Posts Tagged ‘Ministry’

Wow What a Day!

Posted in Life and Ministry, tagged , , , , , , on July 2, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Another awesome day at the Lewis House.  It started off a little rough with Allana down with a bad cold.  She is still wrestling with the sniffles now but looks and feels better.  Stacey, one of the full-time workers here, took Robert (instead of me because of Allana’s condition) to Sydney (I don’t know if I spelled that right) to stop at a ministry that helps to supply our foodbank here.   We were getting a little thin in the pantry.  I know this is a big problem for  food driven ministries now.  Fishes n Loaves in Adrian is running low on food also.  So if you have extra or want to donate to a food pantry now is a good time.  There is almost certainly some sort of Organization helped to feed the poor who could really use your help.

So since I did not go to the foodbank, I got to move furniture and sweep floors.  We prepared the floor in the  fellowship hall to be power washed which we are doing tomorrow.  Sami and Emily did an awesome job carrying about 100 chairs up two flights of stairs from the hall to the auditorium.  George and I stacked tables and swept.  George had previously finished putting the plugs in for the lighting.  As we moved the furniture we planned out our plan of attack tomorrow.  By the time we were done the place was ready for powerwashing.  This is a very different face of ministry.  Yet it is ministry.  We need to stop narrowly defining what is and is not ministry.  I believe at least in part this was Martha’s issue in Luke 10.  Martha thought she had a lock on what the ministry should look like, and she WAS ministering.  Her mistake was thinking that Mary had to be serving in the same way.  You may be called to be Martha and called to be Mary all in the same day.  We were blessed to be Martha this morning.

Later in the day one of the regular attenders to our Friday night meeting brought in a homeless man whom she came across in the Kroger parking lot.  George was busy so I put together a food box for him and prayed with him.  God said love him…so I did.  It was a learning experience.  Don’t judge…love.  Don’t assign blame for his circumstance…love.  Don’t be the cynic…love.  It felt good.  I may try some more of this loving the people that God loves even when my flesh wants to be cynical thing…It feels good when you can feel God smile.

Dinner was a potluck affair with some of our regular Friday night crew and people from the neighborhood.  WHAT A BLESSING!  We had a great night of fellowship.  Relational ministry, love the people that God love’s.  Definitely the lesson for today.  Love the unlovable.  Love that family member who is a pain.  Love your neighbor.  Love the little kid down the street who is desperate for any kind of attention.  Love the brothers and sisters in Christ  who are all around us. 

Robert had an awesome day on his trip.  He has been so awesome with the kids here.  Plus they got chickens, not frozen oven roasters, real live chickens.  You can see a picture of Emily holding one of the chicks in my facebook mobile uploads album.  The kids in the neighborhood when wild.  They mobbed Stacy when she pulled back into the neighborhood.  She had called one of the Mom’s and let her know that live chicks were coming.  Stacy spent time letting them all see the chicks.  Relational ministry, Love them.  Love the little children who mob you.  Love their silly questions.  Show them God in action.  It requires love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.  Hmmm I think I have heard that somewhere before.  I guess I need to do more than memorize it.

Pray for Allana that she feels better soon.  Pray for the people in our neighborhood, that they would know Jesus!  Pray for the people in your neighborhood, that they would know Jesus…then show him to them.

God Bless and Goodnight

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One Day

Posted in Life and Ministry, tagged , , , , , on June 30, 2010| 2 Comments »

We arrived here at the Lewis House Monday afternoon (following an awesome meeting with our new Children’s Pastor-jumping the gun a little on that but I feel pretty good about the match). I wonder how many go on a missions trip and expect an Angelic Fanfare as they arrive or the heavens to open and the HS to descend in the form of a dove. I arrived with a quiet peace that we are doing God’s will for us and knowing that he is going to bless it. I have no idea what that is going to look like but I trust Him and know that He is faithful.
We had a wonderful afternoon of fellowship with George and Sarah. We pieced together a plan for this week and then I had an great night at Everfree.

Tuesday we got to work. George installed a washer and dryer in the basement for visitors to use and then we gutted the room. They had previously installed a furnace there, which included cutting through cinder block. Anyone who has done this will appreciate the mess. Allana and the girls tackled the nursery, going through donated toys, tossing the ones that were not appropriate , cleaning and organizing.
Everyone pitched in and worked hard. I am very proud of all of our kids and my lovely wife .

