Today's Prayer

Dear God, I may not have excellent speech or be as educated or wise as some people, but this one thing I know, that Jesus Christ gave Himself as a sacrifice for my sin and has risen to sit at Your right hand, so that I may receive Your forgiveness, a new life, and eternal life with You.

Though I may be weak and fearful at times, I can be strong through the power of Your Spirit. God, please speak through me and live through me that I might touch the lives and hearts of the people I come in contact with each day.

May You be glorified.

In Jesus' name, amen.

Pastoring Is Not Easy

Here are some stats why:

- 50% of pastors’ marriages will end in divorce
- 80% of seminary graduates will leave ministry in the first 5 years
- 70% of pastors are grossly underpaid (compared to the amount of work they do)
- 80% of pastors’ spouses believe their spouse is overworked
- 50% of pastors feel unable to meet the needs of the job
- 80% of pastors say they have insufficient time with their family
- 56% of pastors’ spouses have no close friends
- 80% of pastors’ kids seek professional help for depression
- 80% of pastors feel unqualified and discouraged in their role as pastors

Here are some more stats:

- 50% of pastors are so discouraged they would leave the ministry if they could, but have no other way of making a living.
- 85% of pastors said their greatest problem is they are sick and tired of dealing with problem people.
- 90% of pastors said the hardest thing about ministry is dealing with uncooperative people.
- 95% of pastors do not regularly pray with their spouses.
- 70% of pastors do not have a close friend, confidant or mentor.
- 66% of pastors and their families feel pressure to model the ideal family to their congregations and communities.

- 5 years - the average tenure of a pastor at a church.
- 1500 pastors leave ministry each month due to moral failure, burnout or contention in their churches.
- Pastors who work fewer than 50 hours a week are 35% more likely to be terminated.
- The average church member expects the pastor to be able to juggle 16 major tasks.
- Approximately 4,000 new churches begin each year while more than 7,000 churches close down each year.

Pastors are the unsung heroes of the Church. If someone does not care for pastors, they will disappear.

Please honor and pray for your pastor.

[From Ministry Best Practices by Bill Reichart]

Why People Leave The Church

Church hopping is not good. People need to learn commitment, dedication, and submission. I deeply believe in the value of staying in the church that God plants you in rather than just leaving as soon as you get offended.

That said, if church members are leaving (or ministers), somebody needs to ask why? Exit interviews are indispensable.

Here are some of the reasons I hear from people leaving:

Everything was mediocre. Mediocrity has been too prevalent in the church today. Be it marketing, music, teaching, evangelism or anything else, it should be excellent. Just a few hundred years ago the greatest music, paintings, literature, etc. were glorifying God. It offends me that the word "Christian" is used as an adjective that is synonymous with mediocre by some non-Christians. It should not be.

The place was full of strife. The Bible has some very strong things to say about strife and it also says that they will know that we are Christians by the love that we have for one another (John 13:35).

Back-biting, selfish-ambition and gossip are things that I expect to see on a soap-opera, not in the church. I realize that people are not perfect and that everyone makes a mistake, but when I see strife as a defining characteristic of a church it makes me want to look elsewhere.

There was an unwillingness to adapt. Paul became all things to all people in order that he could win them. I am reminded of a church near me that built a state-of-the-art skate park in order to give a young and notoriously rebellious generation a place to skate -- all in order to win them to Jesus.

Another church I know of created a haunted house to compete with all the others during the Halloween season. The house shows the scariest thing -- hell. It then shows the visitors Jesus and why he died. It is top-notch and thousands of people wait in line for hours each year to get in.

They tickled the ears of the congregation. There are a lot of people who do not want to be challenged in their faith walk. They want what they believe preached to them, rather than having the truth preached to them. It is easy for churches to get caught up in just trying to keep the congregation happy rather than speaking the truth of the Bible.

The real truth is that churches like this are doing a tremendous disservice to the kingdom of God and to the congregants themselves. The congregants who refuse to grow end up hanging around, while the hungry Christians take off to some place where they can have the unfiltered truth spoken to them.

It is not led with passion. I want to follow a leader who believes what he is saying. Someone who is not just speaking words that he read, but rather speaking with truths that have changed his life and the corresponding passion that follows.

It is impossible for someone to truly be passionate about something that they are not sure about. I want to follow a leader who has seen God work in his life and who has seen the Word change him in real and practical ways.

