bob thoughts

pray for your pastor

This may seem like a strange post but I don't think I could have said it better myself.

from Perry Noble dot com by perry

This particular post may seem a little self serving…but so be it…this needs to be said (AND…I don’t mind asking people to pray for me!)  :-)

This past Thursday (Thanksgiving) I was enjoying some great food and watching a football game when all of a sudden I began receiving text messages about something happening to Matt Chandler, the pastor of The Village Church in Texas.  Long story short…Matt passed out, hit his head…was rushed to the hospital and after some tests was diagnosed with a mass on his frontal lobe that will be looked at this week.  Matt is a young leader (33 or 34 I believe) whom God’s hand is all over.  His preaching/teaching is amazing…and God has used him to grow the Village Church from about 100 or so people to over 7,000 in just a few years.  (He is an incredibly gifted preacher/leader!)

Hearing about what happened to him shook me up…BIG TIME.  I had VERY few words for the rest of the day as I began to think about the stress and pressure that is on pastors that simply is not understood by many.

My prayer is that things like this will cause the church to rally behind their pastor…and pray for him with more passion and intentionality than ever before.  Here are several areas where you can be praying for your pastor…

#1 – His Walk With God – Pray that his relationship with Jesus isn’t one out of obligation…but of OBSESSION for HIM!!!  It is VERY tempting for a pastor to read the Bible for sermon prep and NOT to know Jesus.  Pray that His relationship with Jesus will be FRESH and that he will be filled with vision and passion like never before.

#2 – His Integrity – It takes YEARS to establish integrity…and it can be destroyed in seconds.  Pray for your pastor to keep his eyes on Jesus and OFF of anything that might lead him astray!!!

#3 – His Marriage – Pray that your pastor just doesn’t preach about a healthy marriage…but LIVES it out.  I promise you the enemy comes STRONG after his marriage…and his kids!!!  Lift up his wife and children by name as well!!!

#4 – His Sanity – He deals with critics, he deals with unrealistic expectations, he deals with accusations, he deals with pressure that is intense.  Pray that he will keep his sanity.  I recently heard of a survey that said only 10% of the men entering the ministry actually retire…the others either get disqualified OR drop out!  That is a 90% failure rate!!!  THE STAKES ARE HIGH!!!

#5 – His Health – I was in a meeting of pastors a few years ago…everyone of us were leading large churches…everyone of us were under 35…and over HALF of the men in the room (remember, we were under 35) had been hospitalized in the past two years because of serious medical problems (most likely brought on by stress and anxiety!)  Good health is so vital for ministry…and I can promise you that physical, emotional and spiritual health do not just “happen!”  Do not assume that just because your pastor is young that he is healthy…lift him up.

Whoever your pastor is…seriously…I would ask that you lift him up.  No matter who you are…no matter who your pastor is.  I don’t care if you are reading this site and hate me…don’t hate your pastor.  Cover him…and pray that Jesus will speak to him and through him in ways that he has never experienced.

Rick Warren once said that he believes pastors are the most underrated changes agents in the world…and I believe that!!!  SO…let’s lift him up before God…and pray that Jesus will have HIS way in his life!

AND…keep praying for Matt!!!  He is in God’s hands…God has a plan for him…and I know God will receive ultimate glory out of all of this!!!

third-person christian

It's thanksgiving time and I'm thankful for really smart people who I can steal great blogs from.

from The Batterson Blog - Thoughts on Life and Leadership by Mark Batterson

I think some people are what I would call third-person christians. I'm not a grammarian, and I don't know if this metaphor holds up literally, but third-person christians read the Bible in the third-person. They think in terms of "they" instead of "me." They don't personalize it by reading it in first-person terms. And so Scripture is de-personalized.

Here's another example. Third-person christians attend church in the third-person thinking about the people in their life that "need to hear this message" rather than processing it personally! They talk about church in "they" terms instead of "we" terms.

