Pastor David’s Thoughts for the Day

I just finished up a couple pretty important meetings over the last few days.  Camps Board which I am the chairman of, and the Studies Board which I have served on for many years.  Both of these meetings are on the District level of the church of the Nazarene.  Both are important, though I am convinced that I can do something rather different with the Camps Board meeting, like internet or something along that line.

The Studies Board is another story.  My friend Wink is the secretary and he has way more to do that I do in serving this board, but in a nutshell the Studies Board examines the education of people who want to be pastors or deacons in the Church of the Nazarene. 

Each year I get to meet with students, pastors and others who are on track to become pastors, missionaries and the like in the Church of the Nazarene.  It is actually quite encouraging and it is quite amazing as well. 

Some have come from such hard backgrounds.  Some have overcome great odds.  Some have just seemingly been blessed from the start.  But all of them have something in connection with one another.  They are deliberate in their focus. 

I think that word focus is a good defining trait to use to describe these aspiring future leaders.  They are focused on the task, they are focused on their call and I just pray that they would stay focused all the way till they are in that ministry or calling that will satisfy what God has laid on their heart. 

I have that same prayer for all Christians.  That they would stay focused. In some cases they would focus period.  Such fragmentation, such frustration I see in their lives.  They bounce from thing to thing and not really accomplish or stay focused on any one part of their life.  God did not create us to be so fragmented.  I believe God wants us to be solid in our faith and to be focused in achieving the goals of our faith, deep partnership with God, a powerful connection to the divine and a complete trust of where God is leading us.  To do that takes a deliberate effort. 

Take today and be deliberate.

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I have been working on my home remodeling it, for more than a year now.  I see the end coming, but I don’t see it happening real soon, especially with all the other weekend projects I have to work on.  But that is a whole other discussion.

Mary asked me recently to build her some shelves in the master bathroom.  The need was pretty simple, as we have remodeled, we have tried to maintain a nothing on the counter policy, which for the most part we are adhering to.  Plus, lots of storage that used to be in the kitchen area is not there at this moment so she needed a place to put things.

The problem for me is, trying to understand and then create what my wife is thinking.  It has been a challenge for this whole project, we come up with an idea, and try to communicate what I think she wants, she responds back, I create and then she tells me I didn’t make it the way she wants.  That doesn’t happen all the time, but it happens enough that I am consistently trying to make sure I understand before I commit something to the saw. 

She gave me the basics, and the she said she wanted it pretty much now.  Which I replied that well, nice furniture isn’t a now process, it takes a bit of time.  I created for her a very simple, basic get it done set of selves so she could store things and I could have time to work on things.  Plus now I get to see what she doesn’t like and does like about what I created so that the nicer one will be that much nicer. 

Monday afternoon when I got back from my district meeting, I pulled out my tools, it was a nice afternoon and began to cut the pieces of wood I would need to create this shelving unit.  I quickly figured out the number of shelves and even the supports needed to keep it attached to the wall.  After cutting it out, I built it.  Because I am building cabinetry for my home, I have purchased nail guns to speed up the project and quality of the work.  Since this was a simple set of shelves, I used the nail gun to assembly it.  I began to assembly it on the floor, gluing the individual shelves in and nailing them in place with the nail gun. 

For the record, nail guns are fairly dangerous.  I think that is part of their attraction, at least to me.  I am a safe kinda guy since I like all my fingers and other body parts.  I tend to be overly cautious when handling these tools.  I was nailing a corner together and had my hand away from the edge a good two inches and I pressed the nail gun to the board and pulled the trigger.  At that moment, two things happened.  Because of the angle I was shooting the nail gun, it hopped and shot a second nail right next to the one that just went in, and secondly, the second nail did not stay in the wood, but angled out and struck my middle finger.  No matter how safe I was, I was no bleeding and in pain from having shot myself with my own nail gun and to make matters worse, I did it in front of Mary.  I couldn’t even be embarrassed and in pain by myself, I had to do it with company. 

Anyways, it was not too much of wound, but it reminded me to keep my fingers at even a greater distance and even to not have them in front of the nail gun at all.  That hurt!   My finger was sore for a few days and I will be reminded of my nail gun experience for a while here.  I am grateful that God protects me from myself.  That could have been much much worse, but it wasn’t.  Thanks be to God. 

Sunday morning service was over and people were heading out the door when I noticed light fixture over the sound board was dim, actually it was dark.  I went and looked and out of the 5 lights in it, four of them were out.  Thought it was rather unique and strange, I made a comment to someone and then proceeded home as I had planned. 

When I came back Sunday night for service, the darkness had overtaken a few more lights in the sanctuary.  I went around and I can say with pretty good assurances that all the light fixtures (6 in total) had no less then 2 bulbs out in each one.  It was getting darker each week and we didn’t even know it.  It was bound to happen.

