Last week I asked a person from my congregation to be a ghost writer on my blog. I assured them I would not tell who they were. When they asked what I wanted them to write about I told them that I’d love to know from someone who sits in the pew, “What do you feel are 3 things we are doing really well and what 3 things are we really struggling with.” I wasn’t afraid of the constructive criticism because I think we regularly need to ask questions like these. By far the WORST things churches/people can do is focus only on their strengths without trying to improve in their weak areas.

When I received the article for this post, there weren’t any surprises. Things I knew we were struggling with, they noticed too. What I did need to see was the shortcomings from their perspective. Our goal here is to keep doing what we’re doing in the strong areas and find new ways to address the areas in which we struggle. Here’s what they had to say …

A VIEW FROM THE PEW

I’m writing to share a list of six observations from the perspective of an ordinary member of our local church: three of them are compliments and three are opportunities.

What we are doing well:

1. We’ve always done a good job of ministering to those within our congregation, but I’m proud of what I view as movement toward service to a broader community.  When we recognize need and respond to it, we are imitating Jesus.
2. We are generous, and our contributions are being used well.  I know of more than 10 missionaries our small congregation has supported in the last 2 years, and I know God is pleased to see it.
3. We value kids.  There are children eruptions: before, during and certainly after every service.  We include teenagers in our public worship, and I’m proud of their participation.  Churches that struggle to find young families and plug-in their youth are an endangered species…I’m glad I feel like an old guy at church.

What we still struggle with:

1. Although we try very hard to be welcoming, our church still isn’t a reflection of our community…we are generally upper-middle class white folks.  Good people, but not necessarily representative of our town.  People are generally most comfortable with people who look and act in similar ways, but our congregation has to figure out how to overcome our tendency toward familiarity.
2. We sometimes don’t allow people to work through their problems, and mistakenly think church is a gathering of people who have things sorted out.  The church in Corinth included troubled members.  Paul calls them Christians, and encourages them to practice their faith while growing in it.  We could do more of that.
3. Christians are generally conservative, and there’s certainly nothing wrong with that.  But there is a tension between the conservative value of personal responsibility and Jesus’ example of unconditional self-sacrifice.   How do you think Jesus feels when he sees us miss opportunities because we don’t believe others have earned our help?  I’m glad his grace isn’t something I have to earn.

There’s a clear line between constructive criticism and simply being a critic. I’ve always welcomed constructive criticism, believing that I can learn and grow from anything that’s said in a loving spirit.

I’ve also never been one to wear my feelings on my sleeve. In fact, I’ve always felt I have thick skin when it comes to people’s criticism or unkind comments. That’s why I’ve had a hard time writing this. I don’t want to sound like I’m complaining, whining or being thin-skinned, because I’m not. I just would like to make a point … there is a shortage of preachers/ministers in this world, and one of the reasons is because of unkind criticism and unrealistic expectations.

This past week Lea and I were a part of a group from Childress that went to Austin to represent our community before our state representatives. Before I left I told my leadership that I was going to have someone cover my Wednesday evening class, just in case I didn’t make it back in time to teach. They agreed.

It just so happened that I did make it back in time this past Wednesday, but still allowed the man who prepared the class to teach the class.  One man, when he realized I wasn’t teaching, said loudly enough so everyone could hear, “Hey, why aren’t you teaching tonight?” I tried to briefly explain that I’d been in Austin. His loud response, still in front of everyone, “Don’t we pay you to teach the class?” I chose to ignore that one. Then he topped it off with a, “Maybe you should be looking for a job in Austin,” and then quickly followed it up with a, “You know I’m only kidding you about all this stuff.” At this I simply smiled and said as kind as I could, “If I moved, I wouldn’t get to spend any time with you and that would make me sad.”

Just so you’ll know, I serve a very loving church that treats me WAY better than I deserve.  They are loving, supporting and I’m honored to work with them.  So why would someone say something like this? Who knows, maybe this man was just having a bad day. He was probably saying what he was thinking, but should have kept it to himself.  I’m not mad, nor am I frustrated with a man who didn’t know what he was talking about.  What’s important is that we need to realize we need to be kind to one another and not jump to conclusions.  Remember the old saying, “If you can’t say something nice … don’t say anything at all.” If you have a problem with someone, talk to them privately in a kind way. I promise it will go much better.

