Forgiveness

I'll be teaching on forgiveness this weekend in our services.  I ran across this illustration that I think says a lot.  Two men at a nursing home had been quarreling for years.  One of the men thought he was on his deathbed so he called his foe over to his bed and said, “John, I forgive you for what you have said and done against me over the years, and I want you to do the same for me.”  The other man, with tears in his eyes, agreed that he too would like to forgive and be forgiven.  Then the man in the bed said, “But if I get better, this doesn’t count!”

If we don't forgive, we are bound to the people we cannot forgive.  An unforgiving spirit is little better than being like inmates of an internal concentration camp.  While we often try to punish and imprison those who hurt us, the reverse actually happens.  When we don't forgive, we end up being tortured.  The worst prison in the world is the prison of an unforgiving heart.

Lewis Smedes said, "When I genuinely forgive, I set a prisoner free and then discover that the prisoner I set free was me."

Think about it...

The Journey

Birthdays cause you to reflect.  Well, at least they should.  I am now 57 years old.  Life has been good, but there have been a lot of twists and turns.  I've certainly racked up a lot of miles on this body.  I've made decisions, but good and bad.  I've erred and I've succeeded.  Regrets?  Sure.  Overall - it's been a great journey.  It's not always about the destination.  It's about how we get there. 

Thinking Out Loud

I've been away from my blog for what seems like forever.  Ok, it's been since August?  It's so hard to keep up with everything.  I've been teaching online courses, pastoring my church, chasing my senior daughter in her last year of high school, hanging out with my son at the gun range, etc.  Here are some rambling thoughts...

My greatest joy:  My children and grandson.  They are all such joy to me.  I can't imagine life without them!  It's great watching our youngest transition during this senior year of high school into a future collegiate person.  My son and I are growing closer each week, and he's been coming to church again every week for the past 3+ months.  My oldest daughter, my son-in-law, and my grandson, though far away, are so very dear to us. 

My greatest challenge:  Ministry is always a challenge.  I've been told that most pastors don't have what it takes to turn a church around.  Those who do, do it once.  A handful can do it twice.  I've been at EWC for 13+ years.  God has been gracious and we've seen good growth.  We've started a second service (Saturdays at 5:00 PM) and our overall attendance continues to climb.  I do find myself growing tired.

My greatest question:  What's next?  Am I growing toward a ride into the sunset or does God have a new mountain for me to climb?  What does the future hold?  More of the same?  Something new?

My greatest fear:  Please refer to my greatest question.  :)

My greatest ambition:  To follow Christ. 

By the way, you can follow me now on Facebook.  Just look up David Dignal.  If I know you, feel free to "friend" me.

Sorry, St. Francis

St. Francis of Assisi is famous for having said, "Preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words."  Now, I think I understand his intention:  be a witness in your actions, even if words are hard to come by.  I once read of a young man, who, as he was greeted by the pastor leaving church following an especially powerful message about witnessing, said in a whisper, "I believe in witnessing; I'm just in the Secret Service."

My friend Mark Wilson says, "Silence, when it comes to undercover Christianity, isn't always golden.  Sometimes, it's just plain yellow."  He goes on to write, "Too many cowardly Christians hide behind the skirts of St. Francis."  We definitely need to let our love for others show in our actions.  We need to do good things for our neighbors.  We need to display the love of Christ in all that we do.  But at some point, we have to own the responsibility to share with others the message of the gospel.  It's necessary.  We must use words.

We talk about what we cherish, what we love.  What are you going to talk about today?

Teamwork

Last evening, our Vacation Bible School team gathered at the church to decorate for this year's event that starts this coming Monday evening.  While we had a lot to do, it was great seeing a couple of dozen people working and laughing together as we prepared for our upcoming children's outreach.  Energy flowed all over our campus as the team gathered to do the task before them.

As we worked together, I had the following thoughts about teams and teamwork.  These are not in any particular order.

1.  Common Goal - Teams function much better when everyone is on the same page - each team member knows the goal and is working toward making that goal a reality.

2.  Delegation of Responsibility - Everyone on the team needs to know what their responsibility is.  A good team leader points the other members of the team in the right direction.

3.  Leadership - The team responds to capable leadership.  A clear sense of who is in charge is vital.  Everything rises and falls on leadership.

4.  Affirmation - Team members accomplish more when compliments are flying around.

5.  Celebration - Teams that take time to celebrate their accomplishments tend to accomplish more than those that just work toward the goal and go home.  Applaud others.  This is similar to affirmation but is very intentional and is aimed for the entire team.

