I've always thought that farming was one of the most demanding occupations that exists. Not necessarily because it is always physically demanding but because of the trust it requires. You prepare the ground, plant seeds, fertilize, and then wait. You have no control over the heat, the moisture, flooding, or winds. You don't have total control over what seeds will take root. And then the harvest comes and you work like crazy to get it in before freezing weather sets in. And then you have no control over the market.

Being a teacher or Vacation Bible School leader is a lot like farming. We know what we hope will happen, but there are a lot of things we can't control. In obedience to scripture, we just plant, fertilize as best we can and hope that faith is born. It takes a great deal of faith. This last week our VBS was one of the best ever. A lot of good planting going on. Great volunteers and a wonderful spirit among the kids. Now that it is in our re-view mirror, we'll continue to fertilize through Bible study and youth group, but beyond that we pray and wait.

One of the values of having not only a vacation but some sabbatical time to reflect is the realization of how much energy and time is spent in simply keeping the machinery running in church life. The weekly deadlines, emails, financials, meetings, phone calls, communications through various means, and did I mention meetings? While all of those are important I am reminded that they sometimes can cover up some of the more important questions. "If Jesus were sitting in this meeting with us, what would He want us to talk about?" "Instead of what we want to have in worship, what would God want to have present in us to decide whether to show up?" "Is my relationship with God any different than it was a year ago?" "Do I keep wanting the message to conform to what I already believe or am I ready to be challenged to grow?"

Just like everyone else, I find it easy to just fall into the weeklyl rhythm of things and forget to ask the important questions. But to do so is disastrous. I'm gratefull for the time and distance to reflect.

Jesus went into the wilderness for a reason. I usually think of Jesus' activity as simply trying to get away from the crowds or needing a quiet place to pray, which was surely an issue. But I think 'getting away' is necessary for perspective as well. When you are constantly in the middle of the flow of things, it is difficult to keep a sense of reality. Remember Elijah when he was on the run from Jezebel? When he finally had his chance to complain to God, he says, "I'm the only one left!" But God reminds him that there are thousands who have not bowed to baal. Perspective had been lost. Whether it be a long lunch hour once in a while, or a trip out of state, or a weekend away, we need to balance our lives and give God a chance to show us how many people still stand with us, what the size of our problem is, that the world can go on without us for a while. Not a bad thing to learn.

Today a friend of mine who is engaged in interim ministry stopped by and we had a chance for a brief visit. He had just attended an interim ministry training conference. The leader at the conference said that of the 3600 Disciple churches in our country, only 23 (yes you read that right) churches had averaged a 5% growth rate over a 5 year period. I guess we can consider it a blessing that we may one of the 23. But it is a mixed blessing at best. It means that the status of how things are in the larger picture of things is pretty grim. We are living in an age where just "doing church" or trying to make it into the social center it once was isn't going to cut it. But growth won't come because we want more people. Growth will come because we fulfill the mission of Christ

In a phone call with a friend from the East coast this weekend, he mentioned that at a recent conference (UCC) discussing confirmation programs, the presenter said that it was time to think differently. We have spent years training people to be good church people and have launched many good programs, but it is time to focus primarily on making disciples. I say "amen" to that.

We are very good at measuring income and attendance, but we have been reluctant to measure other things, such as whether people are maturing in their relationship to Christ. Do they know how to pray? Do they take initiative in reading the Bible themselves? Do they have a desire to share their faith story? Do they behave any differently because they belong to Christ? Do they have a heart to serve in some way? Do they know their spiritual gifts? I think this is more than just a "return to basics." It is a return to the central call of Christ.

They teach a lot of good stuff in seminary. But when you get into the real world, you find out there are a few things that were missed:

In trying to start something new, you often lose people or show decline before you begin to show positive results.

No matter how faithful and honest you try to be, someone will probably not like you anyway.

The natural trend in church life is to forget the mission. Vision leaks.

Over time, the temptation for pastors and leaders alike is to settle.

Much of ministry falls apart not because of bad planning or bad ideas and execution, but poor communication.

Churches have been lured into thinking that the Church primarily exists to meet their needs, not reach people to connect them to God.

Just because people are happy at your church doesn't mean they will be good stewards. They need to be taught.

Welcome to the newly designed Grace web site! There are certain things that we have learned over the years.
Life is complicated and we don't need a complex web site to make life tougher.
Communication is getting more difficult. We want you to find out what you need and no more.
Communicaton changes. You'll notice that this site will go through re-designs on a regular basis to keep it interesting and enjoyable to read.
As much of a fan of trivia as I am, we won't fill these spaces with unimportant stuff. If you see it here, it has a reason.
Enjoy. And take advantage of the things this site points to.