How would $100,000 change your ministry?

If you were personally given $100,000 to reach people with the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ, how would you invest that money in the souls of others?  Please post a comment.  I'll even turn off the moderation option for quicker posting.  Just don't get too crazy on me.

What's he reading? How's he working out?

OK, going backwards from last night, here are my most recent reads:

The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
OK.  So it really shouldn't take 200+ pages to talk about the six baby-steps, yet the behaviors he seeks to modify are so ingrained in each of us that he uses a lot of ink to indoctrinate or initiate us newbies to his system.  Simple concepts, hard to do if you aren't used to self discipline.  I'm excited, yet scared at the same time.  Dave's folksy ways, however, keep it light and entertaining.  I'm anxious to see how the video lessons tie in and how they might motivate us to stick with it so that we can be relieved of some financial burden in our lives.

Leadership Coaching: The Disciplines, Skills and Heart f a Christian Coach by Tony Stoltzfus.  300 pages
I read this in about three evenings.  I couldn't put it down.  Based upon the premise that since each of us called by God into ministry of some sort or another, and that, at our baptisms, promises to give us the tools and gifts needed to accomplish that call, it therefor stands to reason that the only reason we as individuals don't fulfill that calling must be that something gets in the way.  Christian coaching is one way a brother or sister in the faith can help another figure out and get past the roadblocks that keep us from fully living out our vocations as God intended.  A must read for anyone who leads or influences another.

Inferno by Dante.
Actually, I haven't quite finished it yet.  But, if you've ever read 13th century Italian epic poetry you can understand why.  While the cover says that the edition I'm reading is the best English translation to date (with the original Italian on the facing page), It still takes me 15 or 20 minutes to get into the meter and overall scheme of it each time I pick it up again.  If your read it I highly recommend reading the end-notes for each chapter at the end of the book.  Those of you who are history buffs will especially appreciate the background on all the names of his contemporaries he has consigned to Hell in this timeless classic.

Speaking of Dante's Inferno, I thought of this book last night at the pool.  Whaaaaa????  Let me explain...
Every Monday and Wednesday evening Blackbob Bay kicks the kiddos out of the "Lazy River" from 7-8PM (last hour of operation).  At that time the adults get in and then simultaneously walk around the loop in the same direction.  Then, when the current created by the 100 or so "walkers" is sufficient enough to nearly carry one off their feet if they aren't careful, the lifeguards yell "ROTATE!" and all 100 or so walkers stop in their tracks, turn around and walk-up current until the current switches direction and once again gets too fast to walk with at which time the lifeguards will again yell "ROTATE!"

Now, the first few rotations are no problem.  You feel the water rushing, you are amazed that simple foot traffic can actually make the current go counter to what the pumps are normally accomplishing when there are rafts in the water and you can't believe the sight of all these people from the waist up bobbing up and down as they walk (or run) against the current.  But after 20 or 30 minutes you really start to feel it in your legs.  For me it was the hips and knees in particular.  Add to those images and sensations the fact that it was still 102 degrees when we got there last night and, due to our 3 week heat wave, the pool was warmer than my shower at home, and you kind of get the idea of what Dante was trying to describe in Inferno: an endless drudgery with no relief from the heat, toil, or anguish.  But, before we knew it, it was 8PM and it was time to slog our way home.  Not an option in Inferno.

I hope my back starts to feel better by the end of the day (who would have thought that that's where I would be sore?)

How do we keep 20 somthings in the church? Please comment!

The following was included in an e-mail from our church body today.  What are your thoughts?

FINAL THOUGHTS . . . Seems like every day there are new numbers to ponder as we consider how to respond to the challenges of youth and young adult ministry. And, it's really not a pretty picture. In the book, Already Gone: Why Your Kids Will Quit Church and What You Can Do to Stop It, the authors note George Barna's finding that "six out of ten 20-somethings who were involved in a church during their teen years are already gone." They note that nearly 50% of teens in the U.S. regularly attend church - related services or activities. More then three-quarters talk about their faith with their friends. Three out of five attend a least one youth group meeting at a church during a three month period and one-third participate in Christian clubs at school. Yet, most disengage from active participation in the Christian faith after high school. Youth and Young Adult Ministry simply present a huge challenge to the church. What are we doing for them? What do we have that will keep them engaged? How are we encouraging them in the faith? What are we doing to support them? What do we offer that would attract them to our Gospel message? Sometimes we seem to simply assume that they'll be back when they get married and have children. While that might have been true in the 50's and 60's (last century) it's no longer true when young adults marry and have their children in their mid-to-late 30's. The fastest growing segment of church programming is for Baby Boomers and older adults. I'm thinking we need to seriously rethink that and recommit to ministry with children, youth and young adults. To quote my favorite words from C.F.W. Walther, "You cannot use your time to better advantage than by serving well the young people of the congregation." Perhaps those words, said more than 100 years ago, need to guide our efforts today.

Encouraging Words--favorite Bible verses

I've been trying to catch up this morning on a daily e-mail devotion our church subscribes to. It's called "e-dibs" (electronic daily bible study). Each one only takes about 8 minutes which is just about the right amount of time for me to take a nugget of scripture and ruminate on it for a while.

Right now Pastor Paul is walking us through 1 Timothy. I'm caught up through Sept. 10th as of this AM and have been blessed by the encouragement that Paul gives to Timothy. I too have had a tough few weeks and so this study comes at just the right time in my life.

My question to you all is this: What scripture verses pick you up or encourage you when you are at a crossroads? What word or words from God do you hang your hat on when you are contemplating the next big crisis in your life?

That's all for now. I hope to post yesterday's sermon tonight. Some thought it was profitable for hearing. Maybe for reading as well.

To Blog or Not to Blog that is the question!

Ok, so it seems that everyone who is cool, hip, and with it has one of these blog things. Is it a necessary thing to do if one is to be taken seriously in accademia, or is it just becuase its a neat thing to do?

I wondered what the whole facination was with facebook, then, when my daughter turned 14 and wanted her own page, I signed up so I could keep tabs on her. Well, its one year later, and lets just say I know way too much about my high school classmates and they of me, now that I have over 250 "friends" and 38 people in my mafia family. My FriendsWheel takes forever to draw now.

I'm thinking, however that this could be a great source for sermon fodder, ministry ideas, or just plain, cathartic, venting.

Until I figure out how this works, this will have to be the extent of my first blog.