purpose – Page 3 – Gospel Minutes for Everyday Missionaries

January 3, 2013January 13, 2013

Dash Between the Dates

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By Brian Sharpe

How old were you in 1977? How old are you now? How old will you be in 2043?

This Last Word is being written January 3, 2013. Life is a funny thing, because it seems to fly by so fast … yet we are in control of how we spend our time. I did a coaching assessment a while back and one of the exercises it had me do was to guess the age I would die. Then it asked me to map out what I would like to do between now and the time of death. It showed that in a perfect world my time on this earth is getting shorter and shorter. So how am I investing it?

I seem to be bad at investing. I too often allow myself to become unintentional and unproductive in the way that I am living for God. The enemy likes us to be unintentional and unproductive for God.

For me, it’s everyday life that gets me derailed from living for God. What derails you? It could be work, friends, sports, school, or even family. It could be that life is not what you thought it would be. God has never promised us an easy life, but in the midst of the good and bad of our life He has asked that we stay focused on Him, that we bring glory and honor to His name by being intentional and productive and living for Him.

Now, in my opinion, productivity is surrender. As we surrender our life and give it over to God, He uses us to bring glory to Himself. I like to get in the way and try to do it myself without surrendering.

As you look at 2013, ask yourself: “What is derailing me from fully surrendering my life to God? What is derailing me from bringing glory and honor to Him?” This is the time of year to reflect and refocus. Set some goals and get into community with others who will help you live as God has called you to live.

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May 17, 2012May 31, 2012

Design

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by Dan Amos

A coincidence is when seemingly random events are perceived to be connected. Coincidences form the basic structure for many movie mysteries and thrillers but by the end, the coincidences seem less random or are even wholly exposed as by design. Leadership at Elim is experiencing the benefits of events too purposeful to be considered random. Therefore, design, and we know the Designer, must be the answer.

I could recount events from years and years leading to where we are at now, but I’ll start with last year. Our associate pastor, Brian Sharpe, asked the Elder Board for authorization to go through a profile assessment and coaching process. We dragged our feet and made him do some research but ultimately said “yes.” Early this year, his coach gave the board an outbrief on the results.

Leading up to the profile assessment report we were wrestling with the realization that Elim is growing numerically and it is fundamentally changing how we do things. This was addressed in our 2012 Annual Report and discussed at our annual congregational meeting in January.

Shortly after that, Pastor Brian’s coach, presented his report to the Elder Board. This happened on a Saturday. On the Tuesday before that, at our Elder meeting, Pastor Martin had talked about needing to change his role in the church within the context of how we are growing. He described the tasks he felt he needed to take on as being extremely demotivating for him.

So several short days later, we got a lesson in how people are wired differently and it just jumped out that the roles Martin was talking about taking on were contrary to how he is wired (and why they would be demotivating). The Elder Board quickly saw the value in having all of the staff go through the profile assessment and coaching process and two weeks ago we and the ministry leaders and staff heard the results.

It is so exciting to see how God has put all of the pieces together and how he is revealing them to us. We have a lot to work through and apply and make sure we don’t force people into roles for which they are not made. We’ll talk more and more about this, but right now we ask for you to be praying for the leadership as we seek his design. There’s no coincidence in this at all. Praise God!

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February 8, 2012May 31, 2012

Running for the prize

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by Tom Chase

“Run in such a way to get the prize,” Paul’s admonition to the church (1 Corinthians 9:19-27) kept going though my mind. The day of the AWANA skate night was drawing nearer. You see, one activity that happens during the evening is the races. They split the guys and the girls and then by various ages competing to see who can make one lap the fastest. I decided to skate that night in part because of the race. Here was my chance to win the prize. Don’t misunderstand me, I had no delusional ideas about wining the race – I am not a great skater. In fact, I had chosen not to skate the previous year for my own safety and perhaps the safety of others. But this year was different. I wanted to win the prize so I chose to skate and I entered the race. As it turned out, I won the prize for which I was racing! How is that possible?

The prize for which I risked body and limb was a free soda from the concession stand. They give a coupon to all the race participants. So I entered and I won! Shortly after the race, I was enjoying the spoils of my labors with a smile on my face.

There is a parallel to this in my spiritual life. One that I am finding challenging.

We as believers find ourselves in a race in which the prize we are seeking (or at least should be) is not always the same as the participants around us.

So what then is to be our goal, the prize we are seeking? It is more than salvation. It is far more than that. We grow in relationship with the creator God through Christ. Paul’s prayer for us, in Philippians 1:9, as Pastor Martin shared is, “…that our love [for God] may abound more and more …” It is in the context of this relationship that we are compelled further. God has given each of us, varying interests, gifts and abilities, and more recently called “affinities,” in order to make Christ known. It is in these, that sharing Christ should be most natural.

