I am a man!

Dude...I just finished Donald Miller’s book, “To Own a Dragon: Reflections on growing up without a father”. What an eye opening book! Last May when we were at MB, South Carolina, Peggy (Sarah’s Mom) suggested that I read “Wild at Heart” by John Eldredge and so I just recently started reading it hardcore (in the bathroom mind you). Surpisingly enough, the Miller book mentions the other book in the course of the discussion. It was all about men and how they somehow feel less of a man or no man at all when they don’t have their fathers affirmation. It is amazing to me at how deep this issue is in my life. Going in, I thought that I would just read it because I love Miller and maybe it will give me some pointers for when I have kids (none on the way, so don’t ask!). Boy oh boy was I wrong. In “To own a dragon”, Miller talks about how he felt like a burden to his father and that is a reason why his father never gave him the affirmation that he was indeed, a man. A theme that kept popping up was that he didnt know if he had what it took. He didn’t know if he had what it took to get this girl or get that job or get this grade or...you get the drift. Sometimes, I admit, that I struggle with this. Do I have what it takes to be better, to be a great husband, to be a great future father? Do I have what it takes for my boss or future bosses to like me? Can I do anything more than what I am doing right now? Could I do what “he’s” doing? Can I be a better leader? Can I ever play the guitar like “him”? Is my situation as good as someone elses? And it goes on and on.
Another thing that I struggle with is criticism. I know that it comes with the job, but I am still not very good at taking it. I try not to give it out too much and encourage more. I was reading this morning in “Wild at Heart” this passage in which Eldredge was just talking about D-day and how the men that successfully got up to the cliffs where stunned and shell shocked and how that resembles the men of today and more specifically in the church.

“They thought that becoming a Christian would somehow end their troubles, or at least reduce them considerably. No one ever told them they were being moved to front lines, and they seem genuinely shocked at the fact that they’ve been shot at.”

Being in leadership in any place in life is hard. Being in leadership in a church is magnified. Like that quote says, you’d think that leading a group of people that are supposed to be trying to be more like Jesus that you’d get fired at less often. I think, until recently, I was in a state of shock because I was so surprised that I was being shot at by those that were supposed to be on my side! I questioned whether or not I had what it took to be a pastor, a man that leads God’s people.
My conclusion: I am being shot at and I do have what it takes to stand against the forces, either man or the evil schemes of the enemy. Whether from in front of me or those that are supposed to be beside me. I can stand...I am a man. But more importantly, I am a man after God’s heart!

Christmas '07 ramblings

Hey there...just some quite random thoughts on Chrsitmas...Rudolph and the little drummer boy



1. This year is like every other year since Sarah and I have been married...8 different Christmas events to attend...wowsers! Christmas is getting expensive for us.

2. I was listening to Rudolph the RNR the other day and realized that Rudy is unlike a lot of us. Those other reindeer laughed and poked fun at and made him the butt of all their jokes. Then, one foggy Christmas Eve, Santa came to say, "Rudy with your nose so bright won't you guide my sleigh tonight". Here's the kicker, "THEN HOW THE REINDEER LOVED HIM"...how many of us would have just forgiven and stepped up to the plate like Rudy did? Americans, Christians and leaders seem to like to make a list and check it twice to remember all the times that other people have hurt us. We need to be careful that we don't let those nasty reindeer in our lives keep us from living up to what God has called us to do. (P.S. Why didn't Santa stop the ridicule? Does God give us the opportunity to be forgiving or just help us to forgive?)

3. The little drummer boy struck me the other day. Just one line though, because we had to turn it because this is Sarah's least favorite song. "I have no gift to bring...Barrummmbbumm bum". We think so little of ourselves sometimes. We start to question who we are and what God was doing when he made us the way we are. We begin looking at others and think how much our lives would be better if we just were like them or had this ability. Well, we all have our own strengths and if you don't USE your's that doesn't mean that you don't have one. It means that you are sitting on an unwrapped gift that Jesus deserves and longs for you to use! You have no gift to bring? Bahumbug! We all do...find yours and use it....

4. This Christmas I have kept coming back to the nearness of Christ. That he was here. That he had a purpose and that was to come and then die and then rise from the dead and come back some day. God's spirit has been shown to me in this season by re-realizing that Jesus REALLY did come to Earth. It isn't like Santa Claus or a national, cultural tradition. It is HISTORY! Jesus did come...he has come and he will come!

5. Cherish all that you have. Family, friends, enemies... :)

Merry Christmas to all...and to all a good night

Be near me Lord Jesus

As Christmas approaches, it seems my view of God changes a bit. Christmas just brings everything a little bit closer. Like a giant huddle underneath a blanket on a chilly night. Things, even though there are so many parties and different places to go, seem to slow down in the moments when I am alone. I was listening to Christmas music and this song came on and we have all heard it a million times but one part really struck me that day.

 "Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay
 Close by me forever, and love me, I pray;"

I had often thought of this verse as me being near the manger and seeing the baby and ME being near him. But in fact, it is Him that is near to us. He is the one that came from an eternal place of worship and peace and amazement to be in a place of sin and war and discontentment.

Most of the population on this spinning ball don't like to be alone. We have this innate sense of needing to be near someone else. We give up reason, freedom, choice and sometimes faith to be near someone or something else. We are made to be loved and to be touched. How wonderful and awe-inspiring would it have been to be able see Jesus? Would that make you have more faith today? If you could go in a time machine and actually see Jesus, would that give you more devotion and passion for the reasons he came?

In the end, after all the searching and questioning and empty pursuits to find love, it is to be found in one place. Away in a manger, no crib for a bed...the little Lord Jesus lays down His sweet head. The stars in the sky look down where he lay, the little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay.
There is no reason to look anywhere else for the love that you need.
Jesus has come this day!
A Saviour is born!
God truly is with us!
May God draw you close to Him this Christmas Season!

