DESTINATION GOD

WHAT MUST ONE DO TO INHERIT ETERNAL LIFE?

The only path to salvation is through Jesus Christ. One must acknowledge their sinfulness. Then ask the Lord to forgive not only sinful acts, but also the sinful condition. Finally, accept that forgiveness for yourself and live accordingly.

Please refer to Free Stuff, the salvation message that is currently on this website. I have included the prayer that ends that message here.

Dear Father. Thank You for being my Heavenly Father. Thank you for giving me access to you both through the Bible and through your Son, Jesus. I am living my life not as you intended. I have chosen to follow a path to You of my own design. I do not want to continue down that same road any longer. You know me. You know my struggles. You know my pain. You know my past. You know my present. And I know my future should I continue as I am. You have clearly stated that in Romans 6:23. I ask You to forgive me for living the life You gave me without allowing You to direct me. You gave me my life. I want to give it back to You. Please forgive me for disregarding what You told me in the Bible. Please forgive me for living a life that does not bring You honor. I ask for the "free stuff" You promise in the Bible. The gift of salvation and real life that only comes by accepting Jesus as the only path to You. Make me brand new. I ask You for this gift that only comes by believing in Jesus as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. In Jesus' name I ask. Thank You.

Ask. Believe. Receive.

My entire concept of church revolves around the idea that church should be a "messy" place. Our focus should be to attract "messy" people (those in sin), help them to recognize that messiness (sin), and their need for "cleansing" (salvation). Therefore, it must be a central theme of weekend worship. These ideas are explained in much greater detail in an article called Messy Church.

There's an old business axiom. "Ask for the sale". I see a great value in closing every service with an opportunity for the audience to make whatever type of decision the sermon called for. It is hard for someone to grow spiritually if they never start the process. And they cannot start the process without deciding to. And they cannot make the decision without being asked to.

HOW OFTEN DO YOU REFERENCE SCRIPTURE IN YOUR SERMON?

A sermon without scripture is a just a nice talk. Nothing wrong with nice talks, but a Bible-based church needs Bible-based preaching. And Bible-based preaching cannot be Bible-based without the Bible.

Methods can change, and methods must change, for every generation is a change from the previous. So the music and atmosphere can be tailored to changing tastes, within the bounds of holiness and decorum. But the message never should. It is not enough to give teens a fun place to hang out. That "hanging out" must include dedicated praise and worship. And it must be coupled with messages that not only inform, but transform. I created a youth group concept called "Lineage: In the Bloodlines of Christ". The foundation for this group was an interactive, fast-paced, multi-media worship service I call "A Praise Party: Heaven Practice for the Temporarily Earth-Bound". The ideal program also includes the transforming pattern of individual Bible reading, study, and prayer that I reference below in the answer to the question concerning my personal quiet time.

Evangelism Explosion, Purpose Driven CLASS 401, and Becoming A Contagious Christian

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age (Matthew 28:19-20). 

You want to know what God wants you to do? Do that. Go, make, baptize, teach, and obey. If you are doing that, you are in God's perfect will. Congratulations! You can read a bit more in Dream a Little Dream.

We all have a call on our lives. Each of us has something that God wants us to do, and that God has created us especially to do. I encourage everyone to get involved in some ministry. Not all of us are called to the foreign missions field. And it is likely that not many of us will be martyred for our faith. But, we are all called to do something.

As I discuss in the article Baguettes, Croissants, Stone-ground Wheat, Pumpernickel, Rye ... Oh My!, the church's involvement ought to be to do whatever it can to "help them find bread".

Yes.

Yes.

Yes.

No. A real encounter with Jesus will lead to holiness. And holiness is living your life now as practice for life then, living by "What would Jesus do?" However, grace extends to those who are making an honest effort but whose "weak flesh" occasionally stunts their spiritual growth. Fortunately for us, "God knows the intent of the heart".

Yes.

Salvation is through faith in Jesus alone as the only Son of God, crucified in our place, resurrected on the third day, and ascended into Heaven. It is free, not earned.