Here's a thought. Simply insert the first-person "I" or "me" or "we" when reading the Bible. It helps you own Scripture. And more importantly, it helps Scripture own you.

church for those who don't like church

We work hard at LIfePoint to create an exciting, creative and relevant environment that we all can use to our advantage as we invite our friends, neighbors and family to come to a church that speaks a language they can understand.

This post from a fellow church planter explains it well:

The Experience Matters
from You Can Know God by Michael

I learned this from Starbucks.

For about three months in 2005, I didn’t have a real job. I was a youth pastor, and after that time I became a senior pastor, so I recognize that there will be many that ague that I didn’t not have nor do I currently have a real job, but that is beside the point.

So I spent a lot of time in coffee shops reading and writing. I was somewhat of a coffee drinker. Especially if you loaded it up with sugar, milk, whipped cream, called it a fancy word and charged five times it’s worth.

One of the books that I read was buy a man named Howard Shultz (Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time), who founded Starbucks. Actually, he started another company, who eventually took over Starbucks, but that’s not important for this lesson.

While reading this book about Starbucks inside a Starbucks, one of the Starbucks corporate guys who happened to be in town came over and sat down. We talked for a few minutes about what I was reading, and about why I drove past several other coffee shops to sit in this particular Starbucks.

It was then that I realized that Starbucks doesn’t sell coffee.  They sell kool-aid.

This regional vice president went on to tell me all things that Howard Shultz had been writing about…how Starbucks is trying to become that third-place where people congregate (the other two being work and home) and how Starbucks really sells an experience. I don’t know about the Third Place thing, but I completely buy the experience stuff.

Because Starbucks sells coffee to people who don’t even like coffee. They have created a coffee culture in this country. Directly through the 5,372 chain stores. Even indirectly through the local coffee shops who hate all things corporate and create brochures about about how community trade is better than direct trade which is better than fair trade.

I am convinced that most people don’t really like Starbucks coffee. You drink it because you’re supposed to. You go there because everyone else does. If you  really do buy into the experience, then you’re willing to pay for it.

All the elements must converge to create one overall experience…and it’s that experience that is memorable.  When you go to Disney World, you might remember a particular ride, but chances are, you remember Disney World itself. When you go on a great vacation, you might remember the comfortable bed in the hotel or the nice restaurant downtown, but you probably remember the vacation.

All the individual elements combine to form one emotional experience.

What I’m talking about is the importance of culture. If you want guests to attend your church, you’ve got to create that culture. If you want your office environment to be intense or relaxed, then you have to work hard to create that culture.

In a ton of circumstances, it’s the experience that matters.

I learned this from Starbucks.

For about three months in 2005, I didn’t have a real job. I was a youth pastor, and after that time I became a senior pastor, so I recognize that there will be many that ague that I didn’t not have nor do I currently have a real job, but that is beside the point.

So I spent a lot of time in coffee shops reading and writing. I was somewhat of a coffee drinker. Especially if you loaded it up with sugar, milk, whipped cream, called it a fancy word and charged five times it’s worth.

One of the books that I read was buy a man named Howard Shultz (Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time), who founded Starbucks. Actually, he started another company, who eventually took over Starbucks, but that’s not important for this lesson.

While reading this book about Starbucks inside a Starbucks, one of the Starbucks corporate guys who happened to be in town came over and sat down. We talked for a few minutes about what I was reading, and about why I drove past several other coffee shops to sit in this particular Starbucks.

It was then that I realized that Starbucks doesn’t sell coffee.  They sell kool-aid.

This regional vice president went on to tell me all things that Howard Shultz had been writing about…how Starbucks is trying to become that third-place where people congregate (the other two being work and home) and how Starbucks really sells an experience. I don’t know about the Third Place thing, but I completely buy the experience stuff.

Because Starbucks sells coffee to people who don’t even like coffee. They have created a coffee culture in this country. Directly through the 5,372 chain stores. Even indirectly through the local coffee shops who hate all things corporate and create brochures about about how community trade is better than direct trade which is better than fair trade.

I am convinced that most people don’t really like Starbucks coffee. You drink it because you’re supposed to. You go there because everyone else does. If you  really do buy into the experience, then you’re willing to pay for it.