Merry Christmas,
Pastor Andy

Tailgating in the sweet bye and bye

This past Saturday, I got the opportunity to go to my first This past Saturday, I got the opportunity to go to my first college football game. I got to see Notre Dame beat Duke. It was a great time and a great atmosphere to experience. Something struck me hard though before the game. We went early and I experienced another first: tailgating. We spent about an hour and a half just hanging out. What struck me wasn't the amount of people or what they were or weren't drinking etc. It hit me that they have being "together" more than most local churches. They share food, share stories, and share just about anything. They just meet everybody and nobody seems left out. They are laughing and joking and being, without really knowing them, their best selves when these times come. It seems in a tailgating lot, that there are no problems, no worries, nothing that you have to do or don't do to make "tailgating" right. They are just experiencing life together. So often we get caught up in the "how" and forget to be happy in the now. We get so frustrated with everything going on around us and we start to have fewer things to appreciate. You see, when we start complaining and being mean and bitter about things, it trickles into everything we do, everything we say and eventually affects how we live.

The church needs to start living life with each other and stop telling and talking about how others are doing so much wrong and how they need to live. Sure, call sin sin but don't let that be OUR calling card. We aren't called to into all the world and preach the condemning/sad/turn or burn message are we? Is that what Jesus said? No...he said go and tell them the good news...the news that there is a better life. One that if lived with the right priorities can be abundant and joy-filled. We (people who are trying to be more like Christ and less like a "Christian") should start living our lives like a tailgate. Befriending all, criticising few... laughing more, bad mouthing less...giving to others, comparing what we have to those around...

You see...I don't know what Heaven will be like but I'd like to think it will be a little like tailgating. With its good times, everybody is a friend and such an atmosphere of excitement and joy that people would want to be there above anywhere else.

I need to tailgate more in my life. How about you?

Those songs aren’t “spiritual” enough!

There are frustrations in ministry that baffle the mind. None more than the issue of music for me. I have heard comments from complaining “Christians” and read different posts about how we should continue using the hymnal and such. The arguments are all about how “spiritual” the hymns are and how much meaning that they have to the person. Here are some comments I have heard about new worship:

“Oh, you’re going to sing one of those 7/11 songs. 7 words sung 11 times!”

“That music is from the devil and is not God-honoring.”

“Songs like Friend of God and Blessed be your name won’t be remembered in 50 years.”


Do you know how frustrating it is for a worship leader to plan, prepare, and simply lead worship then at the end to hear these types of things? I know people will critizise anything that they don’t like. I think music is more about personal preference and opinion rather than whether it is God honoring or not. This whole issue has me so frustrated and sick that it makes me just want to spit nails. It has been going on for so long that it makes you wonder if it not something that Satan using to his advantage often.


Here are my assumptions:

1. Who are you to call music that is about God, sung to him and for him not spiritual enough? Really...just because it isn’t the type of music that you came to the Lord under doesn’t mean it can’t do that for someone else.

2. Some hymns are great. Some...not so much. Don’t try and tell me that they are more scripturally based. That is a joke. Both types are mainly based in scripture with both having exceptions. Don’t go there.

3. This battle must be frustrating to the one who died for us. We talk about this, argue about this, criticize about this and leave churches over this.

4. Trying to blend the music never hits the two sides enough. The elders, who pay the bills and have been the foundation of the church, don’t like it when it’s too loud or they can’t learn the song. The younger people, who I’ve been told, don’t pay tithe, are lax in their commitment, and don’t want to be held accountable, feel as though the other peoples songs are boring and are sung out of tradition rather than out of worship.

5. We often forget that God is the audience, not us. We are the participants not the worship leader or band. Lastly, that it is all for God and anything that we call the work of the devil that is actually the work of God doesn’t bode well for us.

6. Don’t tell me what means something to me. I will remember some hymns and some modern worship songs in 50 years. The better question would be, what type of songs will we be singing in heaven? Will it be songs about us and how we have decided to follow Jesus or songs about how great our God is? Chew on that one for a while.

Birthday and Anniversary 07

It's hard to believe that it has been two years since Sarah and I got hitched! It feels like yesterday and forever at the same time. How God has helped us grow so much in such a short time. Sarah is an amazing, supportive and brilliant woman and wife. So much could be said...I just love you so much.


Last Friday we went to the Zoo for my birthday. It was amazing! I faced my fear and touched a SHARK!!! The animals were so cool and it was great to share with my wife.

Sarah bought me an electric acoustic guitar for my birthday...I was shocked and amazed. I have been "at it" teaching myself how to play for a little under three months. This sure helps. My friend Terry, who is a great guitar player, gave me some tips over the weekend.

We got to spend some time with friends and family on Thursday. We went to Buffalo Wild Wings and then the guys went and played bball. It was a fun time and much needed break and bonding time with some of my best friends. I miss those guys so much...

passing out...

So I am working out hard. I have been for the past 3 weeks. Hard! Last week I went 6 days. So Sarah had a personal training session last week and I decided that I would do one as well. Wow...I went this morning at 8am. I didn't eat anything because I hate burping it up when I get going. So, I get about half way through. I am doing pretty well...out of breath and sweating buckets but good none the less. Then, it happened. I did this one thing and when I got done, I started to get light-headed. Then I started to get sick. Then I started heaving up nothing. Boy, did I feel stupid. I learned my lesson today...eat something before you work out that hard and get your butt kicked! Hope all is well with you

Grace

The other day, our dog Lex gave me a lesson in grace. You see, I had spent the majority of the day hanging out with some of the guys from youth group playing some games and had left him out like we have done for a while now. He hadn't done anything to give us the need to put him up. So I get home from our service that night, and I find not one, but TWO chewed TV remotes(this makes 3 or 4 for Lex)! I gave him a good spanking and yelled at him and put him in the kennel. I was steaming mad. He had used the living room floor as his own personal toilet. So he knew I was mad. He just stood in his kennel staring at me. So we left to get some food and came back, let them out and sure enough Lex comes over to me and pushes up against me for me to pet him like nothing had ever happened.
When I get punished or hurt or the critics seem so loud, it is really hard for me to forget that. When something happens, I tend to remember it for a while and it comes to mind whenever I see that person. There is always this level of protectiveness that I feel I must keep. Still, thinking about Jesus and how much he loves us and how often we let him down, I can't help but feel inadequate in the area of grace. I need to give grace more often like my dog...just forget the things that hurt quickly and get back to becoming who I need to be.