Final thoughts

There is a new breed that is rebelling against the self-satisfying lifestyles they see all around them. They are eager to be challenged and are willing to lay down their lives for the call. This provides a great opportunity for churches to step up and create a church they want to go to.

[By Bob Lotich at Church Marketing]

Is Sarah Palin Pentecostal?

Sarah Palin has said she was baptized in the Roman Catholic church. As a teenager, she began attending the Pentecostal Assemblies of God church in Wasilla and was baptized there by the founding pastor, Paul Riley. Todd Stafford, an associate pastor at Wasilla Assembly of God, says Palin often publicly thanks Riley -- now nearly 80 and still working as a prison chaplain -- for bringing her to Jesus when she visits the church. She attended that Pentecostal church until she was 38 years old, when she switched to Wasilla Bible Church, saying she preferred the children's ministries there.


Pentecostalism is one of the fastest growing branches of Christianity in the world, and the Assemblies of God is one of the largest Pentecostal denominations in the country, claiming 1.6 million members. Pentecostals are generally characterized by a strict adherence to moral codes -- no tobacco, no alcohol, no social dancing, no sex outside of marriage -- and by their belief that the Holy Spirit bestows upon some the gift of "speaking in tongues," a reference to Acts 2: "And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues."

However, a spokeswoman for the McCain-Palin campaign has said that Palin attends many churches and does not consider herself to be Pentecostal.

This past Sunday, worship at the Assembly of God fellowship in Wasilla was as euphoric as the Bible Church was staid. The congregation of about 100 was on its feet, shouting and clapping. Some members on another Sunday might murmur and keen in low voices, the sound of speaking in tongues. But the purpose of the sermon this Sunday was to prepare the church for the media onslaught that was sure to follow. "Because Jesus Christ died on the cross," the senior pastor, Ed Kalnins, told the crowd, "we can worship in public. How many people are thanking God for what's happening to Governor Sarah?"

Kalnins guessed that about half of the people in his church have the gift of tongues. He has it himself, he says, though he rarely demonstrates it. "It's not meant to be shown off," he said. "It's not like flexing muscles. I received the gift in college, and it transformed my life." It's not something like from the "remote parts of the jungle," he adds: It's a decision.

And if the staff of Wasilla Bible Church shies from taking political stands, Kalnins does not. Homosexuality, he says, is a choice. He would not vote for a pro-choice candidate. When asked about the evolution-creationism debate, Kalnins is clear: "You present the facts of creation versus evolution and the truth will come out," he says. What does Palin think? "This is something inside every human heart of a believer," he answers.

When Palin worships in Juneau, she attends an Assembly of God church there.

Will this become a political issue? How will Pentecostalism stand up to this?

Today's Quote

"A schedule protects from chaos and whim."

-Annie Dillard

Leading Like Jesus for a Change

Jesus lived and walked in a very different world from the 21st century context of our day, yet He was able to implement profound systemic changes in His world.

Understanding His world enables us to more fully understand the context of His leadership and to better apply these principles to our own leadership realities.

This article briefly examines the context of Jesus’ leadership and looks at how He responded to these realities by initiating systemic change. It offers timeless leadership principles for contemporary leaders.

More …

Today's Prayer

Dear God, I don't want to labor against you by my own self-efforts. I want to totally depend on you.

Please increase my faith. Forgive my unbelief. James (1:5) tells me that if I lack wisdom, let me ask of you -- God that gives to all people liberally -- and it will be given to me. Lord, give me wisdom and grace and strong faith.

I pray for my friends who need your peace and power in their lives. Please reach down and lift them up by the power of Your Holy Spirit; draw them unto you; change their lives for their good and Your glory.

These things I ask with a loving heart. In the name of Jesus, amen.

New Leadership Books

Here is a list of some of the best leadership books to be released in September.

- A Sense of Urgency by John P. Kotter

- The Encore Effect: How to Achieve Remarkable Performance in Anything You Do by Mark Sanborn

- The Spider's Strategy: Creating Networks to Avert Crisis, Create Change, and Really Get Ahead by Amit S. Mukherjee

- On Leadership: Essential Principles for Success by Donald J. Palmisano

- The Truth About You: Your Secret to Success by Marcus Buckingham

Labor Day

Labor Day is a United States federal holiday observed on the first Monday in September. The holiday originated in 1882 as the Central Labor Union (of New York City) sought to create "a day off for the working citizens."

