Simplicity

Simplicity has been a theme in my life as of late. Though the book has been out since 2011, I just recently read Simple Church by Thom Rainer and Eric Geiger. I am also reading a book by Jacko Willink and Leif Babin entitled Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy Seals Lead and Win. The title of chapter 6 in Extreme Ownership, you guessed it…Simple. All of these authors communicate the same idea, in order for people to achieve a goal, the goal must be simple and clear. Not simple in the sense that it is easy, but simple in the sense that you know exactly what you seeking to achieve.

I find it interesting that in all of my studies I have yet to find a genuine leadership principle that did not come straight from the Bible. The author may not know that it came from the Bible, but if you know your scriptures you will recognize it as a biblical principle. When it comes to clear and simple goals, Jesus was right on point. He left the church with one clear goal, MAKE DISCIPLES (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8). That’s it. He did not leave us long and convoluted list to accomplish, one clear simple goal. Now I will grant you that it is a multifaceted goal, but it is clear and direct none the less.

Northside Baptist Church must constantly remind herself of this goal. We must be careful not to get off track. We must make sure that all we do is in some way moving us toward the bigger goal of making disciples. If we allow ourselves to get distracted by lesser things, we will never be effective at the main thing. Let us work together to accomplish this mission. Let’s move past our personal preferences and agendas that might keep us from becoming all God has called us to be. If we will, I am sure of this; it will be one exciting and adventurous journey.

Honored to be your pastor,

Darrell

Missional Living

One of the things that I am often struck by when reading the New Testament is Paul’s missionary heart. It never ceases to amaze me the lengths to which Paul was willing to go in order to reach someone, or a lot of someones, with the gospel. One such instance is found in Romans 9:3. Paul says, “For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh” (ESV). In case you missed that let me put it in plain English, “If it were possible, I would wish that I would spend an eternity in hell if it meant that my fellow countrymen would come to know Christ.” Or as The Message puts it, “If there were any way I could be cursed by the Messiah so they could be blessed by him, I’d do it in a minute.”

I read such things and I think, “Now Paul, that’s just crazy talk. Why would you go to such extremes when they had every opportunity you did to respond to the gospel?” The truth of the matter is that Paul understood the reality of heaven and hell. He knew this was not simply the stuff of children’s Sunday School classes. He knew that hell is the reality of all realities and he did not want anyone to spend a second there.

Applying this truth to our lives causes us to ask ourselves a question: What extent are we willing to go to in order that others might come to know Christ? Are we willing to be uncomfortable? Are we willing to forego our own preferences when it comes to teaching styles, programming, or worship style if it means others will come to know Christ? Are we willing to step up and serve so that others might be saved? You see, to all of this Paul would say, “YES, YES, YES” if it meant people would come to know Christ.

I can only hope that over the course of my life that I might come to love with the passion and zeal that Paul had. The truth of the matter is too often I let my own comfort level, my own desires, and my own ambitions get in the way. May we journey together as we seek to become more for the cause of Christ and the sake of the gospel.

Transitions

I would like to tell you a story about two different moves that were made by a pastor. Move One…a pastor moves from Corpus Christi to Canyon Lake to begin a new ministry. The transition does not go so well. For starters, his house in Corpus Christi does not sell for a year. This causes quite the financial struggle. He is forced to make both a house note in Corpus and a lease payment at Canyon Lake. During this year all of his financial reserves are exhausted. To make matters worse, his wife, a school teacher, is unable to obtain a public school job and takes a huge pay cut to teach at a private school in San Marcos.

Move two…a pastor moves from Canyon Lake to Victoria. He puts his house on the market on a Monday and has receives an offer on it the following Sunday. Approximately 40 days after putting his house on the market, it has closed and turns out to be a rather profitable endeavor for the pastor. His wife has decided at their new ministry assignment that she will not work but be a stay at home mom which will allow her to be more involved in the ministry. In spite of her decision not to seek employment, a job falls in her lap that she cannot pass up. The transition from Canyon Lake to Victoria goes smoother than anyone could have imagined.

Question: which of these moves was of God? Answer: BOTH. Sometimes when God moves and works in our lives He takes care of all of the details up front leaving us very little to be concerned with. However, there are other times when God does not take care of all the details in advance, but asks us to depend on Him each step of the way. My point is simple, whether something is easy or difficult, challenges (or the lack there of) are no indication of God’s will. We must walk daily in His presence, leaning on Him and trusting Him for provision as we journey along.

Summer Is Here

Is it possible that summer is upon us already? Schools have just finished or will finish up soon and summer break will begin. We know that this time represents freedom. There are opportunities to travel, to go see family, or to just relax in general. All of these are good things and are needed in life. However, do not forget about your church family. We are still here and lots of ministry is still going on.

