More Scandalous, Juicy Gossip about Ebenezer

12 Sep

Yeah … I’ve got to stop using titles like that.  Sadly, though, it is guaranteed to get people to read this blog entry!!!

Today I want you to know how excited I am about our Family Worship Weekend coming up this weekend (September 16, 17, & 18) with Jeff Slaughter and Tom Blackaby.  This event is for ANYONE and EVERYONE (not just Ebenezerites) and has been prayed over and designed to bring families BACK to a right worship relationship with each other, and most of all with God!!  Our staff and some other hard-working Ebenezerites have worked to bring this thing to fruition and all we now need is YOU!!  YOU to PRAY … YOU to BE THERE and SEE what God has in store for us all!!!

It all starts Friday night at 7pm with the Family Reunion, a time for all of us to gather and enjoy each other and enjoy GOD!!

Saturday, Session 1 starts at 4pm followed by Dinner at 5:45 (please contact the church office and let us know if you are coming to dinner) followed by Session 2 at 6:30.

Sunday morning, we will be on our combined schedule with Sunday School at 9:15 and Combined Worship  in the FLC at 10:30 (with NO Evening Worship).

God is doing something really exciting here!!!  Hope you will come and see!

For all they do …

8 Sep

Here they are …

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some of my best friends and some of the hardest working people I know.  And they are doing it again.  Serving, working hard behind the scenes.  Making things happen for the kingdom.  And they have no idea I am writing this (and might not like the fact that I am tooting their horns).

Yes, that is the staff of Ebenezer hard at work. Today they were serving a lunch to the DOT workers of Ebenezer Road, something only a handful of people outside of that picture even knew was happening. But that is how the EBC staff rolls.  They work hard, they make the ends meet, and they don’t look for praise or recognition.  Perhaps that’s why I get so flustered when I hear people saying things that aren’t true about our staff or their work ethic.  Now, none of us are perfect.  But that picture contains some of the hardest working people I know.  And I’ll be the first to tell you they’ve carried ME through the past few months.

And I thank God for them … each of them … Yes, even the Steeler fan.

A New Kind of Labor Day for me

5 Sep

Okay, so this is my first Labor Day in which I’ve been able to do only a FEW of the things I wanted to do.  Drew and I have been working in the yard this morning … fighting with the lawn mower (currently, the lawn mower is winning. But the day ain’t over!) I have also discovered that I cannot pull the lawn mower cord without searing pain in my right shoulder … Hope that gets better!!

Anyway, this Labor Day weekend has shown me several things I’m glad to see:

1.  Dad is doing ok.  Not great, but ok.  His memory is starting to go, and that brings interesting conversations.  He still thinks I’m down here in Florence working on an HVAC quote for Ebenezer.  He forgets that I’ve been here over 16 years, with over 10 now as Senior Pastor.

2.  I CAN still go to a Clemson football game and cram into the stands with all of the other sardines.  Diana protected my left elbow at all times.  It was physically tough to do last Saturday with almost 100 degree temperatures.  But we’ve survived to this point!!

3.  I can still play Papa Bear when I need to.  Krissy was riding into Clemson from her apartment with her roommate (who had to work Saturday).  As they pulled into the parking lot, a couple of drunk frat boys opened a taxi door and shattered the mirror on the roommate’s Jeep.  We walked up as the two drunk guys were getting kind of heated.  I calmly folded my arms, got between them (very close to the drunkest idiot) and started calmly talking to them.  They calmed down like a couple of pups.  Every time I walked away, they would get riled up.  And I would walk back over, fold my arms, and get really close to the dude.  He magically calmed down every time.  I was watching to see if he wet his khakis, which I hope he did.  I never told them who I was, but they knew I knew Krissy and Megan.  That’s all they needed to know.  Little did they know I could do nothing more than fold that left arm … Again, they didn’t need to know that.  I kept them calm until the policeman got there and it worked out.

Now I sit here … A little frustrated about the morning, but glad I got to do some cool things this Labor Day weekend.

