Goddard Daughter Church

My goodness. When I came on board here in Wichita nearly 10 months ago, it seemed like ages until this church would daugther it's first church. There was no daughter church pastor. There were no hard plans or dates in motion. There was only a dream. There was a stirring happening among the people where the people were getting on their knees and absolutely crying out to God and asking him to raise up a leader to take people from West E. Free and transplant them to Goddard. It's a hard idea to take 20 percent of the folks that are part of the local body of Christ here and say that they are no longer part of this local body but that they are creating a new local body. It does interesting things to a church logistically, but I believe that it is a healthy way to reach the county for Jesus Christ. We will never be a humongous church which is good, because I don't know that we have the capacity to be a huge size. My prayer is that we are an equipping/sending church. As we begin to daughter more churches, my mindset has to be that we are equipping not just adults to leave, but students and kids to leave and serve and lead also. Students will be influential in church plants because there is so much that can be done as they begin to serve the local body of Christ. When I was in High School, my family began attending Grace E. Free Church in Huxley, Iowa. I loved the church. It was small and we knew everyone, but it gave me the opportunity to serve and use the untested gifts that God had given me. I'm excited for our students that are here to be able to do this in the churches that they will be sent to. God has given them an incredible opportunity and I would love for them to see that.

We daugther our first church in 9 days. Unbelievable. I feel so ignorant of the process. I feel fairly worthless in the equipping of the people being sent this time. God, give me a process and strategy and mindset of equipping and sending people to reach our county for YOU!

Glimpses of the Kingdom?

Shane Claiborne has challenged me before and continues to do so through this video. (I disagree with Shane in some ways, but I am still challenged by his message.) He talks about this idea of the Kingdom of God. He says that Jesus "turned his world upside down." I desire that Jesus does that to me, that I would radically follow him and be willing to engage with people that are less than cleaned up. I want to reach neighbors that I have for Christ. I want to be able to reach out and bring the message of the gospel, the truth, that absolutely changes lives.

God, help me to do this in unbelievable ways.

Teaching and Learning...

I took a class in college called Teaching and Learning strategies. I remember learning that there are all kinds of learning techniques and personalities and if that is true, then we have to have many teaching strategies.

As I teach week in and week out, I am well aware that I am only reaching a piece of the pie as I speak. Reality is that God created me in a certain way, and while I can continue to sharpen my skills to become the best teacher that I can be, I am made to teach to a certain personality.

I'm excited to continue teaching. I enjoy teaching and seeing people get it. It's fun to get it myself and own the material that I am presenting. I don't know if I would be a good grammar teacher or a math teacher (although I admire those that do) because I don't know that I would own the material as much as I own and try to live out the scripture that I am working to teach through each week. Sometimes, it is hard to get up and speak on a topic or passage because I have not begun to live out what that passage means. I have not begun to understand what the principle is that I am trying to drive home. I would love to say that I understand and live out each principle that I teach but the more that I study scripture, the more that I realize I don't know. Interesting paradox.

By the way, I am teaching on worship for the next 6 weeks. I am learning and being stretched in this area!