When we installed our sanctuary lights when they were new, we put ‘gasp’ new light bulbs in all of them all at the same time.  I know that must shock someone out there that we didn’t reuse our old light bulbs but that is what we did.  That has been a few years ago and as light bulbs do, they begin to show their age and when you turn the light switch on,  some times a light bulb doesn’t come on, but goes off permanently.  Light bulb by light bulb the sanctuary becomes darker and darker till someone notices it. 

We noticed it Sunday.  I noticed the darkness over the sound booth, and others noted how hard it was to read in the sanctuary.  We didn’t do anything about it Sunday outside of make a plan to take care of it, but at least we acknowledged it was getting darker.  We stood around and assessed the darkness.  I began to count the bulbs that were out and concluded that it was a high probably thought that many of those bulbs were out for many weeks before we thought to count them.  From the outside it didn’t appear that any bulbs were out, it was only after you got up inside them and started counting them that you even noticed that there were some out. 

If there was an error in what we did, it was that we erred in excitement in our joy with new light fixtures.  Now, we wait to go into darkness.  Not really – we will bring a ladder in and replace all the bulbs that are out today.  Then replace the rest as we need to.

If I were to give a spiritual application to this, it would be something along the lines of paying attention to things so as to not have darkness in your life where you thought you had light or it would be to remind us that we need to examine our lives because sometimes we have darkness in our lives and we don’t even know it.  But, this doesn’t even have to have a spiritual application to it.  Regardless, keep on top of your spiritual development as a normal part of your life.

I am in the midst of life.  That is about as simple as I can put it.  I have a lot to do, I have a lot of things that must get done, on time and regardless of whether or not I have the time.  In the midst of life, in the midst of all that I have to get accomplished…I really need to make some additional deposits.  I need to begin by making more into my prayer time.  I actually believe this is one of the best investments I can make into my day.  Yes, there are many others: Bible reading, visiting shut-ins and writing.  I have lots of that to do.  But, I have learned over the years that most of those things are pretty worthless unless they are surrounded and covered with prayer, by me.  My prayer life is what is important here. 

I have found that for me, that I need to step away to get to pray.  I need to be in a place of quietness because I find myself too distracted by bright shiny things.  It is a problem of being male I am convinced.  I look for a place, that I can wander physically, I place where I am comfortable to speak out loud and place that allows me to be humble in the sight of God and to pour out my heart.  I minister in a world of people who are hurting, broken and lonely.  I minister in a world where daily people are trying to figure out if they can even make it through the day.  The only way I can get minister to them is to pray, is to devote myself entirely to those things that are really important.  I need to make more deposits.  These are not deposits like at a bank, so I can get something back, that would be just plain silly talk.  These are deposits that pay dividends, where I know that I have sought after the presence of the one who loves me so much.  His guidance and presence in my life has made all the difference. 

Perhaps you need to make some deposits as well? 

As I was preparing for the day today, I listened as the Los Angeles weatherman told his listeners that we were going to get many days of rain.  I stress the LA weatherman because the last time they forecasted rain that I thought was occurring, it in fact didn’t rain and I lost a whole day of working because of it.  I am beginning to not trust weathermen.  To repeat the old joke, only a weatherman could keep his job for being wrong…

As I was preparing and listening to the forecast of up to 5 to 6 inches of rain over the weekend, I began to think about the church facility.  The church facility was built in 1971, that wasn’t a bad year to build church buildings, but I am convinced it was built by people who didn’t think it would ever rain here, because when it rains, lots of it makes it inside.  That isn’t necessarily a bad thing, it makes for an entertainment as people run around with trashcans and buckets trying to catch the rain that has already made it into the building.  Personally unless it is streaming down, I have no intention of putting a bucket underneath.  It will dry out quick enough.  But it is a bad thing because it means that the building has places of compromise.  We have a flat roof, that has a layer of foam on it, that if it was taken care of properly would be fairly maintenance free.  To take care of it, involves recoating it every once in a while with more foam, which no one in our area does anymore.  So each year, more and more of our roof becomes compromised.  Eventually we will have to remove all the foam off the roof and put a traditional tar roof on to help prevent the leakage that occurs when it rains.

The funny part about rain leaks is that you cannot see one the outside where they start.  Often times you can’t even see on the inside where they start either.  But you see the results thereof.  You see the drips, you see the damage done to the wood and ceilings.  You get the picture right away that these little drips are fairly hard on building.  I have worked on rain damaged buildings before and it is not fun nor should be ignored.  Basically the best protection is a roof that is not compromised and the rain stays on the outside. 