For the next three months...

I am starting a quest. A competition of sorts. A challenge. I have agreed to do a 3 month "Biggest Loser"-esque competiton. There are four people per team and you get weighed in once a month for the next three months. I have a goal but I am not going to tell you what that goal is. This is exciting for me because I love a challenge and competition drives me! Here's to self control...

I love my wife!

Yesterday was Sarah's birthday! I was her taxi driver for the day. It started out with me cooking some breakfast for her. Then I took her for a full body massage, manicure and pedicure. Then we went and met her mom in Warsaw for dinner at Hacienda. It was a great day for a most amazing woman. She definitely holds me up! :)

What Andy is "into" right now

Hey there...I love that it has turned cold and that means that a lot of things are making me all warm and happy. I thought i'd list them for you. Welcome to Jellyville:


1. My favorite songs: The Pretender (Foo Fighters), Almost Lover (A Fine Frenzy), Love Reign Over Me (Pearl Jam), These Days (Jackson Browne), 1234 (Feist), Breathe In/Breathe Out (Mat Kearney), Refine Me (Jennifer Knapp)

2. Movies: Reign Over Me. (I love watching movies that make you feel something. This movie makes me appreciate life and brings a lot of different emotions at the same time. It is up there.)

3. Learning the guitar: I started August 27th. You see, a friend started learning how to play and I thought to myself, "if he can do it, so can I". So I have been teaching myself and practicing every day. There is something so worshipful about playing and singing at the same time. You just FEEL more.

4. Thoughts of children: I cannot wait to start a family. Nothing in the near future, but I really am longing to have a kid of my own. Not just that, but I want to have a kid with Sarah. I cannot wait to be a parent with her.

5. Hot Chocolate: I love swiss miss! MMMM!

6. Trying to let things around me teach me about who God is: Jason Tash spoke at Family Camp Teen Track and said that when one of his children were born, he asked God to show himself through the child. I am trying to see God in the little and big. The frustrating and the elating.

7. Sweatshirts: I love wearing a hooded sweatshirt. Hands down my favorite piece of clothing.

8. IU basketball season starts tonight with Hoosier Hysteria. If you know me, you know that I love IU basketball. Period.

9. My wife: I feel our marriage has really grown since our vacation to South Carolina in May.

10. My hair: I havent cut it since the thursday right before our vacation in May. It is the longest it has ever been and it sprouts wings when a hat is placed over it. I'm enjoying the scraggly look.

I hope you are doing well. That there are things in your life right now that give that cuddled-under-the-blanket- with-a-warm-cup-of-hot-chocolate- feeling. If not, find some.

Salvation...

We had an interesting discussion sunday night at youth group. We were talking about different topics and the question was brought up does doing a certain thing (cussing, smoking, drinking etc) mean that you are not a follower of Christ? Then one of our teens spoke up and said that he believes that you have to do a lot to lose your salvation (mind you, he goes to a baptist high school). I know where I stand but I just wondered where you stand. To me, this borders on eternal security.


What does a person have to do to not be able to go to heaven?

Example: If someone gossips right before they walk into a street and get killed by a car are they going to heaven? Or if someone tells a lie because they don't want to hurt someones feelings and has a massive heart attack will they go to heaven?

Let me know what you think...

Unscript me...

Hey der... my blogs posts have come few and far between. I was looking at others blogs and thinking, "Man, I really need to start posting again".

This is probably my favorite time of year. Indiana Basketball is just around the corner, the NFL is in full swing, and the playoffs for baseball are just beginning. It is October! If you have seen the commercials for the MLB playoffs, you would have heard FOX's catch phrase...October is unscripted. That brings about a sense of excitement in my mind. See, it seems that most everything that I do as a Pastor is scripted. The messages, we were taught at IWU, need to written out word for word. The service needs to be on paper so that we know what is going on. The next three months need to be planned so that we have a clear direction.

Sarah recently told me that I am good at planning and thinking about big ideas and events and the like. However, I am not great at the small minute details. After looking back and thinking about it, she is 100% right. I think that I just like some things in my life to just happen. I mean for goodness sakes, people come in sunday mornings, sit in "their" seats (which by now have their own memory foam marks in the pew) and they do whatever is on the list.

Are there other areas that are so scripted that you just do them without even thinking about them? Spending time with family? Hanging out with friends? We get neither one of them up here. Sure, we have the occasional outing with a couple or a family event that is 2+ hours away. We come to take for granted the small things in life that really arent small at all.

My prayer is that God would surprise me and do something out of MY ordinary. I am tired of reading from the teleprompter!

Busy is all I seem to be

Wow...things got busy and I didnt have internet for a long time. Here is what has happened in my life since my last post:

1. We had two fundraisers (Chicken and a car wash)
2. I attended district conference and our annual youth conference
3. We took the teens to the South Bend SilverHawks game
4. I led the afternoon and afterglow activities at Family Camp (thanks matt and tp)
5. We took the teens to deep river waterpark
6. We took the teens to six flags great america
7. I preached at a youth revival in Anderson
8. We had our 1 millionth overnighter
9. We had our annual fall kickoff
10. I preached at Bryant Wesleyan's Back Yard Bash

Oh yeah, and we moved out the the country (the church parsonage..pics will follow after vacation) and they dont exactly have a ton of high speed internet options out where there are more cows than humans! So the church just recently got hs internet!

so that has been my life over the past few months. It has been busy. Things are slowing down...sort of...before the holidays get here. There is a lot going on and a ton of pieces moving around in our lives right now. Just pray that God will protect our hearts, that he will guide our steps and draw us closer to him.

