1. Build A Door
2. Build A Relationship
3. Build A Life
We busy trying to do Jesus' Job, building His church.
Small thinking = Looking at our congregation, denomination as His Church.
If every indvidual Christian in every church would be about building His Kingdom, it would build the foundation that Jesus can build His Church upon. Upon this Rock I will build my church, The Rock is the revelation that Jesus is the messiah who came to build His kingdom, here on earth as it is in heaven.
Friday, December 05, 2008
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Bible Lessons, Telling His Stories
When I get ready to teach a Bible lesson to children I interact with them in this way; "Is the Lion King true or not? Of course it is not! Have you ever seen a lion talk? Is Toy Story true or not? You're right! Most toys do not talk without batteries or pulling a string. How about the movie Iron man? Right again! These are just stories. They are fun to watch but they are not true. Today we are going to tell you a story that is absolutely true! It is from the Bible and the Bible is one hundred percent true all the time."
Media has become a huge part of how children learn. How many generations have grown up learning from Sesame Street? Puppets and Dramas are used worldwide to help us communicate the Bible stories. Many of our adults services are now driven by media. What happens when there is no technology available, your drama team slept in, the puppets were left at your last outreach, and the DVD player bit the dust? It is time to tell His stories!
Teaching Bible lessons by simply telling the stories is becoming lost in the variety of media options available. Most of us would cancel our Children's service if the above situation happened.
Oral communication has become buried in most of our everyday lives. Emails and text messages have become a huge form of communication, especially among young people. Most families have eliminated "dinner time", a place where communication happened and the stories were told. Through all of this we are losing the essential key to most cultures, oral communication. My children are grown now and we live spread out across the country. When we gather at holidays or other events they ask "Pap Pap" (that's me) to tell the grandkids my stories. I have lived an amazing and eventful life and I have a way of seeing humor in almost any situation. I have had many funny things happen to me that my family loves to hear me talk about. The Bible says laughter is medicine to the bones and my family is blessed to be very healthy. We laugh alot!
I have been ministering to children for twenty-some years. I have used every gadget, object lesson, drama, puppet skit, and video throughout the years to teach children the Bible. I still think all of it is necessary and helpful to illustrate the lessons, but these days I try to use the lost art of story telling to teach the main Bible lesson. In this series of blogs I will share some of my reflections, techniques, and styles that I use to tell His stories. Do not go recycle Jumble Jeffrey the puppet! Keep your drama costumes! Keep an open mind and perspective and let us learn again how tell the stories and once again become preachers to the children.
Media has become a huge part of how children learn. How many generations have grown up learning from Sesame Street? Puppets and Dramas are used worldwide to help us communicate the Bible stories. Many of our adults services are now driven by media. What happens when there is no technology available, your drama team slept in, the puppets were left at your last outreach, and the DVD player bit the dust? It is time to tell His stories!
Teaching Bible lessons by simply telling the stories is becoming lost in the variety of media options available. Most of us would cancel our Children's service if the above situation happened.
Oral communication has become buried in most of our everyday lives. Emails and text messages have become a huge form of communication, especially among young people. Most families have eliminated "dinner time", a place where communication happened and the stories were told. Through all of this we are losing the essential key to most cultures, oral communication. My children are grown now and we live spread out across the country. When we gather at holidays or other events they ask "Pap Pap" (that's me) to tell the grandkids my stories. I have lived an amazing and eventful life and I have a way of seeing humor in almost any situation. I have had many funny things happen to me that my family loves to hear me talk about. The Bible says laughter is medicine to the bones and my family is blessed to be very healthy. We laugh alot!
I have been ministering to children for twenty-some years. I have used every gadget, object lesson, drama, puppet skit, and video throughout the years to teach children the Bible. I still think all of it is necessary and helpful to illustrate the lessons, but these days I try to use the lost art of story telling to teach the main Bible lesson. In this series of blogs I will share some of my reflections, techniques, and styles that I use to tell His stories. Do not go recycle Jumble Jeffrey the puppet! Keep your drama costumes! Keep an open mind and perspective and let us learn again how tell the stories and once again become preachers to the children.
