Thursday, August 31, 2006

Special gifts....

Last night, our church hosted a young man who has an incredible gift. He is called "The Jesus Painter." With music in the background, he painted three portraits of Jesus on large canvasses. They were amazing. Each portrait told a story that revealed the final pictures. Each of the focused on Jesus and his love and sacrifice for us.

What struck me about this was the fact that this young man has found a way to use his gifts to inspire, motivate and encourage believers. I also believe that non-believers could be amazed about this gift and be motivated to ask some questions about Jesus.

It got me to thinking..... Many times we put people and their gifts in a box. We say that if you want to serve God, then here are the ways that you can do it. We provide a list and tell people "Go for it." But what happens to those who have gifts that don't fit the stock lists that we have in mind?

I am afraid that in many churches they get ignored. They get told that the gift they have doesn't really fit. Eventually if that gift is not given the opportunity to bloom, it dies. Only God knows what opportunities the church has missed because we decided who God could use and who he could not.

One of the awesome things about God is his committment to diversity. No one person is exactly alike to another. Even if they are identical twins, they still have different souls, and often different gifts. God is so creative that even today, thousands of years removed from the Garden of Eden, God is still finding ways to create different people with different gifts and interests. It looks like He is not running out of ideas.

I write this as encourage to those of you who find yourself outside the box. Go on ahead and explore your giftedness. Figure out how you can glorify God through it and then go for it. For when you do that, you remind us that God uses all kinds of different people, with different gifts , for the same purpose: to glorify Him.

The Jesus Painter ended his testimony with a thought that really blessed me. "God is more interested in your availability, than he is in your ability."

I think that is pretty good theology.

Sunday, August 20, 2006

Reflections from another church visit.

One of the benefits of the sabbatical has been my attendance at other churches. I have attended churches in Oklahoma, Oregon, California, and Arizona. Here in Tulsa, I ( and sometimes all or part of my family) have attended First Baptist Church of Tulsa, Asbury United Methodist Churh in Tulsa, Cedar Ridge Christian Church in Broken Arrow, and First Christian Church in Owasso.

While I have spent most of my time at FBC of Tulsa, I was really blessed and challenged this morning at Asbury. Some observations

1. It is a huge church. They have like 5 services. Their worship center is gigantic... The choir has 73 people in it, and they were wonderful.

2. The traditional worship was really good. I told Pam that you never know exactly what you are going to get when you see "traditional" or "contemporary". This was traditional, with the big Organ and the choir, Orchestra.... no praise team, no band per se.... It was done with excellence, and was engaging.

3. Some of the Liturgical elements of worship are very meaningful. The prayer time, with the congregational recitation of the Lord's prayer was very engaging... For those of who you are FCC members, this will become more familiar to you. Some of the Lord's prayer will be very foundational to my preaching in 2007. They also recited the Apostles' Creed. First time for me in a service, and frankly it was very stimulating to me. "I believe..." I liked that... Our creed is the Bible. But the intentional declaration of the beliefs of our faith in God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit is invigorating to me. It makes me think.

4. The preaching at Asbury is fantastic. Honestly, I was kind of surprised. I had "heard" that Tom Harrison was a good Bible preacher. But I wondered... Can a denominational church really have good preaching? Can a super large denominational church have good preaching? The ansswer to both those questions is yes... Harrison's treatment of what the Bible says about truth was right on. His declaration of Jesus being the "way, the truth and the Life." was inspiring and encouraging. He applied the scripture in a masterful way.

5. The baptism of sprinkling is disappointing to me. The service had this element, and it just seemed incomplete to me. It is more than just a symbolic act. It is the connection that we have to the death, burial and ressurection of Christ... It is where we put on Christ, where we are clothed with Christ as the Bible says. It is where , as the Bible says, that we receive the Holy Spirit. ( No where else does the Bible tell us we can receive the indwelling of the Spirit in another way.) What is interesting about this morning is that I know that there is a baptismal tank in that sanctuary... and that people can be immersed there. Just seems to me to be the way to do it... after all it was good enough for Jesus, the Apostles, the early church and beyond....

6. I was encouraged overall... There are some really good Bible teachers who are doing some great ministry. Harrison was engaging, Biblical, and humble....

7. The sound of Bible pages turning is sweet. I have to say, of all the churches I have been in the last 4 months, today, you could hear the pages turning. I just think there is something valuable in people thumbing through the Word... Of course it has to be more than just thumbing through.
I heard someone say this summer, "God's objective is not to get you through the Word, but to get the Word through you." I like that... Good preaching motivates that kind of thinking.