Congress made Labor Day a federal holiday in 1894. All fifty states have made Labor Day a state holiday.

Traditionally, Labor Day is celebrated by most Americans as the symbolic end of the summer.

Labor Day has been celebrated on the first Monday in September in the United States since the 1880s. The form for the celebration of Labor Day was outlined in the first proposal of the holiday — a street parade to exhibit to the public "the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations," followed by a festival for the workers and their families. This became the pattern for Labor Day celebrations. Speeches by prominent men and women were introduced later, as more emphasis was placed upon the economic and civil significance of the holiday. Still later, by a resolution of the American Federation of Labor convention of 1909, the Sunday preceding Labor Day was adopted as Labor Sunday and dedicated to the spiritual and educational aspects of the labor movement.

Today, Labor Day is often regarded as a day of rest and parades, speeches or political demonstrations are more low-key than May 1 Labour Day celebrations in most countries, although events held by labor organizations often feature political themes and appearances by candidates for office, especially in election years. Forms of celebration include picnics, barbecues, fireworks displays, water sports, and public art events. Families with school-age children take it as the last chance to travel before the end of summer. Some teenagers and young adults view it as the last weekend for parties before returning to school. However, as of late, schools have begun well before Labor Day, as early as July 24th in many urban districts, including major southern cities in the United States such as Atlanta, Miami, and Los Angeles.

In addition, Labor Day marks the beginning of the season for the National Football League and NCAA College Football. The NCAA usually plays their first games the week before Labor day, with the NFL traditionally playing their first game the Thursday following Labor Day.

Bonita

http://www.bonitaeileen.com/

Dead Sea Scrolls Come To Internet

The deteriorating and much sought-after Dead Sea scrolls are being digitalized and will be made available to the public and researchers on the Internet, Israel authorities announced this past week.

Israel Antiquities Authority, the keeper of the scrolls, said it has begun the two-year process to digitally photograph every fragment of the more than 2,000-year-old ancient text.

High-tech digital technology will not only help preserve the manuscripts and make it available to a wider audience, but will also help reveal text that is not visible to the naked eye.

"Just by applying the latest infrared technologies and shooting at very high detail, lots of resolution, we are already opening up new characters from the scrolls that are either extremely indistinct or you just couldn't see them before," said Simon Tanner, director of King's Digital Consultancy Services, according to CNN.

Tanner is on the team in charge of the digital project, which includes Greg Bearman – a retired scientist with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Bearman pioneered archaeological digital imaging.

"To switch over to digital is really the way to go, and people were resistant to it initially, because it was a new way of doing stuff," Bearman said. "They want their light table and their magnifying glass."

But with digital imaging, he said, "You can see where the ink has broken away and you can see the texture of the animal skin, so you can see more detail than you can see with the naked eye."

The Dead Sea Scrolls are the oldest written record of the Bible’s Old Testament found to date, and include texts that reveal the life of early Christians in the Holy land.

Some were initially discovered in 1947 by a Bedouin shepherd in a cave in the Judean Desert while searching for a lost sheep or goat. The scrolls were found wrapped in linen inside earthenware jars. More scrolls were then found in 11 caves.

"They show the connection between Christianity, Judaism and how everything evolved from the God - the God is one God," said Shor, head of treatment and conservation at the Antiquities Authority. "The scrolls are meant to bring us all together."

The scrolls have only once been photographed in the 1950s, but some of the images have disintegrated, the Antiquity Authority informed.

In the past, people complained that only a handful of scholars could examine the scrolls. Now, Shor says that the digitalized scrolls can be available in its entirety online to everyone.

“The Bible is sacred to us and to you and to all the monotheistic religions, and therefore [the scrolls] are national treasures and world treasures, and therefore it is our duty to preserve them at least for 2,000 years more,” she said.

[By Ethan Cole - Christian Post Reporter]

Make Your Meetings More Productive

Making meetings more productive and effective is a lot easier than one might think. Here are some ways to get the most of out of your meetings ...