All I can say is…hallelujah

Last week, I was at Sr. High doing the recreation for the students. It was a busy week and the best way for me to describe it is “controlled chaos”. However, in the midst of all that was going on around me, God done this work in my heart. The worship was at first, a struggle. I didn’t know a lot of the songs that were being sung. Still, there was an overwhelming theme and one word seemed to keep popping up. Hallelujah. Simple enough you say, right? Yep. That’s just it. It is such a simple word for us to use to tell this all-powerful, all-knowing, all-encompassing, all-loving, all-just, all-caring God just how we feel. The word literally means praise the Lord. I get so busy with life and ministry that sometimes I forget to do this. Last week wasn’t one of those weeks. There were powerful times of authentic worship where you were just caught up in the presence of the Holy One. My question has become, why do we just settle for this at big rallies or at camps or something “other” than what we have on Sunday mornings? Why do we just settle for doing our own thing and leaving? My answer: We don’t take the time to truly get into a spirit of authentic worship. Whether it be Victory in Jesus or Dance in the River, we fail on most Sunday mornings to drop to our knees (in our hearts mind you, because doing that for real would be out of line) and hunger and thirst after a touch, a moment with God. We have become such an ordered society that we have to live by a thing that we have made: a Clock. That has to be one of the worst inventions for the true Spirit of God to deal with. We have become so time oriented that it is “tradition” for us to get out at this time. Go ahead, give me the excuses…I can hear them now. No matter, I want, no scratch that, I need to come into contact with the Almighty more than I am right now. Now I could go get this organic worship, that comes from the heart and we are truly thinking about and meaning the words that are coming out of our mouths, on my own. I do meet with the Spirit in my alone times, however, I hunger to meet him with other believers! Being a Christian isn’t a solo act. We are supposed to be living out this faith with a community of believers. May we, as believers, start taking the time to start singing Hallelujah in our every day life and when we are together. May the Spirit of God move upon our services and start changing us, start challenging us and start equipping us to live lives that are full of praise and service so that Jesus may be lifted high. May we come to place in our life we all we can say is Hallelujah! Our God Reigns! He is in control of all! Hallelujah!

Happy 4th!

Hello from Jellyville!
Things are slowing down a little for the next few weeks. We have something every weekend but other than that, things are quieter. So here is a quick fix as to what is going on with us:


1. I guess I forgot to tell everyone that we are getting the church parsonage. We are just waiting for Pastor John and Beth to get everything out so we can clean it and have it painted. We are excited to be moving and not be living in this apartment because...

2. There was a fire in our apartment complex a few weeks ago. We found out about it through a vauge letter that everyone got in our complex. What makes us so mad is that it was right next door to us! The people left their grill (full with hot coals) on their deck (which is against Indiana State Law) and it caught the wall that we share on the outside of our deck on fire. We come to find out that the Fire Dept. had to go through our apartment with hoses and such and NO ONE TOLD US!!!!!! So needless to say, we are ready to get out of here.

3. Sr. High Camp was great. I had a great group to help me ( Ben, Amanda, Bryan, Terry and Matt). I also had the privilege of speaking on Thursday morning in the rally. God really changed some hearts that week and I got to be a small part of that.

4. We have two fundraisers between now and family camp. We are doing a bar-b-que chicken sale this saturday. We are kind of going out on the ledge because our kids really havent pre-sold like we would have liked. So pray that the sale goes well on Saturday. Then, on the 21st we are having a car wash. All the money goes to sending the students to Orlando for the youth conference in December.

5. We (Sarah might be going, she got put on-call today) are going tubing with Jeff and Gwen and their family. Then we are going to watch fireworks tonight so it should be a fun day.

6. Family camp is coming...July 22-29. This year I am in charge of all the activities (afternoon and afterglows) that the teens will do at family camp. I really enjoy doing these kinds of things. Matt and Terry will join me again and it will be a great time.


I think that is it...hope this finds you well.

Life update 6.20.07

Hey...it's been a while since I posted anything. So here is a bulleted update for quick catch up:


1. Vacation was awesome this year. It was very relaxing and much needed.



2. Things got a little crazy when I got back. I had a ton of loose ends to tie up before our missions week started. I also was asked to speak at Sr. High camp this year in a morning rally.


3. Then, we had Against the Flow missions week all last week. From Monday morning at 9am through Saturday morning at 9am. We helped a lot of people and our group really grew together . It was an amazing week...(p.s. I found 3 old hot dogs and one fried praying mantis in that grill)




4. This week, I took the last of my vacation and Sarah and I are chilling out. Next week is Sr. High Camp and I will be in Fairmount all week.

5. We found out a few weeks ago that we are getting the parsonage in Late July/early August! So we will need some help moving our stuff down from the 3rd floor (thank goodness that is almost over!).

Life is good...life is busy...but I am loving every minute of it.

By his wounds

Things happen. Different things happen everyday to us that hurt us, damage us, cause us to think about who we are and challenge us. People are sometimes unaware of the things that they do to us. Being a Christian is sometimes hard. So here I am this past week going through a tough time. You know those times when you just feel empty and drained and thirsty something, anything that is God. So I found this cd...Glory Revealed...and I turned it to song 2 and it was like God had been planning that out for weeks.

The song is called We are Healed...

It talks about how all that he went through gives us healing. The first thought in my mind when I hear 'by his wounds we are healed' is physical healing. But God really let me into a deeper truth at least for me. I feel wounded often. Wounded by words and actions of others. I feel like I am being tested and sometimes I fail and stumble and I am not who I want to be. After I heard this song it hit me that all that he went through wouldn't just be for a physical healing. It goes deeper. It goes deeper to the point that it is a healing for everything we go through. Emotionally. Spiritually. Relationally. Daily. Hourly. Every minute. The world is always taking away from us scarring us and leaving its stain and its reminder that we are a fallen people. Yet Jesus' work on the cross heals us, daily. How shallow I have lived in the massive ocean of the grace that is Jesus and his infinite love for me. We get so caught up in just trying to get by that we get so stretched and thinned out that we lose sight of the depths of Christ's love. I sometimes get so narrow minded that it can only be the way that I see it and there is no time for any other way.

May God help me to stand back and view the vast picture that he is still in the process of painting which he will call my life when it is finished. May I come to know his healing of every part of life. The uglyness and the sinful. The tests and the mistakes. May I see that by his wounds I am healed.

Going the second mile

“You have heard that it was said, Eye for an eye and tooth for tooth. Bit I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two.”