For me, sharing Christ has not become natural enough. Sharing Christ, the good news, needs to really be my affinity, my desire, and my passion. If that is my main pursuit, then my interests, gifts and abilities become aids to that end. This is a good place to begin. However, Paul not only shares Christ through areas of his own interests but takes it even further, “I have become all things to all men, so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the Gospel, that I may share in its blessings” (1 Cor. 9:22-23). Wherever we are that’s where we should start.

Lord, use our voices. Lord, use our hands. Lord, use our lives: They are yours, We are an offering …

Then we too may share in the blessings of the gospel. What a prize to hear Jesus say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”

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January 13, 2012May 31, 2012

Searching for heroes

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by Jeff Foerster

What are you searching for these days? Some seek the meaning of life, while others hunt for a lost set of keys. Internet searches, job searches, searching for a missing person, a mate, or lost hikers. Others search for fulfillment, happiness, peace, even a quiet place. Many search for the perfect gift, Waldo, Bigfoot, or proof of UFOs.

I recently finished a reading of the book of Genesis. While my eyes danced over the words, sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly, I searched for a noteworthy character, one I could maybe even call a hero. I read through creation and the fall of man in Adam and Eve and decided to move on. They had kids, and murder was invented. No lingering there.

Fast forward to Noah. Now there’s a cat with some guts, building a dry-docked wooden super-tanker by faith that God would send “rain,” whatever that was, to flood the earth. But even Noah, a great man of faith, is recorded as getting so drunk he passed out naked (Genesis 9). Man, why did that have to be in there?

Then came the tower of Babel and Sodom and Gomorrah.

Moving on I found Abraham. I know that Abraham is lauded a man of faith, yet I’ve had some trouble with the fact he made a concubine of his wife’s maid Hagar. How about Isaac and Rebekah, or Jacob, or Joseph. I searched but could not find someone with the clean record I sought.

Now, you may be shouting “Jesus!” at your screen right now, and I agree. He is the only one unblemished by sin and bad decisions. This leads me to where I find encouragement: in the perpetual sin of man. Well, almost. You see, I am in good company with these folks; I sin. If the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth works in, amongst and through these then maybe He has something stored up for me, another sinner, even yet. That is a very encouraging thought, indeed, and something well worth finding.

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September 19, 2011June 1, 2012

Intentional living

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by Brian Sharpe

Intentional living is tough. It is easy to make plans…it is hard to carry them out. In life we are thrown many curve balls that take us out of our routine and often messes with our intentionality. Even good things can take us away from intentional living.

Recently Tomina and I went on vacation. While on vacation we wanted to make sure we didn’t take a vacation from being intentional so we talked through what we would like to do on this vacation to keep being intentional. I have a friend who has been an unbelievable model of intentionality with his family. He went away with his wife and while they were away for their anniversary they read a book together, they studied the same passage in the bible for devotions and they walked through some goal setting. Remembering this, that was what I talked to Tomina about. Tomina looked at me and said “Thanks for leading.” Men that was an amazing feeling to feel for what seemed to be the first time like I was leading my family well.

Well, we read “Radical Together,” which was a great book. We also studied Hebrews. Those were the easy things to do. The setting of family goals seemed to be the hard part. We finally did it, but it wasn’t till the 18 hour car ride home. Now that the goals are set we need to keep them in the forefront of our minds, so that they can be accomplished.

I write this to encourage men and families to take time to get away from the norm, not to just get away, but to get away and reflect, plan and set goals as a family. We don’t just become the people God wants us to be without a consistent refocusing time where we make sure we and our families are on the right trajectory. It is way too easy to think that we are living for God without asking God if we are living for him. When we take time away and seek him, he will reveal who he wants us to be and who he wants your family to be.

Jesus modeled this throughout the gospels. Jesus would leave the crowds. He would leave the disciples. He would go off to be alone with the father. It is something we need to do. Vacation is a great time to do it because we are away from the everyday demands of life.

My challenge to you between now and the end of the year is to get away for a day and seek God and ask him what are some things he wants to do in you and your family in 2012.

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May 19, 2011June 1, 2012

For purpose and fellowship

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by Jeff Foerster

The Father sent the Son (Jn. 3:17). Jesus sent the Holy Spirit (Jn. 14:16-17). The Holy Spirit sends us (Acts 1:8). “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit …” (Matthew 28:19). “… you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8).

This may at first sound like simple delegation. Upon taking a closer look I think we will see much more than that. God, who is Himself perfect and relationally complete, is inviting us into a deep intimacy of purpose and fellowship concerning His greatest desire for humanity: spreading the good news of restored relationship through Jesus Christ.

I am amazed that God includes us in His most important action item: communicating His love to each person. He does not keep this for Himself as the common phrase of prideful man recommends, “If you want it done right, you gotta do it yourself.” Instead we each are given the privilege of being fellow workers with God (I Co 3:9).

Designed and formed in God’s image we are made to be relational beings. We are at our best when we follow the promptings of the Spirit. It is then that we are in participation, and fellowship with, the very God that exists in relationship within the Trinity.

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