Sunday, September 07, 2008
Ingredients To Successful Ministry Part Three
We are talking about the three ingredients for successful ministry. They are being relevant, being relational and being reverent. The last blog focused on the challenge of being relevant without compromising our being reverent. Can we ever be too reverent towards the Lord? Of course not! In our best effort to revere Him we come way short. So perhaps the third “R” in our three ingredients should be called “Religious”. Now let me ask you, can we be too religious? I would call being too religious being to “Churchy”. I remember in the zeal of first being saved I adopted a full blown Christianeze language (I am not speaking about tongues). “Praise the Lord this!” “Hallelujah to that!” “Glory to God!” The zeal of a new Christian is often refreshing to other Christians cheering them on as they pass from death to life, but to the unbelievers, the unchurched and unsaved it is like nails on a chalkboard. It usually does nothing to draw them in and often pushes them further away. I was and often still am very religious in my talk. These days I try to be aware of who I am conversing with and be careful not add too much of this ingredient of Religion. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 9:22-23 “I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some. 23 Now this I do for the gospel's sake…” I do not believe Paul is saying that he took on the ways and language of the world. I do believe He was saying that we should be aware of the lost folks around us and be careful not to push them away with our religion. In today’s world we will push them away with religion. They do not need religion; they need to know a relevant, relational and reverent Jesus.
Workers, Open Doors, Provision, Lasting Fruit
Five years ago we started Power Hour Sidewalk Sunday Schools in an inner city neighborhood called Lincoln Park in Hampton, Virginia. We believe the Lord told us to give Him five years in this community. We began a labor of love reaching the children. It expanded to a mentoring ministry for eleven to thirteen year olds. From there we were able touch the lives of the children's parents. We have ministered faithfully for those five years.
Pastor Mark Geppert (www.seapc.us)discipled and mentored us in our early years of ministry. Mark's main ministry focuses on prayer. He taught us a long time ago that when praying for ministries, cities and nations to focus the prayer in four areas. Those areas are workers, open doors, provision and lasting fruit.
On most Thursdays over the last five years I spent time on Buckroe Beach walking and praying for the Lincoln Park ministry. One fourth of that time I have asked the Lord of the harvest for laborers. I have cried out for workers to help our small group of volunteers who faithfully showed up to reach the children of Lincoln Park. The next quarter of my time on the beach was spent asking God for "Open Doors". We needed open doors in the community. We needed open doors in the hearts of the children and the adults. We asked for open doors with the local government and the housing authority. The next fourth of my prayer was for provision. Someone once said, "Salvation is free, the delivery system is expensive." Our popsicles and snacks cost $40 each week. We needed prizes, balloons, object lesson materials, and sound equipment. We never lacked in the provision for the Power Hour each week. The last fourth of my prayer time was spent asking God for lasting fruit in the lives of the children we ministered to. Some of those prayer journeys on the beach were with my wife, Debra, or ministry interns. Most of the time it was me and Jesus.
Debra and I attended a commissioning service for three churches who are taking over in Lincoln Park. I was approached about a month ago by the leader of this endeavor who asked what our future plans were in Lincoln Park. I informed him that we were finishing our work there but we were concerned about just concluding without a plan for the future ministry there. He shouted "Hallelujah!" as he informed me of the plans of these three churches. At the end of the service this evening, the pastor leading the service asked for all the workers who were going to be involved in the Lincoln Park ministry to come forward. Most of the people in the service proceeded forward for prayer. It looked like a hundred or more. Debra and I wept. In my mind I saw every step made on those prayer walks. I thought of how I cried out for workers! This was beyond what I was asking for or imagining.
Do not give up! God hears every prayer and He answers them above and beyond what we could ever ask of think.
Pastor Mark Geppert (www.seapc.us)discipled and mentored us in our early years of ministry. Mark's main ministry focuses on prayer. He taught us a long time ago that when praying for ministries, cities and nations to focus the prayer in four areas. Those areas are workers, open doors, provision and lasting fruit.
On most Thursdays over the last five years I spent time on Buckroe Beach walking and praying for the Lincoln Park ministry. One fourth of that time I have asked the Lord of the harvest for laborers. I have cried out for workers to help our small group of volunteers who faithfully showed up to reach the children of Lincoln Park. The next quarter of my time on the beach was spent asking God for "Open Doors". We needed open doors in the community. We needed open doors in the hearts of the children and the adults. We asked for open doors with the local government and the housing authority. The next fourth of my prayer was for provision. Someone once said, "Salvation is free, the delivery system is expensive." Our popsicles and snacks cost $40 each week. We needed prizes, balloons, object lesson materials, and sound equipment. We never lacked in the provision for the Power Hour each week. The last fourth of my prayer time was spent asking God for lasting fruit in the lives of the children we ministered to. Some of those prayer journeys on the beach were with my wife, Debra, or ministry interns. Most of the time it was me and Jesus.