There are three articles under the heading Destination God called: Second Nature, To Escape Corruption, and Destination Transformation. These outline a personal prayer and devotions routine that I follow. These are also the foundation for training, called Transformation Training, which I would take church staff and key volunteers through.

Briefly, this is a program that includes daily prayer and Bible reading, along with weekly intercessory prayer, meditation, praise and worship, Bible or topic study, book reading, sermon and lesson writing, and vision development. This generally takes about an hour and a half daily.

Personality and Experiences are detailed at other places in this questionnaire.

From the Modified Houts Questionnaire and the Discover Your Spiritual Gifts test

I have completed Inscape Publishing's DISC Classic Profile. This shows me to be Steady and Conscientious. According to this I focus on maintaining stability, being accurate and orderly, and make decisions in a deliberate and analytical manner.  I am a systematic, precise, and rigorous thinker and planner. I have the ability to produce predictable and accurate results. From this profile the following is a list personality traits that could be used to describe me: mild, quiet, modest, poised, confident, convincing, observing, discriminating, reflective, patient, loyal, predictable, team-builder, fact-finder, diplomatic, systematic, and courteous.

This places me in their Perfectionist Pattern. In their words, "Your tendency to follow clear procedures and rules in both your personal and professional life means that you are usually restrained in your emotions. In fact, an aura of cautious deliberation may often surround you. Even under pressure, you are likely to remain tactful and diplomatic. In addition, you may frequently keep your focus on maintaining high standards. Such an approach ensures that you will probably be seen as competent and reliable. Others may value you as a precise thinker who relishes a systematic method for solving problems."

I was born in 1964 in Chattanooga, TN. My Dad went into the ministry when I was 6. We moved an average of every 18 months after that until I was in college, living in Colorado, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Florida (and Missouri, South Carolina, and Georgia as an adult). I attended a Christian college, Southeastern University, in Lakeland, FL. As an adult I have been a classroom teacher in private and public schools, a Christian school administrator, Youth Pastor, and Associate Pastor. As a classroom teacher I was honored to be nominated by my school five times for an award for Creativity and Innovation, as well as being named my school's Teacher of the Year. My wife and I helped to start Christ Community Church in Winter Haven, FL in 2001, joining the staff as Adult Ministries Pastor in 2002. While there we were privileged to play a role in its growth to over 400 average weekend attendees. And we are proud that the foundation we helped lay now supports a congregation of over 650. Karen and I were married in 1994. A good bit of our story can be found on our site under the heading We Do. We have one child, in Heaven, whose story (Karen's Melody) can be found on This and That (under the Blast From the Past tab).

PERSONAL CHRISTIAN EXPERIENCE: IDENTIFY AND DISCUSS THOSE EXPERIENCES THAT YOU VIEW AS HAVING BEEN ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF YOUR OWN CHRISTIAN FAITH AND LIFE. INCLUDE YOUR SALVATION EXPERIENCE.

My Dad went into the ministry when I was six years old. Our first move was to Denver, CO to assist my uncle in his church. After a while, the denomination offered my Dad a little church in LaJunta, a small town about 2oo miles away. At the time, my Mom was awaiting the birth of my brother, so my Dad and I would drive down to LaJunta, do the weekend services, then drive back Sunday late night so he could go to work and I to school. One Sunday evening he gave an altar call. I responded.

His denomination had a Wednesday night adult training curriculum. These courses included basic Bible studies, doctrine, church history, and denominational teachings. When I was about ten, I began to read some the books he would teach the adults. Most Wednesday nights I would be the only kid my age at church, so I would listen to him teach. When he would finish the course, there was a test. I started taking, and passing, those tests. By the time I was 12-13, I became the youngest person in the history of the denomination (to that point) to complete what they called a "Masters Certificate in Church Training Courses".

At the age of 28 I was shaken out of the possibility of ever getting complacent in my faith. I saw my Dad lose his family and ministry. I immediately recognized it as being the result of complacency. I had watched for years as the "fire went out", but didn't know that was what I was observing. Even now, although he has been reinstated in the ministry, it is still hard for him. And while we have good relationship, that is not the case with him and my siblings.

