Preston Mitchell's Blog

Gut Check Time

    Discernment is one of the greatest weapons given to pastors by the Holy Spirit.  In Psalm 139, God has the characteristic of discernment.  In Philippians 1, Paul writes that all believers gain discernment as their love, knowledge and insight grow.  My opinion is that when God calls someone into the pastorate, the gift of discernment is stronger than in other believers. Over the years, I've met a lot of pastors who lack discernment, so have they really been called?  Only God knows, but it is very difficult to be the leader of a local church without it.  

    The great pastors I have had the opportunity to meet and talk to have the innate ability to discern God's direction in choosing leaders, approving budgets, planning series, picking service times, changing service times, buying/leasing a building and everything else that happens in day to day ministry.  That's why senior pastors are recognized as the "called out one" in a local church.  They also must stand before God and give an account of their days on earth.  That's why I believe they have a special calling that no one else has in that church.  They are different.  God has touched them to serve in a specific place in the Kingdom.

    The success/failure of a church is directly related to the discernment a sr. pastor has.  If the leader/sr. pastor does not have discernment, or his/her discernment hasn't grown with time and spiritual maturity, the church will struggle.  Pastors who have discernment avoid a lot of the pitfalls that can stop momentum.  Paul says in Philippians 1 that to expand discernment, we have to expand our love of Jesus and expand our minds in knowledge and depth of insight.

    I encourage pastors to trust the "check" in their spirit when faced with a decision.  Listen to the Spirt of God and He will give you the answers needed to accomplish leading a house of believers.  When you get the check, stop immediately and back up.  It may be a decision to buy a building, or start a satellite campus or release an employee.  Stop, listen and then decide confidently with the power of spiritual discernment.  That's why I think it is ridiculous for a group of people to make decisions in the local church.  They do not possess this special pastoral gift from God.  They may have discernment, but theirs does not super-cede the sr. pastor's discernment concerning the local church.  In the Bible, God talked to "the ONE called out,"  Noah, Moses, Joshua, Abraham, David, etc.  He did not speak to boards, committees, and deacons,

  Sometimes discernment is called "gut feeling" or "gut check time."  Pastors, go with your gut feeling!  It has been given to you by God Almighty to lead His people in this world.

    Before I close, I want to give a shout out to Brazos Fellowship.  They are located in College Station, TX as a church plant 5 years ago.  This year, they increased attendance by 30% and giving by 34%.  They are about ready to crash the 1,000 barrier by this spring.  Isn't that great!  They have some difficult decisions to make about moving the church to accommodate the growth.  Pray for them now if you can.  Lift up Pastor Will Lewis and his staff in your prayers!

    This may be my last blog for 2010, unless I discern I need to do another one!  I pray that each of you has a Merry Christmas!  I will be praying for you, your churches, your families during this season.  Thank you for reading my wandering words.  God Bless!

Seeking the Kingdom

    I talked to a guy this weekend whose life was a total wreck.  He couldn't figure out why so many bad things were happing to him.  He lost his job, his girlfriend dumped him, he had no friends, no money and no place to turn.  My heart went out to him.  Why does God allow so many bad things happen to people?  After asking him a few questions, I think I know the answer.  Until this guy hits rock bottom and turns to God, he has no chance to be blessed by God.  God loves him, but this guy will not live a redeemed and fulfilling life.  Why?  Because he has made decisions that fly in the face of living a Christian life. 

    He claims to be a Christian.  But, he has been living with one girl, the girl who kicked him out.  Before that, he was living with another girl who practiced Buddism.  He is addicted to alcohol, but he has never sought rehab.  He's the kind of guy that makes the OPPOSITE decision he should make.  Fortunately, he is trying to get his life back.  He is connecting to Fellowship Church. He has started attending each weekend.   He is attending our singles ministry, serving and trying to move his life in the right direction.  He knows that he needs to get rid of some friends, girlfriends and habits that keep him seperated from God.  I told him that only God could change his life.  Sadly, as he walked away, I wondererd if he will really do it. 

    In this life, God allows our dumb decisions and their results to bring us to the depth of despair before we turn and seek Him.  Jesus says "if you know me, you will obey me."  We won't be perfect, but every decision we make must filter through the Holy Spirit and God's word.  I have a lot of decisions to make, and I pray that I am doing what Jesus commands us to do which is "seek first His Kingdom and all these things will be added to us."

