A "Vision" Reminder

I have been re-reading a book by Lovett H. Weems, Jr. called Church Leadership.

In it he focuses on vision, team, culture and integrity...all integral parts of effective church leadership.

Here is what Weems has to say about vision:

It is a dream. It is a picture of what is possible. Perhaps the best way to think of it is a "picture of a preferred future." Rosabeth Moss Kanter believes that such a picture must be in place before people can let go of the past and permit change to take place. As Aristotle put it, "The soul ...never thinks without a
picture."

I am now in the process of "dreaming" about the youth sports ministry at Christ's Church. Over the next couple of weeks I will be sharing a lot of what that picture looks like. Exciting days are ahead!

As Bishop Rueben P. Job put it, "Vision allows us to see signs of the kingdom now, in our midst." Seeing God's kingdom in the midst of our youth sports....what a sight!

1st-3rd Grade Flag Football Video

Check out this video made by Jordan Stancil!

It is our 1st-3rd grade flag football season highlight video. Jordan does great work!



Thanks Jordan! I look forward to seeing other videos you create.

Golf Should Be A Team Sport

I played in a golf tournament yesterday and have decided that golf is much more fun as a team sport!

Our group did pretty good. We finished at 7-under par. There is no way any of us could have done that on our own...especially me!

Think about the benefits if golf was always a team sport:

• It would increase the chance of success.
• You could learn from each other's shots and swings.
• You would always have someone to keep you encouraged when you hit a bad shot.
• It would help you laugh more on the golf course.
• You could get honest critical feedback.
• Someone would be there to challenge you if your actions started getting out of line.
• You would have someone to help you loosen up and have fun with the game.
• You would have someone to validate your success story. (I made a 20 foot putt for an eagle!)

While these are all great reasons golf should be a team sport, they are also reasons why life was not meant to be lived alone. God designed us for community. As Christians we need good Christian friends who will provide us with all of those things listed above.

Proverbs 27:17 says, "As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend."

Is your life one you are trying to living out all alone or do you have a team helping you out? I am very glad I had a team on the golf course yesterday. It made a world of difference!

Busy Times

OK.....I will warn you upfront. This post is more personal information. I talk about what I have going on in life right now. It is just an update on what's happening.

These have been some busy times for me around our sports department.

Flag football wrapped up this weekend. We had a great day...but a long day. I got to the church around 6:30am to get stuff together for the cookout we did on the field. I finally got back to the church to drop stuff off about 5:15pm.

Thanks to all of the volunteers who helped make this a great season. From coaches to referees, we could not do it without your support! It was so much fun to watch the 1-3rd graders play this season. This was the first season we had kids that young playing.

Besides flag football, our adult coed volleyball just wrapped up. Our leagues were on Monday and Tuesday nights and were probably some of the best leagues we have had here. Mike Boyer and Paul McCracken are my volunteer ministry leaders for the two leagues and they did a great job. I wasn't able to make it to the finals of either league, but knew these guys could handle what ever might come up.

I couldn't make the finals to our Monday night league because our summer golf tour is just getting started. Our second event was on Monday night and we had a great time! Tim Conlan is my volunteer ministry leader and he, and his team (Debbie Deinstadt, Scott Miller, Dave Butler, Annie White, and Danny Molter), have all planned out some great events. Tim has different formats for us to play at each event. Monday night we played Bingo, Bango, Bongo...I had never heard of it, but it was a lot of fun!

Now I am getting ready to go to camp the first two weeks of June to be the recreations guy. That is going to be a blast...especially the second week because Carrie gets to go with me as a counselor. I get to be as messy and creative as I would like. (If you have any fun ideas for large group games send me an email at DavidL@CContheWeb.com)

The third week of June I get a vacation! Carrie and I are going to Detroit to visit my brother and his family.

In the midst of all this, I am getting ready to start two brand new programs at our church this summer. We have youth indoor soccer starting July 14 for those in K-9th grade. This is going to be a lot of fun.

We are also starting "Just For Kicks" which is an indoor soccer program for kids with disabilities. I am very anxious about this one because I don't have any experience in this area. Luckily Carrie does...seeing how she teaches this population for a living.

My role here at church is changing slightly and I am extremely excited about it. Instead of doing some youth sports and some adult sports, from now on I am focusing all my efforts just with youth sports. This will give me a chance to get to know the kids and their parents better. It is hard giving up some of the adult sports, but this is certainly a great and strategic move for our sports department. Cameron LeSage is going to do a great job with all of the adult sports.

