Waiting On Your Season

Gospel artist John P. Kee, on his Not Guilty album, which released back in October of 2000, (man I’m getting old), on track number 2, on a song entitled, “Right Here”, spoke words of wisdom that still burn in the depths of my spirit even until this day. He said, “The highest order of discipline is when you learn how to wait.”

Let’s be candid…no one likes to wait anymore. Have you noticed our domestic and societal behaviors lately? We change lines at the grocery store only to find out that the longer line that we were in was moving faster than the shorter line that we switched to. We stand at the microwave impatiently tapping our foot waiting for the last ten seconds to expire. We explode in unwarranted frustration waiting for the traffic signal to change only to be stopped by another red light. We pay $50 extra in shipping and handling fees to rush the item that we’ve ordered online. We unconsciously tune out others when we talk to them as a psychological mechanism to fast forward to what we have to say. Waiting is a lost virtue. Our sense of patience has vanished. Our serenity has eroded under the volcanic pressure of instantaneous gratification.

In theory, we live in an instant society; microwaves, faxes, SMS, instant messaging, email, PDA's, beaming etc., but in reality the old adage still rings true, "good things come to those who wait."

In recent segments of Christianity, particularly in what is commonly called the, "Word of Faith Movement", the doctrine of "waiting on your season" is being espoused. The backdrop of this teaching is that for those who have received Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, even though they may be experiencing difficulties in life now, just like summer turns to fall, fall to winter, winter to spring, the pages in your life will also turn and if you just wait, soon it will be "your season." The presentation is given as if one could cause to God "hurry up" the season.

Normally, from what I have observed (even in myself) is a tendency to exacerbate my fleshly desires and then seek out persons who will agree with those desires or who currently have like desires. I fail to realize that God is speaking in my circumstance by telling me no or wait and sense I have allowed myself to become desensitized to the voice of the Spirit in this area I make a decision or enter an area of life to early without having the maturity or capacity to handle it.

A wise man once told me when I questioned him about an opportunity, he said, "If the door opens, walk through it. If it doesn't, don't worry about it.

The Associate Pt. 2

Last time we were discussing the challenges that all associate ministers and assistant pastors will eventually face, particularly those who aspire to senior pastoral ministry. I do not write as one who currently operates in the function of a senior pastor, but I approach this with a relevant peer perspective coupled with empathy, encouragement, experiential wisdom, and friendly suggestions.

To bring a greater sense of relevance and the appropriate amount of empathetic tone to this post allow me to first divest the function of ministry that I currently operate in. At this time I serve as the Young Adult Ministry Director at a very historical baptist church in Compton, CA. Prior to that I served as an associate minister at a church in Oklahoma City and have currently been preaching for approximately 11 years. With that being said, I have known for quite some time that God would call me to the senior pastor position and to teach seminary at a graduate level, but there were some character traits that were not fully developed that God had to work out and is continuing to perfect.

It is truly about character. I am not so much bothered (although I am bothered) by the immorality that is pervasive in the pulpit as I am about the integrity that is displayed in the aftermath, i.e. pride, denial, entitlement, etc. Suffice it to say that if God has not elevated you to the position of senior pastor then I believe that he is using this period of time to remove, plant, cultivate and develop character traits that will give you the privilege to shepherd his flock as he would do it Himself (Jer. 3:15).

This is not to say that your "character flaw" has anything to do with immorality or that you are entrenched in some great sin, but it is to say that God knows us and he knows the proper time to place us.

It is extremely difficult to wait on destiny. We are constantly tempted to kill Saul, sleep with Hagar, or betray Jesus (preachers you know what I mean). Impatience is a weapon that the enemy uses to cause us to be unncessarily anxious about something that, from a faith perspective, is already done. Now I know that is easier said than lived. However, it does not negate the urgent need for our attention to these matters. If you are gifted, if you are anointed, if you are talented, if you are indeed called, my brothers and sisters our time for senior leadership is coming. We must be prepared for the fight and not get sidetracked because we have yet to assume a position or a title.

The Associate

You've been preaching for a while now, haven't you? You've been faithful, diligent, and reliable in your function as associate minister/assistant pastor, but admittedly you're beginning to experience feelings of being "weary in well doing." You're beginning to notice inconsistencies in your pastor's preaching/teaching versus his practice. You feel like you're not being fed spiritually. You've talked to your pastor about it and it appears as if his answer is littered with subtle manipulation that is deferring the inauguration of your personal ministry. It seems the only time he calls you now is when something is wrong, he wants to tell you something you did wrong, instruct you in some church matter, or to inform you about a preaching opportunity of which the last one was months before. Lately, you've been thinking about leaving the church. You've received invitations to serve at other churches in the same position, but you feel that your gift will be more appreciated more there than at your current church.

