Sunday Night Reflections

A Few Thoughts from an Amazing Day...

• Said farewell to our worship leader today, Derick and Hyatt you will be missed! 
• Jim did a wonderful job with a difficult subject this morning, I wonder how many people truly "Examine themselves" in order to grow closer to Christ?
• Quote from last week - God's word must have supremacy in our culture.
• I have been thinking a lot about the FCC's motto lately; "Strong in the Scriptures" cannot just be a slogan, it has got to be a way of life.
• Last week I heard a stat regarding the age when people accept Christ, the old stat said 85% choose a faith by age18, the new data reveals 85% are doing so by age14; kind of makes you wonder where we should be putting our time and energy in youth ministry today!
• When you understand your mission, your priorities become clear.
• Mixed motives always lead to a disastrous mission.   
• Spent some quality time with the in-laws tonight, always a pleasure.
• FCC Kissimmee's Bible Bowl teams are getting ready for their summer tournaments - I am impressed with the amount of time these young people are putting in to compete.
• I admit it, I am missing college football! 
• Something to Chew on; Influencing others is a matter of disposition, not position - you can influence from anywhere in the organization ~ John Maxwell, The 360 Leader. 

Sunday Night Reflections

A Few Thoughts from an Amazing Day...

• Heard a great sermon dealing with life's struggles this evening - great job Dan.
• After hearing the stat regarding when someone comes to faith today, I think it is time to rethink youth ministry. 
• I wonder how many youth ministers would be willing to change what they are doing in light of tonight's stat?
• I learned this weekend, the more things change, the more they remain the same. At times that can be comforting, but at other times it is disturbing.
• This weekend I was listening to Rich Mullins "Songs" CD, I had forgotten how he had such a way with words.
• I am now on twitter, not for what I have to say, but to hear some of the conversations that are happening especially in leadership and preaching. I find the thoughts to be stimulating at times. If you care to, you can follow me @alantison. 
• I have been thinking about a blog post titled, "Why has The Jerry Springer  Show showed up in our churches? However wisdom is keeping me from ranting at this time.
• This weekend I realized I blinked.
• Something to chew on; When we see money as a tool to play with instead of a tool to impact eternity, out vision becomes shortsighted and unfocused. Randy Alcorn, Managing God's Money

The Search Part 2

Last time I posted I was sharing thoughts about how to search for a minister. Needless to say, the responses were a bit overwhelming. I am amazed at the number of hits my blog received from this post (especially since I did not post it on facebook or anyplace else). I guess the search for a minister is a hot topic these days. With that in mind let me close out my thoughts regarding the search with two thoughts.

1. Confidentiality is a must. The search for a minister is to be held in highest confidence. Search committee members must show discretion in making contact with the perspective minister, as well as checking references. Too often a minister seeks a new opportunity in secret from his present leadership and congregation. I wish this was not so, I have often wondered why we who are children of light, tend to secretly seek out employment opportunities. I guess the human nature in us worries if an opportunity does not work out we may have damaged our present situation. For that reason it is important that confidentiality be observed as conduct the search.
2. Finally and probably the most important rule of thumb when conducting a search - PRACTICE THE GOLDEN RULE! The Golden Rule, is one of the best-known of Jesus' sayings. If everyone followed this rule and treated other people in the way they'd want to be treated themselves, the search for a minister will be both rewarding and would help establish a healthy relationship with the new minister.

While this is not an exhaustive list it is a good starting place for one who is asked to be a part of a search team. Hopefully it has been helpful.

   

The Search Part 1

Another church is searching for a minister today. Their previous minister has moved on to what he believes to be greener pastures or God has opened a door for his him to serve in another area, whatever the case, the church is without a minister today. Now the tedious work begins; who will be the next minister to lead the church?

In beginning to find a replacement, most churches will contact the Christian colleges, they will post an ad on their website. They will talk to a few trusted friends, hoping to find a man who is "moveable". They may come up with a profile of what they want their next minister look like. And then they will wait for the resumes to come in. There will be meetings to attend, messages by perspective candidates to be critiqued, references to be checked and advice to be heeded all in hopes of finding that one "perfect" minister to lead the church to the next phase, step or open door. 

The search for a new minister is not easy, however it can be rewarding when we allow God's leading and our wisdom to come together to find the right man to lead the church. I have served on several search teams for associate ministers and my present role at FCC has given me the opportunity to advise churches on how to conduct a search for a new minister, I thought it would be helpful to share some of my thoughts on how to conduct "The Search".