6.  Laughter - Enjoying each other and having fun is key to accomplishing great tasks.

There are many other things that make up great teams, but this is what I saw in action last night.  I was thrilled to see our team come together and get so much done, having fun all evening long!  Thanks everyone!  You are an outstanding team!!

What Would Our Church Look Like If..."

As we worked through specific teaching on discipleship this summer, I asked this question to the people of our church:  "What would our church look like if...?"

Here's a bit of the background to that question.  When I became the pastor of this church over 11 years ago, it had been in significant decline for many years.  In fact, the consensus of the leaders was that it would close within five years if something didn't change.  Since that time, God has been leading us into a more missional mindset and the church has grown significantly.  As I stated in a previous blog, we are adding another service to our schedule to try to facilitate additional growth.

To be honest, a great deal of our growth has been transfer growth - people who have come to us because the church they were in was not effectively ministering to the community.  Transfer growth has helped us by bringing us a number of new leaders and resources.  As a result, we've done more than we thought we could do several years ago.

However, transfer growth doesn't really increase the Kingdom of God!  All it does is "shuffle the deck."  So I've been asking our people to think about their family members, friends, neighbors, co-workers, and those they see as they drive down the street.  What would our church look like if we really reached out to those who need Jesus the most?  And, what would our church look like if we reached out to those who are really different from us?  What if we made ourselves really uncomfortable and reached those who are in poverty, or who have children with disabilities?  What if?

Since that time, God has been changing the hearts of some of our people.  There is a growing passion to connect with those who have the greatest needs.  It's challenging.  But it's so rewarding as we are beginning to see some previously unreached people coming through our doors!

So I ask you, what would your church look like if..."  You can fill in the rest.  But please, fill it in!

People Helping People

We have a woman in our church who has been in the hospital or rehabilitation center since November 11, 2013.  I don't mean she's been in and out of the hospital.  She's not been home since 11/11/2013!  Her battle has  been a lengthy one.  On more than one occasion her family and I have thought we lost her.

On several occasions she has been close to giving up.  I started telling her months ago, "If you don't think you have enough faith to see this through, you can borrow mine."  I firmly believe that her testimony will reach many lives once she is healed.  I don't know why God is allowing her to go through this, but He has sustained her and is growing her faith in a powerful way!  The church family has been praying daily for her healing, and we just believe that He will heal her completely!

As you can imagine, the medical bills for a situation can be staggering, even with the best insurance.  The church board has given some assistance to the family over the past few months, but we needed to go a step further.  I shared with our congregation the need to help out, and in just two weeks, the church family raised nearly $2,500.00 to put toward medical bills!  In addition, her husband's employer called when they heard what we were doing and added another $500.00 to the total!

Other acts of kindness and love have been extended.  Visits to the hospital and rehabilitation center.  Donating parts and labor for vehicle repairs so the husband could get to work and the hospital to check on his wife.  Cards and notes.  Flowers.  It's amazing to see what God has been doing to extend His love to a family in crisis.  Let's keep it up until she comes home!

Just Thinking About the Future

I have been giving consideration to not posting anymore.  Life is busy and it's been three months since my last post.  But then someone told me that my posts were missed, so I guess I'll give it a try again.

As our church continues to grow, I've been challenging our people to take it to the next step.  We've started making plans to launch a Saturday night service, starting September 20.  The service will be at 5:00 PM.  This early start will allow us to have time post-service for connections through meals, fun events, and missional activities.  I'm looking forward to what God is going to do in this service.

Why is this such a big deal?  Well, first of all, we are out of space on Sunday mornings, both in our sanctuary and our parking lot.  We could have added a second Sunday morning service, but that would not give us the maximum expansion possibilities.  We've also discovered that there a many people in our area who are unable to attend church on Sunday morning for any number of reasons.  Some of the de-churched in our area are also skeptical of the traditional church formula.

The style of worship will remain the same - contemporary / blended.  The atmosphere and dress will be very casual.  The focus will be relational.  The goal:  to bring people to relationship with Jesus by extending genuine love and acceptance to those who do not yet know Him.

It would be easy for a rural church in our area to sit back and say, "Hey, we've got a good thing going.  Let's not rock the boat."  But as long as there are unchurched, dechurched, and unsaved people in our community, we have a God-given responsibility to reach them.  We cannot allow limitations of any kind to cloud our ultimate purpose - to fulfill the Great Commission in the spirit of the Great Commandment.  To say we can't do more would be sinful!