The point I’d like to make is this … please be kind to the people who serve in your churches. They aren’t perfect people, and they’re not always going to be able to please you.

It’s obvious we’re making a difference in the dump in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. Here are a few things I’ve seen …

* a purification system was put in this past December that provides clean water to the area.

* a day care is being run just outside the dump and parents are encouraged to being their children there instead of taking them in the dump.

* weekly feedings that take place every Wednesday. Today at noon the people in the dump will get to eat a plate of hot food.

And then yesterday, Marc Tindall wrote on his Facebook status about another way we’re making a difference in the dump. His words were …

“More than a year ago, a group from the local University in Honduras, started construction on a place in the dump where people could clean up & shower. When the money ran out this project was stopped. Yesterday in thanks to Dump Day 2010 and Bread for a Hungry World, construction restarted.”

I just want to say thank you today for all you’ve given through this blog to make this possible. Dump Day 2010 was a huge success and no doubt Dump Day 2011 will be just as great.

Katy is the book winner from last week’s giveaway. Congrats. I will be sticking a book in the mail to her later this week.

Lukewarmness is a battle I have to fight regularly. Being lukewarm as a Christian is NOT good. Lukewarmness is found somewhere between being hot (on fire for God as he demands) and being cold (having no desire to follow God). Revelation 3:15-16 has always been tough for me to comprehend, because Jesus is SO hard on the lukewarm. He actually says he’d rather you and I be “cold” rather than lukewarm, and that lukewarmness is disgusting enough to God to make him vomit.

I don’t know a better chapter on lukewarmness, than Chan’s in his book, “Crazy Love.” So with that in mind, here are 10 signs you might be a lukewarm Christian …

1. You think more about like on this earth (and how to be comfortable here) than you do about eternal life.

2. You give out of your leftovers rather than making it a priority.

3. You only seek God when you are in a bind.

4. You say you believe in God, but live as though he doesn’t exist.

5. You crave acceptance from people more than acceptance from God.

6. You rarely (or never) share your faith.

7. You say you believe in God, but you don’t strive to know Him.

8. You base your morality on comparing yourself with others, rather than on what God says.

9. Your life is really no different than others in the world.

10. You want to know Christ just enough to save you from hell, but not enough have to change your lifestyle.

Can you add one?

After school this past Wednesday, Cooper ran to my pickup instead of going at his usual leisurely pace. He was in a hurry to get to the barbershop so he could beat everyone else and not have to wait.  He was out of breath when he jumped in my pickup and said, “Come on Dad, let’s go. I don’t want anyone to beat us there.” I assured him I was going to get him there as soon as I could.

I took off at what I thought was plenty fast, but within seconds of when we left Cooper franticly says, “Come on Dad, can’t you go any faster? Why don’t you try and drive like Mom on Sunday mornings when she’s late for church!”

And so I just had to ask, “So … just how does Mom drive on Sunday mornings when she’s late for church?”

“Like a maniac,” he said without skipping a beat.

Now that’s good stuff right there!

I mentioned two weeks ago that the feeding center in Nueve Oriental, Honduras had shut down due to financial struggles. It broke my heart.  GREAT NEWS: Yesterday the feeding center reopened thanks to some generous donations by many of you. There were 250 kids fed yesterday. That makes yesterday a GREAT day. Thanks for caring [...]

I want to give you a book. One of the best things Lea and I have done in our marriage is read together. Our marriage is healthier today due to the “marriage” books we’ve picked out read. After we both agree on a book, I’ll read a chapter or two, and then when she gets [...]

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We are making a conscience effort to reach out to people in our community that are different than us. Different backgrounds, race, traditions, opinions, etc. Our goal is not to see these people as mission projects, but as friends. I’ve told you about my friend Willie and I’ve also told you about my friend Haley [...]

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Lea and I did our Meals on Wheels route in a blizzard this week. The ground was covered in snow, the wind was blowing 40 mph and I told her to drive while I braved the elements taking the food to the door. As I zipped up to the door of the second house, I [...]

