Tag: Faith

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Revitalization

Newest Booklet Just Released!!!

I have not written a blog on this site for a while. If you would like to read what has been on my heart and mind, please order a copy of my newest booklet Secular Christianity?

I have done my best to keep costs affordable for everyone. The print version is $4.99 on amazon.com here. The kindle version in on the same platform at $2.99 here.

Below is a synopsis of my book:

Secular Christianity? describes the current state of Christianity in America while prescribing how The Church’s relationship with God can be restored. The booklet questions the validity of the Church’s secularization and provides a way out through revitalization. The way to wholeness is holiness. The Church can get back on its feet but it must first find its heart.

I think this book is what the American Church needs to hear at this time. There are many churches, big and small, in our land doing a fantastic job. But we can do better – the time is now!

I would encourage you to read this booklet. It won’t take much of your time and it will be well worth it. If you would be so kind, please leave me a review and share with others.

 

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Jesus Next Generation Ministry

Will the real church please stand up?

Do you look at Covid-19 as a mountain or a molehill? Do you have faith the size of a mustard seed or do you have faith the size of an ocean. The second question is much more important than the first because if you have faith the size of molehill, then you will be able to move a mountain. The worst possible scenario would be for you to have no faith at all.

There’s no doubt Covid-19 has been disastrous for nations that have lost freedoms, churches that have lost members, and families that have lost individuals. However, if you stand back long enough, you might begin to see a bigger picture. And hopefully your students see your faith remain in a faithful God.

Covid-19 has been a disruption in all of our lives and not just an interruption. Two years into this disruption and we still do not know how long this disruption is going to last. I am sure there will be some effects that we will have to live for the rest of our lifetime. One thing we do know, however, is that many people who used to go to church and who we thought would come back have not. A general rule of thumb is 50% of church members do not attend the physical church service anymore and unfortunately, it appears a certain percentage of this number never will.

There used to be an old game show called To Tell The Truth where three people pretended to be a certain person. Panelists were allowed to ask all three people questions but eventually had to take a guess at which person was the real person. Panelists and the audience at home knew who the real person was when the real person was asked to stand up.

Using the nature of this gameshow, I want to suggest some good things that have come from Covid-19.

  1. Covid-19 has shaved off many nominal Christians from attending church. Now, that in fact is not good because we would like non-Christians and nominal Christians to attend church. However, if the church looks more like Jesus and less like the world, is that not good? A church that looks more like Jesus will be more attractive to a watching world.
  2. With the decline in attendance, some churches are struggling to stay alive. This again is not good. However, some of these churches had lost their way pre-covid and have now been forced to reach people for Jesus outside of their walls. These churches should have been doing evangelism all along.
  3. The process of persecution purifies, refines, strengthens, and often grows the church both numerically and spiritually. Persecution is not good in and of itself and certainly isn’t something that Christians should seek. However, persecution for the Christ-follower is unavoidable because Christ himself promised it would come to those who believe.

In short, what I am saying is that I believe the real church will not only survive these trying times, but will thrive. Only those churches that are alive and vibrant will remain. Churches that were dying pre-covid and that refuse to change post-covid will not last. Sure, some of their buildings will remain as some churches have more money than they know what to do with. But churches where worship and mission are dead will not attract the next generation. Their buildings will be empty. Kenda Dean has rightly noted that the next generation wants to be active agents of change rather than passive objects of ministry. David Setran says it may not be fair to ask why the next generation is leaving the church if they were never actually part of the church to begin with.

No matter how hard I try, I cannot get away from this quote by Ken Castor in the book Teaching Next Generations: “Older generations, by putting the needs and concerns of younger generations above their own, successfully encourage the next generations to follow Jesus and effectively empower them to lead in faith.” It’s not that the younger generation is more important than the older generation. It’s that the older generation keeps a church alive by releasing control and passing on the baton of faith.