Your church seems dead. You can't necessarily find anything doctrinally incorrect, but you can remember when the church was on "fire" and now it seems it has dwindled down to the final sputtering embers. All of the young people have initiated a mass exodus explaining to the pastor that in order to grow they need to go. You look around you, you watch TV, you see other ministers who are getting more opportunities than you, and it seems clear that it is time for you to exit. But there's just one thing: you haven't found peace about leaving and you can't figure out why. If you've got a few more reading minutes, I'd like to tell you.

Welcome to the LORD'S SCHOOL OF MINISTRY. The school that is more interested in taking you through the PROCESS than giving you something that is PROCESSED. Everything that I have just described in the first two paragraphs I went through and am currently going through and more. I've been mad, confused, ready to leave, ready to give my pastor a piece of mind, etc., not realizing that although from a preaching perspective I had been blessed with wonderful gifts I still lacked the poise, responsibility, emotional stability, grace, wisdom, compassion, and humility needed to shepherd the people of God. God was using my pastor to create necessary scenarios to mold, shape, and discipline me and as long as I viewed as something being done TO ME and not FOR ME so that God could effectively work THROUGH ME, God would never really be able to USE ME.

I don't want you to get bored with this post, but obviously there is MUCH more. Those of us who are waiting in the wings, God is preparing us to do something great, but we have to wait our turn and learn to see the wisdom in the waiting...

I promise I will continue this...

Pandemonium in the Church: Gossip

In October 2007, a new TV series called Gossip Girl begin airing in the United States after having enjoyed its first airing in Canada in September of the same year. Gossip Girl is an American drama television series based on the popular book series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. Narrated by the omniscient yet unseen blogger "Gossip Girl," the series revolves around the lives of socialite teenagers growing up on New York City's Upper East Side who attend elite academic institutions while dealing with friends, family, jealousy, and other issues.

As as a Christian, husband, father, and young adult Pastor I take seriously the truths and principles set forth in what I believe to be the word of God, the Bible. With that being said I have come to notice (even within myself) that professing Christians appear to have an affinity or predisposed proclivities to gossip. We like to talk. We like to talk about other people's lives and the challenges and issues they are facing. We like to talk about the problems they are having relative to the manner that we feel they should be handling it or otherwise. There is something about gossip that attaches itself to the desires of our Adamic nature, seemingly a death grip in disguise.

Gossip Girl and other shows with similar characteristics have injected post-modern, Enlightenment, and Kantian ideologies that have made us feel comfortable with offering our judgments and supplanting our ideas into other people's lives thereby making ourselves "living gossip columns." When I mention the Enlightenment I am referring to the European intellectual movement known as the Age of Enlightenment, also called the Age of Reason referring to philosophical developments related to scientific rationality in the 17th and 18th centuries. Ok, that's enough technical information, however, that age brought in an ideology of individualism that the world has yet to recover from. It basic tenet was that since I am a free individual, I am free to do what I want, when, how, and where I want, and if someone asks why, my individualism exempts from the obligation of explanation.

My next post will address very specific questions concerning this issue of gossip. They are as follows:

1. When is gossip, gossip?
2. Is gossip only when we malign someone else?
3. Is false testimony about ourselves gossip?
4. Does it make any difference who we are talking about, or what we are talking about?
5. When is it okay to talk about someone else?
6. How about in the use of an example in ministry?
7. Can we do it without names?
8. What are our motives?
9. Is our heart true or vindictive and self satisfying?
10. What is the purpose of bringing up a name or a situation if it’s not glorifying to God?
11. How does gossip affect our walk with the Lord?

See you next time!

A Re-Awakening

It has been quite a while since I last posted a blog. I have literally been consumed by seminary papers, reading, family, church, work, the planning of my yearly conference, etc., and then I noticed that I had neglected the task of writing. This blog had become my outlet, in essence, my "fun" writing, and it was a timely stress reliever. Recently, I was rushed to the hospital for chest pains and numbness on my left side. The entire time all I could think about was Fred Sandford and "The Big One." Fortunately, it was not the "Big One" and the doctor informed me of some things that I knew and had consistently ignored for the past year, namely exercise and better eating habits. He discouraged a diet at this time, but did speak candidly about portion control.

Our bodies will not take care of themselves and it is not always the devil attacking us. We have to do what we are supposed to do. I just came back from walking a mile this morning and I'm glad that I had enough in me to get up and do it. I'll make my way up to at least three miles a day and then I'll join a a gym to begin toning and shaping. Contrary to popular belief, I still have a lot of muscle and don't really need the weights. It's going to be all cardio for me. Please pray for me that I don't get weary in well doing.