Can you see a spiritual tie to this real life situation?  In each of our spiritual lives sometimes there are leaks.  Compromise has occurred and in the process of living we now have a mess.  As a Christian we are to shore up the leaks, take out those things that cause the leaks and allow Christ to provide us the protection from those leaks.  Simplistic answer to a complicated process but most of you understand that.  We can be people who live holy, are holy through our connection to the God.

Tonight our District Superintendent comes and meets with the church board.  I requested a review be done and he is honoring that request.  I am not nervous at all, though I will admit that this morning I began to think about the possibilities.  I dismissed them and went on with me day. 

A church reviews the pastor mainly to make sure that the church and the pastor are on the same page, and are still a good fit.  Seasons of change, culture change and just plain disagreement are really good grounds for doing something different.  I wanted it for an entirely different reason. I wanted a review because I want my District Superintendent to meet some of the incredible people that I have had the privilege to pastor.  They have gone through some tough times and good times and they are a solid group of Godly saints. 

They have prayed over me, they have supported me financially, they have walked with me on my long journey of not sure what is going to happen next and they have praised my preaching.  They have made this vocation, this calling as a pastor exciting, enjoyable and they have given me the reason to endure.  I like all those reasons. 

The church is healthy today and I don’t use that word lightly.  It has a brighter outlook on its future than ever before and I am pleased that I get to experience it with them. 

Ok, I said a lot of nice things.  I believe em.  Be praying for our church, our fellowship and all that God is doing in the midst. 

I should have wrote about this yesterday but for some reason sleep overwhelmed me last night.  Let me take a few minutes to catch everyone up.

When I planned to attend this conference, I had to make the decision about whether or not it was going to be of value to me.  Value is important.  I gave up my week, the work that I am involved in to come to a conference.  I am sure that those who are in charge of the conference also think of this.  I wasn’t sure after day one.  I was convinced however that there was a reason for me to be here.  That I have a purpose in coming and yesterday I found a couple of reasons. 

First, I received a great deal from the main speaker.  Mainly that many of the issues and conflicts I have had in the last few years were necessary and for the most part I made many right decisions.  That isn’t to say I didn’t make wrong decisions, I did those as well.  For the most part though, right decisions.  I needed to be reminded of that, affirmed so to speak, but in the same breath challenged.  I wanted others to take care of things, I wanted “them” to be the grownup but neither of those things will occur. 

All day we listened to this speaker, I ordered a couple books he recommended, and felt like it was a good day.  In the afternoon, there was an exercise of interaction, and the lady in front of me turned around and interacted with me.  She was the wife of the DS in Arizona and I asked her in my interaction with her where my friend on their district was?  She turned a little and pointed him out.  I had been looking for my longtime friend since I came yesterday. 

I am convinced that my finding him was something of the Lord.  I can’t do anything for these people outside of loving them.  But love on them I did.  I say them didn’t I? He was registered but she was there as well!  What a great blessing.  As we hugged and interacted for a few minutes, it became apparent very quickly that not all was right where they are serving.  Stress, anxiety and wear was written all over their faces.  My heart was broken.  Here are two incredible servants of God who have once again gone into a church where some saint of God is demanding their way and once again the servant, the nice guy is getting beat up.  I want to show up at their church and interact with these people.  But… that is not what needs to be done.  I told them the words that helped me so much.  God loves you today and is with you in the midst of this moment.  I wanted to solve all their problems, and I asked sometimes the question that I had to ask myself, “Who wrote that rule?” My hope, was to let them know that they were not alone, that I was praying for them and I cared about what was happening in their lives and I want you to know that I wanted to rescue them from their predicament.  Unfortunately, there was no way.  I would have to fire all my staff and come up with even more money to hire him.  It would be worth it if we were big enough.  But I love the staff I have and believe that God has them there on purpose.  Can’t fix things, but I can relate.

Thursday was a good day at the conference.  It was a rewarding experience.  We will see if Friday is as well. 

I have to admit my own shortcomings because it is sometimes way too funny.  Here am I, a pastor, a leader in the church, a dynamic Christian been walking with the Lord for more than 30 years, and I am attending a Pastor’s conference.  I came here without a Bible.  I cannot possibly imagine where my brain has been.  Actually I know where my brain is… 

I have been chuckling at myself since I got here, I didn’t bring my Bible.  I know exactly where it is at.  I know that I had put it out and I know my intention to bring my New Living Translation to this conference.  It is my new favorite translation and a valuable tool in sermon preparation and when I delve into the Word.  

Each of us have events or things in our life that when it doesn’t happen just the way you want it to be, that you will do whatever it takes to bring it back to balance.  For me it is having my Bible.  Fortunately, The Nazarene Publishing House is here and they happened to have a Bible that I could purchase, and so I did.  Easing my own shortcomings and helping me to relax and to have the tools I need. 

