Brandon Ives

Now I lay me down to sleep

I pray thee Lord my soul to keep

And if I day before I wake

I pray thee Lord my toys to break

So none of the other kids can use em

Amen

By Shel Silverstein

Labels: Children, Prayer, Shel Silverstein

I recently picked up Healing the Heartbreak of Grief by Dr. James Flamming (former pastor at FBC Richmond). Currently I am taking a class on congregational trauma and thought this might be an interesting book to read alongside the course. It is.

Drawing on his personal encounters with grief, which includes the loss of a son, Flamming guides the reader through the stages of grief. Ranging from loss, pain, suffering, the day to day struggle, and finding strength beyond yourself, the most captivating aspect of the book is the shear honesty in it.

At one point the words of a mother who has lost a son to cancer appear saying,

I go to the grocery store, and everything goes on just as if nothing has happened. I want to stand at the door and scream, Don't you know what has happened? My son is gone. His future is gone. His promise is gone. His wife has no husband and his children have no father. Our lives have changed forever, and you go on gathering your groceries as if none of this matters.

All of us at one point or another will feel this way. I remember hearing of the death of a young man that I had ministered to for years. At nineteen, his life was taken by a car accident that most people would have walked away from. I walked around for a week in a daze. Sure, I went to work. I cared for my son. I did my normal activities, but I wanted to scream out to the world, "This Young Man Has Died And We Just Keep Going..."

We did. The next weeks kept going and we continued to do the things necessary to sustain our life. But is that right? It is and Dr. Flamming helps us understand why.

If you or someone close to you has suffered a loss recently, I would recommend this book. It doesn't provide easy answers but it helps us live with our questions.

Labels: Book, God, Grief, Peter James Flamming, Review

Over the past few weeks, I have been casually reading two books by Seth Godin. In these books, Seth has been emphasizing the power of small groups who come together around common interests and make big changes in the world. He believes that size is overvalued in our culture. People believe that bigger is better, yet Seth often see’s the opposite to be true.

I think Seth is absolutely right. Organizations that look for crowds underestimate the power of a much smaller core of passionate people. Most organizations (and churches) are better served by gathering smaller groups of passionate people, who can focus their energy together. Isn’t that what Jesus did with the disciples?

Sure, from time to time thousands of people gathered around Jesus, but he focused most of his attention toward twelve passionate men. Jesus took these twelve men and focused their energy on loving God and loving others and changed the world.

Think about this the next time you say, “I wish our church had more people in it.” Small can be Good, if we use it right! I want more people to know the love of God through Jesus Christ, but I think gathering small groups of passionate people is the way it will happen.

Labels: Newsletter

We need to worry more about overconfidence than we do incompetence in leaders. Incompetent people make lots of mistakes but are rarely in places of influence.

Incompetence irritates me, but overconfidence scares me. And we should be worried by the fact that we live in a culture that actually likes and rewards overconfidence in its leaders.

We think that, in times of crisis, we need daring and bold leadership from charismatic leaders, and we don't - we need humility ... the ability and willingness to listen to others as a learner.

-Malcolm Gladwell, Catalyst Conference, Atlanta, October 2009

Labels: Leadership, Quotes

Soren Kierkegaard said that we tend to think of church as a kind of theater: we sit in the audience, attentively watching the actor onstage, who draws every eye to himself. If sufficiently entertained, we show our gratitude with applause and cheers. Church, though, should be the opposite of the theater. In church God is the audience for our worship.

C.S. Lewis once said that he disliked very much the hymns, which he considered to be fifth-rate poems set to sixth-rate music. Yet, what changed his mind about those old boring hymns was the devotion in which they were sung. He saw the old saint in elastic-side boots in the opposite pew, singing away, and realized that he wasn’t fit to clean that mans boots.

We fall in to the trap about thinking worship is to center around us. Our likes and dislikes, our desires and our concerns. Yet as Kierkegaard put it, in church God is the audience. As we move toward Easter, let us remember who our worship is for and let us sing with devotion to the Savior of this World.

Blessings,

Brandon

Labels: Newsletter

Both of these come from George Barna's book Growing True Disciples. We are using them in a Sunday School teachers discussion tonight. Thought I'd share...