After dinner we hit the streets. Sami and Emily went with Erin and Naomi and found that ministry can be FUN! George, Robert and I walked the neighborhood. Allana and Chayla went with Stacy on BUNNY DUTY.

We had prayed beforehand and God had laid on George’s heart finding someone under a tree. I had gotten a strong impression of moving shadows. As we turned the corner onto Sylvania we saw a woman sweeping the sidewalk under the shadow of a BIG tree. She is a single mom with three boys under the age of 4. George asked her if we could pray for her and she asked us to pray for her family. We did and then I invited her to the BCC single Mom’s event coming up. Surprise Surprise , her Mom lives in Temperance and she was excited to get more details (which being men we did not have so Allana and I will be headed back there today). As we walked we met kids, parents, young men, old men, young women and old women. They all had one thing in common THEY DESPERATELY NEED JESUS! We prayed for some, chatted with others. We invited some and just opened lines of fellowship with others. Tired but blessed we returned to the Lewis House.

"I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that YOU will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ." Philemon 6

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It is all about Two Girls

Posted in Life and Ministry, tagged , , on June 26, 2010| 1 Comment »

It is all about the two girls. Two little lost and hurting girls God sent our way as an opportunity to serve Him, love the Lost and serve others. We were tired, hot and honestly thought that nobody would show up for our youth and Children’s ministry. We had actually planned to return to the BLock Party that we helped set up at BCC when no kids showed up but God had other plans. So there they were two little girls who desperately need the hand of God in there lives. No miracles were performed, no great sermons preached, none came forward for salvation but I could feel God SMILING over my shoulder as he said, “I told you so.” I have been studying Relational Ministry but He taught me more tonight than in all the studying. Tonight it was all about the two little girls. Keep your eyes and Spirit open because tomorrow It’s going to be about…well I just guess I will Keep my eyes open and my heart in tune and He will let meknow ..

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Summer!

Posted in Life and Ministry, tagged , , , , , , on June 25, 2010| Leave a Comment »

I am so excited for what God has brought to myself and my family this summer.  Last week I had the privilege of sharing BLAST with a great group of leaders and junior highers at BCC.  This week Allana and the kids are having a blast at Sonquest Rainforest VBS.  The blessings have already started to rain down and the summer is barely started.

Monday we head to Toledo and The Lewis House (www.mylewishouse.com) .  We are ready for God to do great things and are excited to spend this time with our family in Christ there.  God has been amazing as he has opened the way for us to serve Him.  At the end of July we head out for our great western sweep.  It will be an exciting time of seeing friends and family but even more Allana and I believe it will be a time of ministry.  We are looking forward to sharing our faith and taking hold of ministry opportunities that God puts in our path.  I am sure after our month at The Lewis House we will be Spiritually pumped and overflowing with joy to share both with those who don’t know Him as Lord and Savior and with our brothers and sisters in Christ!  We are ready for all the “outrageous” things God has for us! (ok..so maybe with the help of the Holy Spirit I will be ready for all the OUTRAGEOUS things God has for us!)

AMEN

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Blogging

Posted in Life and Ministry, tagged , , , , on March 25, 2010| 1 Comment »

    I have experimented with blogging before and it has never lasted.  Encouraged by the example of some good Christian men in my life I am going to take another stab at it.  Perhaps along with the daily Bible study that has become a part of my life this will also take root and grow.  I chose the name of my blog from I Timothy 1:6.  It is perhaps my favorite verse in the Bible.  I live to use the gifts that God gives to create light in this dark world.  I am learning that “fanning into flame the gift of God” is not a piecemeal affair.  I cannot develop my gifts in their own separate compartments.  I recently was deeply touched by a piece of scripture that illustrated this point clearly to me. 

Exodus 21:5

5 “But if the servant declares, ‘I love my master and my wife and children and do not want to go free,’ 6 then his master must take him before the judges. He shall take him to the door or the doorpost and pierce his ear with an awl. Then he will be his servant for life

My service to God is a complete package.  I love my God!  I love my Wife!  I love my Children!  These cannot be separated.  And yes God did lead my get my ear pierced (that was a personal struggle I may deal with in a separate post!  I do not promote or encourage this.  It was an intensely personal decision spurred by my relationship with God.  No doctrine or spiritual panacea for the Christian walk is suggested or implied.) as a testament to my own stubborn tendencies.  Every day I look in the mirror and this passage rings in my ears.  It must be the order of my life!  Only then can the flames rise to be seen by all around.  Well I am going to keep this first post short if not sweet.  Hopefully I will do better this time than I have in the past.

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