Its been fun. We will attending three more churches before I enter the pulpit at FCC. One will be in Nebraska... small, but and effective kingdom Church. Another will be College Heights Christian Church in Joplin. Growing, dynamic and again very strong Bible teaching ministry. And we will also attend Fellowship Bible Church of Northwest Arkansas. ( Liz and Nathaniel attend there) I will write more about those in the future.

To sum up. Praise God for all churches who strive to make disciples. Praise God for different approaches. Praise God for truth which can be preached, taught, and lived in different ways. Praise God for the impact of these churches in their communities...

And Praise God that I am able to come back to FCC 4 weeks from today.

Sunday, August 13, 2006

The end of being on the road...

I am writing from Mesa Arizona. Mike Raburn, Bob Haywood and I have been traveling, looking at churches, and talking about growth, multiple sites and communication with some of the leaders of these churches.

We attended the Leadership Summitt in Irvine California onThursday and Friday. Great conference on leadership. One thing that I believe the church ( universal) needs to do more of is to encourage its leaders ( paid and unpaid) to spend more time honing the leadership gift. Romans 12 tells us that if we have the gift of leadership we should lead with all dilligence. As it is with any other gift, leadership has to be developed. It has to be crafted. It has to be shaped. Some of that happens through the experience of leadership. But it also happens through study and exposure. Exposure to other "top shelf" leaders really does make an impact. So conferences like this really help me get away and look at my leadership.

I believe that if FCC is going to push through some of the "lids" of growth that we have ( attendance, facilities, etc) it is going to take great leadership. Not just from me, but from Staff, Elders, Ministry leaders, small group leaders, sunday school teachers, and more. Everyone is both a follower and a leader. All of us should be leading someone in our lives. All of us who call First Christian Church our family must have a common vision to reach the thousands of people in Owasso who do not know Christ...It is a matter of eternal life and death.

Conference speakers like Bill Hybels, Patrick Lencioni, Jim Collins are great for me. They stimulate my thinking... They give me hope that my leadership can make a difference for the Kingdom, for the local church and for my family.

What made it even better was sharing the experience with Mike and Bob. Both are great friends that have the love of God and his church at the center of their hearts. And they are fun.

This weekend, we flew back through Phoenix and visited three churches.

Christ Church of the Valley is the second largest Christian Church in the US. Average attendance is about 10,000 people every weekend. Believe it or not, their pastor has been on a 12 week sabbatical and he was back for the first time this weekend. . Their people were so warm in their reception of him. And I thought about my return. I know that it will be an emotional moment for me and our church. I thank God that I am able to say that I am coming back soon. The church service was great...I felt like they do things alot like we do. And I love our worship ministry and Tim.... I did not see anyone on this trip that leads to the level that Tim leads us. We are so fortunate to have him.

Central Christian Church of Mesa is a 4000 member church that has transitioned from an ingrown church to a church that is reaching out. It has been a challenging transition for them... and one that they are not done with. As you know we have made a great effort to talk about Invest, Invite and Include. The Church has done a great job with this but we are just beginning some of that transition. Tomorrow we will be spend some time with their executive staff talking about that transition, and thier plan to have two campuses. I think we have alot to learn from their experiences

Chandler Christian Church of Chandler is a church much like ours. They have about 2500 people each week, in 4 services. Thier worship style is much like ours. Roger Storms is the Pastor ( former associate at East Tulsa Christian Church). He is a good teacher and a great leader. They too are working on a second site, as well as pushing through growth goals. We meet with them tomorrow as well. I am anxious to talk with Roger, because he is closest to the growth levels that we are at. They know what it takes to get through 1000 and on to 1500, and growing into a regional church that impacts the community and beyond.

With all that said... I am ready to be home. This is the last trip that I will take. I am going to be around a bit more in the church, coming to the office a little more, and beginning to ease back into church life. I will be meeting this week with the Elders to define the scope of my return...

I am so thankful for the experience of the Sabbatical. I have learned so much. I have made some significant lifestyle changes. I have prayed and sought God for wisdom as to what my ministry will look like in the future. But now, some four months later, I am ready to get back to the people I love,a nd back into a routine. That routine will look different than it has in the past, but I pray that it will allow me to be more effective in impacting the world around me. I want to make a difference... a real difference. I know that this comes through devotion to Christ and the call that he has on my life.

It will be so good to be home....

