Please Pray...

This is the beginning of a crazy week for me. After lunch yesterday, LuAnn and the kids took off to visit family for a few days while the kids are out of school. If it weren't for the upcoming Spring Thing event this weekend, I'd be with them, but as it is, I'll be pulling together the last few things before students show up on Friday.

So naturally, I started out the week with an all nighter in our empty house watching Lord of the Rings with a couple of my students. One of them hadn't seen it yet, so we had to fix that right away! They both fell asleep sometime around 1:00 AM, just before Helm's Deep was occupied - so we finished this morning when I got home from a 6:30 prayer meeting. (Just a side note: "Mercy" is falling asleep at the youth minister's house while he's still awake - and being able to leave the next day with your eyebrows still intact! You guys can thank me later.)

The point of this post is actually to ask you to be praying for my preparation time this week. I'm pulling together thoughts that God has been bouncing my way for about 10 years into 4 messages, so there's way more content to pare down than a weekend's worth of attention span can handle. Distillation may not be my strongest attribute - I'd rather take a seed and extrapolate the potential branches. Please be praying that what is left when I'm done hacking away at the myriad of impulses etched on my gray matter would be only whatever God wants to use to penetrate the hearts of His people who gather this weekend.

With no family at home, and my weekly routine completely out the window, also pray that I'd stay focused enough to line up all the ducks - and relaxed enough to shoot them when the time comes. I'm not above losing large chunks of time to distraction, so I'd appreciate that not happening this week.

On a somewhat related note, I've been contacted twice in the last couple days regarding a request for an insurance quote for my '92 Volvo; they have my name and number right, but I've got no Volvo to insure. I'm hoping this is just a case of sloppy data entry, but just in case it's more of an ID theft issue, if you see me this week ask me for the super secret handshake just to make sure it's really me!

Thanks for your prayers.

Preach Better Sermons

I'm watching a live conference put together by the people at Preaching Rocket. It's all about Preaching Better Sermons. As a youth minister, when I talk about preaching, sometimes people look at me strangely, not realizing I am not only called to be great a dodgeball and ordering pizza, but also at communicating the Word of God. If you lead a student ministry, you need to get better at communicating God's Word - even if you're already pretty good at it. If you are a preacher, you need to get better at communicating God's Word - even if you're already pretty good at it.

If you missed the webcast, here are some highlights (not complete notes or many quotes) from some of my favorite preachers (who are also still learning).

Perry Noble:

• Plan Ahead.
• "Communicating for A Change" - Andy Stanley (great book for communicators)
• 40 messages per year. How do you decide what to say?
• Read to hear from God, not to find sermons.
• Preach out of the overflow of your heart.
• Keep track of thought 'kernels' (evernote)
• Find great visuals
• Plan with a team of people with various points of view.
• Don't put too much stock what fans and foes say - listen to friends.
• Let the Bible drive the message.

Jud Wilhite:

• Be personal - share your life through stories to remove barriers.
• Don't just share someone else's amazing story - build common ground by sharing your story.
• Where does your experience overlap your listeners' life experience?
• Share honestly - don't just make stuff up.
• Communicate to the broken.
• Think about how different people will hear what you're saying
• How will the hear what God wants them to hear?
• Communicate the Word.
• Preaching is not about me - not about the listener - it's about Jesus.
• Be sure to use language that everyone will understand.
• Don't water stuff down - but explain what you mean!
• Communicate for Next Steps
• Can people see the connection with real life?
• Be crystal clear about what you want people to do as a result of your message.
• Don't cop out & be lazy in preparation - this stuff is important!
• Park in one passage, don't just jump all over the place and lose people.

Andy Stanley:

• It's a story you're telling, not a bunch of points you're trying to make.
• Me, We, God, You, We mile markers
• Here's my issue/thought/idea.
• Don't we all experience that?
• What does God say about it?
• What should you do about what God says about it?
• What if we all did that together?
• Stay in the text and let it speak.
• Help people understand what they need to do AND what's really at stake.
• Distill everything and give the message in a single phrase.
• What's this all about?
• What's the one thing I want them to take away?
• Create tension in the first few minutes.
• Instigates a desire to know more
• Creates interest - "We need to solve the mystery."
• Mature believers AND engage those who don't believe.
• Watch yourself preach.
• Listen to other teachers/preachers.
• Learn from comedians & others who engage audiences.
• Ask yourself, "Who is this really about?"
• Evaluate yourself by what people do with what you said, not by how you did.

