From South America with Love (Part Two)…

Once the dates and details were set for our mission project in Cordoba, Argentina I began sharing my heart for this project with the Cross-link family each Sunday.  I offered an opportunity for people to join me for nine days in South America for a Pastor’s Conference, ESL Training in Public Schools and Vacation Bible Schools.  After several weeks of promotion, I had two men on board with me.  One was my Director of Evangelism and Discipleship, Terry Ross and the other was my Director of Hospitality, Patrick Simmons.  To the Glory of God, all three of us raised the necessary funds without any expenses from the Calvary Cross-link budget.

(Left to Right: Terry Ross, Will Herndon, Me, Patrick Simmons,
Daniel Beard, Sherry Anderson, Pastor Tim Anderson, Glenn Price)

Our Trip to Cordoba started on Wednesday, March 21^st when we left Calvary Cross-link, headed for Richmond International Airport at 9am.  We didn’t arrive at our hotel in Cordoba, Argentina until noon on Thursday, March 22^nd.   After a quick nap, the evening was spent planning our week with the 4-person team from Clements Baptist Church in Athens, Alabama and our AMAZING ground man, Will Herndon, over some delicious Argentine steak.  I don’t think any of us were quite prepared for what God was going to do in, through and around us over the next few days.

When we arrived at the International Congress for Revival Pastor’s School on Thursday night, there were over 400 pastors, lay leaders and ladies in attendance.  These sweet brothers and sisters were so gracious, grateful and passionate for the opportunity to attend this experience.  Very few, if any of these church leaders had any formal ministry training whatsoever, so they were eager to learn!  We challenged them to solid leadership and sound doctrine for the next 2 & ½ days.  Every time Pastor Tim & I preached, they furiously took notes, hanging on every word.

Worship Service Attendance at ICR School

It should be said, that my experience in preaching through a translator is limited but I cannot imagine a better translator than my new friend Will Herndon.  Pastor Tim and I could literally preach and he translated right over the top of us.  It was an incredible sight to behold and experience!

I was told, over and over again, how much this conference meant to the pastors and church leaders in attendance.  They emotionally shared how they were challenged, encouraged and equipped for greater ministry impact for the Glory of God in Argentina.  This was great to hear.  However, I believe that the experience had an even greater impact on my life than it did theirs.  As I worshiped Jesus in a language I didn’t comprehend, I sensed the moving of the Holy Spirit in my own life that was calling me to a deeper level of commitment to the “end of the earth” section of Acts 1:8.  I knew this would require a re-prioritizing of my ministry calendar, budget and focus.  However, I knew that this special calling on my life didn’t just affect me, but all those whom I have the privilege to lead…to be continued…

On Mission

This week has been an interesting one for me. Let me provide some context:

For the last 4 years, I've led a mission trip to Staten Island, New York. This week, I've got 33 people here serving Jesus by helping Salem Church impact their neighborhood for Jesus! My attention has been on facilitating a clash between gospel sharing southerners and catholic-"ish" italian New Yorkers. It's been going well, I'll update with some results soon!

However, this year our mission trip has happened on the same week as the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention in Phoenix, AZ. So, I've been keeping loose tabs on that too. It seems that most in the leadership of our denomination believe that change is necessary. So, there was a great deal said about adopting the 3,800 remaining unreached people groups around the world. I wholeheartedly agree with this effort!

The peculiarity of this week is due to the mix of being "on mission" and hearing so much "about the mission." Now, Staten Island has a growing, thriving, Gospel preaching church (see www.salemchurchnyc.com). So there is definitely a difference in this mission project and the ones discussed in Phoenix. However, there is a HUGE difference between talking about engaging in the mission and ACTUALLY doing it!

I commend the 33 people who took this week away from their lives & homes to share Jesus with Staten Island. I, also, commend Tom Elliff, Bryant Wright, Kevin Ezell and others for trying to shake Southern Baptists out of our slumber this week in Phoenix. My prayer is harvests to be evident on Staten Island this week and in the years to come as SBC churches embrace the mission!

Content & Delivery

I spend a great deal of time every week preparing sermons. I'll study original languages, do word studies and consult about a dozen commentaries in the process. All this is in addition to the prayer time and context reading from the Bible that each sermon demands. Once the preparation is finished (typically by Thursday afternoon), I'll let the message sink in to my life over the next 2 & 1/2 days. I quote my mentor and pastor, Dr Johnny Hunt, when he says "my sermon is finished, but it's not ready" once the writing process is completed, because I've got to respond to the message before I ask anyone else to.

This is not a novel idea for anyone who has ever taught the Bible at any level. I don't suppose I'm breaking any new news on this subject, but I came to my own realization last week and I'd like to share it with you...

I found myself asking God to guide the presentation of my message as much as he guided the content of my message. If it's true that many people will pay more attention to "how" I say something than to "what" I say, then my presentation needs to communicate the crux of the message as much (if not more so) than the content. Do you follow?

This past week, I was preaching the 2nd of Jesus' Beatitudes from Matthew 5:4 "Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted." The crux of the message is that Jesus is calling us to Godly mourning over personal sin and societal sin. Well, in preaching this message to the hundreds gathered at Calvary Cross-link, I became extremely emotional. I could not finish my message and found myself absolutely broken over sin: my sin (first), my church's sin and my country sin. I was overwhelmed with the reality of my sin, past & present, and broken over the fact that Jesus not only died for me, but was also comforting me! It was a tough pill to swallow.

