Pastor Jan has given us a wonderful children’s ministry. Her heart and life have helped our children grow closer to God as she has modeled a vibrant walk with God and taught with excellence. And she has raised up leaders who will continue the excellent foundation that Pastor Jan has helped establish.

Pastor Gerry has enlightened us with great sermons as he skillfully taught the Word of God to us that helped all of us connect more with God. And he has been a sounding board to me as well as served in several leadership areas as together we worked to help Aldersgate become even more what God intended this church to be.

Stephen, before heading off to college helped immeasurably with office work during personnel transitions. He kept the place running with a quiet, confident spirit that helped bring peace in the middle of potential chaos. Jonathan has graced us with his playing in the worship band and his insightful sermons during youth services. And Benjamin has been a great help in the sound booth. And we must not forget the level of competency and dedication that Stephen and Jonathan and Benjamin showed as one of the top quizzing teams in the country. Their leadership in the youth group is greatly appreciated and they give us hope for a bright future as these three exceptional young men continue to respond and follow the call of God.

Needless to say, this outstanding family will be missed. Proverbs 27:5 tells us that “better is open rebuke than hidden love.” We too often hide our love for people until it is too late. Let that not be said of us. During this time of Pastor Appreciation Month, we want to tell Pastor Jan and Pastor Gerry how much we have appreciated their work and life among us. They have set us an example and how they have finished the course at Aldersgate. Their ministry moves on to Decatur so the Kingdom of God and the Free Methodist Church will continue to be enriched.

Our best tribute to them would be to carry on the vision for Aldersgate and heart for the community they so gracefully lived. As we do this their presence and influence, while not physically here, will live on in our hearts and in our ministries.

Thank you Pastor Gerry, Pastor Jan, Stephen, Jonathan and Benjamin for your life and ministry among us. We wish you God’s best in your new ministry.

We desperately need to learn this. Statistics are screaming at us in the church to wake up. Here is one article I ran across this week:

Thom Rainer the president of LifeWay Christian Resources did a survey recently and uncovered some disturbing statistics. The following are the percentages of those considering themselves Evangelical Christians by generation according to the survey:

19?? – 1946 65%
1947 – 1964 35%
1964 – 1976 15%
1977 – 1994 4%
1995 – Present ??%

George Barna’s research is equally as bleak regarding the next generation’s spiritual lives. My question is simple. Why? What’s going on that is creating this rapid decline in the percentage of those that consider themselves born again Christians? Is it the pluralistic nature of the US now? Is it the anemic condition of the western church at large? Is this the great falling away? Is there anything that we can do to stem the tide?

I believe that it’s time that the church come out from behind it’s four walls of protection and isolation and serve the people that Christ died for. Instead of fearing contamination, let us be those that influence this next generation. The church must give up the isolationist policies and the expectations that if we open the church doors, the world will come flooding in, to understand that Jesus went out to serve people in the “highways and byways”. He went to where they are and didn’t ask them to come to where he was. He met them at their point of need. Instead of trying to get people into the church, let’s try to get the church to go to the people. That’s how Jesus did it. It’s what the younger generation is looking for. A church that’s willing to get its hands dirty. A church that is there to serve, not to be served. The Coaches Corner.

Disturbing statistics. If these trends continue we are only one generation from extinction. Is there hope? I believe there is and it starts with one person, one church, one neighborhood, one community shining God’s light to a searching world. It can start here and with each of us. Are you ready? Let the journey begin!

What is great about God?  Psalm 31:19 tells us one area: “How great is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you, which you bestow in the sight of men on those who take refuge in you.”

The popular chorus, “Great is the Lord” also reminds us of reasons for God’s greatness:

Great is the Lord, He is holy and just, by His power we trust in His love.

Great is the Lord, He is faithful and true, by His mercy He proves He is love.

Great is the Lord and worthy of glory, Great is the Lord and worthy of praise.

Great is the Lord.

This month be thinking of your own reasons why God is great.  As you do you will make this month a truly “august” one as you praise our magnificent Father.

Jesus talked about the consequences of this battle 2000 years ago.  There was a group of Jewish leaders talking to Jesus about who He was and where He came from. These people were bound by their traditions and blindness to truth.  So He told them: “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples.  Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32.

During the month of July I like to remind myself of the truth that can set me free.  That truth is who we are in Christ. I have a bookmark from Neil Anderson that reminds me of this truth.  Here are a few of the statements on this bookmark:

I am accepted.

John 1:12                      I am God’s child.