Castor continues, “The question has often been posed: ‘Will the next generation follow in our steps?’ [That’s the wrong question]. Instead, the question should be reframed: ‘Will the next generation follow in the steps of Jesus?”

I couldn’t agree more. If the older generation didn’t follow in the steps of Jesus, why should the next generation follow suit. New wine is needed for new wineskins.

I once heard a story about an older lady in a church who went out of her way to sit with a younger lady during worship. The style of music was not the older lady’s preference but the older lady joyfully clapped and sang along because she was so happy that her younger counterpart was in church and was praising Jesus.

The answer to dead churches and dead people is and always has been Jesus. Jesus brings life! Andrew Root says the American church doesn’t have a lack of resources. It has a lack of life.

Praise Jesus! Worship Jesus! Go to the nations and make disciples for Jesus! Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

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Articles

Faith and Culture Presentation: Part 2

A couple of years ago, I posted a Faith and Culture presentation that I did at my church. Now, I have added a second! I’ll let the video speak for itself . . .

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Articles

Sharing Jesus in a post-pandemic world

Image result for cowboy wearing a stetson hat

Many Christ-followers freak out when called upon to share Jesus with others. Add a pandemic and you might see these same followers flip out. But in a world that has become increasingly fearful, Christ-followers need not fear.

When it comes to sharing your faith, there’s no need to make things harder on yourself than they already are. You can skip the mental gymnastics because the message has not changed! In other words, don’t worry about what to say; think more about how you’re going to share Jesus and if it’s the right time.

Some of you may say that it’s always the right time to share the gospel. I would politely disagree. We should do our best to live out the gospel at all times, but sharing the gospel may not be the appropriate action in and for every given situation. For example, let’s say an unbelieving friend calls you to tell you that their mother just died from COVID-19. This is probably not the best time to respond, “Well, let me tell you about Jesus.” There may indeed come a time for sharing Jesus and very soon at that, but in this one moment, your friend is most likely just looking to you for sympathy and or a loving touch. Hopefully, you would say something like, “Where are you at? Can I pray for you? When can we talk in-person?”

Remember, conversations are key in sharing Jesus with others! Why is this? Because conversations lead to relationships. Remember Jesus and the woman at the well! And don’t forget that in your conversations, you are to look for shared passions and pains between you and the person you are conversing with. Sometimes you will get both!

The other day I met a stranger in a coffee shop wearing a cowboy hat. Because I am an avid Georgia Bulldogs football fan (my passion), I couldn’t resist from asking the man if his hat (his passion) was a Stetson. I made an instant connection with the man through steering our conversation to the Georgia Bulldogs new starting quarterback, Stetson Bennett. The man went on to share with me his pain. The man had someone in his past do something terrible to him that he said he could never forgive.

Rather than say, “Well, let me tell you about Jesus,” I said to the man “you’ll never forget what happened to you.” As I walked out of the coffee shop, I told the man “God Bless You” as he opened the door for me and patted me on the back. Remember, sharing the gospel is more grand narrative conversation than it is polished presentation. What I did in the span of less than three minutes is set myself up for a possible second encounter with this man whereby now I can share the gospel! If not me, then maybe you! The seed was planted and the man is now open to hearing the good news.

What does the man need to hear next? He needs to hear that first he can be forgiven of his own sins by Jesus and second, that only when this happens will he be able to forgive those that have hurt him in his past. Pre-pandemic or post-pandemic, have no fear! Jesus is here! Let the Holy Spirit guide you in conversation and be in prayer for what you should say and next steps that you should take. Worry less about the results and more about being faithful. Who knows? It may be me who gets to lead someone to the Lord whom you first planted the gospel seed in!

Creation, Fall, Rescue, Restoration—Share the Story!

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Articles

Faith in the Fear of death

F.R.O.G. Fully Rely On God Silicone Bracelet

What do you do when someone you know and care for dies at a young age? I have experienced this tragedy all too often in next generation ministry. Whether by freak accident, overdose, or the taking of one’s life, the one thing that is certain is that these young ones left us before it was their time. God may allow events to happen where one does lose their life, but it’s not God’s will that one you dearly love be run over by a drunk driver, die to drug abuse, or take life into their own hands.