1. Have an agenda:

The worst thing you can do is set up a meeting with the intention of just getting people together to talk. I know whenever I’m in a meeting and the facilitator (or person who set up the meeting) begins with “I set this up so we could all get in the same room and talk about XYZ,” that I should take Mrs. Gump’s advice and run like the wind.

Before inviting people to any meeting, make sure you have a list of goals or outcomes that you expect from the meeting (which may or may not choose to share with the group). Have a list of topics to cover and estimate how much time you should spend on each topic.

2. If you can accomplish your goals with an email or memo, then don’t have the meeting:

Some people like to have meetings for the sake of having meetings - I personally think they feel some sort of power by being able to drag people together. Avoid this temptation because the meeting itself, along with all the preparation work, takes valuable time away from more productive tasks for both you and the meeting invitees.

3. Only invite people that need to be there:

Sometimes we feel the need to bring everyone remotely related to the topic of discussion to a meeting which results in most of the people in the room twiddling their thumbs while they await the 5% of the discussion that pertains to them. If someone only needs to be part of 25% of the discussion or less, either speak with them before the meeting so they don’t have to take time out of their busy day to attend or go over their part during the beginning of the meeting. If you find that there are several people that have just a little to contribute to the meeting, you may be better off having a quick conversation and sending out an email with what you’ve learned from your conversation as opposed to having the meeting.

Also, if someone has nothing to contribute to what will be discussed in the meeting (or no interest in what’s being discussed), then don’t invite them. Many people invite their bosses or upper management just for the sake of keeping them in the loop. Bringing in people with nothing to contribute may cause them to ask questions for the sake of looking like they’re participating.

4. Limit the meeting to 30 minutes:

You tend to lose people’s attention after 30 minutes so your most productive time will be the first half hour. If you find that you need more than thirty minutes to cover everything on your agenda, then consider having more than one meeting. There are always exceptions, but keep in mind that agendas tend to stretch to fit the time allotted to them. So having a shorter meeting will encourage everyone to stay focused and discourage non-topic related discussions.

5. Take discussions that are of interest to only a few participants offline:

The telltale sign of this is when only two or three participants are involved in the discussion and everyone else is zoning out. If it’s not of interest to the majority of attendees, then take it offline.

6. Don’t allow tangents to last more than a minute:

Tangents happen at practically all meetings - we’re social creatures and need that bonding.

Instead of cutting off all tangents immediately (which may negatively affect the mood of the meeting), interject your thoughts about the tangent and then say something like “but, anyway” and bring the focus back to the topic.

7. Start and finish on-time:

When you invite people to the meeting, explain that you have a limited amount of time so you’ll be starting promptly at whatever time you specified. People will still come in late but will eventually learn that you start and finish on time.

And a bonus tip: don’t divert from your agenda just to catch people up as that will encourage the behavior - tell them you’d be glad to do so after the meeting.

Also, allot time to each item on your agenda and stick with it. It’s especially effective if you have a printed agenda with the allotted time for each item on it.

8. Bring a few extra copies of printed materials:

It’s not uncommon for uninvited guests to show up, especially in a corporate setting where managers may bring people from their teams that they feel could benefit from attending. So instead of having to run out to the copier (or making attendees share), bring a few extra copies which you can always recycle if no one needs them.

9. Get to the meeting location early:

Depending on your situation, your setup time will vary. You’ll want at least 30 minutes if you need to set up a projector or rearrange the room’s set up. You’ll need at least five minutes to organize handouts, makes notes on a white board or put the place back together if another meeting was scheduled in the room before yours.

10. Anticipate questions and discussions as part of your meeting prep:

Preparing well for a meeting (which is a topic in itself) can make things go smoothly. It’s vital that you anticipate questions and discussion points so you can prepare your responses. You can also bring any notes or supporting materials so you can show attendees instead of having to describe it.

[Overnight Sensation]

Today's Prayer

Lord, I commit my works unto you, and ask you to establish my thoughts and direct my steps. Let my heart beat with your desires. Deliver me from all wrongdoing and fleshly desires. Keep me under your faithful, loving, and warm wings of love. I praise you, Father, Savior, Deliverer. In Jesus' name.

McCain's VP Choice Reassures Evangelicals

John McCain's running mate was raised in a Pentecostal church (Assemblies of God), has called herself "as pro-life as any candidate can be" and already has energized conservative religious leaders who worried the Arizona senator would choose an abortion rights supporter.

Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is "straight out of veep central casting," said Richard Land of the Southern Baptist Convention's Ethics and Religion Liberties Commission. Land said he urged the McCain camp to consider the political unknown.

Gary Bauer, one of McCain's most enthusiastic evangelical supporters, called it a "grand slam home run" that is "guaranteed to energize values voters."

The 44-year-old mother of five, who led her high school chapter of the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, was baptized as a teenager at the Wasilla Assembly of God Church, where she and her family were very active, according to her then-pastor, Paul Riley.

Now, she sometimes worships at the Juneau Christian Center, which is also part of the Pentecostal Assemblies of God, said Brad Kesler, business administrator of the denomination's Alaska District. But her home church is The Church on the Rock, an independent congregation, Riley said.

"The church was kind of a foundation for her," said Riley, who said he gave the invocation at Palin's inauguration and had her address students at the church last month.

Palin and her family have gone the way of so many Christians in North America, moving from the denominational church to the independent Pentecostal congregation.

However, Maria Comella, a spokeswoman for the McCain-Palin campaign, said "Palin attends different churches and does not consider herself Pentecostal."

Is the campaign trying to avoid liberal anti-pentecostal attacks?

As a politician, Palin has sided with the majority evangelical view in opposing gay marriage and expressing a desire to see creationism discussed alongside evolution in schools.

"It's an absolutely brilliant choice," said Mathew Staver, dean of Liberty University School of Law. "This will absolutely energize McCain's campaign and energize conservatives."

[AP Religion Writer Rachel Zoll contributed to this report.]

On the problem of cutting: The secret under the sleeve

Writer Amy Sondova, a former student and now friend of mine, has expertise in many areas including the problem of cutting. Playing on my friendship with her I asked if she would write here just a little on the topic. Here’s what she wrote (following her bio):

Who is Amy? Amy Sondova is a writer specializing in media writing, including interviews and reviews, as well as blogging. Having interviewed over 30 of the top musicians, writers, and speakers in the Christian media, Amy has also written countless columns, reviews, and articles on various topics including mental illness, self-injury, working with teenagers, and Christianity. As well as holding a B.A. in communications, Amy holds a M.A. in biblical counseling, and has worked as a professional therapist. You can visit Amy’s blog at amysondova.com or check out her online e-zine, BackseatWriter.com, a faith-based site focusing on God, culture, music, mental health, and photography.

She’s a cutter — one of the many in a growing community of self-mutilators who wear their pain, anger, and frustration by cutting various parts of their bodies with sharp objects. You would not know she’s a cutter to look at her; she smiles broadly, perhaps a little too broadly at times. She seems normal if not a little melancholy. But look in her eyes and then you will see her torment. You can always tell a cutter by the lack of luster in her eyes.

Cutting is a form of self-injury – the act of purposely injuring oneself using a sharp object such as a razor, scissors, knife, etc. In addition to cutting, self-injury also includes carving, scratching, branding, marking, picking and pulling skin and hair, burns or abrasions, biting, and head banging. Most self-mutilators are between the ages of 11 to 30 and 97% are female.

Not only is cutting a stress relieving coping mechanism, but the physical pain creates a sense of livelihood, and most times physical pain is dull compared to the piercing pain in her soul. No one can see her inner turmoil, so she has transformed her emotions onto her flesh to make you and everyone else understand that she is hurting.

Cutting is not usually an act of suicide. One cutter wrote on her website, “I don’t want to die. I self-injure to stay alive, to deal with the unbearable. If I wanted to die, then I wouldn’t be here now” (Secret Shame, 2004.)

Along with sexual and other types of abuse, there are several mental disorders associated with self-injurious behavior, which include borderline personality disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, clinical depression, bipolar disorder, and multiple personality disorder. Remember, even if an individual suffers from a mental illness along with her cutting, she is more than her diagnosis. She is human being created in the image of God.

The only hope for a cutter lies in God because no one can ever understand the pain except for Him. He sees the inner torments and can provide relief. There is no hope attached to the end of the razor blade … only the manifestation of a tortured soul. Self-mutilation is still taboo in many churches today, but as their forms fill our pristine halls, the church cannot cover its eyes any longer. We must be prepared to minister to what many are calling “the new anorexia” before a generation mutilates itself beyond recognition.

[Dr. Phil Monroe]