Take the time to get away with family and have fun, but when you are in town, continue to be a part of church life. Show your support to the various ministries by your presence. Make sure that church and ministry remain a priority. Do not get so busy that you disappear for the next three months.

We are looking forward to a great summer of ministry. The student, children, and mission ministries all have a full schedule. Do not miss an opportunity to minister to others or to be ministered to. God has big plans for you this summer…don’t let your plans trump His plans.

Honored to be your pastor,

Darrell

Looking Ahead

I was asked by a friend this week how things were going in my new role. I told him the best way I can describe it is to put your head in front of a fire hydrant and open it. All kidding aside, I am settling in and very excited about what God has in store for Northside. It is clear that we have a very strong, vision-driven team. The facilities that we have are truly a blessing and Northside’s name seems to be well known and well thought of in our community. All of these are aspects that are necessary for future growth and impact.

For the month of May, we have turned our attention toward four priorities that we want to be central to our church as we look forward. Certainly, some of these things have already been a priority, but we want to renew our commitment to them. These four things are: Prayer, Evangelism, Discipleship, and Missions. These four elements will allow us to fully embrace the Great Commission of our Lord. I would encourage you in these coming days to evaluate your own life. How are you doing in these areas? Do you have a commitment, at least at some level, to each of these aspects? If not, is this the time God is calling you to take an inventory and readjust priorities? Remember, we can never be corporately what we are not individually. A fully committed church is only the result of a membership that is fully committed.

So, we wait with great anticipation to see what God is going to do. I trust that He has big things for us in the days ahead. I once heard it asked, “If your church were to disappear tomorrow, would the community miss it?” Let’s make sure that we are a church that is focused on right things and that our community would truly miss us if we were gone.

Honored to be your pastor,

Darrell

A New Era Begins

Time is typically marked in church life by who the senior pastor is. When we want to peg a church event on our timeline, we rarely say “I think that was in 1982”, but are far more likely to frame it as “That was when Bro. Jimmie was here.” Or “When Bro. Rodney was pastor…”. It is how we identify time periods, or eras, in the collective memory of our fellowship.

May 1^st marks the beginning of a brand new era at Northside as we welcome our new senior pastor, Darrell Tomasek. He comes to us with years of pastoral experience from a church that loves him and hates to see him go. First Baptist Church of Canyon Lake will miss him as they now enter into their own “interim” period.

As Bro. Darrell begins his time with Northside, he will be building on a strong legacy of ministry established on this corner of Laurent over sixty years ago. He brings his own experience and God-given gifts to the mix as he casts a vision for where God is leading us next. As you have already seen, he is a really good fit for Northside. Exciting things lie ahead.

For us to be all that God has called us to be under Bro. Darrell’s pastoral leadership will require renewed faithfulness on our part. When he challenges us to new work, we will step up to help. When he reminds us to be faithful stewards, we will give. When he calls us to pray, we will pray without ceasing.

Mark the day. May 1^st signals the beginning of a new era. What God is about to do in and through His people is beyond our imagination. Plan to be a part of what God has in store for the faithful folks at Northside. Remember the encouraging words of the prophet Jeremiah as he delivered the message to God's people so long ago:

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

Bro. Mickey

The Story

It has been a long time since I have had the chance to be involved in a musical production at church. Most of the time I am helping with kids or involved in children’s ministry. Being involved in “The Story” has brought back many memories from all of the church musicals I participated in. I also remember the time I went to Florida and played a main character in a musical that  was filmed and recorded to be sold in christian bookstores. Great memories. I think the greatest memory for me at in the story was seeing many kids come down to the altar on the last night. Several of the staff had not seen that many kids come to the altar at one of Northside’s musicals. This shows me that God is looking to do something big with our kids. 

Two big opportunities for us to see God work is through our Kid’s Church  and Extreme Kid’s Live. I need volunteers to commit to these areas.  Extreme Kid’s Live will be starting Wednesdays nights on May 11.  May 11 on Wednesday night. I am looking for some people who can be there on a regular basis to love and build relationship with kids. I understand that people will be taking vacations.  We will work around that. This summer  program requires no prep time on your part. I’m need people to come and love on kids.

Kid’s Church is another area that I will be leading beginning May 15th and I need a crew of people that can serve on the rotation list. It would also be nice if I can find a couple of people to help on a regular basis. God has given me a vision to take Kid’s Church to the next level. For that to happen, I am going to need people to  help in this area. Can you give some of you time to help with our kids? Contact me if you would like to volunteer.

Dave Benefield