God’s Word teaches us that we battle the flesh, the world, and the devil and all of these often factor into an untimely death. Abortions and miscarriages are a reality too and the associated pain can last a lifetime. As the old saying goes, “A parent should never have to bury their child.” There are many things we will never understand on this side of heaven. God’s kingdom has begun in our hearts but will not be consummated until the end of time. Until then, we will have to wait for many answers that we have questions for. This includes the question of “God, why did you allow this to happen?”

A key thing to understand in the meantime as you wait is that God did not make this evil happen. God gives humans the ability to make choices and often the poor choices one human makes unfortunately affects the life and health of another human. And yes, fair or not, sometimes this results in one’s death.

I know what it’s like to carry the casket of a young man and a dear friend that left this world too early. I’ve had to do it on more than one occasion. I don’t know what it’s like to bury one’s own child and quite honestly, can’t imagine what it would be like. But, the one commonality we share is that someone in the next generation that we both knew and loved has gone on and passed from this life to the next.

When this happens, you’re really faced with two choices. You can have fear or you can have faith. Two expressions that have become popular in recent youth culture are the expressions FOMO and FROG. There are probably bracelets for both. If you have a “Fear Of Missing Out,” you might do and try a lot of things that you normally wouldn’t because after all, YOLO. Perhaps you are young yourself and you see your friend pass from this life to the next. You may think to yourself, “What if that was me? I can’t wait on God. What if I pass away without experiencing ____________________.” There are many movies that depict this type of scene and the line that causes one character to cave into the peer pressure of another character the most usually goes something like “This may be your/our last day on earth together.”

This kind of mindset, however, is the opposite of Fully Relying On God. No one said trusting God was easy. When I think about a FROG, I think leap or jump. Some frogs jump higher and farther than others. But just like a frog, if you are going to trust God with your life’s circumstances, you are going to have to take a leap of faith. In our minds, some leaps are going to require more faith than others because some trials are harder than others. But I think in God’s mind, if you just have a little faith, he’ll take care of the rest.

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Articles

Politics, Not as usual

Protesters Burn Bible, American Flag as Tensions Rise in Portland ...

America . . . “land of the free and home of the brave” . . . maybe not for much longer. 1492 has been replaced with 1619. Statues of the founding fathers have been torn down. Police are seen as the bad guys. And all this has happened while states, regions, and cities are being divided on every front . . . with conservative governors suing liberal mayors, with liberal mayors claiming they can override the President’s orders, and with lawlessness in major cities going unrestricted.

Faith, hope, and freedom are all on the line. All the things that made the United States of America the greatest country in the world are now being attacked and that includes the American flag and the Bible. Christians in this land need not only wake up. Christians must stand up, and they must rise up, together. Red, yellow, black, and white, Christians need to show the world there is something greater to unite around than a pithy statement.

I long for the day when Democrats could be what they used to be. But that party no longer exists. Even Republicans aren’t what they used to be. Today’s democrat, at least on the national level, is a socialist, a marxist, a communist. Thus, a vote for a democrat national leader is a vote for an America where the nation’s history goes out the window. In fact, history classes are already being removed from some schools and the history classes that have been being taught have been teaching an UnAmerican history for many years now.

You must see that it is more than America’s history that is being re-written. It is America herself. The America we knew and that has been known for the last 244 years could well be a thing of the past. What we are are seeing unfold daily before our eyes is not politics as usual. The upcoming vote is not just another important vote. The 2020 vote pits ideologies against each other such as lawlessness vs. law & order, socialism vs. democracy, marxism vs. capitalism, and much much more.