The Song to which I referred this morning

4 Sep

Several sharp Ebenezerites found this.  Here are the lyrics to “Please, Don’t Send Me to Africa” by Scott Wesley Brown.  Enjoy!!
Preacher Speaking:
[You know I also attended
Holyland USA in Del Rio TX
Home of the drive in baptismal car wash
and disco house of worship
say Hallelujah
Brethren, that reminds me of a story
I’ll never forget the movie Jungle Book
Say Hallelujah
You remember it dont’cha? Dr. Livingstone
say Hallelujah
Beautiful man, pillar of the community
Well you know, quite frankly he went into
The wilds of the jungle and never came back]

Oh Lord I am your willing servant
You know that I have been for years
I’m here in this pew every Sunday and Wednesday
I’ve stained it with many a tear
I’ve given You years of my service
I’ve always given my best
And I’ve never asked you for anything much
So, Lord I deserve this request

Chorus:
Please don’t send me to Africa
I don’t think I’ve got what it takes
I’m just a man,I’m not a Tarzan
Don’t like lions, gorillas or snakes
I’ll serve you here in suburbia
In my comfortable middle class life
But please don’t send me out into the bush
Where the natives are restless at night

I’ll see that the money is gathered
I’ll see that the money is sent
I’ll wash and stack the communion cups
I’ll tithe eleven percent
I’ll volunteer for the nursery
I’ll go on the youth group retreat
I’ll usher, I’ll deacon , I’ll go door to door
Just let me keep warming this seat

(Chorus)

Please don’t send me to Africa
I don’t think I’ve got what it takes
I’m just a man I’m not a Tarzan
Don’t like lions, gorillas or snakes
I’ll serve you here in suburbia
In my comfortable middle class life
But please don’t send me to the ends of the earth
Where the natives are restless at night

My usual biannual disclaimer

31 Aug

Lately it seems I’ve had several folks asking me if I’ve been tweeting or posting about them, or that they are concerned about my tweets/posts.  And they are serious.   Am I angry with them??  With a group??  Have I lost my mind??  Did I leave the iron on???  Stuff like that.  Well, here goes:

Honestly, when I submit a post on Twitter or on my blog, it is usually coming straight from the heart and mind.  (That also explains typos and grammatical problems!!)  Maybe that’s not always the best thing to do.  But I want my blog posts and tweets to be honest, with only necessary filters.  Maybe I’m wrong in this, but that is my personal thought about social media.

I have been more careful lately and am trying to filter a little more, but I don’t want to remove the personal glimpse.  I hope that’s ok with everyone.  If I’m not going to be honest with it (within the limits of what my ministry will allow) then I probably need to stop doing it!!

With all of that said, if you read my previous blog post, you will see that I’m making a commitment in every aspect of my life to NOT GIVE the devil ROOM TO WORK IN ANYTHING THAT I SAY OR DO.  I hope you’ll join me in that … Even in what we say or do behind closed doors!!!!

Recognizing the enemy

31 Aug

I believe Satan is real. I believe he is on the prowl at Ebenezer, because there is revival in the air!!  I believe he wants to tear this church to shreds and would do ANYTHING to stop the advancement of the Kingdom of God.  And I believe I could help him do this if I’m not careful.

WHATTTTT??????  Did the Senior Pastor of Ebenezer just write that???  Yes I did.  Not that I am an agent of the devil or anything, but I know that I must be careful.  Because he is looking for a weakness to work in. And I don’t want to be that weakness.

I write this to tell you the best way we can ALL make sure he is not at work at our church (or ANY church) is to make sure I’m not giving him any room in my life to maneuver.  To make sure I’m not saying or doing things that open any doors for him to work.  And why do I have to guard against this??  Because, like you, I am HUMAN.  I make mistakes.  The best thing I can do for ME, for EBENEZER, and for the KINGDOM OF GOD is make sure EVERYTHING I DO and SAY is Spirit-led!!!  (And THAT is easier said than done!)

And that is the best thing YOU can do, too!!  If we are ALL on our guard to live Spirit-filled lives, the enemy won’t have any room to maneuver.  And he will have to move on.  But, we must be vigilant about being Spirit-filled, because Satan never really leaves us alone for long …

ANOTHER way God has worked in this …

24 Aug

Have you Ebenezerites ever stopped to realize that I did my first funeral last week since before March 3 (the day that will live in infamy)?!  In other words, we, a church with close to 1,400 members didn’t have a death in our church family for OVER FIVE MONTHS!!!!!

Why??  (Insert your own speculations here)

I believe it is because God has watched over us during my injury and recovery.  I really believe this was not luck or coincidence … God watched over us giving me time to recover.  And I always believe we should give credit where credit is due, so here goes:  GOD, YOU ARE AWESOME!!!  ALL THE TIME!!!

(I did have my visit with a new friend from New Jersey today.  He was at the beach with his family and stumbled on the tennis court and injured BOTH of his elbows the way I injured my left.  His name is Kenneth.  Pray for him as he has a long hard road ahead of him!!!  And I thank God I could go in and talk to him about this in a way that perhaps no other minister could …  God DOES take the bad things that happen to us and use them for GOOD, for HIS purposes!!!!)