Debra and I attended a commissioning service for three churches who are taking over in Lincoln Park. I was approached about a month ago by the leader of this endeavor who asked what our future plans were in Lincoln Park. I informed him that we were finishing our work there but we were concerned about just concluding without a plan for the future ministry there. He shouted "Hallelujah!" as he informed me of the plans of these three churches. At the end of the service this evening, the pastor leading the service asked for all the workers who were going to be involved in the Lincoln Park ministry to come forward. Most of the people in the service proceeded forward for prayer. It looked like a hundred or more. Debra and I wept. In my mind I saw every step made on those prayer walks. I thought of how I cried out for workers! This was beyond what I was asking for or imagining.
Do not give up! God hears every prayer and He answers them above and beyond what we could ever ask of think.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
The Shepherd
We were coming down the narrow trail in the Nepal mountains from elevations of twelve thousand feet. This was the fifth and last day of our trek. We were exhausted. My 17 year old daughter's feet were blistered terribly. We longed for a western meal. As tired as we were, the trip was worth it as we were able to distribute all of our Gospel literature and Bibles to unreached Nepalis who lived in villages high in the mountains.
For most of the trip down from the mountains, the trail was only wide enough for one person and a passing donkey as they carried supplies up and down the mountain. I was helping my daughter limp down the mountain as she anguished in pain. She moaned often but never complained. She had been attacked by a dog, chased by a water buffalo, and awakened at night by rats running across the rafters. She was a trooper but I was beginning to wonder how much more she could take.
The trail opened up to a green grassy area covered by a huge tree that gave much welcomed shade. We unloaded our backpacks and layed down in the midst of some feeding goats. Our Nepali friend and guide conversed with the young boy tending the goats. The young shepherd was fascinated with us and also concerned with the condition of my daughters feet. We were out of Gospel material and all of us Westerners were hoping that Ashok, our guide and friend, was sharing the Good News about Jesus with this young boy.
As they were sharing we noticed a small goat bent forward on it's front legs feeding on the grass. It ate as much grass as it could reach without moving its bent front legs. It seemed to want more but refused to move to get it.
Ashok finished his conversation and the young shepherd boy prepared to go on his way up the mountain trail. He strapped on his pouch and then moved toward the little goat. It was then that we realized that the little goat was crippled! It's front legs were permanently bent backward. The shepherd boy gently reached down and picked the goat up. He slung the little goat over his shoulder so the goat rode on the back of his neck being carred to the next place of rest and nourishment. Off they went up to higher elevations.
As we pushed our tired and sore bodies up to start again, my thoughts went immediately to the famous "Footprints" poem. None of us said anything but we knew the Lord spoke strength and encouragement to us through the little crippled goat. It gave us the strength and stamina to push on to finish the trek and go on to the comfort of the Mendies Haven Orphanage, where we were staying while on our mission to Nepal.
Perhaps you feel crippled by the pressures of life. Your soul's feet are blistered from the wonderings of the world. All mankind has been left crippled by the ravages of sin. Be encouraged today that there is a Good Shepherd who knows your pain. He is aware of your exhaustion and the pull to give up. If you let Him, He will carry you to your next place of refreshing and nourishment.
We were coming down the narrow trail in the Nepal mountains from elevations of twelve thousand feet. This was the fifth and last day of our trek. We were exhausted. My 16 year old daughter's feet were blistered terribly. We longed for a western meal. As tired as we were the trip was worth it as we were able to distribute all of our Gospel literature and bibles to unreached Nepalis who lived in the higher elevated villages.
For most of the trip down from the mountains the trail was only wide enough for one person and the a passing donkey as they carried supplies up and down the mountain. I was helping my daughter limp down the mountain as she anguished in pain. She moaned often but never complained. She had been attacked by a dog, chased by a water buffalo, and awakened at night by rats running across the rafters. She was a trooper but I was beginning to wonder how much more she could take.