    I want to live every day seeking the Kingdom.  Not seeking after a career, a boss, a new toy, a big salary, whatever it may be.  Seeking Him is the only way we will experience true freedom from the ups and downs of life.

 

Spiritual Legs

Spiritual growth is a funny thing.  Most people who think they are spiritually mature aren't.  They are really spiritual babies and churches are packed with them sitting in their pew high chairs.  Others who think they are spiritual babies aren't.  They are spiritually mature people who follow after God, bring their money to the local church and invite friends to attend (deep Bible study is for the spiritually immature because they can't feed themselves yet).  So spiritual maturity is not what we think it is.

The other day, I noticed that a vine in my room was growing on the side of my bookcase.  As I looked closer, I noticed that the vine had legs that were attached to the fake wood.  It was difficult to pull the vine  off the shelf.  I finally gave up because I wanted to see how fast the vine would grow while attached to the shelf. That's spiritual maturity, isn't it?  We are so attached to God spiritually, that it is impossible to be pulled away from His love. 

My prayer is that I can grow legs that attach to loving God, serving the local church and seeking people who are not followers.  When I get discouraged, I'm going to remember the vine and it's support system.  With spirtual legs, I can't fail.

 
 

Lost and Found

    If you're like me, you may have asked yourself what you would have done if you were one of the Chilean miners trapped a half mile underground for more than 2 months.  The isolation, lack of supplies, fear and claustrophobia are just a few of the things that would freak me out.  As each miner stumbled out of the cage on solid ground, I was thrilled for them and the men and women who had spent days and months drilling so that these men could be rescued.  The rescuers and the rescued broke out into smiles that brightened my day. 

     They were lost.  They were found.  They were rescued.  That's an illustration of the gospel.  We were born lost.  Then we were found when we heard the gospel.  And rescued when we received the transforming righteousness of Jesus. 

    David, who I'm sure spent a lot of time in caves and pits hiding from King Saul, wrote that he "waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand." I love Psalm 40 because it can be a huge inspiration to anyone in the muck and mire of life.

    As one of the miners got out of the cage this morning, he reached into a bag and picked up a bunch of rocks.  As he met mining and government officials, he gave each one of them a rock.  In effect, he give them the gift of the gospel;  he was lost and now he was rescued. 

    Keep your pockets and purses full of rocks today.  We need to share the rock, the gospel of our salvation with people all around us who are buried in their sin and eternal death.  Rescue someone today!

FC20

This weekend Fellowship Church celebrates our 20th anniversary!  It's difficult to comprehend that we have been doing this that long.  I was 34 when we started and now I am 54.  That about says it all!  It's been such an honor and a pleasure serving at Fellowship.  I feel like I have the job of a lifetime, one that makes an eternal difference in people's lives.  I think back over the years about all the people who have come and gone through the doors of our church.  And the crazy stories are almost endless.  I mean flat out crazy! 

Here are my picks for the last 20 years:

Favorite Series    "The Table"

Favorite Event  Easter at American Airlines Center - 1996 (I think)

Favorite Weekend    The move from Irving to Grapevine - 1998

Favorite "Edism"  "Riding on the edge and the ledge of creativity"

Favorite Message     "Tailor Made" (Easter)

Favorite misspeak on stage   Troy Page telling people to "crap for Jesus!" 

Favorite Drama     The last one we did

I could go on and on thinking of all my favorite times.  But the most important weekend has always been the weekend coming up.  So this weekend, I pray God moves in your life and that you respond in obedience.  And God Bless Fellowship Church!

Recalculating

Last week, my family took a vacation to Florida.  One of the necessary devices we carried with us was my wif'e's Garmin.  A Garmin is great to help you find your way around an unfamiliar area.  You type in an address, push go and the Garmin gives you directions via a human voice.  If you choose, for whatever reason, to go another way, the Garmin says "recalculating."  I love that word.  Isn't that what we do every day of our life?

What if we approached our lives by telling ourselves to recalculate. In other words, are we on the right path that God wants for us?  Many times, we aren't and we need to recalculate.  The role of the Holy Spirit is to help us recalculate the direction we are going and go a different way.  The Garmin used the shorter route to get us where we wanted to go.  That's what the Holy Spirit does for us. Without it, I drive blind spending a long time trying to find a location. If I don't listen to the leadings of the Holy Spirit, I am going to life lost. 

