Tomorrow Carrie and I are investing in our marriage in a big way. The two of us are going out of town for the day for a marriage retreat. It's not like other retreats where couples from all over join together to hear marriage counselors discuss details on how to improve your marriage. Nope, it's just the two of us!
We're going to proactively spend time discussing how we can enhance our relationship with one another and how we can be better parents to our children. As a pastor and pastor's wife, we not only have a large amount of responsibility on our shoulders, but we also deal with an incredible amount of spiritual warfare in our marriage and family. Why wait until crisis hits before we plan? Why not be proactive and have a game plan for when crisis hits? Why not have a strategy to accomplish, overcome and get through the everyday stuff that life throws at us as busy parents of three young children?
I'm looking forward to spending quality time with my wife, my life-partner. She's my best friend. She's an incredible inspiration to me in so many ways. It's a true joy to share my life with her!
Friday, July 30, 2010
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Finishing the Task
I was browsing the website of Finishing the Task this morning and came across this striking piece of information:
Today, 639 unengaged, unreached people groups with populations over 100,000, together numbering over 535,000,000 souls, are still beyond the reach of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They are spiritually lost and helpless like sheep having no Shepherd. Among them Christ remains unknown, unacknowledged, and unadored.
It's hard for people like us, as Americans, to conceive of such a fact. There are people who have never even heard of a man named Jesus who was crucified 2000 years ago. These are people who have been forgotten by the rest of the world.
Our Lord told His disciples to proclaim the Good News in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria and to the outer ends of the earth. For us today, that means sharing the Gospel with our local community, our region, our nation and the world.
Although there are some who are spiritually gifted as evangelists and missionaries, we can not turn our backs on the Great Commission that was issued to every single believer and follower of Christ. Regardless of how gifted we think we are in those particular areas, we all have been called to engage our community and the world as evangelists and missionaries.
At City on a Hill Church, we've expanded our mission work this past year from our community to children in Africa. In the next year, we're going to send people on our first mission trip overseas. We're also seeking the Lord's leading in a mission opportunity that could plant churches and orphanages all over the world.
There's a question in this for all of us. If there are that many people who haven't heard Jesus' name proclaimed, then what are you doing about it? You and I have as much responsibility to responding to the Great Commission as anyone else!
Today, 639 unengaged, unreached people groups with populations over 100,000, together numbering over 535,000,000 souls, are still beyond the reach of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They are spiritually lost and helpless like sheep having no Shepherd. Among them Christ remains unknown, unacknowledged, and unadored.
It's hard for people like us, as Americans, to conceive of such a fact. There are people who have never even heard of a man named Jesus who was crucified 2000 years ago. These are people who have been forgotten by the rest of the world.
Our Lord told His disciples to proclaim the Good News in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria and to the outer ends of the earth. For us today, that means sharing the Gospel with our local community, our region, our nation and the world.
Although there are some who are spiritually gifted as evangelists and missionaries, we can not turn our backs on the Great Commission that was issued to every single believer and follower of Christ. Regardless of how gifted we think we are in those particular areas, we all have been called to engage our community and the world as evangelists and missionaries.
At City on a Hill Church, we've expanded our mission work this past year from our community to children in Africa. In the next year, we're going to send people on our first mission trip overseas. We're also seeking the Lord's leading in a mission opportunity that could plant churches and orphanages all over the world.
There's a question in this for all of us. If there are that many people who haven't heard Jesus' name proclaimed, then what are you doing about it? You and I have as much responsibility to responding to the Great Commission as anyone else!
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Second Saturday!
This Saturday, City on a Hill Church will be at the car wash next to Wal-Mart from 9am to 11am. We'll be paying the initial deposit for all manual car washes during this time.
Our Second Saturday events are sponsored by our Kindness Ministry which specializes in demonstrating God's love in practical ways. The people of COAHC believe that Christ ministered in practical ways and met the needs of His people. We strive to do the same.
Our Second Saturday events are sponsored by our Kindness Ministry which specializes in demonstrating God's love in practical ways. The people of COAHC believe that Christ ministered in practical ways and met the needs of His people. We strive to do the same.
Good Enough
I read a recent article by Rick Warren entitled "Why 'Good Enough' is Good Enough". It got me thinking about how serving is viewed in the Church. I agree with Rick's assertion that the local church can become performance based which can lead to a church that is immersed in entertaining its members and visitors.
