The information regarding this year’s Missional Network Gathering was released recently. It looks like, as usual, it will feature some of the great thinkers in our convention. I’ve been at each of the events held at the annual meeting that they’ve sponsored since the Missional Network was formulated in Greensboro two years ago. I am very excited about the lineup of speakers. Kerry Shook, Brian Bloye, Daniel Floyd & Shawn Lovejoy promise to deliver. On top of all that it’s being held at Bucca de Beppo, which we have in Kansas City, and which offers stellar Italian cuisine. I’m not going to be able to be there this year as I’ll be in another meeting at the time, but if you are free I would highly recommend that you sign up to attend. The cost is minimal but space is limited so sign up quickly. To sign up or get more info, click here.

HT: Timmy Brister

We began having a number of freak thunderstorms today. The worst of it was that the wind was so hard, it uprooted a 30-40′ tree in my backyard. I’ve got to find a way to clean it up tomorrow! Unfortunately we didn’t realize that until it was too dark to take a picture. We did get some pictures, or I should say Tracy got some pictures, of the pond that my backyard has become as well as the hail that covered our yard today.

This is a good pictorial look at what Missouri can be like.

New research came out today that highlighted a recent SBC trend away from baptisms. [click here] Oh, we still say that they are important, and we still communicate that we’re an evangelistic denomination, but the truth is that we are not. No, today we are more known for which side of the methodological fences we stand on than we are known for our passion for connecting disconnected people with the Gospel.

Ed Stetzer has written a great article detailing what these statistics mean for our convention. I would highly encourage you to read his thoughts. You can do so by clicking here. In his article, Stetzer makes a tremendous statement, but one which I predict will not be kindly received by everyone. He says,

The Conservative Resurgence failed to produce a Great Commission Resurgence. It restored our denomination’s value of Scripture but application is often absent, at least in the area of evangelism.

Stetzer is absolutely right. Our battle for the priority of scripture was absolutely necessary. If we are not a people who believe in the supremacy and innerancy of God’s word, we are nothing in my opinion. Having said that, right belief means nothing if it is not accompanied by right action. In other words, orthodoxy must be partnered with orthopraxy for it to be beneficial. Our convention, and the churches that make up her number, claim a great commitment to God’s word. We are proud of our positions. We are so strongly tied to them that the word “innerancy” has almost become our club’s secret password without which one cannot serve. Now, I do not want to diminish innerancy at all, but if our behavior doesn’t link hands with our belief, what good is our belief?

It’s time that we heed well the other words of Stetzer and rally around the gospel. Frank Page’s words from his initial election as SBC president should be embraced. It’s beyond time that people know us for what we are for, rather than simply know us for what we are against. We are for the gospel. We are for the sufficiency of Christ on behalf of those who are separated from the Gospel due to sin. We are for people experiencing grace, hope and forgiveness through the cross of Christ.

In my own town, here in St. Joseph, MO, we have a population of 105,000 in the metro area. Of that number approximately 80,000 are in a group that I refer to as “disconnected”. In other words, they are either unchurched, dechurched or are not involved in the church that they claim to belong to. My passion in life is to help connect those 80,000 disconnected people with the gospel. Our church specifically must do whatever it takes to accomplish that task. Up to this point, we are not fulfilling that task as we should.

Each person reading this post lives in a city or area where the majority of the population does not appear to have an active relationship with Jesus Christ. Our charge must be to somehow connect them with the Gospel. Beyond that, it is time we think creatively about ways to effectively do so. So many of our churches are convinced that if they can just hold another revival meeting, and beat on a few more doors, that will do the trick. Statistics are also bearing out that those methods are simply not seeing success. When we become desperate to fulfill the task that God has given us, we will throw off any unsuccessful efforts and continue to work until we find more effective ways to engage people with the Gospel.