The trail opened up to a green grassy area covered by a huge tree that gave welcome shade. We unloaded our backpacks and layed down in the midst of some feeding goats. Our Nepali friend and guide conversed with the young boy tending the goats. The young shepherd was fascinated with us and also concerned with the condition of my daughters feet. We were out of Gospel material and all of us westerners were hoping that Ashok, our guide and friend, was sharing the Good News about Jesus with this young boy.
As they were sharing we noticed a small goat bent forward on it's front legs feeding on the grass. It ate as much grass as it could reach without moving its bent front legs. It seemed to want more but refused to move to get it.
Ashok finished his conversation and the young shepherd boy prepared to go on his way up the mountain trail. He strapped on his pouch and then moved toward the little goat. It was then that we realized that the little goat was crippled! It's front legs were permanently bent backward. The shepherd boy gently reached down and picked the goat up. He slung the little goat over his should so the goat rode on the back of his neck. Off they went up to higher elevations.
As we pushed out tired and sore bodies up to start again, my thoughts went immediately to the famous "Footprints" poem. None of us said anything but we knew the Lord spoke strength and encouragement to us through the little crippled goat. It gave us the strength and stamina to push on to finish the trek and head to the comfort of the Mendies Haven Orphanage, where we were staying while on our mission to Nepal.
Perhaps you feel crippled by the pressures of life. Your soul's feet are blistered from the wonderings of the world. All mankind has been left crippled by the ravages of sin. Be encouraged today that there is a Good Shepherd who knows your pain. He is aware of your exhaustion and the pull to give up. If you let Him, He will carry you to your next place of refreshing.
"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. John 10:11-12
For most of the trip down from the mountains, the trail was only wide enough for one person and a passing donkey as they carried supplies up and down the mountain. I was helping my daughter limp down the mountain as she anguished in pain. She moaned often but never complained. She had been attacked by a dog, chased by a water buffalo, and awakened at night by rats running across the rafters. She was a trooper but I was beginning to wonder how much more she could take.
The trail opened up to a green grassy area covered by a huge tree that gave much welcomed shade. We unloaded our backpacks and layed down in the midst of some feeding goats. Our Nepali friend and guide conversed with the young boy tending the goats. The young shepherd was fascinated with us and also concerned with the condition of my daughters feet. We were out of Gospel material and all of us Westerners were hoping that Ashok, our guide and friend, was sharing the Good News about Jesus with this young boy.
As they were sharing we noticed a small goat bent forward on it's front legs feeding on the grass. It ate as much grass as it could reach without moving its bent front legs. It seemed to want more but refused to move to get it.
Ashok finished his conversation and the young shepherd boy prepared to go on his way up the mountain trail. He strapped on his pouch and then moved toward the little goat. It was then that we realized that the little goat was crippled! It's front legs were permanently bent backward. The shepherd boy gently reached down and picked the goat up. He slung the little goat over his shoulder so the goat rode on the back of his neck being carred to the next place of rest and nourishment. Off they went up to higher elevations.
As we pushed our tired and sore bodies up to start again, my thoughts went immediately to the famous "Footprints" poem. None of us said anything but we knew the Lord spoke strength and encouragement to us through the little crippled goat. It gave us the strength and stamina to push on to finish the trek and go on to the comfort of the Mendies Haven Orphanage, where we were staying while on our mission to Nepal.
Perhaps you feel crippled by the pressures of life. Your soul's feet are blistered from the wonderings of the world. All mankind has been left crippled by the ravages of sin. Be encouraged today that there is a Good Shepherd who knows your pain. He is aware of your exhaustion and the pull to give up. If you let Him, He will carry you to your next place of refreshing and nourishment.
We were coming down the narrow trail in the Nepal mountains from elevations of twelve thousand feet. This was the fifth and last day of our trek. We were exhausted. My 16 year old daughter's feet were blistered terribly. We longed for a western meal. As tired as we were the trip was worth it as we were able to distribute all of our Gospel literature and bibles to unreached Nepalis who lived in the higher elevated villages.
For most of the trip down from the mountains the trail was only wide enough for one person and the a passing donkey as they carried supplies up and down the mountain. I was helping my daughter limp down the mountain as she anguished in pain. She moaned often but never complained. She had been attacked by a dog, chased by a water buffalo, and awakened at night by rats running across the rafters. She was a trooper but I was beginning to wonder how much more she could take.