My heart hurts today. I got this message from Marc Tindall this morning, “The feeding center project in Nueve Oriental is closed until there is funding to pay the bills. We have been blessed to provide tons of food for them – please pray that we can find a way to start getting kids fed [...]

I promised the details about the summer mission trip to Honduras. I’d love you to come join me. Dates: July 9th – 16th Cost: Approximately $1550 (covers everything but a couple meals.) Who: Anyone 18 and up (Younger can go with a parent/sponsor.) Deposit: A $200 deposit is due on February 27th. This deposit will [...]

Haley cried last night as she talked … because sometimes ministry can really hurt. Last night we had a Bible study at our house. Every week a group of about 15-20 people meet to study, pray and encourage one another to be Jesus in others lives.  One of the things we decided when we started [...]

Giving away houses … that’s amazing. I have been honored to be a part of Childress’ very own Extreme Home Makeover. In just over four months the community of Childress has taken a house that was to be demolished and totally renovated it. There were so many different people who worked on this project.  I’m [...]

No way around it, I think that Adam and Eve probably had the perfect marriage. Here are a few reasons why … Eve never had to hear Adam talk about how good his mom cooked. Eve never questioned Adam’s faithfulness by asking, “Are you sure there’s no one else?” Eve wasn’t lying when she told Adam [...]

If you’re interested in going with me to Honduras this summer (or even slightly interested), I’ll be giving all the details about this trip this Sunday, at 5:15, at the church’s fellowship hall (210 2nd street SE). Come here all the details. If you live outside Childress, and would like to go (or know more) [...]

Maybe I give out more information about myself than I should, but I think if you’re going to read my blog, you need to know a little about the person who writes it. The following is a questionnaire that someone asked me to fill out. And while I usually hate this stuff … I actually [...]

After 4 months of work we’re winding down our Augment Project (Extreme Home Makeover). If you haven’t been keeping up with the project, you can read more about it here, here and here. This Sunday we’ll have a ribbon cutting, an open house and turn the keys over to Vicki (the lady chosen to receive [...]

Today I’m letting Jeff Foxworthy blog for me. Husbands, pay attention … this stuff could SAVE YOUR LIFE… 10. Do I look like my mother? 9. How old do you think I look? 8. What are you thinking right now? 7. Do you think she’s pretty? 6. Do you think I’m worth it? 5. How [...]

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to discovers why “huge crowds” were always gathering around Jesus. He attracted people to him like a magnet. Here’s 10 reasons why … He Cared About People. We need more people like this. Jesus put others needs before his own. He didn’t just feel sorry for people, he actually [...]

I really need to get busy. I’ve got a busy Monday ahead and don’t really have time to be thinking about the following things … but I am. So here are a few things I SHOULDN’T be thinking about …. but I am: BIRTHDAYS: Thanks for all the birthday wishes on Facebook. I had a [...]

The first time I met Willie (name changed) was when he stopped by the church needing $5 for some gas money. He told me he was down on his luck and if he could get a little gas, he could get some work. I didn’t have a 5 dollar bill so I gave him a [...]

According to most women, affection is their #1 need. Affection has nothing to do with sex and is more that just holding hands at the mall. Affection actually comes in many different forms. The key is finding the one your wife likes best. Here are a few different ways a man can show affection… Words [...]

2010 has been an fantastic year for this blog. Having SO many take part in the 30 hour fast and then all of us raising $50,000 on Dump Day were two of the things at the top of my list. Here’s a list of the Top 20 posts from this past year. I’m still amazed at [...]

2010 has been an amazing year. I can’t help but smile when I look back and think about all the things I’ve been blessed to be a part of. Just thinking about it makes me excited about the new year that is right around the corner.  Here are a few things I’d like to do [...]

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A young girl in a black dress digs through a trash dumpster in Honduras looking for something to eat. Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is [...]

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A house (if that’s what you call it) just outside the dump. We visited with an older woman and a young girl who lived here. In contrast to the filth, flies and smell were their beautiful smiles. During the Jesus Banquet, people had the opportunity to come over and pick out some new (nearly new) [...]

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We arrived this morning at 6 am to pick up trash around the area we would be serving the Jesus Banquet today. No one needs to have a banquet for dump people in an area that’s trashy. The tables are ready, people are arriving, but the food has yet to get here (typical Honduras). Picture [...]

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