I hope you are aware of the “Unity Task Forces” 110 page document, also known as the Biden-Sanders socialist manifesto. Of the New York Post, Miranda Devine writes, “The biggest clue to the destructive ideology that drives the Biden-Sanders manifesto is the word “equity,” which appears 34 times. Equity means equality of outcome, not equality of opportunity. It is the very DNA of Marxism and everything bad flows from it, as we saw in the Soviet Union, Mao’s China, North Korea, Cuba and Venezuela.”

I don’t have to tell you how marijuana dispensaries and liquor stores can remain open while many churches must remain closed. I don’t have to tell you about how many businesses such as health clubs, restaurants, and salons have been treated unfairly and how their owners have been ostracized. The double standard was evident when liberal leaders allowed rioters to destroy their own cities and their own cities’ businesses, all the while not enforcing Covid-19 protocols on the protestors and the rioters. We are fast becoming a land where each is to his own and where everyone does what is right in his own eyes (Judges 17:6).

Ultimately, my hope is not in America or her leaders, be it Democrat, Republican, or Independent. But, I do love my country! I want it to stand for faith and freedom as long as it can. I hope it can return to the God who has been so good to it. I hope it will not have to endure a second civil war, but will instead turn to the only one who can unite it, Jesus.

This is “politics, not as usual” because politics has now overreached her jurisdiction. The political sphere has overstepped its bounds in the economic sphere, in the religion sphere, in the sports sphere . . . pretty much any sphere that exists. What are we to do? As American citizens? and as Christ-followers?

Well, some Christ-followers are standing up, literally. Some professional athletes who are Christians choose to stand for the national anthem and not kneel, because they say that the Black Lives Matter Global Network stands for so much more than the statement “Black Lives Matter.” It is these athletes’ choice whether to stand or kneel, but I do agree with their assessment of the global movement. The movement’s own website declares that BLM is also about destabilizing the family unit and affirming a queer network.

How can you stand up for America and for truth? Besides voting your conscience, I would encourage you to use your social media platform to educate and to inspire. Understand though, that even your content is being censored by social tech companies, further highlighting how we as Americans are losing our freedom of speech. Let’s do our own part and try to keep America a land of the free by being brave ourselves. A better America makes for a better world! It’s not easy to go against the tide, to buck the system, but Jesus has called us to be countercultural. We must go against the grain and swim upstream when our culture is against Christ. We must be in the world and not of it, while loving everyone in the world and praying for their salvation.

We must help the next generation understand that Antifa as a “Revolutionary Abolitionist Movement” along with its ’10 Points of Action’ are not the solution to America’s ails. Jesus is the answer to all humanity’s woes! His movement is eternal and it deals with what plagues us all, sin. We must not sit back while the government impinges upon our freedoms. We must be strong and courageous so that the next generation can inherit a free land and a brave home like we once did.

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Articles

To Touch or not to Touch?

When Jesus ministered in this world, touch played a prominent role in his ministry. Whether healing the blind, the mute, the deaf, the sick, the leper, or even bringing the dead back to life, Jesus used physical touch. Yes, Jesus brought much healing through his hands. What is interesting though is in doing a word search on the word “touch” in the gospel accounts, I find people are seeking to touch Jesus as much as he is seeking to touch them. Many times, someone touches Jesus and is healed!

Mark 6:56 says, “And wherever he went-into villages, towns or countryside-they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed.” No wonder everyone wanted a piece of Jesus . . . Literally. But not everyone asked for Jesus’ permission to touch him. The sick woman who had been subject to bleeding for 12 years could not wait.

Mark 5:26-29 reads, “She had suffered a great deal under the care of many doctors and had spent all she had, yet instead of getting better she grew worse.  When she heard about Jesus, she came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, because she thought, “If I just touch his clothes, I will be healed.” Immediately her bleeding stopped and she felt in her body that she was freed from her suffering.

