Snomageddon

For the last couple of days the area where I live has been inundated with cold and snow. Now if you are reading this from a cold part of the planet, you are not doubt laughing at our lack of snow ability. But for us in the Seattle area this is a BIG deal. Schools close, traffic snarls and television stations act like this is the end of civilization as we know it. These last couple of days have got me to wonder, what is it going to be like when Christ returns? Okay, here we are a couple of days from Christmas and I am wondering about the return of our Lord. But think about it, if snow does all of this, what are things going to be like when Jesus returns. Will traffic snarl? Will schools be canceled (it might damage the idea of so called separation of church and state to do that)? Will television stations act like this is the end of civilization as we know it? Or will it be as it was a little over 2000 years ago when Christ came, just business as usual? As the old song goes, I can only imagine.

The First Service

It all comes down to today, The months of thought, prayer and preperation. Yesterday I bought the final pieces of the service puzzle. LCD projector and Karaoke player for the music. We will start meeting at a camp ground on the Highway that we prayed for a place on. God is good, not only did He give us a place on Highway 92, but it is rent free. This past week has not been with out angst. The young man who was set to do our music, had to leave town. Not of his own doing. but months ago he promised to help out at a retreat. They finally contacted him last Sunday night and reminded him of his committment. He felt bad, I felt worse. But it all worked out. My wife will do the music with the help of the Karaoke player. As I write this, I am excited, scared. How many will show? How smooth will the service run? Will people be blessed and want to come back?
As they used to say in the ole time serials, stay tuned.

The Vision

I want to go into some detail about the vision I have for Lost and Found which will make it unique. I mentioned yesterday that I was challenged on how to do church by reading the Barna/Viola book Pegan Christianity. One of their main points is when people come to church about all the participation they do is stand to sing, pray, or shake hands. Then chuch ends in about an hour or so and what have they participated in? Nothing! They have mainly sat and listened. Where is the gowth? The classes you remember from school are most likely the ones you participated in, not the ones where you just sat. People's growth in Chirst is like your school days. The more you participate in the process, the more you will grow in you faith. Participation is a major part of the Lost and Found experience. People just won't be at church, they will do church. The service will start with a testimony. Then there will be singing. Instead of a Pastoral prayer where you give your requests to the pastor and he/she says them back to the congregation. The congregation will just go to prayer and you pray that request to the Lord, knowing that others are praying with and for you. The sermon will end not with a closing prayer, but a time of debriefing between the speaker and the congregation. Thus by the time you leave church, you have felt like you have participated in church. Now comes the hard part, making my vision a reality.
God Bless Your Day.

In The Beginning

It started in Brazil about a year ago working with the Jesus Film team. I watched as men and women followed the call of the Lord to start churches all over San Paulo. Some were housed in grages and others in run down buildings. They all had one thing in common, offering a place of fogiveness and second chances to people badly in need of them. Flash forward months later, I read a book entitled Pagan Christinity by Barna and Viola. Their thesis statement is alot of what we do in the church today is more pagan than New Testament. As spring rolled into summer, I became more and more bothered by how people come to church and just sit. Then one Wednesday in June the Lord gave me a vision. Now you have to understand, that getting visions is not my theology. But it bothered me so much that I could not go back to sleep. I awoke and wrote it all out. The place the Lord showed me to go was Lake Stevens/Granite Falls area. This area is about 35 miles north of Seattle. So yesterday was my last Sunday in the church I was serving at, the congregation laid their hands on my wife and I and we are off to plant a church. The purpose of this blog is to help other pastors who are doing what I am doing, to let them know that they are not alone. Also to get feedback and perhaps a few prayers from people who read this and want to comment. In the comming days I will share with you my vision for what I believe is a unique way of having church. I will also include my prayer list. Hey you may know some people who know some people. You get the idea.
God Bless Your Day!