The Basics - 3

I think it's important to play to your strengths.  One of the most important tools that I've used over the years is called "Strength Finders."  Marcus Buckingham wrote the book, "Now, Discover Your Strengths."  In this book he lays out 30+ signature themes.  His Strength Finders test helps you identify your five signature themes.  He then makes the case that we should all play to our strengths and compensate for our weaknesses in other ways, such as delegation.

Getting the results from this test was very freeing for me.  My themes are responsibility, harmony, belief, deliberative, and arranger.  I won't describe these unless you ask.  But what I've found is that I am less stressed and more effective when I operate in these areas.  I've quit trying to be someone I'm not.

I recommend that you read the book and take the test.  You will find a great deal of freedom and purpose if you operate in your areas of strength.  God has given these strengths to you for a reason.  Find them.  Use them.

The Basics - 2

Over the years I've become alarmed at the lack of professionalism that exists among our ministers.  This doesn't just apply to the new young guys.  There seems to be slippage at all levels.  Let me explain.

Our culture has made it acceptable for pastors to dress more casually.  This is great!  We no longer have to wear suits and ties every day.  I enjoy the more casual style.  When I pastored in southern California, my Sunday morning "work" clothes were business suits (we were in a very professional area) but otherwise I had a lot of flexibility.  In my current ministry setting, I might wear a suit, a sweater, or when the weather is nice, polo shirts and even my fun Hawaiian shirts (much to my wife's and daughter's dismay!).

But I'm seeing a disturbing trend.  Some pastors no longer consider the setting they are walking in to.  What I mean is this.  If you are going to meet with a city or town mayor or a group of community leaders, I don't think you should be wearing camo pants, hiking boots, and your favorite Duck Dynasty t-shirt!  Trust me, this happens!  Guys, go business casual at the very least!  Look like a professional!  I've walked into meetings to see a pastor who looked like he crawled out of bed, found the most wrinkled and ripped thing he could find, unshaven and looking like death warmed over.

I know.  I'm old school in some ways.  But I will go to my grave believing that I am a professional and I need to dress appropriately for the situation I'm in.  I am glad I don't have to wear a tie all the time!  But at the same time, I think I've learned that dressing right keeps you in the game rather than turning off the very people you are trying to influence.

The Basics

As a pastor of 32 years, I must say that I don't really feel like an authority on a lot of things.  I make no claim to being an expert!  I am still learning every day, and I am deeply indebted to the people I am continually learning from:  Tim, my spiritual growth partner; Matthew, my friend and young leader who thinks outside the box; Rob, an innovative church leader who I appreciate more as the years go by; and, Aron, my good friend who is my superior in ministry.  Thanks to these people, I am constantly being challenged to raise the bar and strive for more.

There are many things that I've learned about life and ministry over the years, and I am thinking that sharing them might be of some benefit.  One adage is, "You can't take people to a level where you haven't been."  By that we mean that leaders need to stay one step ahead of their people.  To raise people up you don't get behind them and push, but rather, you bend down and offer a hand to lift them up.

In order to be that kind of leader, you have to keep learning.  Read books.  Listen to cd's and other online resources.  Attend an occasional conference.  Spend time with other growing leaders.  Expose yourself to the wisdom of others - even (especially) if they are younger than you!

Let me encourage you to take it to the next level no matter what level you find yourself on.  And keep serving others.  There is no better way to lead than to serve.  But more about that next time.

Teamwork

The rage in the sports world this week and next is the Super Bowl.  Analysts and fans alike are dissecting the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks as the teams prepare for the biggest game of the NFL season.  I heard one analyst talking about that the team wins will not do so because it has the biggest stars or the greatest players.  The team that wins will do so because it is the better team.

Teamwork.  It's the missing ingredient in many organizations including churches.  Too many pastors think that leadership is about them having to call all the shots and insisting that everyone follows them.  While everything rises and falls on leadership, I think that the leader who fails to build his team fails.  Patrick Lencioni writes, "Not finance.  Not strategy.  Not technology.  It is teamwork that remains the ultimate competitive advantage, both because it is so powerful and so rare.  If you could get all the people in an organization rowing in the same direction, you could dominate any industry, in any market, against any competition, at any time." (The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, page vii). 

There are many tools available to help us in the endeavor of team building.  Tools aren't the issue.  The issue is doing it.  What stops us from developing strong teams?  Is it pride or self-sufficiency?  Is it insecurity?  Let me encourage you to lay aside the thing that stops you and build a team!

Thoughts on following Jesus

"The religion of Christ is not a tidbit after one's bread; on the contrary, it is the bread or it is nothing.  People should at least understand and concede this if they call themselves Christian."