1. Pray for wisdom - searching for a man to lead the church is not an easy task, search committees should make prayer a priority as they meet top look over resumes, talk with candidates and narrow the search. Our prayer should be "God, make it perfectly clear, who you want to lead your church." I heard of one church who valued prayer so much, they informed the "prayer warriors" at their church when they were meeting and encouraged them to pray while they were meeting.
2. Listen to advice from trusted friends, Proverbs 27:18, plans succeed through good counsel.  There is wisdom in listening to trusted advisers.
3. Answer inquiries quickly, every resume received should receive acknowledgement from the search committee or church office. This can be a form letter if you wish, often time the candidate sends a resume and wonders did the church receive my information, remember communication is the key.
4. Consider one candidate at a time. We live in a world of choices, when we shop for a car or another product we think it is prudent to consider many options to make sure we are getting the best deal available. This is good advice for making a purchase, but it is not wise advice when selecting a minister. One of the dangers of considering a multiple of candidates at one time is a  popularity contest can result as part of the team likes one candidate and others like another. If you are not careful division can rise up within a meeting and hamper the process of the search. When a decision is made to contact a candidate make sure he is the search team's #1 choice. Consider him carefully and if he is not the man you believe God is leading you to call as your minister, move on to # 2, but do not leave the first candidate hanging. If you have eliminated him from your search, communicate with him quickly.

To be continued next time I post...

  

The Battle

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Philippians 4:8

This past week I heard one of the best messages on conflict resolution. Here it is Tuesday and the message is still resonating in my mind. 

Conflict is a part of life, The N.T. writer James tells us the reason for our conflicts;

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. James 4:1-2

As fallen people, conflict is a part of life; conflicts are seen in our homes, in our churches and in our nation and the results are devastating. Fractured families, divided churches and government gridlock can all be traced back to conflict.

Jesus was right, If a house is divided against itself, it cannot stand. Mark 3:25 

For God's people, conflict is not the normal state of life. In fact the New Testament is clear how we are to handle conflict. 

Matthew 18 gives us steps for conflict resolution.

Romans 12:17-18 reminds us we are to be proactive when it comes to avoiding conflict.

Jesus said love, not conflict would be the true signal we were followers of Him.

Paul's words in Philippians 2, reminds us to look to the attitudes of Christ as the model for avoiding conflict.

With so much instruction from scripture why is conflict so common among God's people? I believe it is because of the battle we wage on a daily basis; the battle of the mind. We think incorrectly, we give in to irrational thoughts and question the motives of others. Thus conflict is inevitable. 

If we are going to have less conflict in our lives it is essential we win the battle of the mind. If we do not we are destined to face conflict frequently. 

Life is to short to be mired down in conflict. If you have a conflict with someone today, I would challenge you to deal with it quickly. If not you may face consequences you never expected. 

I hope you are battle ready!  

Sunday Night Reflections

A Few Thoughts From an Amazing Day...

• I heard one of the best messages on conflict resolution this morning. I know I say it from time to time, but Mr. Book, you hit it out of the park this morning. 
• If more people followed the advice Jim gave us from scripture this morning, it is hard to imagine the kind of harmony we would have in our homes and in our churches.
• The death of a family illustration was really powerful this morning.
• Listen up; if conflict can not be resolved it will destroy a family, a church and a nation. This is not my opinion; this comes from the teachings of Jesus. 
• Every day should be Mother's Day.
• As I reflect on how my 3 children have now graduated from high school, I am truly thankful for the wife, God brought into my life. Kathy truly lives out Proverbs 31.
• We will never understand the tremendous influence a mother has on a family; In the words of Abraham Lincoln, no man is poor, who has a godly mother.
• In light of the president's decision this week regarding gay marriage, it is easy to see how values are not only shifting in our culture they are caving in.
• I am not a prophet, but I do think there are some storm clouds on the horizon. 
• Bob Russell's blog post this week is very challenging for all of us in light of our President's decision.
• Something to Chew on; consider these quotes regarding mothers.

Sunday Night Reflections

A Few Thoughts from an Amazing Day...

• Great day of worship!
• Watched a young man ordained into the ministry - this is always exciting.
• Also had an opportunity to reconnect with a good friend who will be moving soon; thanks for the kind words Tony!
• Attended my daughter's graduation Friday night - Remember, "Don't Blink"
• Another church closed this week - this is disturbing. 
• Shared a meal with some real good friends this week - I am blessed by the number of friends I have through ministry endeavors.
• Wisdom is a much needed gift today.
• Something to chew on; I am crucified with Christ ~ The apostle Paul. Can we say the same?