I am in a season of life where I am doing some recalculating.  We are sellling our home and downsizing, That was a tough decision but Dedo and I know it is the right one.  Our kids are leaving us, so we are recalculating our priorities.  Dedo and I are constantly recalculating our marriage because if we didn't, we would end up in a ditch.  I am thinking more and more about finances and we are recalculating the way we spend money.  I am recalculating my work at Fellowship Church.  What can I do, not do, suggest, prioritize, staffing issues, friends, etc.  After 20 years of serving in this ministry, I need to recalculate my purpose for what I do. 

I love to recalculate because when you do, more energy, creativity and passion is given.  It's like wiping the slate clean and doing God's purposes in a more efficient and relevant way.  What would you do with your life if you sat down and recalculated every day?  I bet it would be more strategic and effective than ever before.

Recalculate!

Life and Death

It never ceases to amaze me how thin the veil is between life and death.  We are only one breath or one heart beat away from eternity.  I've been thinking a lot about life and death after a 23-year old man collapsed during one of our Easter Services.  A doctor sitting two rows back was able to immediately begin chest compressions as our hosts got him out into the Atrium.  The paramedics came and continued resuscitation on the young man as he was transported to a nearby hospital.  Today, he is in a coma with little chance of survival unless God miraculously heals him and that is what we are praying for (www.edyoungblog.com).

The most surprising thing to me was that the young man was someone that grew up with my daughter.  They went to school and college together. His parents are good friends of ours.  Jared had no previous medical problems.  He was a healthy and active young man who had just moved into an apartment to be on his own.  Doctors have no clue about what happened to him.  They can help with the symptoms but are at a loss to pinpoint the trigger that caused Jared to collapse.  As great as science is, it still cannot explain how the human body lives.  The cause of life can only be explained by a Creator who sustains us every second of every day. 

As I have thought about Jared and his family, several things have crossed my mind.

    *    Life is never promised past our last breath.  As James says, we are like a vapor...

    *    God is sufficient in our greatest times of crisis.  I can see that in the lives of Jared's parents as they deal with this terrible crisis.  As hard as it is, they have a calming faith that is indescribable.

    *    The local church is critical as a supporting partner to families.  Our church has done a magnificent job of staying with the family, praying with them and feeding them.  It has been wonderful to see how the local church takes care of the needs of people in pain and suffering.

    *    Jared collapsed on Easter Sunday morning while worshiping God and surrounded by his family and friends.  From his last conscious moment to standing before the Father, he was worshiping.  That is incredible to me.

We are still on our knees praying for Jared and his family.  I believe God can heal Jared immediately.  But if He chooses not to, then Jared is ready to face God eye to eye. He is a follower of Christ and because Christ defeated death through his death, burial and resurrection, Jared will also experience a death, burial and resurrection.   

He is ready.  Are you?

Vegas? Come On!

Sorry I have been off blog for a few days.  I had a chance to get away and now I am catching up.  My family had an opportunity to go see the Beatles show "Love" which is at The Mirage in Las Vegas.  Vegas is not a place I enjoy, but I really wanted to see the show.  It was as good as advertised.  The music, artistry, programming, creativity, stage design, signage and sound was incredible.  The seats had speakers built in to get the full effect of the band. To bad we can't do that in the church!  What!   We can?  Are you kidding me?  Really? 

Can the church be as good as a Vegas show?  Where will we get the money?  It costs a lot to do what they did.  They charge like $150 to go to a show.  No wonder they can do all the stuff they do.  They have the cash to make it happen.  We can barely afford donuts in Sunday School. 

There is no way we can find people in our community that have that kind of talent.  Are you kidding me?  We live in the sticks. Have you heard the choir? It would take a lot of work to think up all the creative elements and some people may not get it.  People may even complain that the band wore skinny ties and jeans with a scarf.  This isn't Hollywood!  Loud sound like they have in Vegas may rupture ear drums.  Besides, I don't know all the words to the Beatles songs.  How can I sing?  We can't change anything on our platform.  It's all nailed down into concrete.  We can't move it, can we?

People know who the Beatles are.  Sure, people will come to a show like that!  Are you kidding?  The best rock band of the 20th century.  But we don't have anyone that famous they want to see, do we?  You probably think we should greet people who walk in the door.  Offer stuff to drink and eat. Our kitchen isn't big enough and how would we keep pimento cheese sandwiches fresh?  The signs around the hotel really were helpful getting us to the right place.  But why would we want to spend a lot of money on signage when we can make our own with a Sharpie and Scotch Tape?  Besides, everyone knows where everything is.  We never have anyone new here, so why worry?  Video elements, scrims, cool lighting?  Have you lost your mind?  There is no way we can do that.  Who would do it?  Who understands the technology stuff?  Not me.  I can't do it.  They can hire people in Las Vegas to do that.  We can't hire people to help.  That's why we have a staff.  That is their job, isn't it? 