Mary would tell me I need a list, to prevent me from forgetting something this important and perhaps she is correct.  A list is only helpful if one remembers to use it.  I use lists to grocery shop but not when I go to conferences.  I tend to put things into piles in the different locations I pull from, my closet, dresser, desk and my office at church.  My Bible just didn’t make it into the Bible.  Interestingly enough a book that was on top of my Bible and I brought that. 

The problem with purchasing a Bible at the conference is that what I can get is very very limited.  What was left when I got there was a Pastor’s NIV and a reflecting God Bible, which I already have.  I purchased the Pastor’s Bible, I feel so pastoral today.  I have the Word, I have my depth for the day and I have my path.  Read with me today… Psalms 25.  Word for the day. 

Today was the first day of the Nazarene Pastors Conference here in San Diego.  The great news is that I didn’t need to leave at 6am this morning from my home to get here for the conference.  I got to leave around 10am which made for a better morning for me. 

Why I am here is a great mystery.  Not to God but to me.  I turn down going to conferences all the time because who has time and money to go to all these things.   Yet, I didn’t turn this one down. 

So far, the speakers haven’t been nearly as impressive as the people I have interacted with.  Tonight I sat next to a man who works for Clergy Development from the General Church in Kansas City.  Excellent conversation, I learned a great deal and God spoke to my heart.  I also interacted with the representative from Nazarene Theological Seminary where I plan to start attending next fall to get my masters in Pastoral Ministry.  It has been a dream for many years to finish my education and I am ready to move forward in this endeavor.  Mary’s only requirement is that the remodel of our home be done, or close to done.  I have an incentive. 

The word for today, the word for this post though is unity. 

I pastor a church that is fragmented.  There are many reasons that it is fragmented, most of the reasons can be traced to people plain and simply not listening.  If I came away with anything today it is that we need to be unified and I will be praying and working to doing that in the church that I pastor. 

Be praying for me over these next few days as I listen to God, open my brain and see what God will do for me, and for the church.

Last weekend our church was vandalized again.  We have no idea who did it, we have no idea if they will do it again.  We don’t know if they are mad at us or if they just saw us as an easy target.   All I know is that Saturday morning I got a call that someone had thrown a rock through one of the front glass doors and Monday morning I got another call about more damage done with rocks to doors and windows.  It makes Sunday morning worship really different when you are greeted by a plywood door where a glass door used to be.

When I tell people that someone threw a rock or in this case cinder blocks through our windows and doors, the usual reply is “Why?”.  Why would someone target the church?  Lets move from beyond that and think about the setting our church is in.  We are in a residential area, but the closest residential units are at least 200 yards away.  We sit at the top of an acre and a half and there is no one in the vicinity to hear or to observe what happens at the church and why would they?   Think about churches in general.  When are they used?  When do people come?  And what do you think happens at night?  What do you think happens at night behind your local grocery store?  Have you seen the back of buildings?  There are no window, only lots of steel and other things to stop people from damaging the building and the stuff in the area.  And those that can’t (Our walmart leaves some things outside because there is no way to secure it inside) take a risk that someone will walk off with the goods.  Churches normally have no one around them at night.  I know that most nights after 6 there is no one here.  That gives a lot of time to do what you want to the building.  No one to chase you away, no one to observe you and no one to see you pick up a 15lb cinder block and throw it through the front window. 

You have to think of someone’s mindset who would do such a thing to a building that couldn’t have done anything to them.  I have talked with young people before about the need to destroy and to damage.  It is one of the hardest things to understand.  Basically in my mind, my parents taught me to respect other people’s property.  If I even as damage someone else’s things, I take responsibility, deliberately wouldn’t even be an option.   Not everyone see the world that way.  Some are angry that anyone has anything and to damage something that isn’t theirs is perfectly acceptable.  I think it takes about the same amount of brain power to do that as to toss out your fast food leftovers out the window of your car while you are driving because you are done with it.  Don’t want it cluttering up your car…

Our Christian response though is to forgive.  I am not angry at these individuals, I don’t understand and I don’t get it.  But anger isn’t one of those things that come up.  I don’t like having to clean up but even that is something that had some benefits.  Since my office was one of those that was hit, I did some spring cleaning while I put things back.  I invite you to pray for these individuals.  First that they would be caught.  Our church wasn’t the only church that had broken windows.  Second that they would understand that we are not angry at them but they need to take responsibility for their actions.  Right now those who did nothing are paying the cost of their actions.  Doors and windows don’t magically repair, money doesn’t grow on trees and churches are not independently wealthy.  Thirdly, that the whole body of believers here can see the good that can come from this. 

Have a great day.  I will be in San Diego for the rest of the week.  I have a pastor’s conference to attend.  I am trying to have a good attitude….lol  I get to sit a lot and listen to others talk.  Fortunately, they have quite a few excellent speakers.  Looking forward to it actually.