My first teaching experience at Vintage Faith was a good one. The people at all three services were extremely kind and welcoming. My message was about "How to align ourselves to hear and know God's will". I spoke about how God reveals Himself through SCRIPTURE and PRAYER. One of the main points I tried to make was that in trying to understand God's will, we really are trying to understand GOD HIMSELF. As we get a better understanding of WHO God is, we get a better picture of WHO He wants us to BE. In discerning God's will, I believe the question is not, "WHAT do you want me to do, Lord?" but rather, "WHO do you want me to BE, Lord?". WHAT WE DO flows from WHO WE ARE. I took us through Psalm 1:1-3, Ecc. 5:1-2, and Matthew 6:5-8 and Mark 1:35. Jesus often withdrew from the crowds and ministry to be alone with the Father...we need to do the same.
On a personal note, it felt real good to preach again. The topic is one that Annette and I are currently working through, so I was able to speak from the "overflow" of my heart. I've spoken to a few people afterwards, and they have given me positive feedback. Dan K. and I talked and I may be able to teach again here and there.
Here's a cool thing that happened before I preached on Sunday night. I went up to my office a few minutes before the service to pray and just "be still". I got a phone call from my friend Sam:
Sam was able to pray for me over the phone before I went into service. It was so cool because I was really wanting to find someone to pray for me, but I didn't know who to ask. Thanks, Sam for praying for me.
Some other items to note:
--I only said the word "poop" in one of the services
--the first thing I did in the first service was grab hold of the podium (which is a music stand) and accidentally pulled the top off of it. I just handed it to Pastor Lee and started my message. I need to lay off my kids' steroids...
--I continued my tradition of preaching on a holiday weekend (Labor Day, Martin Luther King Day, etc.). I preach best when the other pastors are on vacation along with half the church...I can do less damage that way!
2 comments:
Congrats on saying poop in only one service. Your preachin' down here was a highlight for me. We miss y'all. I bought Dan Kimball's book "They like Jesus but not the Church" and added it to my "to read" stack. Your profile on the Vintage Faith website is great.
Such a good reminder. It's hard to withdraw from the crowds, but definitely necessary!
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