All the elements must converge to create one overall experience…and it’s that experience that is memorable.  When you go to Disney World, you might remember a particular ride, but chances are, you remember Disney World itself. When you go on a great vacation, you might remember the comfortable bed in the hotel or the nice restaurant downtown, but you probably remember the vacation.

All the individual elements combine to form one emotional experience.

What I’m talking about is the importance of culture. If you want guests to attend your church, you’ve got to create that culture. If you want your office environment to be intense or relaxed, then you have to work hard to create that culture.

In a ton of circumstances, it’s the experience that matters.

lifepoint at showplace 12

I haven't shared pictures in a while so here are some shots of LifePoint in action at Showplace 12.

christian tv - please stop

Some people should not be allowed on TV.

church for those who hate church

In the six communities that surround me here in the metro East (Edwardsville, Glen Carbon, Granite City, Collinsville, Troy, and Maryville) there are approximately 65,000 people that never attend church. Some of them don't go because they are simply too busy. Some don't go because they are afraid or hate church. There are some who would say they hate God but many of them are okay with God - just not okay with church.

It is the desire of LIfePoint to create a church that unchurched people love to attend. Why would we want to do that? Because God has called us to love the world not just "church people." Will we be able to reach all 65,000? No probably not but we will never stop trying.

I read a verse on Sunday that has rocked my world lately.

It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles (non-church people) who are turning to God.
Acts 15:19

WE SHOULD NOT MAKE IT DIFFICULT FOR PEOPLE IN THE METRO EAST TO TURN TO GOD!

The "Church," many times unitentionally, has made it difficult for non-church people to turn to God becasue of the the way we do church. We think about church from an insiders perspective and fail to see what it would be like for an outsider.

LifePoint I just wanted to say thank you for being a church that is willing to do whatever it takes to help people find their way back to God! Let's never forget that Jesus died for the world and not just the church people.

funny monday

Do Monday's make you feel like this?

complaining and whining

Do you ever complain or whine? Do you enjoy hearing others complain and whine? I was talking with a friend the other day who said that he thinks he is a whining magnet because whiners are always "sharing" with him.

I say this post about the 100 year grid that I thought was helpful.

The 100 Year Grid

from Pastor Steven Furtick by meredithbrock

(Special thanks to Pastor Craig Groeschel for the following perspective.)

When I’m tempted to complain, it’s very helpful to run my potential complaint through the grid of 100 years.

Size up the situation, consider the ramifications, and ask honestly:
Will this matter in a hundred years?

If the answer is no, let it go.
If it’s yes, do something about it.
Either way, complaining is not an option.

The majority of the things I complain about are related to my temporary comfort, not eternal realities.  There’s no need complaining about something that will have no impact in 3 weeks.  A lot of the things I complain about won’t even matter 3 minutes from now.

Will it matter in a hundred years?  Probably not.

So why waste a complaint?  You’ve got more enduring work to do.

willing to do whatever it takes

"Willing to do whatever it takes" is a pretty popular phrase and if you did a quick google search you would find over 4.5 million pages. This phrase is used in business, NASCAR, politics, drug and alcohol rehab, sports, and almost any other area you can imagine.

What about in the church? Are we willing to do whatever it takes to help people find their way back God? The churches natural tendencies are to move toward what the current people want or like and neglect what will reach the people outside of the church. That's why we must be willing to do whatever it takes because if we aren't intentional we think internally not externally.

We should stop asking the question - What's in it for me?

And start asking the question - Jesus how can I serve you?

"Later when Jesus was eating supper at Matthew's house with his close followers, a lot of disreputable characters came and joined them. When the Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company, they had a fit, and lit into Jesus' followers: "What kind of example is this from your teacher, acting cozy with crooks and riffraff?" Jesus, overhearing, shot back, "Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? Go figure out what this Scripture means: ‘I'm after mercy, not religion. I'm here to invite outsiders, not coddle insiders.'"

funny monday

Sorry for being an absent blogger last week. So here are a couple of funny pictures to start of your Monday.

Be careful where you sit.

Be careful where you park your car.