Of course, Jesus goes on to tell everyone that it is was the woman’s faith that healed her. This type of healing ministry was non-stop for Jesus because v. 35 of the same account states, “While Jesus was still speaking, some men came from the house of Jairus . . .” Here we go again, another request for the touch of Jesus. Can’t we let the man get some rest? No, because Jesus was bombarded with healing request after healing request. He touched and was touched. As it says in v. 30, “At once Jesus realized that power had gone out from him. He turned around in the crowd and asked, “Who touched me?”

We don’t go around healing people 24/7 because well, we aren’t the Son of God. Jesus was and is the only Son of God. But Jesus does use his church, his body, his bride as his hands and feet in this day and in this hour to bring a healing touch to needy people. As Jesus himself said, it is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. The truth is even if you don’t have the coronavirus, you are sick. Let me explain!

As humans made in the image of God, we were made for touch. We were made to be touched and we were made to touch. From the moment you are born, you come out touched, whether by doctors, your father, your mother, or someone else. You remain in need of touch for many years just to survive. Even as we grow old, there is never a time where we don’t need touched through a loving hug, a pat on the back, or a handshake. Touch affirms our innate value as human beings. To not be touched is to be left for dead.

But we can’t touch now because of social distance guidelines. Or can we? True, you need to delay touching people as the guidelines suggest until the coronavirus passes. But you can always reach out and touch Jesus. He is your refuge, strength, and ever-present help in time of need (Psalm 46:1). But you can also touch people in a digital sort of way. Texting, emailing, FaceTiming, and participating in social media such as Facebook, Skype, and Zoom are all ways to stay in touch.

However, these touches don’t compare to physical touch because though these points of contact connect us, they also keep us at a distance to where we cannot physically touch the person we are communicating with. Even the lyrics of a popular song in culture today reads, “I said, ooh, I’m blinded by the lights, No I can’t sleep until I feel your touch, I said, ooh, I’m drowning in the night, Oh, when I’m like this you’re the one I trust.” We tend to touch those we trust and for those we are most intimate with, we crave that touch.

Thus we are all sick. We are feeling somewhat isolated because we are. I think this too shall pass, but for the time being, keep reaching out to touch Jesus and keep touching others digitally. We’re all fighting something we can’t see in the form of the coronavirus, but for those in Christ, we’re also receiving a power out of Someone we are touching but can’t see. As with the sick lady, it is our faith that heals us. V. 34 – He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be freed from your suffering.”

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Articles

Faith and Culture Presentation

https://www.facebook.com/mtcarmeldemorest/videos/2096662023763124/UzpfSTEwMDAwMDYzNzg5MDc4NToyMTk3NjQwMTUwMjY3MjI3/

Culture matters! So does Faith! We need to keep up with culture if we want to reach the next generation for Christ. It is ok to have a Bible in one hand and a smart phone in the other. Like the men of Issachar, we need to understand the times in which we live so we can know what to do (1 Chronicles 12:32). If you have read Acts 17, you know the Apostle Paul was great at analyzing culture. He understood his culture and audience so that he could present the gospel in the clearest manner. He used his audience’s culture as a point of contact to begin gospel conversation. I hope this video will encourage and inspire you to share the gospel and to fulfill the cultural mandate!

Categories
Leadership Legacy

Faith, Family, and Football

Fall is one of my favorite seasons of the year. Not only do the temperatures drop, but college football and hunting seasons begin! You can always tell Fall is around the corner when the NFL Hall of Fame game comes on. Now, the NFL itself is in a mess.  I’m not a big fan, but one thing the NFL always gets right is its Hall of Fame induction ceremony. I always enjoy watching speeches from legendary players because the speeches are unfiltered!

The speeches are always heartfelt and awe-inspiring because most of the players come from single-mother homes and poverty-stricken areas. Many of these players have never met their dad and should have just been another statistic. But, they overcame! Jesus Christ, God, came through for them and their families through all the trials and tribulations. A common word spoken among the Hall of Famers’ was, “Football is what I do, not who I am.” Football was a way out, a job, something fun to do, but the sport didn’t define the man. “Faith, Family, and Football in that order.” Through all the fame and fortune, these players didn’t forget where they came from. They stay humbled and their speeches are real!

