Monday Musings 2.12.18

On Sunday mornings, we have continued our examination of Nehemiah, his leadership, the building of the wall, and the response of the people. The lessons in Nehemiah are abundant. Yesterday we took a very close look at Nehemiah 4:14, “…Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.” From this we drew three points: do not be afraid, remember the Lord, and fight for your family’s sake. Specifically, we applied these points to the future of Northside Baptist Church.

I shared with you that we are experiencing a slow erosion as a church. Over the course of about five years, we have declined in average worship attendance by about 60 people, a mere 12 people per year, which could almost go unnoticed. We stressed that this is not a time for panic, but it is a time for us to seek God’s direction and pray for a new outcome.

This morning as I was doing my daily bible reading I once again read Acts 1:8, “…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Even as I type that, I am struck by the certainty of this, “you WILL be my witnesses.”

As I think back over my years as a Baptist boy, there is one thing I remember as being consistent through the years; we have never stopped talking about evangelism. We have talked about the need to do it, we have trained to do it, we have tried to get creative to get it done, but nothing changes; we fall short. The fact is, we make the simple complicated. To be a witness simply means I tell someone what the Lord has meant to me and what He can do for them.

Tell someone your story. Invite someone to church. Make yourself available to others as they seek to journey with the Lord. I have a sneaking suspicion that if we do these simple things the growth curve of Northside Baptist Church will quickly and radically bend upward.

Honored to be your pastor,

Darrell

Monday Musings 1.22.18

This week in our study of Nehemiah, we were introduced to several men who made it their job to oppose Nehemiah at every front. I have continued to think about that for several days. It is interesting to me that, seemingly, every time we try to do something positive, there will be opposition. Sometimes this opposition comes from people, sometimes circumstance, and sometimes it is simply our own emotions and doubts that get us.

As I have given consideration to this, two things keep coming to mind. First, our battle is not against flesh and blood, regardless of who is standing in front of you. Scripture says, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph. 6:12). Simply put, our battle is not against the individual who may oppose us, or the situation, or even against our own feelings. The battle goes much deeper than that.

Second of all, I have been reminded that such opposition can only defeat a God given task if I allow it. Scripture says, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying around the death of Jesus in our body, so that the life of Jesus also should be manifested in our body” (2 Cor. 4:8-10).

My prayer for you is that you will discover your God given calling. I pray that you will have the courage to pursue it, just as Nehemiah did. However, I also hope you will be aware that, just like Nehemiah, you will face opposition. Do not let this opposition stop you. Certainly, you can pause to pray and make sure we are on the right course, but once you have that assurance, you must press forward.

I am excited to see what God is going to do in the days ahead; in your lives as individuals, but in our church as a whole. May we continue to shine His light with great passion and focus.

Honored to be your pastor,

Darrell

Monday Musings 1.15.18

Yesterday at Northside we took time to examine how God moved in the life of Nehemiah to clear a way for him to fulfill his call. If you remember, we looked at chapter two where we saw that Nehemiah had a God given burden. This burden led Nehemiah to spend the better part of four months in fasting, prayer, and preparation.

Then, we saw how God provided a door of opportunity. In almost surprising fashion, the king asks Nehemiah what he is requesting. This allowed Nehemiah to share his heart and desires with the king.

As Nehemiah is given this opportunity, we see him exercise extraordinary wisdom. Knowing full well that the king had stopped the rebuilding of Jerusalem, Nehemiah is careful not to mention the city’s name. He speaks of Judah, the city of his fathers, and the city of his fathers’ graves, but never utters the name Jerusalem.

In the end, we see that the plan works. The king asks Nehemiah what he needs, and Nehemiah had a plan of action. Very quickly Nehemiah expresses what he needs and the king grants it.

Nehemiah is no fool. He recognizes that his success is not a result of his own brilliance or skill. He knows that he has only been successful because of God’s favor.

As this pattern unfolds in the life of Nehemiah, we get a clear picture of how God moves and works. I pray that God will move and work in a similar fashion at Northside. In the days and months ahead, look for your God given burden. What is God calling you to do? What is God calling NBC to do? As God makes Himself clear, look for that door of opportunity.

We must be careful to seek God’s wisdom when we begin to pursue His direction. Human wisdom will never get us through. Remember that James 1:5 tells us, if we ask God for wisdom, He will give it. As God grants wisdom we can develop a plan of action in order to move forward. With God’s guidance our plans will exceed what we could ever accomplish on our own.

And, as is always true, we must give praise and honor to God. Just as Nehemiah recognized God’s hand of favor, so should we. Anything good, anything exciting that happens in our midst is not our own doing, but the gracious hand of God in our lives.

Points of Praise for this week:

Both the Collective and Praise Kids Choirs kicked off yesterday. I have not heard numbers, but it looked as if we had a great turn out. We also kicked off seven Adult Journey Groups. Again, I have not heard numbers, but I know we had around 70 adults present. Remember, it is our desire to see every member in worship, in a group, and on a ministry team. Pray about where God would have you engage.

Honored to be your pastor,

Darrell