In my estimation, there must be a balance between the truth found in Ecclesiastes 11:4 - If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done. (NLT) - and excellence. If we err on the side of excellence, the local church can be frozen in fear and shackled by the expectation of perfection. If we err on the other side of the spectrum, we can lose the excellence that God calls us to strive for in Colossians 3:23 - Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men (NIV).
For the Church, it comes down to this: we must demand the very best from ourselves. It's really that simple. Too many are serving half-heartedly with the comment, "Well, that's good enough."
In the context of sports, athletes use the phrase, "Don't leave anything on the field." Scripture uses athletics as an analogy for our life with Christ often for a reason. We can identify with athletics, but the principles in athletics are similar to our relationship with God. You and I need to make sure we haven't left anything on the field. We're called to particular ministries and we're called to give our very best effort.
Our salvation isn't performance-based, and it's not about measuring ourselves against one another. Our relationship with Christ simply calls us to take what we've been given and use it for the glory of God. We all must be satisfied with the best others offer. God is. Why shouldn't we be?
In my estimation, there must be a balance between the truth found in Ecclesiastes 11:4 - If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done. (NLT) - and excellence. If we err on the side of excellence, the local church can be frozen in fear and shackled by the expectation of perfection. If we err on the other side of the spectrum, we can lose the excellence that God calls us to strive for in Colossians 3:23 - Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men (NIV).
For the Church, it comes down to this: we must demand the very best from ourselves. It's really that simple. Too many are serving half-heartedly with the comment, "Well, that's good enough."
In the context of sports, athletes use the phrase, "Don't leave anything on the field." Scripture uses athletics as an analogy for our life with Christ often for a reason. We can identify with athletics, but the principles in athletics are similar to our relationship with God. You and I need to make sure we haven't left anything on the field. We're called to particular ministries and we're called to give our very best effort.
Our salvation isn't performance-based, and it's not about measuring ourselves against one another. Our relationship with Christ simply calls us to take what we've been given and use it for the glory of God. We all must be satisfied with the best others offer. God is. Why shouldn't we be?
Prophecy for Pentecostals
This weekend while I was visiting some dear friends, I was given a copy of a prophecy that was written down during the great revival in Whales in 1910.
"In the last days, three things will occur in the large Pentecostal movements:
1 - There will be much emphasis on power at the expense of righteousness.
2 - There will be an exaggerated accentuation on praising a God to whom nobody prays any longer.
3 - There will be a strong emphasis on the gifts of the Spirit at the expense of the Lordship of Jesus Christ Himself!"
I ask you, could we be living in the last days?
"In the last days, three things will occur in the large Pentecostal movements:
1 - There will be much emphasis on power at the expense of righteousness.
2 - There will be an exaggerated accentuation on praising a God to whom nobody prays any longer.
3 - There will be a strong emphasis on the gifts of the Spirit at the expense of the Lordship of Jesus Christ Himself!"
I ask you, could we be living in the last days?
Monday, July 5, 2010
The Wal-Mart Well
When it comes to ministry, it's important to know not only what to do, but when and where to do it as well.
In Jesus' day, the well was a gathering place. We're familiar with the story of the woman at the well, where Jesus had a miraculous encounter with a woman whose life was changed as a result. We don't have wells like that today. But we do have gathering places. Here in Culpeper, one example is Wal-Mart. It seems every time Carrie comes home from doing her weekly grocery shopping, she tells about seeing some friends.
One of City on a Hill Church's first organized Kindness Outreaches was a Dollar-Drop at Wal-Mart. Carrie, the girls and I walked around Wal-Mart and randomly and conspicuously dropped dollar bills on the floor of the store. Each bill was attached to a card that read
We dropped fifty of those bills and cards all over the store.
Since then, we've used Wal-Mart as our venue to hand out carnations to ladies on Valentine's Day and host a wellness check in partnership with the Lion's Club. In fact, Wal-Mart has even awarded COAHC with small grants for the last two years to be used in our community.
Jesus engaged culture on their turf. Let's open our eyes to the opportunities that are around us. Let's get out of our church buildings, find those wells in our communities and engage our communities with the love of Christ.
In Jesus' day, the well was a gathering place. We're familiar with the story of the woman at the well, where Jesus had a miraculous encounter with a woman whose life was changed as a result. We don't have wells like that today. But we do have gathering places. Here in Culpeper, one example is Wal-Mart. It seems every time Carrie comes home from doing her weekly grocery shopping, she tells about seeing some friends.