Matthew 5:38-41


I’ve started reading a new book by Mel Blackaby entitled “Going the second mile”. It is based off of this verse obviously. It started to make me think about how I fit this verse into my every day life. I tend to be like a river and go with the flow to the least point of resistance on many things in my life that don’t really matter. Such as, when Sarah and I are trying to decide what to eat the best response is “Wherever you want to go dear”. This is the easiest way to get food to my mouth the quickest! Or if I am trying to decide which brand of toilet paper I tend to choose the one with the most in it so that I don’t have to keep making that “we are out of t.p. trip” to the store when you are walking about with only the toilet paper. People always look at you funny when that is all you are carrying. They might be trying to see if you are walking funny or fastly (or at least that is what I tend to do when I see this sort of thing happening). Honestly, no one really ever goes to the store just for tp unless they are completely out, right? So back to the point here…I like things to go smoothly. I like for things to come easy and for life to be laid back. I like things that are worry-free because there is enough in my life that isn’t worry free. So then I read this passage and it says that if someone wants you to go one mile, you should go two. After having started working out about 6 months ago and having started running on the treadmill about 3 months ago, I thought to myself, “One mile was pushing it! Two? Well, I wouldn’t have to worry about taking a shower after working out because they don’t take showers in heaven.”

But seriously. The question is: what in your life is pushing you to go the second mile? Is there anything? What about in your walk with Christ? Is there something that you feel burning inside you that you know that when you take the easy road or go with the flow you should have gone the opposite direction?

We are so consumed with having everything come to us easy in our culture. We don’t want to have to push ourselves or challenge ourselves. We try to keep everything in check and don’t let ourselves open up too much. Still, Jesus is challenging us to go that extra mile. To do that thing that we don’t really know how we can do it or when we will find the time. He wants us to make the commitment and give our time, our energy and our heart to reaching out to those around us.

What will your second mile look like?

Update from Jellyville

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Hey...just wanted to give you a quick update from the Jellison household.

1. April 1st at church we had a our second annual chili cook-off. It went better this year planning wise but we didnt make any money...it really wasnt a fundraiser per se. However, this year, I made a chili and I actually won! Mine was the most creative. See pic below...


2. Sarah got in an accident this past monday. It was the other guys fault and Sarah is fine. However, the car needed $2500 worth of repairs and a new door. Yikes...it could have been her door so we are thanking God for his protection.

3. We are waiting to see what happens with the housing situation. There is a possibility that we might be moving into the parsonage and the Senior Pastor buying his own house. So this is a wait and see kind of thing.

4. There is another thing that is going on but we will wait to see what happens with that later down the road in the fall.

5. We started softball practice and the atmosphere is completely different from my first two years at Shiloh. There are more people from Shiloh and it was a great time last Saturday. Softball starts soon.

6. Finally, Sarah and I went fishing today and I caught a Large-mouth Bass. It was a good time!

I will catch you up on more later...

Jelly

It's the most busiest time of the year!

You ever get to feeling that you should be somewhere or that you have something going on and you just cant remember what it is? Boy, oh, boy that is what I have felt like for the past week! There is this voice prompting me and making me feel like I am forgetting something. Luckily, I havent forgotten anything (yet?!). My weekends are already planned for the duration of May and June and part of July and it is the end of April. I just wanted to give you a glimpse into Jellyville...Summer '07


May 4-5 IWU Jr. High YC
May 12: Mother's Day w/ the family in Celina, Ohio
May-18-19: Youth Yard Sale
May- 25-June 2: Mrytle Beach, S.C. ....Vacation!!!!!
June 11-15: Against the Flow Youth Missions Week
June 18-22: Jr. High Camp (I am not staying, just dropping the kids off)
June 24-30: Sr. High Camp (I am staying and I am in charge of recreation for the week!)


Softball starts soon, and I am sure that there will be other unexpected things that happen. So, there you have it. My life through the end of June. I hope your's isnt this busy...

Life update

Life update

1. Pastor John (my senior pastor) got an extended call at Shiloh. This was cause for concern as there was some uncertainty surrounding this because if he left, then I am up in the air as well. But he’s not, so I’m not!

2. I have been planning the recreation activities for Fairmount Sr High camp and enlisting some others to help out. I hate calling and asking for something...you know what I mean? Like ordering pizza or whatever! I just hate being the one in need I suppose.

3. Sarah and I are going to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina over Memorial Day weekend and by the good graces of my uncle, we are also going to be able to go to Virginia in September! Two vacations before the holidays start...much needed.

4. Sarah and I have been hanging out a lot recently with Gwen and Jeff. I cant tell you how much it means for us to have friends our age here. This is definitely an answer to prayer.

5. Easter is over. I know, it is something that people look forward to but for pastors, it is one of the busiest times of the year. I had the sunrise service and it went really well considering most of the people would have still been in bed on any other Sunday.

6. I love the cold weather, but enough is enough. I cant take 70 degree weather and then have it snow the next week. That throws me for a loop.

7. I got a new cell phone and all of the buttons work on it as opposed to the sticky #7 on my last phone.

8. I cannot stand Sanjaya from American Idol. He is awful. Here is what is frustrating though...the judges put him through. There were definitely better singers than him but for the sake of...variety?...they left him in and now it is up to America with a hoard load of little pre-teens that love him and have unlimited texting ability! If he gets past 6th place, I will not be very happy. I like Blake the best and Melinda second. I don’t like Lakisha but her story is nice.

9. Amazing Race. I am rooting for the beauty queens, Dustin and Candice. I cannot stand the midget and her cousin for various reasons. One, they use her small-ness any time they can to gain an advantage and then claim they are running a clean race! Two, they always talk with a stinking accent from a different country...always! Third, the small one is always poking her head under things and through things and around things and it would make me uncomfortable to have a small person constantly glaring and in my face.