1 Corinthians 12:27        I am a member of Christ’s body.

Ephesians 2:18              I have direct access to God through the Holy Spirit.

Colossians 1:14             I have been redeemed and forgiven for my sins.

Colossians 2:10             I am complete in Christ.

I am secure.

Romans 8:1-2                I am free from condemnation.

Romans 8:35-39            I cannot be separated from the love of God.

Philippians 1:6               I am confident that the good work God has begun in me will be completed.

Hebrews 4:16                I can find grace and mercy in time of need.

1 John 5:18                   I am born of God, and the evil one cannot touch me.

I am significant.

Matthew 5:13-14 I am the salt and light of the earth.

1 Corinthians 3:16          I am God’s temple.

2 Corinthians 5:17-21     I am a minister of reconciliation for God.

Ephesians 2:10              I am God’s workmanship.

Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Are you struggling with acceptance or insecurity or feelings of insignificance?  Be encouraged with these words.  Claim what is yours as a child of God.  Declare your Independence Day.  And be set free.

1.       Pass on the good stuff I learned from my father and my mentors.  Two verses shaped my thinking here:

·         Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.  Philippians 4:8-9

·         You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.  And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.

2 Timothy 2:1-2

2.       Live by integrity.  Dr. James Dobson has good teaching on what integrity is: “Integrity is this single-hearted mindset, undistracted by the allurements of dime store compromises. It lifts up integrity: A) as a treasure that will not tarnish, but instead is an eternal investment; B) the ideals of true craftsmanship instead of just getting by; C) of doing right even if no one would know it; D) telling the truth even when its hurts; E) deliberately giving your best even in the worst of situations; F) having integrity at home, the marketplace, and in everyday relationships, not just as a nice mental ideal to which we pay glib service.”

3.       Teach by example.  Our children, grandchildren, nieces, and nephews often learn by watching what we do rather than what we say.  A few weeks ago I shared some ways that we can do this.  You can add others to your own list.

·         Be faithful to attend church.

·         Talk about the goodness of God.

·         Be quick to complement and encourage others.

·         Speak softly and avoid anger.

·         Be patient.

·         Avoid criticism.

·         Pray regularly and encourage prayer.

·         Be quick to help others.

·         Read the Bible and other good books.

·         Be truthful at all times.

·         Look for the good in everyone.

These three principles are good not just for fathers, but for anyone who desires to have maximum impact on someone they love. 

Why We Pray

As American troops stormed the beaches of Normandy, President Franklin Roosevelt called for our nation to unite in prayer. He also offered a prayer to prepare each citizen for the road ahead. “Let our hearts be stout, to wait out the long travail, to bear sorrows that may come, to impart our courage unto our sons wheresoever they may be. And, O Lord, give us faith. Give us faith in Thee.” The victory that followed on June 6, 1944-also known as D-Day-began the march to Berlin. Eighteen months later, WWII was over and one of the world’s greatest evils had been defeated. The prayers of a nation had been a powerful force.Prayer has always been used in this country for guidance, protection and strength-even before we were a nation or a handful of colonies. The Pilgrims at Plymouth relied on prayer during their first and darkest winter. Our founding fathers also called for prayer during the Constitutional Congress. In their eyes, our recently created nation and freedoms were a direct gift from God. And being a gift from God, there was only one way to insure protection-through prayer.

At Aldersgate we have launched what we call Life Transformation Groups for men.  These are small groups that meet for character accountability, praying for pre-Christians and discussing what we are learning from our Bible reading.  To launch these groups the guys are reading Search and Rescue by Neil Cole.  It is a summary behind the why’s and the hows of Life Transformation Groups.  Neil has a good statement that relates to Easter month:

The gospel of the kingdom is the good news that the King has come!  When the King comes…He is bringing the rule and reign of his kingdom wherever he goes.  Every person who comes under his rule is empowered to be one of his kingdom agents.  This is good news for the here and now not just the hereafter.  The good news is that Jesus came, died, rose again, and lives in heaven and he is interceding for us everyday.  The good news is also that the King is here now ruling in our lives and bringing a revolution of hearts and lives that will transform neighborhoods and nations.  The whole point of the cross and empty tomb directs us to a more profound reality: the continual and abiding acceptance into God’s holy presence and power…This good news makes a difference in the way you raise your children, balance your checkbook, treat your neighbors, and give to the poor.  This good news can make you love your enemies and pray for those you persecute you…There is not a government, a law, a criminal cartel, a cultural fad, or a religious movement that can withstand the rule of God’s kingdom.