This episode points out to me how important it is to take the call and the ministry seriously. To be observant of those circumstances that might cause damage to my faith. To pay attention to keep my heart and life focused on God.

According to the Barna Research Group's Christian Leader Profile I am a Strategic Leader. By their definition this means I am proficient at accumulating, analyzing, interpreting, and reporting factual information as it relates to the vision. A summary of this report suggests the following:

• I have a calling to lead
• I have the kind of character that pleases God and that qualifies me to lead
• My leadership strengths are vision, mobilization, direction, evaluation, delegation, team-building, multi-tasking, resource management, and environmental assessment
• I am an effective communicator

John Maxwell's 360-Degree Leader Profile rates a person on the ability to relate to leaders above themselves (Leading Up), the ability to lead peers (Leading Across), and the ability to lead followers (Leading Down). A brief summary:

• Leading Up: 4.5 out of 5. Very often or always I exhibit the behaviors and practices that enable me to work well with those leaders who are above me.
• Leading Across: 4.5 out of 5. Very often or always I exhibit the skills necessary to lead peers and colleagues.
• Leading Down: 4.375 out of 5. Very often or always I exhibit the capability to lead others. There were parts of this scale I could not effectively rate myself because my position in the church did not allow for that experience.

A complete philosophy on leadership can be found in the article, God's Leader. But to summarize:

1.      God chooses leaders.

2.      God's leader must be reliant on God.

3.      God's leader must listen to God.

4.      God's leader must guard his/her heart.

5.      God's leader must remain true to God.

7.      God's leader must be constant in study and prayer.

8.      God's leader must be righteous.

9.      God's leader must be humble.

10.    God's leader must train his/her successor.

Please refer to the articles posted under the title The Place To Be for my philosophy of church.

As for leadership and the role of a Pastor, in addition to the general leadership principals stated above, I believe it is the Pastor's job to set the vision and direction of the church, as he or she gets and stays before God for that vision. But the Pastor cannot, nor should not, do it alone. As John Maxwell says, "He who leads, but has no one following, is only taking a walk".

The Pastor needs to identify quality leaders in the church, train them well, and delegate duties to those leaders commiserate to their spiritual giftedness. The Pastor then needs to provide oversight and continuing direction. As it has been said, "You do not get what you expect, you get what you inspect".

The ultimate authority, and ultimate responsibility, under God, in the local church belongs to the Pastor. But the Pastor must be submitted to an outside authority for accountability. That could be a licensing body, denomination, or outside board of advisors.

And from  the article A Pastor (Psalm 72):

1.  A Pastor leads people correctly.
2.  A Pastor treats rich and poor alike before God.
3.  A Pastor brings the favor of God upon the people as he/she does what is right before God.
4.  A Pastor champions the needs of the poor.
5.  A Pastor looks for ways to help needy children.
6.  A Pastor is not harsh, haughty, or demanding of the people he/she leads.
7.  A Pastor causes the people to grow in God and flourish spiritually.
8.  A Pastor is not narrow in his/her focus, but looks to incorporate all people into the church, irregardless of race, nationality, or social status.

STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES: IDENTIFY AREAS OF WHAT YOU CONSIDER TO BE PERSONAL STRENGTHS THAT FACILITATE YOUR PERSONAL MINISTRY AND WEAKNESSES THAT TEND TO HINDER YOUR EFFECTIVENESS AS A MINISTER.

Strengths:

1.      God has blessed me with an ability to see through a situation and strategize effectively. I like to plan and dream long-range.

2.      I grew up under the idea of "kids should be seen and not heard". While I do not think that is completely true (one of the best things an adult can do for a kid or teen is honor their right to an appropriately expressed opinion), it has helped me to observe first -- then act. Listen first -- then speak.

Weaknesses:

1.      I have overcome a childhood speech impediment. As a result, though, I will occasionally stutter slightly. This may affect people's perception of me at first.

2.      I was painfully shy as a kid, even into college (partially due to the above speech issues). So, while I am not standoffish or snobbish, neither am I naturally gregarious. This can also affect people's perception.