Tuesday, August 08, 2006

A new adventure

One of the things that people close to me have been saying for years is " You need to find something else besides the church to do." They are right. I dabble at golf. I am not very good, which is a predictable result for someone who really doesn't play that much. I have started going out to the Driving range more. This is supposed to make a difference... a difference that I have yet to see. But the promise is before me, so this fall I plan to play and practice more.

I have been recruited to a new adventure. Fantasy Football. I like football alot. Especially college football. I like OU, and OSU ( Joel is an equipment manager for the team) Oregon ( I will root for the Ducks to beat the Sooners this September) and Nebraska. ( I am married to a Husker through and through)

Fantasy football is a pro team sport. I know very little about how to do this. So this afternoon, my Fantasy Football guru met me for lunch and we went through the basics. It is said that the first year is a learning year, which I think is probably true. But it will not be a wasted year. I am going to study and think alot about this in my spare time. I can be competitive, and I hope that to some degree this will bring it out.

However there is a better reason than winning to play Fantasy Football. It is the fun and fellowship that comes with getting together with a group of guys and playing a game. It is the fact that I don't know these guys very well and I want to. They seem like great guys from a distance, and I think they will be up close too. And I think they will do something that I really like in my life. They will let me be me.

I have some other guys that do that... Golfing buddies, our small group, friends that I eat lunch with periodically in Downtown Tulsa and some other friends that treat me like a regular guy. I love those guys, and I am glad to have a new group that I can be that way with.

By the way.... One thing that I love about Pam, Elizabeth, Joel, Lydia, Abigial, James and Nathaniel is that they see me as a regular guy... and not some guys who stands up and preaches to a church every week. They are proud of what I do, but they have never let that define for them who I am. What a blessing.

It is going to be fun. And contrary to the prevailing opinion, maybe a rookie might sneak up on someone and surprise them... I will let you know.

A new adventure

One of the things that people close to me have been saying for years is " You need to find something else besides the church to do." They are right. I dabble at golf. I am not very good, which is a predictable result for someone who really doesn't play that much. I have started going out to the Driving range more. This is supposed to make a difference... a difference that I have yet to see. But the promise is before me, so this fall I plan to play and practice more.

I have been recruited to a new adventure. Fantasy Football. I like football alot. Especially college football. I like OU, and OSU ( Joel is an equipment manager for the team) Oregon ( I will root for the Ducks to beat the Sooners this September) and Nebraska. ( I am married to a Husker through and through)

Fantasy football is a pro team sport. I know very little about how to do this. So this afternoon, my Fantasy Football guru met me for lunch and we went through the basics. It is said that the first year is a learning year, which I think is probably true. But it will not be a wasted year. I am going to study and think alot about this in my spare time. I can be competitive, and I hope that to some degree this will bring it out.

However there is a better reason than winning to play Fantasy Football. It is the fun and fellowship that comes with getting together with a group of guys and playing a game. It is the fact that I don't know these guys very well and I want to. They seem like great guys from a distance, and I think they will be up close too. And I think they will do something that I really like in my life. They will let me be me.

I have some other guys that do that... Golfing buddies, our small group, friends that I eat lunch with periodically in Downtown Tulsa and some other friends that treat me like a regular guy. I love those guys, and I am glad to have a new group that I can be that way with.

By the way.... One thing that I love about Pam, Elizabeth, Joel, Lydia, Abigial, James and Nathaniel is that they see me as a regular guy... and not some guys who stands up and preaches to a church every week. They are proud of what I do, but they have never let that define for them who I am. What a blessing.

It is going to be fun. And contrary to the prevailing opinion, maybe a rookie might sneak up on someone and surprise them... I will let you know.

Sunday, August 06, 2006

Back home again....

This past Friday I made a decision.... its time to go back to church. I have been in church almost every weekend since I got sick, but I just felt that it was time to get back to First Christian Church. I consulted Pam, who agreed... "It would be much easier to ease back in , that to just appear in Mid September." Made sense to me. I felt ready to tackle the world of hundreds of people that I knew...

I have to admit that I was a bit apprehensive. I don;t know exactly why, but I was. We arrived and went to Sunday School class. How good it was to sit and learn. Dale Wallace is a great teacher. He is not the only for sure. It seems to me that our church has an unusual number of good bible teachers. That is one of the strengths of our church. It felt so good to sit next to Pam in class. I have missed her alot in this way.

Then to worship services. WOW! The service was led by our youth and it was awesome. It is always so good to see their heart. Matt Thomason did a great job preaching, and Tim Tibbles led worship. I found that to be really good, partly because I know his style, and I knew most of the songs.

