If you are new to this blog....

Welcome! The primary purpose of this blog is to explore and encourage around what it means to be winsome and sent into the world for God's glory. If you are new here, the definition of "lighthouse-searchlight" or our missional journey is a good place to start. Come peruse the blog and add me to your RSS feed!

Saturday, September 12, 2009

missional themes, burnout, and other things

I spoke on missional themes this past week at the "East Coast Pastor's Conference," sponsored by Presbyterians for Renewal.

My first plenary talk was a study of John 17:15-21, adapted and expanded from the sermon on Jesus' prayer for us to go "Where they Are" (audio and text HERE).

My second plenary talk was a look "under the hood" of how we have been moving toward a missional identity at Good Shepherd. I am adapting and expanding on my presentation last February for a Presbyterian Global Fellowship seminar in Atlanta. I summarized that presentation in a series of blog posts which are worth re-linking below (if you want to go through them sequentially, there is a link to the next one at the end of each post).

I was also asked to preach for the communion service on the final day and shared personal testimony about two times when the burden of ministry has so far exceeded my own abilities and capabilities that I relied significantly on God's power and protection. Nothing like a room full of pastor's away from their churches to get some "Amen's" on being overloaded and weighed down! My confession was that I am so slow to rest in and trust in God... and to forget God's gracious provision when I do. Re-telling those stories was as much for me to remember as to encourage the other pastors. One of those accounts can be found HERE - "Five and Two is What?". The "punch line" application I made (though not the main point of the story) is to remember that we (including pastors!) are not Jesus in the story - creating a miracle out of every day stuff. Rather, we are the boy who offered his lunch in obedience and faith. We are also the disciples, encouraging other to share their "lunch" - but it is God who does the miracles. What a freeing truth! Now, if I can just remember...

I invite feedback, thoughts, and interaction!

Tag Cloud

2014 2015 accountability acts advent archive art arts ash wednesday aslan assurance audio auditions authenticity bands belief bigotry blessing blob bloggers blooper reel bluegrass body of christ book book reviews boomer boundaries breadth of worship builder bus calling Calvin Symposium cd ceilidh change character of god chart christmas church church partnerships civility commandments commentary communication community con ed confession confirmation contemporized hymns crisis CS Lewis culture D.Min. dance darkness death definitions denomination depth of worship discernment discipleship discourse dismissal dissertation drama early church easter ecclesiology ecpc emergent church error evangelism excellence exile exodus experience experimentation facebook failure faith family of God father fear fellowship fellowshippres following forgiveness friendship frost fruit frustration funerals GA ga219 ga220 GAhelp generations genX gift gifts girl scouts good news Google gospel grace gracious witness gspc youth hands health highlights holy spirit holy week hope hospitality humility humor hymn image of God imago dei improvisation incarnation inclusion index information insider language institutions interns invitation iTunes james jazz Jeremy Begbie john piper jonah joy judgment Keith and Kristyn Getty kids kindness language law lay renewal leadership legalism lent license life light lighthouse linked articles links listening liturgy loneliness love lyrics maddie shuler meme mentoring mercy metanarrative mgb commission millenials ministry networks miscellaneous mission missional missional identity missions moderator montreat mumford music narnia neighborhood neighbors new wineskins new year news newsletter NEXT NEXTchurch nicaragua noticing obedience obstacles organizations outreach palm sunday parenting participation pastor pastoral ministry pcaus pcusa peace performance peter pgf pictures plagues planning podcasting poetry politics ponderings pornography post-modernism prayer preaching presbymergent presbyterian global fellowship presbytery publishing questions racism reader reconciliation recordings recycled goodness redemption reflection refugees relationship relationships repentance retreat righteousness risk roadblocks rss rules sabbatical safety salt samaritan satan satire scotland searchlight searchlight 2.0 sectarianism self-righteousness seminaries sermon snippets sermon-song sermons shalom sheep shepherding sin small church social media song songwriters songwriting spheres of influence spirit spiritual lessons spiritual power stewardship stories story sub-culture summary sunrise talent challenge tears technology teenagers Ten Commandments terrorism testimony theater theft theological education top posts tragedy transformation translation travel trees trinitarian worship trinity trust truth twitter union with christ valentines VBS video virtual reality vision waiting website wednesdays out wee kirk welcome witness word cloud wordle words workshop worship writing year-end YL you tube youth