I am also in the process of writing to booklets that will be sent out to be printed in early July. One focuses on coaching youth sports to make it "more than just a game" and the other is geared towards parents and how they, from the stands, can make the youth sports experience "more than just a game." The coach's book will be a part of our Certified Coach Training program and the parent's booklet will be given to every parent in our sports.

I feel like God has given me a book to write that would be a bit more substantial than what I am currently working on. I would love to have a working manuscript of it by the end of this year. I will post more info on that later as I get going in this process.

While these are busy times, it is exciting to look at what all is going on and know that I am incredibly happy and know that I am in God's will. What a place to be!! If you don't know what that experience is like, let me know. I would love to talk to you (in person or email) about it.

Our Camden County Campus

This weekend I had the privilege of preaching at our Camden County campus. It was a great experience. I love the people there. They are passionate about what they are doing and have totally invested themselves into their ministry. I look forward to being with them several more times throughout the summer.

In my preparation for the sermon on discipleship (they are going through the 40 Days of Purpose series), I ran across a great little story.

Several years back during a Monday Night Football Game between the Chicago Bears and the New York Giants, one of the announcers said that Walter Payton had rushed the ball for over 9 miles in his career. The other announcer replied, "That is a huge distance...especially considering he has been knocked down every 4.6 yards of that 9 miles!"

That reminds me of our lives as Christians. We are here growing and learning to be more like Christ, but the devil is doing everything he can to knock us down at every opportunity. While it sounds so simplistic, the key is getting back up each time.

By getting back up every time he was knocked down, Walter Payton went on to be one of the best running backs ever in the NFL. What will they say about you?

All I know is I want to here, "Well done my good and faithfull servant." That comes from getting back up when the devil knocks you down.

Reality Check

I have been studying the fruit of the Spirit lately, as mention in Galatians 5:22-23. In doing so, I have really been challenged to examine my life and the "fruit" I put forth. It has been a real growth experience.

For a couple of weeks I have read and re-read these two verses. Then, as if for the first time, I continued to read the rest of the chapters...all remaining 3 verses of it!

"Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit's leading in every part of our lives. Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another."

These are the verses I needed to hear. I have been very concerned lately by the notion of Christians feeling it OK to compete in unChrist-like ways. I have been challenged, both by the way I live my life and what I see in others who proclaim Christ as their Saviour, that we have become lazy in our "following the Spirit's leading in every part of our lives."

It is so easy to compartmentalize our life into our Christian times and our personal time or our sports and recreation time or our work time or our.......you complete the sentence. We feel that it is OK to act a certain way because of the people we are around or because of the expectations of the event we are at.

Christ was Christ wherever he went. We are to be Christ wherever we go.

Christ was Christ no matter who was around. We are to be Christ no matter who is around.

After all, as Christians we are to grow to be like Christ. It is not always easy, but has a great reward!

A Crisis of Character

A popular quote is that sports don't build character they reveal it.

This was a tough weekend for our sports. Don't get me wrong...it had some great moments and stories, but it also presented some trials.

The funny thing about these trials is that I preached at our Camden County campus this morning and one of the points in the sermon on discipleship was "God uses trials to teach us to trust Him." It is as if he wants to immediately challenge me to see if I can, literally, practice what I preach!

Our church sports are designed to be a recreational (for fun) and instructional (a chance to learn the game). Satan continues, however, to try to make our sports based on competition in which one person must lose so another can win. OK...I know that is the ultimate outcome of games, but when that becomes the reason for playing...to make others lose so you can win...it moves away from God's purpose of sports and recreation and to a selfishness that is not Christlike.

Here in lies the trials we experienced this weekend. You would think that a church league would be safe from these issues, but some who call themselves Christians choose to yell and berate volunteer referees (good ones at that) to the point of the volunteers leaving in tears. Is this Christlike?

Some who call themselves Christians choose to coach in a way that they intentionally use plays that are not legal and tell the kids if they run it well they can get away with it. What does this teach the players? How is this like Christ?

From professional sports to church gyms and little league fields, character is becoming more and more a problem with players, coaches and fans involved with the games. Some say character is being who you say you are. A better way to say it may be that your character is how you act in the heat of the moment, regardless of what you say about yourself when things are going fine.