An interesting visit with my doctor

24 Aug

I went back to Dr. Mezzanotte yesterday for a check-up.  Everything went fine.  He said the x-rays looked good and the progress did, too.  He hasn’t talked about joint replacement in the last few visits.  Told me I am in maintenance mode and perhaps he will go in a year or two into my elbow to clean things out.  We’ve made progress beyond what we expected and therapy is still making progress.  It was a good visit.

As he finished, he told me again that my elbow was pretty messed up.  He doesn’t see them like that too often. And, ironically, he has a patient right now who has TWO elbows as messed up as my left was.  Understanding HIPPA laws, I asked if he could get permission for me to go see the guy.  He’s having a hard time dealing with this.  Honestly, I never expected to hear back.  But I did!!

Today when I do my hospital visits, I’ll get to go see this man.  And I don’t know what God has in store for this, but maybe this is God making something good come out of something really bad that happened to me over five months ago …

A Sign from God

22 Aug

Riding in to work this morning, I saw a sign … A church sign that read something like this:  “Your pain touches God’s heart.”  WOW!!  True, and it sparked my thought process a little …

What pain do I really have???  I’d been thinking about this earlier this morning.  The pain a pastor feels is very unique.  And all across the spectrum.  Walking through the pain of death with church families you love.  Counseling through the pain of broken relationships.  Feeling sharp pain for a close friend who is in the crosshairs.  The pain of disease and suffering.  The list could go on.  (NOW, there is also GREAT JOY in this calling, too!!!  But the joy doesn’t leave scars)

And then, add to it the fact I’m a middle child.  So I have this massive fault in that I want everyone to be happy.  And, in a Southern Baptist church, that AIN’T GONNA HAPPEN.  I feel this pain for my family, who walk through my pain with me and can do NOTHING about it because I handcuff them.  I pray everyday that none of this will scar my children, that they will grow up to be vibrant, active KINGDOM BUILDERS for GOD!!  It’s most unfair for my wife.  She is the perfect partner for me, and she feels my pain like no one else.

And just when I think I could go buy a cake for this pity party, God steps in and reminds me:

  • HE LOVES ME
  • HE WILL NEVER FORSAKE ME
  • LIFE IS FULL OF PAIN FOR EVERYONE, NOT ONLY PASTORS
  • OUR FIGHT IS NOT WITH FLESH AND BLOOD, BUT WITH THE POWERS OF DARKNESS IN THIS WORLD
  • IF I TRUST THE HOLY SPIRIT, I WILL KNOW HE IS ALREADY AT WORK FOR ME INTERCEDING ON MY BEHALF AT GOD’S VERY THRONE

So my pain, be it ever so vain or prideful, really does touch the heart of God.  And so does yours!!

Is it OUR church or GOD’S church??

15 Aug

As I wander along the pathway, I often wonder how much ownership we take of God’s church??  How much should we take?? Should there be a delicate balance??  Do we really own part of it?

We sure act like we do.  Nothing will get Baptists more bent out of shape than feeling uncomfortable in their own church.  That is a blessing and a curse.  I believe a large part of our problem is in ownership …

Baptists traditionally are autonomous.  Most Southern Baptist churches are democratically governed, with popular vote making decisions.  I have dared to say in years past we’d better NOT be a democracy, but we should be a THEOCRACY, each one of us voting how God leads us to vote.  Honestly, I’ve been chastised for saying that.  I still believe it’s true today.

I live in a world where the average tenure of a full-time Southern Baptist minister is LESS THAN 18 MONTHS.  Less than a year and a half.  And all it takes is saying something that offends the wrong person, and the politicking machine cranks up and a pastor finds himself without a job.  And there is something wrong with that.

1. Sometimes pastors make mistakes.  You better believe that every word that comes out of my mouth is not perfect.  And I don’t know any of my fellow pastors who are perfect, either … (I know a couple that believe they are, but that is another blog for another day)

2.  What if God lead that pastor to say something that offended??  What if that offense was actually the conviction of the Holy Spirit??  Are we really so shallow that we would go after someone because they spoke the truth??  Sadly, in many cases the answer to that last question is “yes.”

Before you jump to conclusions … To my knowledge, I’m not in trouble with anyone.  I mean, sure, there are always people who don’t like their pastor.  But I am not writing this in self-defense.  It’s just something that is on my heart.  But here is the crux of it all:  ANY CHURCH … EVERY CHRISTIAN CHURCH BELONGS TO GOD.

We should have enough sense to treat it accordingly.

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