The trail opened up to a green grassy area covered by a huge tree that gave welcome shade. We unloaded our backpacks and layed down in the midst of some feeding goats. Our Nepali friend and guide conversed with the young boy tending the goats. The young shepherd was fascinated with us and also concerned with the condition of my daughters feet. We were out of Gospel material and all of us westerners were hoping that Ashok, our guide and friend, was sharing the Good News about Jesus with this young boy.
As they were sharing we noticed a small goat bent forward on it's front legs feeding on the grass. It ate as much grass as it could reach without moving its bent front legs. It seemed to want more but refused to move to get it.
Ashok finished his conversation and the young shepherd boy prepared to go on his way up the mountain trail. He strapped on his pouch and then moved toward the little goat. It was then that we realized that the little goat was crippled! It's front legs were permanently bent backward. The shepherd boy gently reached down and picked the goat up. He slung the little goat over his should so the goat rode on the back of his neck. Off they went up to higher elevations.
As we pushed out tired and sore bodies up to start again, my thoughts went immediately to the famous "Footprints" poem. None of us said anything but we knew the Lord spoke strength and encouragement to us through the little crippled goat. It gave us the strength and stamina to push on to finish the trek and head to the comfort of the Mendies Haven Orphanage, where we were staying while on our mission to Nepal.
Perhaps you feel crippled by the pressures of life. Your soul's feet are blistered from the wonderings of the world. All mankind has been left crippled by the ravages of sin. Be encouraged today that there is a Good Shepherd who knows your pain. He is aware of your exhaustion and the pull to give up. If you let Him, He will carry you to your next place of refreshing.
"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. John 10:11-12
Ingredients To Successful Ministry Part Two
Almost all growing ministries are using media to illustrate their teaching and preaching. It is almost necessary in this media driven culture to communicate using videos, music, movie clips, etc. to convey our Biblical messages. Computers and video projection have become a vital part of our communication within the churches and ministries. It is part of being "relevant". Jesus was relevant to his hearers. He used seeds, harvest, and sowing to communicate to the agricultural culture of his listeners. He spoke of nets, fish, and spoke from boats to the fishing communities. The challenge is staying relevant without crossing the line of being irreverent. We must be careful that in our effort to be relevant we do not compromise our Christian values.
A number of years ago my family moved into a new area. We were church hunting. Many people were talking of a new church that was meeting in a local YMCA. It was the fastest growing church in an area that had an abundance of churches. We decided to give a try on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. As we drove in the parking lot we were warmly directed to a parking space by the parking ministry. We were greeted at the door with a strong handshake, a smile, and directions to the Starbucks coffee and donuts (Yea!!!). So far this church was doing great in the second "R", being relational. I was even allowed to take my precious Starbucks coffee into the sanctuary! Awesome! The service began without a prayer, Hmmm? An acoustical group came forth and opened with a song made popular at that time by the Dixie Chic’s, "Landslide". I have used secular songs and changed the words to convey a Christian message to reach kids. I heard that "Amazing Grace" was once a bar song and the writer changed the words. No words were changed in this song, but I thought that the pastor was going encourage us on how life's challenges can come land sliding down on us but Jesus can pull us out of the rubble. I was trying to stay open. The liturgy was not what I was accustomed to as I thought praise and worship was next, but the pastor followed up the song with an introduction to a video clip on the big screen. The clipped rolled and the popular characters from the show "Friends" came to the big screen. I am not too pious to say that I have not watched and enjoyed the show, but there were parts of the show that sometimes I got convicted for watching and enjoying. On this clip all the characters were sitting around a table trying to celebrate Thanksgiving. Someone had forgotten the turkey and they were sharing a grilled cheese sandwich, each making a comment as they passed it around. The last one to get the sandwich and make a comment was Chandler. His comment was "This s__cks!" The line of being relevant and reverent had been crossed for me. I half heartedly tried to stay open thinking, "I would not have used that clip but surely the pastor will redeem this as he used the clip to illustrate his message. He preached a good message about the memorial stones that Joshua pulled from the Jordan River. He never used the "Landslide" song or the video clip as part of the illustrations to his sermon. They were there just because they were relevant to the culture of that time. Did he cross the line? Was being reverent compromised to be relevant?
