love and concern for our neighbor.  Without the Saving Grace of Jesus Christ being the fuel of our souls, it is difficult to see the world as God desires.

Second, we must be intentional, an intentionality that is driven by the passion of Jesus Christ.  A passion that manifests itself through sacrificing time and plans in order to be available to our community.  Intentionality is a necessity in developing a routine of being hospitable, because there is always going to be something else that we could be doing.

Thirdly, a sincere prayer life.  Prayers that petition God to send the right people into our lives in which we can invest the Gospel through hospitality.

As there will be more to come about being hospitable in future blogs, let me conclude by urging everyone to view this podcast.  It is about 15 minutes and very powerful.  Testimonies like this podcast should motivate us in being intentional and prayerful about what the Gospel means to us and how we can be Christ-centered, Gospel-driven believers in our communities.

F.L.E.E

I do a lot of reading on a daily basis and a portion of this reading contains selected blogs.  Each blog has a lot of helpful information that I internalize and later partially reproduce through a sermon, a teaching moment, or program/event.  With only the inerrant Word of God being infallible, when reading extra-biblical information we use the parts that pertain to our lives and ministries.  Enjoying most things I read, I rarely find an  article that is complete.  Well this morning I found one that I would like to share.  The below link leads you to a blog that I would encourage everyone to check out regularly.

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/f-l-e-e-a-strategy-for-pursuing-sexual-purity

Adoration

In my last post I shared how God had guided me into preparing a vision and purpose for the ministry of Campbellsburg Baptist Church.  Early one morning in June God awakened me by flooding my soul with vision, and the result is captured in a sixteen page document entitled Mission and Ministry Handbook.

Also in the last post, I stated how I would provide updates that show the results from sharing this document.  On Sunday January 10th, we shared our heart of ministry with the church and made the Mission and Ministry Handbook available.  As a result, there have been several people to provide positive feedback, along with many questions.  The many questions were expected because of the content, but they are a huge blessing because it means that people are actually reading it.

But the first result that I would like to share from this experience is what God has accomplished in me.  Having prayed over this document and the presentation of it, this type of prayer has depend my adoration of God.  As I would like to use the word reminded instead of deepened, I feel that reminded would be boasting of my spirituality.

God has appeared more beautiful, glorious, and majestic to me.  When thinking of God; His character, His patience, His love, His Immanence, His Transcendence, and on we could go, I am reminded that He alone is worthy of worship.

If nothing else results from this effort of revitalizing ministry at Campbellsburg Baptist Church, then I feel that my deeper appreciation, gratitude and worship of God is sufficient.

A 2016 For 2017 and Beyond

It is 9:00 A.M. on January 1st 2016 and I sadly report that the only thing I have accomplished so far in 2016 is sleeping (borrowed this from Twitter).  Although staying up a lot later than normal, I have to admit that our family closed out 2015 and brought in 2016 with joy together.  Not that other years have not been special, but this New Years was a lot of fun and I hope that it is a glimpse of what year will entail...enjoying the time that we have together as we get things accomplished.

Our society seemingly gives up on the current year after Thanksgiving, as it eagerly anticipates the next year in hopes of all that it will have to offer.  As this seems to be the norm, I hope I do not sound like the rest of society; however, there is a real excitement surrounding 2016 and seeing the results of what God had started in 2015.

Although I attempt to live every day as God ordains, six months ago God blessed me by providing a vision and direction for 2016.  Because of God's leading and my trying to be obedient, preparations were made in 2015 for 2016.  With that being said, I am really excited to see what all God has planned.

In past - yet similar - experiences when God has pressed upon me as He has over the last six months, the results were certainly unexpected.  So without being able to anticipate God's finished product, I want to clearly say that I am more excited that God is pressing upon me.

I love it when God clearly conveys vision for me because it takes the guess work out of leading.  Always willing to, and daily seeking His direction from Scripture, it is really refreshing when God opens the mind with clarity, understanding, and excitement.  It could be one of those years in which I wonder aimlessly, but God has decided to bless me with a reminder that He is at work in my life, in Campbellsburg Baptist Church, and all of His creation.

So stay tuned for; what I can only imagine will be, a year of exciting and refreshing reports of God being praised and worshiped for His goodness and His guidance.  God bless each of you in 2016.