10. Survivor. I think Sarah and I are rooting for Yao-man. He is weird but he is funny. Survivor needs to get less jock-types and beauty queens and find people like Rupert again! Maybe they should have a Red Neck Survivor!

later

Boneless Chicken Wings

This has become a search of mine lately. It is like I have been in search of the holy grail of boneless-chicken-wingness. So here is a list of my top 5 or so on my list thus far:


1. Applebee's- Definitely the best so far. They are always consistent and the taste is still the best.
2. Friday's (in Orlando)- The Kung Pow wings were simply amazing and made my nose run for a good long while
3. Houlihan's- These were definitely different having a taste of bar-b-que, but they were very tasty.
4. O'Charley's- They had a great zip to them
5. Buffalo Wild Wings- Spicy Garlic ...they taste good going down and the few times you taste it afterwards too! I love the garlic and zestiness...nothing like it.
6. Home- We got this Texas Pete sauce and it is GREAT on chicken...nothing like home cookin'...except for those listed above of course!


If anything changes, I will let you know. I am still on the quest to find the best buffalo chicken.
Any suggestions for me to try?

What is in it for me..

What’s in it for me?



We live in a “ME” first culture. We are told to have things “Our way” and people sing songs like “I did it my way” and we clap our hands and applaud them for doing it! Everything has become personalized and custom made. Still, this is what goes on outside of the church walls right? Wrong! Let’s take a look: Tell me if you have ever heard these comments…1. Well, that is just not what I am gifted in. 2. I don’t like this music because it is not what I was raised on. Those other people should like it and sing it because it is what brought me to Jesus. 3. Those new people are sitting in my pew! 4. It is 11:30…doesn’t the pastor know that I have to be home by noon? 5. Well, that is just the way we have done it! Anything sound familiar? There are a lot of I’s and Me’s in those comments. Lately, I have been questioning myself as to why I like more contemporary music and want to have it more in our church. If I were to just look at the other side and say that they just wanted it there way and didn’t look at myself that would be very hypocritical. So I started to question why I wanted that and seemed to NEED that in my life. Was it because I just liked it more? Was it because the other music just seemed too boring and didn’t do anything for me? I have found an answer. It came last Friday night at our District Lock-Out during the worship time.
The answer is: No. I don’t just like it better. It is not just a preference. It is just not entertaining to me. The reason that I love the choruses and the more lively music is quite simple. It makes me think of heaven. I find that contemporary praise, as opposed to hymns, helps me to focus on God and the things of God. The spirit is different. The atmosphere changes and moves from a “I feel like traveling on” to a “Here I am to worship” scene. I may be wrong. I may just have a preference like everyone else. I just know that I NEED this kind of worship. If I don’t get it, I feel like I am drying up spiritually and emotionally. I need corporate worship that is God-seeking and God-sensitive rather than self-seeking and self-sensitive. We worry so much about the congregation “liking” the worship that we forget that it is not for them. They are not the audience but so many times we treat it that way. The church is not their church, it is not my church, it is not the Wesleyan denominations church. It is God’s church and Jesus said that he would build “His” church through the disciples. Not that they would go and build their own. Often, we treat our churches like they are our own family heirlooms and antiques and they must stay the same to preserve their “glory”. However, I feel that the true glory the very presence of God has to fight his way through all of our orders of worship and plans to have the church truly be what he intended it to be.

Feb- Mar update

Hey...I haven't had much time to write new blogs over the past 3 weeks. Things are going good here in Plymouth. Since I last posted I have:


1. Went to the Big Ten Tournament and watched the Hoosiers with my brother. They lost but we had a great time. It has become a tradition over the past 3 plus years.

2. The youth group went to the District Lock-Out where my good friend, Ben Capshaw, had the message. It was a great time and there were over 360 teens at the event.

3. We had our pastoral vote yesterday and it was good so they voted for an extended call and that passed as well. So now we are just waiting on Pastor John to accept the call.

4. The youth group is going well. The church is doing ok...the contemporary service is kind of in neutral...I don't know if it is a permanent thing or not.

5. We (Sarah and I) are ready for vacation! We leave in 66 days for Mrytle Beach...I thought it was sooner... :(


Here are some pics...enjoy... The statue of Jordan in Chicago and my brother Kerry...The two of us where bowling at the District Lock-out...this was about 3-4 in the morning!

God's version of the antique roadshow...

Donald Miller writes in Searching for God knows what, “ I fell like I am in a lifeboat trying to get other people to say that I am important and valued, and even when they do, it feels as though their opinion isn’t strong enough to give me the feeling I need, the feeling that quit at the fall”.

Our value, our importance comes from God and when it doesn’t is when our self doubt and self esteem take the dive and we feel worthless. Starting out in ministry, I was concerned about people and how they perceived me. How they thought about me, do they think I am doing a good job? I kind of felt like in my mind that there was a constant evaluation of Andy going through everyone’s head. I felt only the most valued when I felt like I KNEW what people were thinking about me.
Going through school, I was never really picked on. I was high enough on the perceived social ladder, which not many people knew that I was a pk or that I lived above a church because I never gave that info out, that I was never the butt of many jokes. Sure, there was always the occasional, jello man, jelly belly, etc, but when your name is Jellison you come to expect that! Still, even today, we feel that we must always be comparing ourselves.

I do it with competition. I hate to lose and I hate when things that I am pulling for (i.e. IU basketball, Colts and the rest) do bad. My attitude is sometimes based on how they are doing. It is a constant comparison. Sarah does this when we walk through check out lines and when she is alone at home watching tv. She will look at People magazine and watch this show about this person and she will tell you she just likes seeing what other people are doing. When in reality, somewhere in the back of her mind, she is comparing herself to what she sees. You do the same thing with blogs. I can’t tell you how many times I have walked away defeated and almost depressed after going through the blogs of others. They talk about this trip or the last big thing that happened and you see the pics and, at least for me, I automatically start thinking, “Man, I wish that I could…fill in the blank with whatever you are reading”. We wish so much of our lives away because we are always comparing ourselves to others and wanting what they have. When you are young, you wish for the money and security that the older folk have. When you are old, you wish you had the looks and energy that the young kids have. The cycle never stops. It started in the garden when Adam and Eve didn’t have enough and where deceived into taking that fruit and eating it. We must get our self importance from God and God alone. Anything less, well that would be just that…less. We cannot find lasting importance in the things of this world. They are all “good for a season”. God wants us to find out what he truly meant for humanity to be IN Him. Nowhere else can we find such reassurance because there is no penalty from God for being unimportant in the world’s eyes.