In my first blog I used the illustration of a cake recipe. Too many eggs and the cake is no good. Too much sugar and only we sugarholics will like it. We must always measure and evaluate our ministries. In our zeal to communicate relevantly we must be careful to not compromise our being reverent towards Jesus. I believe this is one of the greatest challenges to those called to teach and preach today. How far can we go to illustrate our messages before we compromise our Christian values? Please, preachers and teachers, do not stop in your efforts to relevantly communicate. I personally enjoy a good object lesson or video clip when you communicate. We need to just prayerfully evaluate our efforts and ask the Holy Spirit to help us communicate so we do not bring an offense to our Lord or others.
In my next blog I hope to reverse this thinking and see that we can be so reverent (religious) that we can become irrelevant.
A number of years ago my family moved into a new area. We were church hunting. Many people were talking of a new church that was meeting in a local YMCA. It was the fastest growing church in an area that had an abundance of churches. We decided to give a try on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. As we drove in the parking lot we were warmly directed to a parking space by the parking ministry. We were greeted at the door with a strong handshake, a smile, and directions to the Starbucks coffee and donuts (Yea!!!). So far this church was doing great in the second "R", being relational. I was even allowed to take my precious Starbucks coffee into the sanctuary! Awesome! The service began without a prayer, Hmmm? An acoustical group came forth and opened with a song made popular at that time by the Dixie Chic’s, "Landslide". I have used secular songs and changed the words to convey a Christian message to reach kids. I heard that "Amazing Grace" was once a bar song and the writer changed the words. No words were changed in this song, but I thought that the pastor was going encourage us on how life's challenges can come land sliding down on us but Jesus can pull us out of the rubble. I was trying to stay open. The liturgy was not what I was accustomed to as I thought praise and worship was next, but the pastor followed up the song with an introduction to a video clip on the big screen. The clipped rolled and the popular characters from the show "Friends" came to the big screen. I am not too pious to say that I have not watched and enjoyed the show, but there were parts of the show that sometimes I got convicted for watching and enjoying. On this clip all the characters were sitting around a table trying to celebrate Thanksgiving. Someone had forgotten the turkey and they were sharing a grilled cheese sandwich, each making a comment as they passed it around. The last one to get the sandwich and make a comment was Chandler. His comment was "This s__cks!" The line of being relevant and reverent had been crossed for me. I half heartedly tried to stay open thinking, "I would not have used that clip but surely the pastor will redeem this as he used the clip to illustrate his message. He preached a good message about the memorial stones that Joshua pulled from the Jordan River. He never used the "Landslide" song or the video clip as part of the illustrations to his sermon. They were there just because they were relevant to the culture of that time. Did he cross the line? Was being reverent compromised to be relevant?
In my first blog I used the illustration of a cake recipe. Too many eggs and the cake is no good. Too much sugar and only we sugarholics will like it. We must always measure and evaluate our ministries. In our zeal to communicate relevantly we must be careful to not compromise our being reverent towards Jesus. I believe this is one of the greatest challenges to those called to teach and preach today. How far can we go to illustrate our messages before we compromise our Christian values? Please, preachers and teachers, do not stop in your efforts to relevantly communicate. I personally enjoy a good object lesson or video clip when you communicate. We need to just prayerfully evaluate our efforts and ask the Holy Spirit to help us communicate so we do not bring an offense to our Lord or others.
In my next blog I hope to reverse this thinking and see that we can be so reverent (religious) that we can become irrelevant.
Ingredients To Successful Ministry
There is an object lesson that I have done in children’s ministry to illustrate how God uses many things to develop our character. The object lesson uses a cake mix. Each separate ingredient i.e. eggs, flour, cocoa etc. is offered to a child to taste by itself. Of course the child cringes at even the thought of a raw egg by itself. The lesson goes on to show the kids that the ingredients mixed and measured appropriately turn out to be a delicious chocolate cake. I like to use this same illustration to illustrate the three necessary ingredients that make up successful ministry. Just as in any recipe these ingredients must be used in proper measure. I first received this from the Lord to teach in Singapore where they enjoy acrostics and the first letters of each ingredient begins with “R”. They are being Relevant, Relational and Reverent. I believe you can evaluate any ministry, personal or church, by understanding the balance of all three ingredients. Is my ministry or church relevant to the culture and the people we are called to reach? Are we relational? Do we embrace Christ and embrace others? Does our expression and communication honor (revere) Jesus?
I will continue with the “Three R’s” of ministry on future blogs
I will continue with the “Three R’s” of ministry on future blogs
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