Jeff Foxworthy:

• Humor keeps us from taking ourselves too seriously.
• Trim down to the bare essentials - stories don't need to include every detail.
• Capture random thoughts (notecards, etc.) to flesh out & try out later.
• Always be writing.
• Be simple. Simple connects.
• Don't be a sissy. But be vulnerable and admit you don't have it all figured out.

Vanable Moody:

• Effective preaching starts with the end in mind.
• Behavioral preaching
• What do you want people to do?
• Are you trying to make an impression or make an impact?
• Impression doesn't last
• Impact leaves lives changed
• Identify the behavioral purpose of the Scripture.
• Study to find out what God says He wants people to do.
• Everything else flows with that behavioral point.
• Preach with a sword, not a broom - one point.
• Doesn't matter if we have a bunch of great information & research & message writing if we miss the assignment!
• Let people see the message in your life.
• Don't just make points for the head, but also paint pictures for the heart.
• Behavior starts at the heart level.
• Provide a vehicle for them to do what you're preaching about.

Dan Cathy: My stream broke during this session, so all I got is a craving for chikin'! (Also thanks to some timely text photos from some mean children currently eating Chick-fil-A)

Dr. Charles Stanley:

• Be disciplined. You can't just 'sort of' preach.
• Build the relationship with God from which the message will flow - Prayer.
• Study - don't just give a sermon to fill the time.
• You can't preach any better than you pray.
• Unless you have a burden for a message, you're not ready to preach. 
• Is there a message that you must preach?
• Impact is made by the Holy Spirit
• What is the need?
• What Scripture addresses the need?
• What does that text say?
• What material will help me communicate that and what do I want people to take away?
• No matter how well equipped & well prepared we may be, God can shut it down in a breath.
• Great story answering why he never asks for money on air.
• Short answer - God told him not to.
• Obey God & leave the consequences to Him.

Louie Giglio:

• Calling of God, Self-discovery, Affirmation by God's People
• You may have no idea what God's about to do.
• Start wherever there is an open door.
• Preaching is about the Power and the Presence of the Word of God.
• Don't just try to sound eloquent and persuasive.
• Find out how God wants to impact His people.
• Gather & craft the information that will help you be a part of that.
• Preaching should be like putting your life through a funnel, not a megaphone.
• Sometimes we need to reach for creative/artistic language to use in our message (not just a good illustration).

I can't yet vouch for all the coaching that will happen through Preaching Rocket, but if it's anything like today's webcast, a lot of people will be hearing a lot better preaching in the near future.

2 Obstacles & 1 Solution for Effective Preaching, Teaching, & Youth Ministry

If you've been involved in youth ministry in just about any capacity for very long, you know 2 feelings all too well... The feeling that nobody is listening & the feeling that you're on your own. You can hear the words coming out of your mouth. You know it's English (or whatever the first language is of the students you're with) & you've even taken out the confusing words, but as you look at your kids, the glazed eyes looking back toward you (or not) cause you to wonder, "Is anybody listening?" Sometimes, I'm amazed when a student that seemed completely checked out was actually paying more attention than a hawk locked in on an absent minded jackrabbit. But still, the feeling persists that what I'm saying just isn't getting through.

Img: "Let God Speak" via Justin Stagge on creationswap.com 

Couple that with another feeling I often come across and you have a train-wreck waiting to happen - the feeling that we're on our own. It's just you and a couple semi-neurotic volunteers to ensure the spiritual well-being of the next generation. Where is the rest of the church? Why don't the other leaders care more about the teens? Why is the single ladies' knitting guild so concerned about the 20 year old carpet? Stain is ok for the benches and windows, why not the floor, right?

I know that sounds a little over dramatic, but feelings aren't objective. Feelings don't just stick to the pure, untainted facts. Sometimes, they lie. But, the truth in your ministry is they ARE listening. They may not be hanging on every word you say, but they are hearing the message of your life loud and clear. The truth in your ministry is you're NOT alone. The leadership may need some explanation of why you just spent $200 with your kids at a pizza place, but they're not against you. The people in your church may not be knocking down your door to volunteer for the next youth group lake party, but that doesn't mean they don't care.

The Spirit pulled Ezekiel aside to begin his prophetic ministry and God gave him some words that we need to live by in youth ministry:

Do not fear them... Do not be dismayed by their dark scowls... You must give them my messages whether they listen or not.