One of City on a Hill Church's first organized Kindness Outreaches was a Dollar-Drop at Wal-Mart. Carrie, the girls and I walked around Wal-Mart and randomly and conspicuously dropped dollar bills on the floor of the store. Each bill was attached to a card that read
"This $1 is to give you just a little help today.
It's to show you God's love for you in a practical way."
It's to show you God's love for you in a practical way."
We dropped fifty of those bills and cards all over the store.
Since then, we've used Wal-Mart as our venue to hand out carnations to ladies on Valentine's Day and host a wellness check in partnership with the Lion's Club. In fact, Wal-Mart has even awarded COAHC with small grants for the last two years to be used in our community.
Jesus engaged culture on their turf. Let's open our eyes to the opportunities that are around us. Let's get out of our church buildings, find those wells in our communities and engage our communities with the love of Christ.
Friday, July 2, 2010
Hearing From God
In honor of being in Culpeper and blogging for two years about the experience of planting City on a Hill Church, I've been re-posting some of my favorite posts from those first few weeks in 2008.
Hearing From God (July 23, 2008)
After being in Culpeper a month, my wife and I are still getting an opportunity to share our story of God's call on our life to move here from beautiful San Diego. Some people praise God for His call to build His kingdom in Culpeper. Still others listen with skeptical ears. It's the latter group that I'd like to address in this post.
It's interesting to me to watch the skeptics' reactions and hear the tone in their voice when we share our story and calling. I guess there are many people that believe God wouldn't choose ordinary people like us for a radical calling like this. Hmmm... I seem to recall a similar story when a man from Nazareth called some pretty ordinary people to do some extraordinary things about 2000 years ago. The fact is that God has chosen ordinary people to do extraordinary things from the beginning of time. Why do some folks seem to have such a difficulty with that concept? I have a few ideas, I suppose.
As for me, I'm fired up about what the Lord is doing. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He's going to do amazing things in and through City On A Hill Church. In fact, He already has, and we haven't even officially launched yet!
So, what's the standard for success in this situation? Does COAHC have to have 200 members by 2010 in order for those doubters to say, "Okay, I was wrong. The Damerons' move to Culpeper was in response to an authentic call of God." Does COAHC have to have 20 converts and baptisms before 4Q2009? What's the standard that these people are using? And how does that compare to what God's standard is?
My family and I stand in agreement that the Father still speaks to His children. What kind of Father would He be if He didn't? He still uses people who are willing to submit their lives to Him. What kind of God would He be if He didn't?
We're not interested in putting God in a box. We don't put limits on what God's will is and whom He chooses to do it. We're blessed to be called by God. We're blessed to be in Culpeper doing His work for His glory! I wish everyone could have a taste of that kind of adventure... that kind of relationship with the Almighty... that kind of radical life change... that kind of success!
Hearing From God (July 23, 2008)
After being in Culpeper a month, my wife and I are still getting an opportunity to share our story of God's call on our life to move here from beautiful San Diego. Some people praise God for His call to build His kingdom in Culpeper. Still others listen with skeptical ears. It's the latter group that I'd like to address in this post.
It's interesting to me to watch the skeptics' reactions and hear the tone in their voice when we share our story and calling. I guess there are many people that believe God wouldn't choose ordinary people like us for a radical calling like this. Hmmm... I seem to recall a similar story when a man from Nazareth called some pretty ordinary people to do some extraordinary things about 2000 years ago. The fact is that God has chosen ordinary people to do extraordinary things from the beginning of time. Why do some folks seem to have such a difficulty with that concept? I have a few ideas, I suppose.
As for me, I'm fired up about what the Lord is doing. I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He's going to do amazing things in and through City On A Hill Church. In fact, He already has, and we haven't even officially launched yet!
So, what's the standard for success in this situation? Does COAHC have to have 200 members by 2010 in order for those doubters to say, "Okay, I was wrong. The Damerons' move to Culpeper was in response to an authentic call of God." Does COAHC have to have 20 converts and baptisms before 4Q2009? What's the standard that these people are using? And how does that compare to what God's standard is?
My family and I stand in agreement that the Father still speaks to His children. What kind of Father would He be if He didn't? He still uses people who are willing to submit their lives to Him. What kind of God would He be if He didn't?
We're not interested in putting God in a box. We don't put limits on what God's will is and whom He chooses to do it. We're blessed to be called by God. We're blessed to be in Culpeper doing His work for His glory! I wish everyone could have a taste of that kind of adventure... that kind of relationship with the Almighty... that kind of radical life change... that kind of success!
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