These words from Dietrich Bonhoeffer are a call to discipleship.  His message in these two sentences is quite simple.  One who claims to be a Christian must realize that following Jesus is an all or nothing venture.  A man cannot serve two masters.  Discipleship (following) is serious business.  Do we understand that?  Has Western culture caused an erosion in our thinking that anything goes?  What cost are we really paying to follow Jesus? 

New Year is Coming

It's official.  We are going to be welcoming in another New Year in just a couple of days.  I'm sure that there are those of you who are going to make several New Year's resolutions.  And, if history tells us anything, most of those will be broken in just a few days! 

Perhaps we don't need resolutions.  Perhaps what we need are commitments - commitments that include accountability.  Just making resolutions and promises doesn't cut it.  We all need people to hold our feet to the fire and who will push us to be better than we are today. 

Let me encourage you to make one solid, meaningful commitment for this New Year.  If you like, tell me about it.  If not, that's fine.  But make sure you enlist someone who has the ability to hold you accountable to that commitment. 

Questions that Sort Through Requests

I don't know about you, but sometimes I allow myself to take on too many things at once.  I am thankful that the Lord gives me the strength to approach each challenge, but at times I start to feel my age.  I'm trying to improve at saying "no," and I have actually turned down some things that would have burdened my already crowded schedule.  A friend who is a national figure and in constant demand once told me, "David, my life is not my own any more."  At first I was impressed with how important he was, and to be honest, I craved that lifestyle and the fame that came with it.  But my pursuit of being noticed did me far more damage than good, and it took its toll on my relationships. 

Over the years I've figured out that there are some questions I need to ask myself in narrowing the field of my involvements in order to eliminate the overloads.  Here are some things I've asked myself.  Perhaps they will help you.  If you have any to add, please do so!  We can learn from each other!

1. Does the request fit within my life mission? In other words, will it help me accomplish my calling or will it distract me from where my vision should be focused?
2. Will it take time away from my loved ones that will do damage to our relationships?
3. Why am I saying "Yes?"  Is it to impress someone?  Does it fill some sort of sense of need of approval?  Or is it because it is the right thing to do?
4. Is the investment of my time in this going to broaden the Kingdom of God, my life in general, or some other meaningful purpose? 
5. Will others benefit from my involvement?
6. Do I have the gifts and abilities to do the task that I'm being asked to do?
7. Do I really have the time?  If I take this on, what might have to be put on hold or eliminated?
8. Am I willing to make the sacrifices necessary to do this well?

I don't always succeed in saying no, but I'm getting better.  These questions help me a lot.  Let me know what works for you!

Proud Dad - Part 2

We celebrated my daughter's volleyball season last night with a banquet and awards.  I was thrilled to see my daughter walk up and receive her varsity letter.  But I was even more proud when the coach spent several minutes talking about my daughter's contribution to the team - her hard work, her all-out play on the floor, and her example to others about how hard work really does pay off!  Yep, the glow on that side of the auditeria was coming from my table! 

What I am most proud of is not what my daughter did (though she was a key cog in a team that was a semi-state finalist in Indiana Class 2A), but rather, who she is becoming.  She is becoming quite a young lady who is developing her leadership.  She is a member of the National Honor Society and is getting involved in community service.  She is a team leader.  She is an encourager.  Younger students look up to her because she brings positive energy to all.

As we were getting ready to leave the banquet, one of the coaches from the junior high girls team spoke with me about my daughter.  She interns for this coach who is a teacher at the high school.  The teacher told me that she is honored to have my daughter intern and that she is a blessing to her.  I thanked the teacher and told her how much she meant to my daughter.  The teacher's response:  "She's such a great young lady." 

Lord, all three of my children are awesome.  Thank you for how you have wired them.  I thank you for the contributions they are making to society and to your Kingdom.  Please continue to lead and guide their lives.  Give them dreams that exceed their circumstances.  Give them courage to passionately pursue the dreams you give them.  And please, give them a joy that comes from knowing and loving you!

Defining Ourselves

It's been two years since I began wrestling with our church's failure to effectively develop people into fully devoted followers of Christ.  It isn't that we haven't tried.  We've implemented several different components into our bag of tricks to help people discover their place the Church and the world.  While we have had a few people excited embrace their relationship with Christ, more than a few are simply content to receive Jesus and with that have their sins washed away.  They haven't grown much beyond that point.  At least not in ways that are evident.

