One Pastor's Perspective

I’ve got to confess something to you … As pastor of a church, you deal with a bunch of different things.  Lately we’ve had too much death at Ebenezer.  But, you never know what you will face.  You never know how people will respond to change.

And I am SOOOO proud of our Youth Ministry right now.  Specifically of our YOUTH.  Our new Associate Pastor/Minister of Students, Nathan Neighbors, began his ministry at Ebenezer on Sunday.  And our youth have responded with a great sense of love and anticipation for what God is going to do!!

It’s tough to go through a year like they have faced.  Justin, who was and is much loved, resigned after 7 and a half years to follow God’s call to another place.  As much as our kids love him, they really wondered if they could love someone else that much.  This week, they proved to me that their hearts are in the right place.  They have welcomed Nathan with open arms!!  And, as a pastor, that makes me so proud!!!

Now, it’s time to pray.  Pray for Nathan as he begins this new tenure.  Pray for our youth, as things are already ramping up for them to find their place building the kingdom of God.

And we could ALL learn a lesson about how resilient and open to God these kids are …

Remembering Who We Are from Ebenezer BC on Vimeo.

Big Choices from Ebenezer BC on Vimeo.

What is the vision and direction for Ebenezer??  There are many pieces of this puzzle in place.  And for it to be complete, EVERY MEMBER will need to find his/her place to plug in.

When you think about strong ministries at EBC, you cannot help but talk about our children’s ministry.  Our youth ministry.  Our Weekday Early Education Ministry.  Our music ministry.  Our Family Life Center.  The list can go on and on…  Considering all of these things AND the fact that of the 25,000 people within a three-mile-radius of our front door, 17,000 claimed on the latest Census to NOT have an ongoing relationship with a church, one cannot help but understand that God put us here to REACH THE LOST.  And that He has given us many tools to use in this mission.

And here we are…  We started the HOW Campaign to save money for a new sanctuary, new classroom space, and a new Youth Assembly Building.  Then the economy took a downward spiral.  HOWEVER, God allowed us to build the YAB WITHOUT DEBT!!  The next steps have yet to be taken, and for good reason…

We are NOT USING THE SPACE WE HAVE NOW to the best of our abilities.  I believe with all of my heart that until we are good stewards of that which God has entrusted to us, we WILL NOT BE GIVEN MORE.  We will not be allowed to build.  This is where we really need to pray and seek His face.

What to do??  We could consider changing our Sunday morning schedule and doing two Sunday Schools and two Worships.  We could add another service on Sunday evening that mirrors the Sunday morning worship service, and have Sunday School during that time as well.  We could add a service on Saturday night.

What SHOULD we do??  HERE IS THE ANSWER.  HERE IS THE VISION FOR EBENEZER:  We SHOULD … WE MUST … SEEK GOD AND HIS WILL FOR EACH ONE OF US.  AND WE MUST BE THE PIECE OF THE PUZZLE THAT EACH OF US IS, EMBRACE IT, AND MOVE FORWARD AS THE HOLY SPIRIT LEADS US.  EACH ONE OF US.

Period.

Anyone who knows us knows we (the Wikes) have been through a lot of change this year.  Krissy graduated college.  Drew graduates high school in less than three weeks.  My children are both at major milestones in their lives and it’s all coming so fast!!

I am thankful .. Thankful my mother, father, and little sister were able to be at graduation.  Thankful Krissy has worked so hard and graduated with honors.  Thankful Drew is working hard and preparing for his next step to Francis Marion University.

But it all happens so fast.  Seems like only yesterday I was driving a U-Haul to Florence from New Orleans…  Drew was 1 month old when we walked into EBC’s Sanctuary for the first time as Minister of Youth.  In a little more than a week, Nathan Neighbors and his family will be here and hopefully another family will make Ebenezer their home for a long time.  And, while Nathan’s arrival has been long anticipated, it will be here before you know it!!

It’s funny how changes in life come so fast, and we can do two things with them:  Take them in stride and adapt, or fight them and live with the lack of peace involved in doing that.  Change in life is inevitable … And some of it IS good!!  Praying God will give us all the strength and sensibility to navigate the changes of life in a way that glorifies Him!!

A Safe Place from Ebenezer BC on Vimeo.

Part time Christian from Ebenezer BC on Vimeo.

Yesterday I was walking down the hall of our Family Life Center.  One of our Weekday Ministry kindergarten classes created a bulletin board on which bees were present, along with desired traits (ok … I didn’t pay THAT much attention as I hurried down the hall).  And that bulletin board spoke to me just now.

One of the constants in my profession is a flow of negative energy…  That is a sad sentence, but true.  In a church with over 1,300 members, there is ALWAYS someone unhappy about a decision… Or about the state of ________ … or about the color of shoestrings in the pastor’s shoes … I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how negativity, derision, and factions absolutely SMOTHER the vision and mission of any church.  And I realize I am the point of contact for that at Ebenezer.

This morning, I find myself realizing the more energy I put into fending off this stuff, the LESS energy I am able to focus on what God called me here for many years ago … (Well, Tommy Dowling has been telling me that for years.  And Marty Coates reinforces this constantly on his blog http://www.coatesandassociatesinc.com/blog.html).

It all makes sense now … BEEE POSITIVE!!  Tommy and Marty and John Maxwell and a bunch of other solid leadership gurus are right:  FOCUS ON STRENGTHS!!  Now, when there are legitimate problems that need to be addressed, the Holy Spirit WILL make that clear, too!  But I’ve got to stop worrying about the color of my shoestrings … or if John Q. Churchmember is upset about the brand of TP we are now using, or the fact we put a 42″ TV in his Sunday School room instead of a 46″ ….

Yes, in several ways I know I need to trust the Holy Spirit to show me the way.  And I’ve got to do a better job at avoiding the quicksand in which the devil desperately wants me to become swamped.  So, pray for me today!!!  And I’ll pray for you!

And BEEEEE Positive!

This week, God gave me a heavy burden.  SPECIFICALLY for Ebenezer, but it also branches out to all churches in North America.  That is what this sermon is about:

Part-time God from Ebenezer BC on Vimeo.

A Spirit of Fear from Ebenezer BC on Vimeo.