As I left, it was so great to be greeted by so many. The love and well wishes were a bit overwhelming. "When are you coming back?" was a familiar question. "We miss you..." I needed to hear those things.

After lunch and in a quiet moment, I reflected on somethings...

For one, I was tired. I am not all the way back stamina wise, and mornings like this show that to me. It will take a while. I don't totally understand why crowds wear me out... but they do. In time that will come back. But I have to take care of myself and watch that carefully.


Second, It would have been easy for the church as a whole, and the staff in particular to say, " When Charlie gets back, we will gear back up." It could have been a coasting time... waiting time etc. But it is very evident that it has not been that at First Christian Church. I looked around and saw dozens of people I did not know. And each time, I thanked God that the church had continued the effort to INVEST, INVITE and INCLUDE. I looked around and saw so many smiles, and joyful expressions of love. And I thanked God that this church is healthy and strong, with or without me. I saw a strong appreciation for God and for the youth of our church. I saw a father watch his son be baptized, and I saw the look of pride on his face, as he saw him buried with Christ.

I sensed that our church has gained ground during this time. It has been a very strong summer and we are poised for some amazing things this fall.

WOW! That is all I can say. I can't wait to get back in the full swing of things. I will be gone the next 2-3 Sundays, but after that, I will be around...

It was really good to back home again.

Wednesday, August 02, 2006

WEEDS

I am not a gardener.... but my Dad is. When I visited them in Oregon, one morning I asked Dad if there was anything around the house that he needed done. He mentioned that there were some weeds in the ditch in front of the house that he needed to have cut down.

So I grabbed the weedeater and took care of the weeds. It took 5 minutes... Following that I asked if there was anything else, and he mentioned the weeds around the perimeter of the garden. Dad had taken care of the weeds around his corn, and squash and other plants. But not so much around the perimeter. So I took the weedeater and went at it. That took me quite a bit longer than five minutes. They were thick and they were high. There were things hidden in the weeds that were hard and sharp. So it took some time, but eventually they got taken care of. ( Thank goodness for a heavy duty weedeater!)

I think one of the greatest dangers in life are weeds. Even Jesus talked about weeds ( thorns) in his parable of the sower. ( Matthew 13) Some seed falls among the weeds which grow up around the fruit of the seed and choke the life out of it. Jesus describes that in Verse 22 "What was sown among the thorns (weeds) is the man who hears the word but the worries of life and deceitfulness of wealth choke it making it unfruitful."

The difference between the weeds of a garden and the weeds of a life is the fact that we can be so busy doing good things in one area of life that we ignore the weeds growing in another. On the surface, our lives may look pretty good... things are going well.... we are productive in our eyes and others... but all along there are weeds. Nobody sets out to have a garden or a life full of weeds. It just happens.

Weeds show up in our marriage, and sometimes it is easier to ignore them... or just hope that they will go away.

Weeds show up in our spiritual lives. We may notice some inappropriate attitudes, or words that come out of our mouth that are out of character...and we just hope that it will get better..

Weeds show up in our relationships with friends. Maybe they say something that bugs us, or we just get tired of being accountable and we kind of pull away from them. It is easier to live unaccountable lives.

EVERYONE HAS THE POTENTIAL FOR WEEDS!

This is on my mind because someone that I care very deeply for has let some weeds pile up in his life and it is choking him. Slowly but surely his life has become less of a garden and more of a pile of weeds. And it is costing him dearly. The problem is that he has become so comfortable with the weeds that I am not sure he wants to go back to the garden. He simply can not see beyond the weeds. It is a terrible place to be.

So for those of you that read this, let me encourage you ( as I will myself), to be ruthless about the weeds. Tear them away from the garden of your life. Watch very closely your life. When something shows up, don't ignore it, don't hope it will just go away. Don't say, " I will get to it later." DEAL WITH IT! For if you don't you will find yourself in a mess.

One of the reasons that the weeds around the perimeter of my dads garden were so difficult to get rid of was because they had been let go for so long. The longer you and I wait to take action, the harder it is.

Painful? Sure it can be, especially if you have done any weeding lately. Threatening? Absolutely, especially if you have gotten used to the weeds and what life feels like with them. Destructive? Well, why do they call them weeds? Look no further than the defintion of a weed.

" a plant that is not valued where it is growing and is usually of vigorous growth; especially one that tends to overgrow or choke out more desirable plants ."

That is what weeds do... and if you don't control and mange them, it really hurts. So with Jesus' help, I am on the lookout for weeds in my life. I hope you will be too.

Blessings

Charlie