I started a new series in the book of Jonah last Sunday.  In the midst of my preparation, I began thinking about Jonah's concern for his nation via patriotism and nationalism as well as his refusal to follow God's command to reach others who were not like himself.  All of a sudden, it hit me.  I don't know why it hit me then, but it did. As I looked at some practical applications, I thought to myself, "The problem is that we are working off of the wrong definitions.  We are content to call ourselves Christians but we aren't disciples.  Christian is a title; disciple is a lifestyle."  I don't know about your church, but my church is filled with Christians, but we have very few disciples.  I don't mean that as an insult.  I'm not throwing stones.  If there is anyone to blame, it's me.  I have not led us well in the disciple-making process.  We've created more decisions than disciples, more congregants than converts.

I've started reading Francis Chan's book, Multiply.  I'm seeking to better understand how I can better develop Christ followers.  I'm working through the idea that we aren't where we ought to be, but by the grace of God, we will get to where we ought to be. 

Proud Dad

I am proud of all of my children!  My oldest daughter and her family live in southern California.  They are doing well and are making a difference in the lives of the people they touch.  My daughter and her husband are doing a great job raising their son, my grandson, and I am looking forward to seeing what he will do for God some day.

My son lives in our area, has a good job and a wonderful girlfriend.  I have an excellent relationship with him.  He is a welder by trade.  In addition, he has a phenomenal green thumb.  I go to him for all advice on gardening and landscaping.  I enjoy spending time with him whenever we get the chance.  And son, if you are reading this, we need to get to the shooting range again soon!

But today I want to brag just a bit about my youngest daughter.  This has been a great Fall for her.  She is carrying a near 12.0 average (similar to most school district's 4.0).  She was elected by her classmates to be the Junior Class Homecoming representative this year.  I'm biased, but she was the most beautiful young lady on the court!  To top it off, last night her varsity volleyball team won the class 2-A sectional championship!  She is the starting defensive specialist for the team.  Tuesday they play in regional competition, and if they win, they are off to semi-state on Saturday.

I've been blessed to have three wonderful children!  Thank you, Lord!

An addition as of 10/30/13 - My daughter's team won their region last night!  They are off to semi-state!  Great job girls!

Jonah

I'm starting a sermon series on Sunday in the book of Jonah.  I know that there are those who dispute the authenticity of the book or even the veracity of the story.  I don't argue about it.  If I can believe that God spoke this world into existence (which Genesis says He did) then I can believe that He provided a large fish to provide an "Atlantis" for Jonah!  I'm just saying...

As I reflect on Jonah, I am a bit amazed at how he spiritualized his hatred for others.  Before we come down too hard on the man, let's understand his position.  As a good Jew, he put his nation ahead of a pagan land like Assyria, which, by the way, had already begun oppressing Israel.  It would only be 2-3 decades before Assyria would destroy Israel.  So, Jonah's strong sense of nationalism is easy for us to understand. 

Jonah would have also embraced a bias that the message of salvation was only for the Jews.  He would not naturally have considered that God's love extended to the pagans from another land.  And he certainly couldn't see himself traveling from the Mediterranean Sea near Egypt to Nineveh, located in what is today southwestern Iran.  That's a long way to go.

If the book of Jonah teaches us anything, it's that we need to value what God values, or rather, who God values.  He doesn't value just those who look and dress like ourselves.  He values people who are very different from us, who come from different backgrounds and cultures, who believe differently than we do, and who are from different socio-economic and cultural backgrounds.

Here is a question for all of us:  Who do we value? 

A second question:  Does it show?

Bringing It

One of the challenges we all face is to "bring it" each and every day.  What do I mean by that?  Let me state it from my life.  To bring it every day means that I have to be at my best at all times.  I need to attempt to do my best when I counsel a person, when I am coaching someone, or when I am teaching and preaching.  I especially feel this when I am speaking on Sunday mornings at my church.  While I can accept the fact that every sermon I write isn't going to be a best seller, I need to bring every ounce of energy I have to the platform.  But before that I need to prepare well.  I can't lead expecting others to follow if I convey anything that would cause them to doubt the wisdom in following me. 

I have a sign posted above the door in my office that says, "Preach Like a Champion Today!"  I got the idea to put it up years ago from the University of Notre Dame football program.  As the team goes out the tunnel to play home games, there is a sign that every player touches.  It says "Play Like a Champion."  While I don't usually touch the sign every Sunday, it is there every day to remind me to give my best in all I do.  Some days are better than others, to be honest.  But I love the reminder.  And it's interesting that I have a couple of guys in the church who know about my sign.  One of them regularly says, "You preached like a champion today."  That's a big boost after a message!

I want to challenge each of you who read this post to "bring it" today!  Give God your very best, whether it is at work, at home, at school, or in serving others.  He gives you the ability to be your best - honor Him with it!