Sunday, August 31, 2014

Reflections From Sunday Evening

I got a new razor the other day. That may not sound like a big deal but stay with me a moment. I started shaving when I was kid. I was maybe a freshman in high school, I do not really remember. I had to choose the shaving system to use when I started. My dad used a safety razor. Those were the ones with a blade you put in the razor and were what people generally used in those days. I knew a straight edge razor was not for me. I only saw those at the barbershop and never picked one up. But there was a new system on the market when I was starting to shave. The Trac II came along. It was pretty safe and had 2 blades. That was what I started with. Through the years I tried an electric razor. Never liked it. I used different shaving creams. In addition I tried different after shave lotions. Anyone remember High Karate or Jade East? Of course there was Old Spice. I settled on Brut. (Confession: that is what I still use.) Through the years razors and blades have changed. We went from one blade to two blades to three and I'm not sure how many blades get stuck on these things anymore. I would say progressed but I am not sure that would be accurate. What has progressed is the price. What I use now ends up costing about $4.00 per blade. So here is how I came to get a new razor the other day. I kept seeing this ad on Facebook. I generally ignore those but this one kept appearing. Then one day I checked it out. Then I checked it out again. I discovered this was not a hoax. I figured out there was a new razor, cream and blades on the market. So I decided to order from "Harry's." Maybe I just like the looks of the razor. I'm not sure. I just decided to try something different. Besides the blades are $2.00 apiece so it sounded like a decent idea. I got my "Harry's" set last week. I've used it for a week. I must say I am happy with it so far. I may stay with it. I may re-order blades one of these days. But here is why I went to the trouble to tell you all this. Yesterday I got an email from "Katie". She said she was on the Harry's team. She was reaching out to say thanks for supporting Harry's. Then came something that really captured my attention. She said, "You are important to us and I am here to personally help you however I can. Please don't hesitate to reach out with any thoughts or questions about our products. Also if you ever want more blades or shaving cream I'd be more than happy to take care of that for you." Katie then provided her contact information and another thanks. A razor company wants a personal relationship with me just for trying their product! Now here is why I really went to all the trouble to write all this and if you have taken the trouble to read this far now you get the point. Each week people who have become aware of our church make the decision to attend worship. It is usually after a number of exposures to the Church. Here is my question. When someone visits the church could we treat them as well and personally as a razor company does a customer? What if we had a group of people who constituted a follow-up team with those who visit our church? We actually have a system in place to reach out. We do some good things. We deliver a coffee mug. We write a note. We make a phone call. But what if we added someone in addition to staff people who would make a contact and thank someone for visiting and then offer to answer any questions or receive any thoughts the guest may have had? What if someone became the first time visitors support team? I will be sharing this idea with others in the next few days. Don't be surprised if one day in church you get invited to be on the support team for our first time guests. If people can sell razor blades like this we can certainly offer the life of faith in Christ. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too. steve

Sunday, August 24, 2014

Reflections From Sunday Evening

Last week Cindy and I spent time in Colorado. I was taking part in a church meeting until Friday noon and then we met our daughter and her husband along with his parents in Georgetown, Colorado. It was a great place to spend a couple of days. It is a fascinating old mining town about an hour west of Denver. I could go into all there is to do but many of you know much more about that than I. But I did realize a couple of things while we were there. I am not sure if it was the altitude or if I was just worn out but by Saturday evening about all I could do was sleep. On Sunday while others headed off to another mountain I hung out around Georgetown. The first thing I realized was churches need to do a great job of letting people know what time they meet. I had seen a Catholic church, an Episcopal church and a Presbyterian church the day before. I was thinking about walking into town and being a Presbyterian but when I finally located their website there were no service times listed. They missed me and I missed them so I walked along a creek and enjoyed my time with God that way. The second thought occurred to me. The plans for that day were pretty specific. They planned to leave by such and such a time; drive to Keystone; take the ski lift up the mountain; hike; eat; ride back down and return to G-Town. It dawned on me that on weekends, especially Sunday's, my schedule is pre-planned. But then it hit me that many people plan their Sunday's and take into consideration many options. There are plans for sports activities, plans for family dinners, trips or other events. There are plans to go places. There are plans to meet people. Sometimes there are plans to go to church. That would be pretty specific. Get up; eat breakfast; take the kids to Sunday School and go to church. So here are my take away's on this. Understand that people come to church very intentionally. When people come give them our best. We plan to provide the most meaningful, relevant and compelling experience possible. Second let's do what we can to help people make going to church their default plan. I believe we were wired for worship. We do all we can to help people live into their growing relationship with the Lord. I loved being in worship this weekend. It was absolutely great to be with you today. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too. steve

Sunday, August 10, 2014

Reflections From Sunday Evening

We have been looking at Jesus' parables in Luke 15. We saw how Jesus teaches us that if there are 99 sheep safe in the fold and one goes missing that the shepherd goes in search of the lost until he finds it. Jesus also tells about a woman with 10 silver coins who finds one missing and then shines a light and sweeps the house until the lost coin is found. The point is God searches for that which is lost. When we talk about the "lost" we are talking about those who are lost from God's intended purpose and place in the heart of God. We refer to those who find themselves separated - by varying degrees - from the love of God. Jesus would make statements like "the Son of Man came to seek and to save that which is lost." Certainly Jesus would not use derogatory terms to refer to anyone but he will do everything to find those who are missing from God's intended purpose and grace. The Church can do no less. Today I referenced John Wesley's words to his preachers...We have nothing to do but save souls. We search for those who are lost to God's purposes. We are charged with the cure of souls. The church is a place where hope rises. The church is a place where wholeness is experienced. The church rejoices when the lost are discovered and saved. We can spend some time thinking of ways to shine the light of truth and grace into a dark world. We can think of ways to sweep and stir up the dust until the lost coins are found. It truly is good news to know we have a God who loves us, searches for us and will not stop until He finds us. It's been a good day. I hope you've had a good day too. steve

Sunday, August 3, 2014

Reflections from Sunday Evening

I made it to Nashville, Tn. a few minutes ago. The flight was delayed (glad not to know why) for over 2 and one-half hours. But here I am. I will be attended a Directors meeting with the General Board of Higher Education for those working with the Course of Study program. Hoping to glean some new insights and gain clearer understanding of the process. On another note... Today was one of those very nice summer days. We have many people travelling and we woke to steady rain throughout the morning. Still we had a significant number of people join for worship. We worshipped. (It was really uplifting today!) We baptized. We received members. We had first time visitors. It was a great day. On another note... Cindy and her sisters hosted a wedding shower for our future daughter-in-law, Leslie Jones. From all reports they had a super time. Wedding day draws closer. On another note... There is a freshness of Spirit in church. I sense it when we meet, when we worship, when we have fellowship with one another. I sense the Spirit stirring when I look upon the congregation. You represent so much. Certainly there are many needs present when we gather - it is an amazing thing for a pastor to look out upon the congregation and see the faithful witness of so many who are also going through a number of struggles. But God is faithful. It is amazing to look upon the congregation and see so many gifted individuals. It is amazing to look upon the congregation and see so many people involved in mission and ministry. It is amazing to look upon the congregation and see so many Christ followers! You make my life amazing! It's been a good day. I trust you've had a good day too. steve