This is something that, in 14 years of preaching, has NEVER happened to me. I am a very passionate person, but not an emotional person. I rarely cry, choke up or break down in any situation, but God brought me to a breaking point over sin and then pushed me over to communicate this concept to Calvary Cross-link. No lie, I turned into a big, sweaty, red faced, cry-baby in front of my whole church! Tears and snot went everywhere while I attempted (with a high pitch whine) to conclude the service. I wanted to find the nearest exit and leave before talking to anybody (didn't happen). You can listen to an edited version (Thanks Robert) of the sermon at www.calvarycrosslink.org and hear for yourself.

I wish that I could tell you that revival broke out and the spirit of God was poured out on our fellowship. However, that wasn't the case. Most eyes were dry, wide in surprise, but completely dry nonetheless. Very little response to the altar or visible response to the message was apparent. I assume the days to come will tell the story of how well we obey Matthew 5:4.

Even if there is no difference, this preacher has been changed and I believe that this situation is a direct result of my praying, "Lord, guide my presentation of Your truth as You have guided my preparation of Your truth."

I fear that there is more of this to come...

Big Picture

Merry Christmas! It is December 23rd and I am anxiously anticipating the Christmas Eve Celebration that commences at 4:30pm and 6:30pm at Calvary Cross Link tomorrow evening. As far as I can tell, over 7,500 invitations have been extended and I am planning to preach the Gospel with clarity, calling everyone in attendance to Jesus! If you're in the Shenandoah Valley, you don't want to miss this special event.

Well, enough for the commercial! A few days ago, at the urging of my brother-in-law, I downloaded the "You Version" app for my I-Phone. This awesome little app is provided by LifeChurch.tv and their pastor, Craig Groeschel. I expected it to provide me quick references on scriptures and word searches when I needed them. However, when I looked over the features of this App, I noticed that it provides various plans for reading through the Bible. I noticed one, in particular, that gets you through the Bible in 90 days. I have never read the Bible, cover to cover, in that amount of time and, being the competitive natured person that I am, I took that plan as a challenge! So, I'm almost 10% through and I am loving it!!! Granted I've got a long way to go, but I am deeply committed to finishing this plan in 90 days!

This reading plan requires 14-16 chapters per day. I'm currently in Leviticus and getting a detailed look at the sacrificial system of Israel under the leadership of Moses. It doesn't sound like ground breaking stuff, but the more I read about the various sacrifices demanded of the Israelites, the more and more grateful I become for the Ultimate Sacrifice, the Lord Jesus Christ! This has led me to my Christmas Eve sermon, coming from John 1:29, "...John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!"" Leviticus led me to John, which led me to Jesus which led me to the cross! That, I pray, is Christ centered preaching!

Once again, Merry Christmas! I pray God's best for you and your family into this new year!

Fleeting Thoughts on a Fantastic Sunday

If self-examination is hard, then evaluating the success/failure, quality, efficiency or productivity of a Sunday Worship Experience is just about impossible! How does one (other than God) quantify the quality of a worship service, objectively? I don't think it's really possible. But, after acknowledging the futility of the effort, here I go...

1) Patrick Simmons and his hospitality team handled a large number of visiting families with their kids in tow. I was able to introduce myself to them and the team members got their children set up in the appropriate places. Great job!!!

2) Terry Ross (my Sunday School Teacher & Part Time Director of Evangelism & Discipleship) did a fabulous job leading a packed house in his class to reach, teach and minister to people. He, furthermore, challenged the socks off his Sunday School leadership team in a post-worship service meeting. Those leaders left that meeting encouraged, challenged and convicted about their personal witness - all while trying to put their socks back on!

3) Robert Hampshire's team had the week off. But, in their place, the Christian Student Union Praise Band from James Madison University did a fabulous job leading worship! I particularly liked how, on the final song (How Deep the Father's Love for Us), they stepped back and the congregation took over, it was a sweet moment of praise to Jesus!

4) Tina Knight and Cher Younger have a fantastic team of leaders that love, teach and lead the children of Calvary Cross-link! I watched Mrs. Brenda Puffenbarger (Mrs. Puff) welcome a new child into her class, while at the same time, loving on the ones who were already there! A young man, visited Kids-Link for the first time on Sunday and came out of there RAVING about it to his mom and dad (also visiting for the first time). Bill & Karen Reedy made a real impact on that boy!

5) I preached on the value of friendship from Ecclesiastes 4:7-16 and I feel that God used the message. I am constantly fighting the battle of believing that little to no movement in the invitation does not constitute a poor message or delivery. However, I sensed a sweet spirit during the message and had someone attempt to join the church during the pastor's reception for visitors that followed the service. I know the Lord is working in our midst and I just want to be sensitive to His leading!

I deeply love the people of Calvary Cross-link! They are the most precious people I have ever had the privilege to lead and I'm so thankful that God led me here. We had 239 in worship this morning (only 3 short of the church's all-time high, set back in October), but we're growing and that's cool!

How to strike Rhythm in Worship!

I recently read a quote by the missional teaching pastor of The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, Alabama and author of "Radical", Dr David Platt. He said: "worship is a rhythm of revelation and response–hearing Scripture and responding with our hearts and lives..." He was responding to the American church’s' infatuation with stylistic identification of churches based on the type of music they play. This practice has so drastically pigeonholed the focus, process and basis of worship that it demands a corrective response! So, a few questions to ask about a corporate worship service that will, hopefully, steer us in the right direction:

Question # 1: What does this worship service reveal about person, work and character of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit?

Question # 2: What does that revelation demand, by way of response, from the worshippers?

Question # 3: What does the leadership of this worship service invite people to do, by way of response, to that revelation?

Question # 4: Is there adequate time given to respond to the revelation presented in the corporate worship service?

Question # 5: Is your corporate worship service designed, first and foremost, to connect people with God or to make a lost person comfortable? Or both? Or neither?

These questions are complex and require much thought. Don't breeze past the issue without significant prayer and meditation!