This month let us celebrate God’s power in the resurrection and God’s power to change our lives and transform those around us.   Let us celebrate the good news that Jesus is alive.  Let’s let our light shine so others are drawn to the light.  Let’s let our joy break loose that others may catch the excitement that God reigns in our heart and want God in theirs.  That is what God’s church and His people are all about.  The King is here.

How do we do this?  Two words: Invest and Invite.  God brings into our lives people who need God’s touch.  This might be family or friends or co-workers or neighbors or people we meet as we go about living our lives. 

Invest

1.      We want to be Praying for those in our lives that need God.  The cross at the church is full of those for which we are praying.  We want to ask God to open up doors of opportunity for those we are praying for to consider and respond to God.

2.      We want to ask God to help us Show God’s Love to people around us.  We do this with our attitudes and actions.  Our lives should reflect the light of God living in us.  As we show God’s light people can be drawn to God through us.

3.      We want to ask God to help us Share God’s Life to people around us.  At times we will have the opportunity because of the life we are living to share the good news of Jesus, the good news we celebrate at Easter.

Invite

Besides praying and showing and sharing we want to invite people to Jesus and the Church. Those we are praying for need Jesus.  We also need each other.  People need a community of believers to help them grow and thrive in this new life with God.  We can’t really do this on our own.  In Aldersgate language we call this Connecting to God and Connecting to Each Other.  To “make disciples” we need both.

Invest and Invite.  This takes time.  God wants us realigning our priorities so we have this time to invest in those God loves and invite them to Jesus and the church.  As our great day of celebration draws near make a commitment to do this with those God has in our lives that need Him. 

February can also be the month to reexamine all our relationships to make sure we are fulfilling the second half of what we call the Great Commandment: to love our neighbor as ourselves.  Do we love others in the church?  Do we love others in our neighborhoods and at our work or school or the places we visit?  Here are some of the “one another’s of scripture that can help us understand what love means:

Ü      Honor one another

Ü      Live in harmony with one another 

Ü      Accept one another

Ü      Bear with one another

Ü      Be kind to each other

Ü      Be forgiving of each other

Ü      Encourage one other

Ü      Build each other up

Ü      Spur one another on towards love and good deeds

Ü      Serve one another

Treating each other like this, whether people in the church or those outside the church will demonstrate God’s love for people in ways that words cannot. So during the month of February commit to love God and to love each other in some deeper ways.  It will make an impact.

George Sweeting tells an early story of John Wesley that speaks of hope:

While on a three-month journey at sea, a young English preacher encountered two severe storms that left the main mast of the ship shattered.  Then on January 25, 1735, a terrifying third storm caused him to fear for his life, so much so that he wrote, “. . . it was as if the great deep had already swallowed us up.”  Yet, on the same ship, during the same storm, a group of German Christians appeared completely peaceful, calmly quoting the Psalms.  According to young John Wesley, the lack of fear among these Christians unsettled him more than the storm itself.  How could they be calm when their ship was on the brink of disaster? How could they be at peace when their very lives were at risk?  What was the difference between their faith and his? What secret about God did they have that he did not?

No ship survives severe storms at sea—and no person survives severe storms in life—without the use of anchors.  When you are being battered and bruised by a ferocious storm, you will be stable and secure as long as you have an anchored life.  And when you have an anchored life, you will successfully weather the storms of life.  The Germans John Wesley encountered had such an anchor . . . they placed their hope in Jesus.  And such hope turned their fear into faith.  Therefore, what the anchor is to the ship, hope is to the soul.  Both ships and souls are kept safe by the anchor—by a firm, secure anchor that holds even against the greatest adversities.  And every Christian has been given such an anchor in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The Bible tells us we can have hope, “…we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged.  We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure…”  (Hebrews 6:18-19).

As we go into 2009 let’s put our hope in God.  He does have everything under control.  An old hymn can help you remember this great hope:

My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;

I dare not trust the sweetest frame, but wholly lean on Jesus’ name.

When darkness veils His lovely face, I rest on His unchanging grace;

In every high and stormy gale my anchor holds within the veil.

His oath, His covenant, His blood, support me in the whelming flood;

When all around my soul gives way, He then is all my hope and stay.

Refrain:

On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;

All other ground is sinking sand,

All other ground is sinking sand.

My prayer for you this year is found in Romans 15:13:

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Aldersgate…a place of grace, forgiveness and hope.  May it continue to be so in 2009!