Valeria and I took our children out to play in the snow. Tom Wallace park in Jefferson Memorial Forest (The lake in the background was frozen over. We were able to walk out on it.) located right here in Fairdale is an awesome place to go sledding. As these videos show, They loved it!

 

Here is JJ going down the big hill. (Notice that he clips Eli at the bottom!)

Here is Eli going down the big hill. I think he went the farthest!

Here is Noah going down the big hill. (I am proud of him. He recently turned 3 years old, and he was brave to go.)

And here is JJ & Eli going together! Two brothers who are the best of friends. They started spinning toward the bottom!

We had so much fun! I also was able to take our little girl, Carolina, down with me one time. She was smiling so big!

Sunday I preached our 2nd sermon in the series through Exodus. You can listen to that sermon here.

It was on the blessing of God in oppression.

Here is a fantastic quote from Douglas Stuart that I referenced in the sermon:

“In a fallen world, the blessings of God are often so in conflict with the prevailing corrupt values of this world’s culture that they function as a threat to those who are not aligned with God’s will. The parade example of this phenomenon is the rejection of Jesus. He was the purest example of good that the world has seen, and yet God could send him to earth with the certain knowledge that he would be put to death by people who thought they were doing the world a favor.”

A few months back, I was interviewed about what advice I would give to a new younger pastor who is beginning to lead at an older established church. (I enjoyed this assignment because it deals with real life.)

They specifically asked me to give 5 steps that I would take. (For the record, this situation is what I went through in becoming the Pastor at FBC Fairdale.  I have been on staff at this church since 2003, and I have been the Lead Pastor since 2009.) Here they are:

1. See John 13:16 – Servant! I determined from day 1 to make myself approachable. I wanted everyone to know I am here for them. Literally. I am not too strict, too harsh, too cool, too poor, too godly, too wealthy, too smart, too fancy, nothing. I want all people to feel good about approaching me about anything. Whether that be to ask for a favor, or help, or money, or prayer, or to make a suggestion or complaint.  Focusing on being approachable sets the tone for good honest relationships that will last for a long time.
2. See 2 Timothy 3:16 – God’s Word! Establish right away that the Word of God is the authority. Not the preacher. (We aren’t Catholic. Or over-religious) God speaks and we listen. Thats it. Make sure everyone knows that. If you get mad over a Biblical issue, it cannot be mad at the preacher because the Bible says it. That foundational truth will solve so many headaches. No telling how many people have been shut-up or forced to stay silent because they knew they couldn’t argue with God.
3. See Acts 20:35 – Hard Work! I knew right away that people are impressed with work ethic. (Even the word “ethic” is a spiritual word, I bet you have never thought of that in that way before. haha.) So I am quick to take out the trash or mow the grass or dig ditches, etc. I am amazed that Paul makes this comment in this verse as his goodbye to Ephesus. So many ministers get a bad knock or reputation for being lazy, or playing golf, or not knowing how to do much else. Whether that is right or not doesnt matter. The blue collar men are drawn to hard workers. Hard work pays off. Colossians 3:23
4. See Hebrews 13:17 – Shepherd! I determined right away that I would KNOW our people. The Spirit will not let me be fine with having sheep that I do not know on a personal level. So In my first year, I arranged to have a sit down meeting with everyone in the church. We devoted Tuesdays to this. Our church secretary would schedule me meetings with everybody in the church. One family, couple or individual at a time. We discussed salvation, church involvement, and gifts. It was awesome. You cannot disciple anyone at all, no one, if you do not know them on a personal level. Shepherd!
5. See Luke 10:2 – Prayer! I established right away that we would pray a lot. I set a goal of 2 hours a week of church prayer time. 30 minutes sunday mornings at 9am. 30 minutes on Wednesday nights. 20 minutes on Sunday nights. And lots of other smaller pieces in other parts. We turned Wednesday night’s Bible study into a prayer focus. We cannot do this work without prayer. True religion is Spiritual. The Spirit must do it. We know that. And we don’t at all want to try and make it happen on our own. Thats worthless! So we pray.