To be clear, these messages that God wanted Ezekiel to deliver weren't received as good news around the campfire. He warned of impending judgment and implored the people to repent of their rebellion and turn once again to their God. Ezekiel was opposed... fiercely. God told him people would reject what He had to say, their hard hearts unwilling to accept his instruction.

But look, I have made you as hard and stubborn as they are. I have made you as hard as rock! So don't be afraid of them... Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first. Listen to them carefully for yourself. Then go to your people in exile and say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says!'

I wish every preacher, pastor, teacher, youth speaker, & volunteer would hear that well. Let His words sink deep into your own heart first... Then go. Then speak. Then teach. We only have something worth saying after we've allowed His message to take root within us. Don't just speak because it's Sunday (or whatever your main teaching day is). Speak because His message has grown within you to the point where you can't hold it in. Teach because there is no levy strong enough to hold back the grace you're being given. Then, you'll have something to say worth hearing and you'll know you're not standing alone.

2 Keys to Making Disciples

This post is a summary of the message from Sunday for those who missed it (sorry for the delay).
--------------------

Jesus told us to go and make disciples, but sometimes we settle for making introductions. We can mention Jesus, or invite someone to a church gathering, but how are we doing at actually making disciples? Last week Willie shared that here at WestWay we've had 370 baptisms in the last 10 years. That's about 1% of our area population and should definitely be celebrated. But our average attendance this year has been about 350, so I wondered with the congregation Sunday, "Where are they?"

We have about 165 people in small groups and about 100 come to classes on Sunday morning (there is a fair amount of overlap in those numbers). I wonder, what would happen if each of those 370 had been plugged in to a discipling group or class? What if each of the 370 had been paired with a spiritual mentor to help them grow in their new faith? 

Why do we not do a better job discipling?

A Banquet Surprise

I was looking forward to getting to speak at a Valentine banquet back in Casper this weekend. So Saturday night, we headed downtown to this little spot the church had booked and settled in for a good time. I noticed, as we sat there stacking conversation hearts, that a crowd was starting to gather just inside the front door. "Surely, the restaurant's not open for regular dining." I thought.

I was right... sort of. As more people filled the entry, and servers and hostesses began to look more and more flustered, it became obvious that something wasn't quite right. As it turns out, the venue had double booked. I don't know how, and I don't know why, but there was a whole group of people waiting to party while we waited for prime rib.

It made for what has to be the most awkward speaking engagement I've ever had. To be totally honest, it was almost surreal, and I'm not sure I made any sense at all. Any semblance of order to my message was overshadowed with so many other thoughts racing through my head. I've never been the 'bull-horn to the face' kind of guy - I missed the "Preaching to the Open Bar" class at Bible College, so the whole time I was speaking (about how our love is revealed by our action not mere words) I just kept thinking "The whole back room is waiting for you to shut up and leave."

Now, to be fair, the gathering crowd did nothing to make me feel that way. They quietly milled from the small back room into which they'd been stuffed to the bar to order drinks and back. A few sat and quietly chatted at the bar. But the noise level wasn't any worse than a typical Wed. night with my students. It was just the awkwardness of the situation that made things so weird. I felt stuck between a group of church banqueters looking for some spark of inspiration or encouragement and a group of party-goers just wanting to relax and have a good time.

As I think of it now, I should have just invited them all out and did 20 minutes of stand up or something... I'm not sure I could have pulled that off, and I know that's not really what I was invited for, but I wish I would have thought of that in the moment. I wonder if the message would've been communicated more effectively that way anyway...

The  more I think about this, the more I'm feeling like I really missed an opportunity to build some bridges and help make some connections. Excuse me, while I go kick myself...
-----------------
Just for the record, I'm grateful for the invitation to come and speak to a great group of gracious friends. I pray the thoughts racing through my head didn't cloud the message too much. We are loved so much by our Creator, who adopts us into His own family. We are called to extend that love in every way we can think of, not just with words but with action. Caring for orphans, widows, neighbors... Check out my friends at 3:18 Ministries or Sparrow's Nest for some great examples of how it can be done - and find a way to put your love into action.

Planning Ahead

"Meeting with our creative team today to lay out all the sermons thru early 2013."

Is this a quote from the future?
A text from some preacher with way too much time on his hands?

