Monday Morning Quarterback

Monday Morning Quarterback – 09.28.09 

1. I’m very thankful to be able to pastor the Tribe. Choosing to be part of a faith family and committing your life to it is essential to real sanctification. I get frustrated like all pastors do I suspect but I could never imagine walking away from this group of people. I truly grieve for people that jump from church to church or who are not vitally connected to a local body.

2. I love preaching through books of the Bible, even when we have to handle two chapters of basically nothing but names (Nehemiah 3 & 7)! It’s a great freedom and relief for me as a preacher to be released from pulling a rabbit out of the hat every Sunday. I don’t have to do that because we all know that what is coming next is what is next in the Book. I also hope it is teaching us a Tribe to really lean heavy into the sufficiency of Scriptures, and not on the creativity of man.

3. Along the same lines, I am very uncomfortable with what seems to be an incessant focus on relevance, environment, and pragmatism from a lot of preachers of national acclaim. It seems like a good number of the ministry conferences have the subconscious message of “Let’s make Christianity hip and cool so people will come.” The only problem with that line of thinking is the Bible. It seems to me that Jesus calls us to look radically different than this broken down self-absorbed and insecure world we live in. Yes, I understand we need to contextualize the Gospel for each culture and generation, but I think we too often end up compromising it. But I confess that I feel the tug to be hip and cool and I want a lot of people come to my church too. I think it boils down to the fact that a lot of pastors are in this gig to feed their ego. Oh that I would care more about Jesus’ fame than having a big church and being popular. Help me with this, Jesus.

4. I love it when I see people leaning forward into the studying and preaching of the Bible. But I still see a lot of people (men especially) that would consider CrossPointe their home that do not even bring their Bibles to church. Honestly my brothers, that’s pathetic. Come on, you need to lead in this area. Let’s be men of the Book. Carry it around. Familiarize yourself with it. Don’t rely on the screen for the Scriptures. I love you guys, but some of us have got to do better here.

5. I’m very thankful for the ministry team at CrossPointe. They do more behind the scenes than many people realize. Reynold is an invaluable gift to the church. Hawk and Karan Anne are so wonderful with teenagers and kids. Paul is a rare find these days…an ultra-dependable, masculine, ego-less, and very talented worship leader. And Hollie, well, what can I say…CrossPointe would implode without her.

6. I want to do this well, for a long time, at the same place, for the right reasons, without sacrificing my family at the altar of ministry. That’s more challenging than I realized. I’m thankful that I can communicate my lack and struggle in this area to the Tribe.

7. I married the most excellent person I know. It will be 15 years this December. And this weekend we’ll celebrate the 10^th anniversary of her 30^th birthday as I whisk her away to a yet to be disclosed (to her) location for four wonderful days. Not to toot my own horn, but I’ve come a long ways since taking her out to the Shoney’s buffet for our first date.

Grace and Peace!

Brad