Let's get real!  A Vegas show is way out of our church league. Right?

Thoughts about a "good 'ol boy."

Today is a difficut day for the staff of Fellowship Church.  Late Saturday night, Jimmy York passed into the eternal security of heaven.   He was a valuable member of our Home Teams ministry and worked with hundreds of people to connect them to our church family.  Jimmy worked for me years ago and I was always impressed by his loyalty to the vision of Fellowship Church, his love for people and his godly actions as a husband and father. 

One weekend, Jimmy invited me, my son Cameron (who was probably about 13)  and Todd Hamilton to go fishing.  His family had a house and a boat on a local lake.  It was a good time to fish for white bass, so we loaded up and spent the weekend fishing.  The first afternoon of the trip, my son hooked a bass and was trying to get it into the boat.  I reached down to get the fish just as Cameron decide to give one final pull on his rod.  The treble hook ended up buried in my skin between my thumb and index finger.  OUCH!  We went back to the house and tried to get it out.  Then we went next door where a guy was sitting at a table smoking and had beer cans stacked all around him.  Jimmy told me this guy knew everything about fishing and he could help us.  After the guy pulled out a rusty pair of pliers and tried to push the hook through my hand, I decided to take my chances at the local emergency room 17 miles away.  Jimmy and Todd drove me to the hospital, the doctors removed the hook and I get to see the scar every day.  As I look at the scar this morning, it brings back a lot of memories.

This morning as I was studying, I ran across a verse that I had never really thought much about.  It's found in Ecclesiastes 5:18-20 and this verse describes Jimmy's life:

18What is the best thing to do in the short life that God has given us? I think we should enjoy eating, drinking, and working hard. This is what God intends for us to do. 19Suppose you are very rich and able to enjoy everything you own. Then go ahead and enjoy working hard--this is God's gift to you. 20God will keep you so happy that you won't have time to worry about each day.  

This is the biblical description of a "good 'ol boy."  Solomon writes that we should just enjoy the life we have.  if we do that,we won't worry about the end of our life.  I think that's the way Jimmy lived his life.  He loved to fish, watch and play sports, enjoy time with his boys and love his wife Tricia.  He worked hard at connecting people to community at Fellowship Church.  When you had the opportunity to be around Jimmy, he was calm, reserved and friendly.  If you started talking sports or fishing, you could get him excited. But Jimmy never played the over bearing "I know it all" person.  He never lost his sense of humor and even keeled personality.  He was the best "good 'ol boy" I ever knew.

I am going to miss Jimmy York.  He has been a constant on our staff for several years and we will not be able to replace his uniqness and God-given passion for people.  Pray for Tricia and the boys as they go through this very difficult time. 

His life ended too soon on earth, but he is at home now in heaven!

   

Ed and Lisa on The Colbert Report Monday Night

Isn't it interesting to see what happens when you mention sex and church in the same sentence?  Such was the case when the media heard about Ed's challenge to Fellowship Church to have 7 days of sex with their spouse.  When NBC, CBS, ABC and Fox heard about that, they almost imploded.  The media went into a feeding frenzy.  Ed was contacted and interviewed by almost every major news outlet in the country and across the world.  The media could not grasp the Biblical command to practice sex God's way.  They are okay with having 7 days of sex with anyone other than your spouse, but with your spouse...no way.

What's really cool is they are still calling.  Ed and Lisa will appear on The Colbert Report on Monday night, January 26, at 10:30 PM CST on Comedy Central.  Ed is also in the middle of writing a book about sex and marriage based on his 7 day challenge.  It will be out soon.

The church needs to do a better job of teaching about sex.  We also need to start teaching earlier.  I believe that students as young as 4th and 5th grade should be taught about Biblical sex.  That's the age when students get into masturbation, oral sex and inappropriate touching.  By the time they reach middle school, they have heard it all.

If you are interested in picking up a copy of Ed's' series Leaving Lust Vegas, simply go to our resource site at www.creativepastors.com.  To find out what's happening at our Creative Church Conference in February, go to www.creativechurchconference.com. 

Don't forget to watch Ed and Lisa Monday night!