No. It's actually a tweet from @PastorMark (Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church in Seattle). In addition to leading a young family and teaching at this multi-campus church, he is heavily involved in Acts 29 Network church planting, Churches Helping Churches, and Resurgence. He also does an incredible amount of writing and leadership training with church leaders all over the map. I'm not listing that stuff to put him on a pedestal or anything, but to point to the fact that here's a guy who has a busy schedule. Growing kids, growing church, thriving ministry... and yet, he's prioritized time to plot a course for the next 2 years of his preaching.

I know a lot of preachers, teachers, and youth ministers who don't even know what they're teaching next week, let alone the next 100 weeks' worth of messages. How many Sunday school teachers will pick up their curriculum magazine this Saturday night and wonder why more people don't come to class Sunday morning? We think we can fly by the seat of our pants and call it being led by the Spirit or being responsive to circumstances.  But we know the reality, I think, is that we just haven't used our time for planning. Why?

A Bandwagon Worth Riding?

I've always hated bandwagons. "America's Team" has never been my thing (sorry, Dallas). I grew up sitting on my grandma's lap while she cussed out a young John Elway on the TV and have liked the Broncos as long as I can remember. I will never be sporting the most purchased jersey of any sport, and when the masses start telling me how great something is, I become predisposed to not like it (sorry, Avatar). Something I learned well at Jr. High dances was "don't believe the hype". Maybe it's a character flaw, I don't know... but when something becomes so popular that it's everywhere I turn, I just want to go out to the hills and hit rocks with sticks (sorry, rocks). I guess I'm just not a fan of being a fan...

That is especially true when it comes to people. Now... I AM a fan of people in general, just not a fan of joining the various cults of personality that seem to crop up around everyone with a little charisma. This invariably leads to great loss and consternation when the idol topples (they always do). So, at the risk of sounding like a fan-boy, I thought I'd share a list of some speakers that I've really been challenged by lately. I listen and read these guys a lot and really appreciate different aspects of their teaching & personalities:

Erwin McManus - watch/listen, Search Amazon.com for Erwin McManus
Mark Batterson - watch/listen, blog, Search Amazon.com for Mark Batterson
Francis Chan -watch/listen, Search Amazon.com for Francis Chan
Perry Noble - watch/listen, blog
Mark Driscoll - watch/listen, Search Amazon.com for Mark Driscoll
Andy Stanley - watch/listen, Search Amazon.com for Andy Stanley

God has been teaching me a ton through these servants. Check them out, maybe we can learn something together. Who else is God using to grow you?

Imagine... Right Brain Preaching

I just came across an article by Batterson that relates imagination with preaching. He suggests that effective communication needs to be imaginative and "whole brain" (as opposed to left-brain only logical oratory).

There's a great quote of Thomas Moore in the article: "It's my conviction that slight shifts in imagination have more impact on living than major efforts at change." (I've been asked to speak at a New Years Eve party/retreat about the difference between real change and empty promises - I'll definitely be using that.)

Anyone who preaches would do well to check out the article.

While I'm making suggestions, Andy Stanley's book, Communicating for a Change, is another helpful look at the art involved in the crafting and delivery of transformational preaching.

"Eyes of a Child" sermon via wordle

Just for fun, I put the text of my sermon notes in @ wordle.net and this is how it turned out. (You may have to click on it to get a decent size view.)

Eyes of a Child

This should have been a much simpler process. I wanted to post the audio from my sermon here, but had problems finding a way to get it done. Thanks to Google Gadgets, I found a way I thought would work, but then had issues getting the mp3 onto our server. I think I've got it done now, so here you go... (I hope.)



The sermon didn't come out (of my mouth) quite like I was hoping. Instead of a sort of quick, whimsical, childlike tone (if that makes any sense at all) - a video played right before the sermon got me in a different state of mind (which probably wasn't a bad thing).

Basically, I went through Mark 8:27-10:52, pointing out some of Jesus' interactions with his disciples and how he was trying to expand their view of what his kingdom really is. Sometimes, they just didn't get it. Sometimes, we still don't. Blinded by our desire for control or for our 'team' to dominate, or by our shame - we miss the beauty of God's Kingdom come here to earth.

But if we're called by God to live as citizens of this kingdom, there must be a way to see more clearly. Jesus suggested to the disciples that they needed to receive it like children. If we are going to be able to enter an unseen kingdom, we need to learn to look for it with the eyes of a child. Eyes that are curious and full of wonder. Eyes that can "see in the dark". Eyes that can see the whole kingdom, not just "our" little slice.

We need eyes that see who Jesus really is.