What are the Marks of a Disciple…

• Disciples experience a changed future though their acceptance of Jesus Christ as Savior and of the Christian faith as their defining philosophy of life.
• Disciples undergo a changed lifestyle that is manifested through Christ-oriented values, goals, perpectives, activities, and relationships
• Disciples mature into a changed worldview, attributable to a deeper comprehension of the true meaning and impact of Christianity. Truth becomes an entirely God-driven reality to a disciple. Pursuing the truths of God becomes the disciples lifelong quest.

Questions to ask yourself about your discipleship…

1. Are you certainthat your eternal salvation has been determined by your confession of sins and your acceptance of Christ’s gift of forgiveness?
2. Do you consistently obey Jesus’ teachings?
3. Do you always love other people in practical ways, especially fellow followers of Christ?
4. Have you put the attractions and distractions of this world in their proper place and focused of knowing, loving, and serving God?
5. Do you carry the burdens of following Jesus with joy?
6. Do you live in such a way as to show others what the Christian life looks like?
7. Do you relate to other Christians consistently, in a spiritual setting and for spiritual purposes?
8. Are you sharing your faith in Christ with those who have not embraced Him as their Savior?
9. Are you helping other believers to grow spiritually?
10. Do you consistently seek guidance from God in all you do?

Labels: christianity, discipleship, sunday school

We are all receiving Charity. There is something in each of us that cannot be naturally loved. It is no one's fault if they do not so love it ... You might as well ask people to like the taste of rotten bread or the sound of a mechanical drill. We can be forgiven, and pitied, and loved in spite of it, with Charity; no other way. All who have good parents, wives, husbands, or children, may be sure that at some times -- and perhaps at all times in respect of some one particular trait or habit -- they are receiving Charity, are loved not because they are lovable but because Love Himself [Christ] is in those who love them.

- C.S. Lewis, from his book, The Four Loves

Labels: C. S. Lewis, Quotes, The Four Loves

Ephesians 1:4 says, “God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world.” That’s right. Before we ever could earn God’s favor, God chose to show his love and grace by the power of His Son.

We often consider ourselves special in light of our adoption into God’s family and we really are special in that adoption. Yet, we betray this adoption when we fail to share God’s gracious love with those around us. We are not set apart by this adoption for the purpose of getting away from non-believers. Rather, we are set apart to proclaim the gospel, to shine as a light for those who have resisted God.

This is the work that we are now called toward. As the chosen people of God, we must take the gospel outside the walls of our church and bring it to the people of Chase City. But how? This week, try inviting a friend to church or think about offering to bring your neighbors children. Or perhaps share your experience about what God is doing in your life during a conversation with a friend.

Remember what Romans 10:15 says, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!" Grace and Peace.

Labels: Chase City, Ephesians, Evangelism, Romans

Why I go to conferences...

• Because I don't know everything
• I need to be challenged by different thoughts
• Honest Discussion with other leaders
• Honest Speakers who don't have restraints
• Reconnect with people outside of my town
• Inspiration
• Ideas
• Energy
• Because personal development never stops

Where I'll Be

Most people work hard to fit in, so others don't notice them.

Most people aren't curious.

Most people sit toward the back of the room.

Most people are either ignorant or apathetic.

Either way, Most people don't know or don't care.

Most people like to be comfortable at all cost.

Most people sleep in on Sundays.

Most people care more about themselves than the needs of others.

Most people will not like these thoughts.

We're not most people. We're called to be the children of God.

Here are some highlights from a book I have been reading. Lectures To My Students by Charles H. Spurgeon

I hope these thoughts provoke insight’s for sharing the message of God’s Love with others.

• Rest assured that the most fervid revivalism will wear itself out in mere smoke, if it be not maintained by the fuel of teaching.
• There is nothing in the Bible which is ashamed of the light.
• Harmony requires that the voice of one doctrine shall not drown the rest, and it also demands that the gentler notes shall not be omitted because of the greater volume of other sounds…each must have its due hearing.
• Our great master theme is the good news from heaven; the tidings of mercy through the atoning death of Jesus, mercy to the chief of sinners upon their believing in Jesus.
• Do not overload a message with too much matter. All truth is not to be comprised in one discourse.
• Have a place for everything, and everything in its place.
• Let our depth and insight continually increase, and where there is spiritual advance it will be so.

Labels: Charles Spurgeon, Evangelism, Gospel, Preaching