80.20

Way back in the IWU days (seems like forever ago), there was a rule that I learned about in Church Leadership. It is called Pareto’s Principle or the 80/20 rule. Some of the implications for the church go like this: 80% of the work is done by 20% of the people; 80 % of the problems in the church are caused by 20% of the people and so on. I know that this is true because I see it. It is so hard for us to get people to take time from their “busy” days and invest their time into ministry. In the Barbarian Way, Erwin McManus states, “One of the tragedies of a civilized society is that no one wants to get involved. What becomes appropriate is to mind our own business. When we join a community that lacks a passionate heart for the world, we soon find ourselves acquiescing to apathy.”
People feel that there is really no need to reach out to those that are not in their “community” or what we call church.
I get drained emotionally and mentally every once in a while because I feel like a used car salesman whose income is commissioned based. I keep trying to get people to commit to whatever it is that is needed and for the most part all I get is a big fat silence. People love to give money or something else so that they don’t have to do it themselves. Just take for instance, guys with the remote. We don’t want to get up to change the channel but we will turn the house upside down looking for the remote. Churches love to give to missions and other “good causes” but when it comes to rolling their sleeves up and actually doing it, we fall short of glorifying God because we only have 20 people out of the 100 doing anything. Then, you have the reversal when you can’t make some changes because 20% are dissenting to it.
I hate trying to sell to people. I never liked fundraisers and never like asking people for money. I hate asking my family for money. I would rather go without. So sometimes, in my humanness, I try to sell, sell, sell and try to get people to change their priorities and give a little more than they have been and the same people line up to help. Christians on the whole, I believe have left their first love because their priorities have changed. I am not saying that if people aren’t in church every Sunday or Wednesday that they are backsliding. Still, John wrote to the church at Ephesus that they had walked away from their first love. I wondered if we have gotten it all wrong sometimes in the making of new programs and “outreach” events that fizzle quicker than a sparkler dud. What we need is for those who follow Christ, who say that they want to be little Christ’s, acting, speaking, listening, and DOING the things that he did, we need the Church with a capital C to being to shift our priorities and start returning to our first love.
Donald Miller writes in “Searching for God knows what”, God’s message to mankind wasn’t a bunch of hoops to run through to get saved and it wasn’t a bunch of ideas we all had to agree on. Rather, it was an invitation to KNOW GOD!” We have become so busy with life that many so called Christians don’t know God. Why? Because they don’t spend the time with Him, they don’t Do Ministry. The Bible makes no distinction between laity and ordained ministers in the amount of Ministry they are supposed to do. We are called to imitate Christ through growing fruits of love, joy, kindness, faithfulness, goodness, patience, self control etc etc etc. American Christians are so concerned about how church is ran instead of who shows up. It seems to me that sometimes we feel we are good at church and doing church but we fail at BEING the church outside the walls. God help us all, me included.

It's snowing and blowing...

Hello...

We have had a bunch of snow today...pretty much all day for that matter. So I thought I would update a little through pics from the past few months ...enjoy

1. Pic from the Youth pastor and spouse renewal weekend

2. pic of Sarah and the Pegster at the Ft. Wayne Komets game...what is Peggy looking at?

3. We had the kids make this "football" field for the SB party

4. Pic from the Gathering in Orlando...boy that sounds good about now.

5. Lex hates the cold...but I think he hates me pestering him more!

Stay classy everyone...stay classy

Super Bowl prep

DUDE...I am so ready for the SB to get here! I am tired of the build up already...all the hype etc.
I am so looking forward to the SB this year because of the Colts I can't stand it. I wish the Bears weren't the other team because of where we live. Even though this is Indiana, we are too close to Chicago that there are enough Bears fans to make it an annoyance.


Go Colts!

It's not me against the world...

I grew up in a small church. The first church that I went to averaged maybe 40-45 people. I still have memories of my dad challenging the congregation to get 100 people there on Easter and if they did, he was going to preach from the roof! Thinking back now, the challenge probably shouldn’t have been to PREACH more J. It should have been like a pie in the face or something that people WANT to have happen! Us Jellison’s are known for being long winded preachers. So we were a small, inward focused church as are many small churches. By being in such a small church something interested happened in my mind. No one said it (that I can remember) but I sure felt it. I felt it even though we would sing songs like “I don’t care what church you belong to”. I always had an “It’s us against the world” attitude and this INCLUDED other churches!
Now, being a pastor, I have come to the conclusion that this is simply not the case. There is only one enemy and that is the one who is free to roam earth tempting others to follow him: Richard Simmons! No really, the only enemy is Satan. I have come the realization that not everyone will get their needs met at my church and if they don’t get them met here, by all means get them met somewhere! I realize my generation has bought into the consumer Christian mindset as they are always thinking that they need options and choices and are looking for what best suits them as opposed to what best suits God’s plan. So this means that churches need not feel the same way that I felt as a child. If someone is getting help at your church and they are growing and are in a relationship with God, then be satisfied with that. We often get what Coach Drury said was the “Missing Duck” syndrome. We (pastors) often tend to look at those who weren’t here as opposed to was here. The illustration says that “you don’t have to get all of the ducks to have a good duck hunt!” This is plastered on my wall and is daily becoming plastered on my heart. Other churches aren’t the enemy…it is Satan and him only!

Capturing me again...