Someone asked me the other day how our church, Frederick Boulevard, was doing. I told them honestly that attendance and finances are at an all time high but that I was disappointed right now. When asked why I shared that our baptisms are plateaued at the same place they were last year. We may have seen a few more, but not many. I’ve shared the gospel with a number of people lately, but I haven’t shared with enough. I’m afraid that too often it’s easy for us to become satisfied in our churches. We want to reach other people as long as we can continue to be happy. The truth is, maybe it’s time that we become uncomfortable for the gospel. Maybe it is time that we step outside of our usual pattern so that our neighbors who don’t know Christ can respond to His grace. Maybe it’s time that we get desperate to complete the task God has given us.

I’m afraid that if we don’t the downward spiral that we are seeing today, will only be the tip of the iceberg.

If you are a ministry leader Facebook for Pastors is an exciting new resource that you need to add to your library! Chris Forbes, also known as the Ministry Marketing Coach, has put together this short, 31 page book to walk pastors and church leaders through the process of using Facebook in their ministry settings. The best thing about the book is that it is available as a FREE download!

Chris is a friend who writes most of the book but also uses the help of a few other ministry personnel that are already using Facebook in ministry to add to his thoughts. I had the privilege of lending an article to the book.

I’ve been using Facebook for well over a year or two now and have found it to be an incredible resource in ministry.

Chris posted this description of the book on his site.

How to build relationships and connect with people using the most popular social network on the Internet. This 32 page e-book will help Pastors and other ministry leaders make the most of this great networking tool.

• How to make the most of your profile information
• Tips for Networking with People in Facebook
• All about groups, messages, poking, etc
• Brand Your Ministry
• Meet prospects for your church
• Learn more about the members in your church
• Fine tune your communication skills
• Testimonies from Pastors who use FaceBook
• and much more!

Get the e-book here free using this link: Facebook for Pastors E-Book
(PC users, right clink and select “Save As” for best results)

My wife’s grandfather is like a grandfather to me. We are an incredibly close family. This morning he was found in the yard of his home without a pulse. The paramedics were able to restart his heart but he is only breathing through the help of a ventilator. All of us in the family are gathered here in the ICU waiting room.

Floyd is a wonderfully godly man who I not only love but who I desire to be like. Please pray that the doctors would have great intelligence as they deal with him. Please also pray that all of the family would experience God’s great peace and would also be able to bring honor to the Lord as we go through this time. Please pray specifically for Floyd’s wife, Mary Jane. They have been married for 58 years and this is very difficult for her, as can be expected.

Thursday night our lovely town of St. Joseph was hit by a small tornado. By most accounts the damage was confined to a small area. The Pesina family, however, was hit the hardest. They rented the upstairs apartment in a building in which the bottom floor was unoccupied. They lived there with their 9 children until the tornado lifted the home of its foundations and set it back down. Most of the family was inside the house and one child was hit by a television. Otherwise, however, the family escaped harm. They did, though, lose everything that they owned.

In response to this tragedy, churches across St. Joseph are beginning to rally around this family to help show them the love of Christ. There is an effort underway to help find the family permanent housing. Whether that be a home that can be purchased affordably or some land that a small home could be built on, many are trying to help this family have a place to live.

I want to encourage you to consider what you can do to help. Our church will be considering ways that we can help meet the families needs. I do now, as well, that an immediate need is a place to live until a permanent solution can be arrived at.

A website has been setup to provide information so that you can be involved. I would encourage you to run over and see if there is a way that you can jump in and help. The site is located at www.helpthepesinas.com

For additional news stories from our local new sources, you can click on the following links.

KQ2: http://stjoechannel.com/content/fulltext/?cid=17316

St. Joseph News-Press: http://stjoenews.net/news/2008/apr/12/picking-pieces/

We are in the middle of our new series entitled “life: living as the body”. This week we’ll be preaching on Romans 12 and I will be preaching on the importance of worshiping together. As part of my message I have been grappling with a working definition of worship. I’d love to have input from those of you who attend Frederick and those of you who do not. I’ll insert my working definition below and you feel free to critique it and offer your definitions as well.

“Worship is a sacrificial expression of our love for, and dedication to, God which seeks to reflect His glory and proclaim His truth.”