It is time to drop the excuses! We can no longer say "it's just competition" or "it's a part of the game". Those are excuses of the devil. There is nothing in scripture that says it is OK to act one way in a situation and another in a different.

It is wrong to yell at referees. It is wrong to try to cheat. It is wrong to allow your youth to think this activity is fine. It is time to take a stand for what is right.

It will not be easy. But it is a battle worth fighting.

If you know me, you know I like NASCAR. There is an interesting development going on right now in that sport. The most popular driver, Dale Earnhart, Jr, has announced he is leaving his current team at the end of this year. Almost everyone desires to have him, and his Budweiser sponsorship, on their team. He would bring a lot of money and fans.

One team that people have mentioned is Joe Gibbs Racing. Gibbs' character, however, will not let that happen. Nascar.com said in an article

But Earnhardt's car sponsor, Budweiser, could prevent a marriage with Gibbs from
happening. The Gibbs organization, whose owner Joe Gibbs is an ardent Christian,
is clearly reticent about bringing an alcohol sponsor on board.

That is character. They are not allowing money, fan support, or anything else pull them away from who they really are.

Often we let sports (or competition) pull us away from who we are as Christians. That is not Christlike...and that has to change.

FCA Golf Breakfast

The Players Championship in in town this week. This is a PGA tour event that brings the world's best golfers to Jacksonville. It is one of the premier golf events on the tour.

This morning I went to the FCA golf breakfast with some of the leaders in our golf ministry and some staff.

The incredible thing about this event is that it was full of local high school and college golf teams. The received a one day pass to see the practice rounds today if they attended the breakfast. Our church sponsored our local high school golf team to attend.

Tom Lehman was the keynote speaker and the event was attended by many pro golfers who will be competing this week.

The theme to Lehman's talk was "It doesn't matter where you start. It matters where you end." He shared his story while giving key points of never giving up...in golf or life. It takes passion and commitment to acheive the goals you have. They will keep you going through tough times when you feel like quiting.

He wrapped up his time by clearly laying out the plan of salvation. I was amazaed at the opportunity God provided to share His love with all of those local teenage golfers who were there just to watch the practice rounds later in the day.

Baptism Service

Last Sunday afternoon we had a service in which 45 people were baptized!!

It is awesome to see families baptized together...husbands and wives....mom and kids....or the whole family! One particular story that got to me was a father baptizing his three sons. The incredible part was the sons are 17, 24, and 28!

God is doing great things at Christ's Church. I'm excited to be a part of it.

From Average David to Captain Super!

This weekend was the annual children's musical. This "God's Gang" production has been a blast to go to the last couple of years, but this year it went to a whole new level.

I was asked if I would be in it. They needed a superhero, and, well....I was the obvious choice for such a role. OK....so no one else would do it and I was the probably the last choice, but, still, this was a childhood dream come true! I was to play a superhero on stage!

Cameron (my co-worker) sent me this picture this morning. He refuses to give up the name of who sent it to him. I figured I should get it out there myself before others do. I really had a lot of fun with this....probably too much fun!

Suns Baseball Game

Last Friday night we had almost 1,400 people from our church attend the Jacksonville Suns baseball game for their Faith night.

It was a lot of fun and great fellowship!

Avalon performed a concert after the game. It's been a while since I heard them. Now I remember why I used to like them so much. They were very passionate about the songs they performed and it was a great worship experience.

Take a Sabbath Rest

I didn't realize how busy I have been lately.

My dad called last week and asked what was wrong because I sounded sick.

One of the high school girls at flag football (my groovy friend Lindsey Marks) asked me Saturday what was up because I wasn't myself.

A co-worker asked if I was upset Sunday morning because I wasn't smiling.

Another teen, Michael Alvarez, asked if I was OK because I didn't look like normal self.

The funny thing is I felt just fine and thought I was being myself all along. It caused me to step back and take an inventory Monday morning of what all I had going on. Come to find out, I have been too busy.

It was all good stuff I was doing, don't get me wrong. Working in the church means Sundays are normally busy days. With the sports we have going on, Saturdays are normally busy also. That makes taking the typical "Sabbath" rest difficult.

The principle of the Sabbath is one each of us need to put in our life. The Hebrew word for sabbath is shabbat, which literally means "stop" or "cease". It means we must intentionally stop "doing" and take a break on a regular basis.

While I couldn't take a whole day off the beginning of this week, it is amazing what taking a few hours away for the purpose of just stopping can do for your energy level. When is the last time you had a sabbath rest?