How often do we let something catch our hearts? I don’t mean catch our attention. Our attention spans are growing shorter and shorter. I mean, every time I walk past a package of Oreo’s my attention is captivated! I dream of dipping those yummy morsels of tastiness into a mug of cold milk and…you get the vision. Our attention is caught by many different things each day. Things happen like the car that slams on its brakes and doesn’t turn its turn signal on or the wife that has a huge heart and sees a dog roaming the snow covered streets with chunks of ice matted to its fur and wants you to stop so you do. Then, following her big heart, PICKS the stranger of a dog up and puts him in the truck and then the attention shifts to trying to get the now RABID, SNARLING, HALF FROZEN ANIMAL (it no longer was a dog at this point) out of the truck without getting bit and paying for a trip to the hospital for a rabies shot (TRUE STORY)! Things like that always get our attention. However, how many times do we let our hearts get caught up?
I think that God wants to do this more than we think. Growing up, adults seem to lose the wonder of it all. You have responsibilities and bills and kids and a job and insurance and on and on and you can’t AFFORD to get caught up and lose precious time. This is one of the major issues that a church has. The members are so concerned with the other things in life that on Sunday mornings they come in, sit down, expect the norm and leave. When we watch our favorite show or a game are we expecting the norm? Are we expecting the same things to happen week in and week out? Of course not! We wouldn’t watch it if it did that, we call those re-runs. So here’s my question: is God still watching our church services? Have we lost the true meaning of meeting together? Isn’t the whole meaning of coming to church to be in the presence of God? Isn’t the whole meaning to have an encounter with our creator, the one who made us and formed us before we even were out of the womb? Why is it that we close out this meeting with the hustle and bustle of life? We have chosen the wrong path and have been traveling down it for far too long. Still, because God loves us so much, he isn’t requiring us to go all the way back and start from the beginning. He just asks us to start today and every day by letting him catch our hearts and fill our lives and souls with his spirit. That is why we are to become “new creations” the old is gone, the new is here. It doesn’t say that we have become altered or renovated creatures. We are to become NEW. We get to start fresh and free from “the sin that so easily entangled us”. When was the last time you let your heart be captivated by God? The last time where you just had to stop and be in his presence? The last time you prayed and were changed, not by saying a million things or even one right thing, but by being in his presence? Start down a new road today. Let God capture your heart again!

Change change change

What I am wondering this week is:

Why is change so hard for most people? We all know that change is always happening...the seasons change, our bodies change, hair comes, weigh comes and goes, change is life. I guess how well you deal with change affects most of your life. I mean, during your pre-teen years, your body is changing and you have to deal with that. When you get into high school, your social life changes. When you get a job the level of responsibility changes. When you graduate, society expects you to change where you live, what you do with your time, etc. At college, you are expected to change a lot of things (i.e. living with someone you don't know, no one making you do anything). If you don't go to college, there is a whole other set of changes like getting a full time job and paying bills and buying your own food for instance. Then, if you get married, you DO change. The way you talk, think, act, smell :)...etc all usually change. You get married and people's expectations of you change...you start getting asked, "when are you having kids". Then you have kids and you get the point...this goes on and on until you take your last breathe. Change is a part of life. We all change everyday. So why is it so hard to change some things in churches across the nation? The only thing you get from me is a big question mark. Is it because there is change in every other part of our lives and we like "doing" church the way we have done it? Or is it because change is full of uncertainty and growing pains. Change causes us to ask many questions. Questions like, why do we need to change something if it is working? Well, you have to step back and see if it is truly working. Is Shiloh reaching out and bringing in the unchurched, the dechurched and the disenfranchized? If not, they is it (church the way we do it) really working or is it what God intended His church to be? If not, then it is time for change. Another question that comes up is, "How do you continue to minister to people who get ministered to in the way we are doing it"? The answer: You do whatever it takes to minister to as many as possible. Paul said that he became all things to all people so he could reach them for Christ! Why is it then that we stop progress and change because of the fear of hurting someones feelings or making them upset? I am not saying to ramrod and push change down people's throats. However, I am saying that if change is needed and there is a glaring need that isn't getting met and we fail to at least try and meet it, we fail to be what Jesus intended for his church and his people. Change for change sake is from man, every time. Change for reaching the lost, now that is what Jesus called us all to do!

Things that are on my heart...

Hello...last week was amazing and wonderful to get away and to be really challenged in my walk with Christ and as a pastor. I am in the bullet mood lately so I think I will stick with it:



1. Coming away from that conference, I have a sense of urgency that the church needs to change or else. Looking at all the numbers and polls et al, church in the small towns or even in the large towns that are "old fashioned" are not reaching out to the unchurched or previously churched to bring them in. They think that since that is the way that it (church) has always been done, that's how they got saved that it should be good enough for this generation. Well, it's not. Numbers don't lie. Numbers aren't everything but I think too often that the smaller churches use the mantra that it is not the numbers that matter in growth, it is spiritual growth too often. However, while the bible does talk about spiritual maturation, it also talks about growing in numbers too! We must be reaching out and bringing in the people that we are missing and walking by each and every day. It is my heart to do this however and whatever it takes to bring this to fruition at Shiloh!

2. The church is changing big time and I am not sure how many people know it! Or should I say the unchurched are changing and no one in the church knows it!

3. Can a staff pastor get a vision for a church or does it have to come from the Senior pastor?

4. I am wondering, if a pastor doesn't have a vision, how much can a church grow? How does a church grow and get behind a vision if there is no vision?

5. Why are we (Christians/pastors) so worried about feelings and hurting them? I am fed up with the direction that I have had to go because there were people who MIGHT get their feelings hurt! Is it worth it to NOT follow what God has placed on your heart just so that a few won't get their feelings hurt?

6. The church is not called to maintain...it is not called to be a country club where we (pastors) are having activities and "entertainment" for the guests! We (the church) are one body, including myself...we are one body...one spirit...one purpose...or we are supposed to be. God has called us to reach out and make contact with those who are disillusioned with life and the church, those who are hurting and aren't getting their needs met somewhere else! Christ said go and make disciples not go and get some people who are like you, start a church, build all these traditions and waver not! However, many Christians have changed the great commission to this.

7. Music is BIG for reaching my generation and the generations to come. You don't need a slick service, you need some songs that touch their hearts and mean something to them in a genre of music that they actually would listen to outside of the church. At least this is my opinion.

8. I need to pray more. Not the "on-the-go" prayer but rather the get away and do nothing but seek God's face kind of prayer.

9. I need to reach out more to the fringe kids we have. Go to them and befriend them and make them feel a part of our ministry.

10. Finally, I plan on writing a blog every thursday. Other blogs will be extra but I want to try and write something...every thursday...


God, challenge me, change me, move me...just don't let me leave the same!