I love good speeches. They motivate me. I’ve heard many good speeches in my lifetime and I have my favorites. But, ranking right up there with the best of them is now Baltimore Ravens Linebacker Ray Lewis Hall of Fame speech! If you have not heard Ray’s speech, I would challenge you to listen! Ray has been a perennial leader on and off the football field for many years. But, hearing his life story and how he arrived at this point is amazing!

What I love about Ray’s speech, besides his life story, is how he uses his platform to inspire the next generation. Rather than talk about all his accolades and accomplishments, Ray tells his audience (which includes you and me) to overcome the ills of today by loving and by serving. Ray takes a page from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s playbook and uses his platform to talk about loving people. Reminds me of Jesus. Want to stop school shootings? The suggestion is to start loving your neighbor. I think I’ve heard that line before!

Rather than quote the whole speech, why don’t you listen to it yourself! Just click on “Watch on YouTube” after you see the message pop up that the NFL has blocked it on this site.

Categories
Next Generation Ministry

NGM: Take the step

It’s a new year and perhaps you’re considering making the move. Is your church ready to move away from traditional children and youth ministry by making the leap to next generation ministry? It is a leap . . . a leap of faith. What will the pastor think? What will the people (the members) think? Will they back you or will you lose your job?

Faith is the opposite of fear. Worry and doubt often creep in replacing peace and prayer. But don’t lose heart. Many great feats would never have happened had fear won the day. Would man have ever landed on the moon? Would Columbus have ever sailed the ocean blue? Missionaries GO because the risk is worth the reward — even if they lose their life, they know what awaits them in heaven.

You do need to get your pastor’s blessing before moving ahead and it would be good to give your families, leaders, and students a heads up with informational meetings preceding the move. But at the end of the day, you still have to jump. And you have to bring a significant number with you.

I can’t promise you everything is going to be smooth. I’m almost two years into my next generation ministry experiment and not everything has run as planned. Sometimes leaders don’t show, curriculum goes missing, and on some weeks, the crowd may wane, but it is important to stay the course. Ministry is a marathon, not a sprint. I know I am glad I didn’t go back. NGM is a great model because of the unity it will bring your church family as it works within an overarching strategy for making disciples of the next generation. NGM is also family-friendly and intergenerational-friendly.

Allow for me to give you two examples for encouragement as you near the cliff and attempt to jump to the other side. I recently went to the movies and watched Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. As I watched, there was one character that stood out to me, not to mention the sassy K-2SO droid. Chirrut Imre was a blind human male born on the moon Jedha. He was of the order of spiritual warrior-monks of a group called Guardians of the Whills. I’ll skip all the biographical information about Chirrut and just say I liked him because he could kick butt. A blind man who knows how to use a weapon and take names!!!

Second example: As a child growing up in the state of Georgia, I became familiar with a man who pioneered the genre of soul music during the 1950’s by combining blues, rhythm and blues, and gospel styles. Known as “The Genius,” this man was blind from the age of seven. I knew of him because he famously recorded the state song Georgia On My Mind. Yes, I am talking about Ray Charles, the African-American man who sat behind a piano with his shades on and could play you straight to sleep.

Both Chirrut and Ray were blind, but their lack of sight did not prohibit them from being great. Yes, one character is fictional and one is not, but in their own world, they exhibited a trait that goes against the grain. They went against all odds and came out on top. Helen Keller comes to mind too as she was both deaf and blind but still earned a college degree.

Go ahead . . . JUMP! But before you do, let’s add one item to the mix: a blindfold. If God is calling you to jump, he is going to make sure your feet land on the other side—so we might as well make this jump look exciting and daring. I can’t help but think of daredevil Nick Wallenda right now, known for his tightrope walks and high wire acts which are done without a safety net in place.

As you look across (don’t look down) and pray above, I feel led to leave you with Hebrews 11:1 – “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”