My linkedin profile informed me this morning that it has been 103 days since I last posted on this blog. Undoubtedly, this is the longest gap between posts since launching my blog in January 2008. I don’t know how to account for this silence, and I can’t even say for certain that it won’t be another 103 days before I post again. What I can say is that after a little more than 2 years of pastoring at St. Andrew’s Kirk in The Bahamas, I have never been out “in the field” more than I have been here.

I don’t know if the Lord is turning me into a missionary or simply making me the kind of pastor I should have been all along. The best theological explanation I can offer is the one I gave during an interview with Wendell Jones on his television show. Having been prompted by The Great Commission throughout my ministry, I find myself newly challenged by the first imperative, which is the word “Go” (Matthew 28:19).

In the past, I have pastored as though I were in a fortress—focussing mainly on those who were already on the inside. Today, I find myself keenly interested in reaching those who have yet to confess Christ, and those who have yet to connect themselves with a local church community. I often find myself in the neighborhood just south of the Kirk, Bain & Grant’s Town. I find myself making weekly visits to the local orphanage, Ranfurly Homes For Children. I have even found it fruitful for me to be a part of the Nassau Street Hockey League.

The counterintuitive aspect of this new focus is that the more we focus on those outside of the Kirk, the more we seem to be growing inside the Kirk. We remain a modest sized congregation to be sure, but I marvel on how progress on the inside can be the consequence of giving careful attention to those on the outside.

I am so proud of the Kirk’s leaders who have not only supported this ministry trajectory, but have encouraged it. This emphasis in reaching the community would not have been nearly as effective if it were only me “going” out. The number of Kirk members engaging our community is increasing and, by every appearance, it is making a profound difference in the lives of, both, those serving and those being served.

I think what I am trying to say is this: After more than 800 days as pastor of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Kirk, I couldn’t be happier.

Many predicted that my “honeymoon” stage with this congregation would eventually come to an end—and it still may. But I’m confident that this honeymoon will transition into a relationship marked by even deeper love and concern.

I’m often asked—by those within the Kirk, and those outside the Kirk—how long do I plan on staying? Ultimately, that is up to the Lord, but my intention is to stay in Nassau a very long time.

There is much work to be done, and we’ve only begun to scratch the surface of all that God calls us to do. But I think it is important for me to remind the people I serve that I regard it to be a massive privilege, and a source of great joy, to be their pastor and friend.

See you in 103 days (or less).

As a part of our congregation’s desire to promote theological education, we produce a recommended reading list for our congregation a few times a year. The list of 9 books that we recently recommended were all about the church. (Transformational Church, Simple Church, The Irresistible Church, The Purpose Driven Church, Being The Body, Nine Marks Of A Healthy Church, Onward Christian Soldiers, The Trellis and The Vine, 7 Practices Of Effective Ministry).

All nine of the books we recommended have been helpful in shaping me as a pastor and as a leader of a local congregation. I am grateful for these resources and for those who have produced them. One of the common features you’ll find when reading books about the church is there often is a prescribed number of activities or habits—”9 Marks”, “7 Practices”, “12 Traits”, 5 steps, and so on.

I recognize that such numbers are intended to focus our effort, rather than serve as an exhaustive list of things needed for ministry. Allow me then to weigh in with this brief post, offering but one trait to pursue: desperation.

Yes, desperation.

Of all the things that have served me well in my 15 years of ministry, desperation for God’s presence in my life has been the most vital asset.

That’s not to suggest that nothing else matters. Leadership matters. Good preaching is a must. There is value in strong administration. Wise delegation is critical. A mission emphasis is needed. The list is long. I get why some want to boil the list down to 12, 9, 7, etc.

There are times, however, when it has been helpful for me to focus on one thing. The pressure of pastoring effectively can be intense, and the responsibilities set before us are often numerous. What keeps my anxiety at bay is the notion that “if God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31).

Accordingly, I find that the one thing I must do is seek God with all that is within me. I am quite literally desperate for His help, remembering the words of Jesus, “Apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5).

I’ve been reading the Book of Exodus lately and I’ve found myself resonating with Moses who, by every appearance, was also desperate for the presence of God. Moses is struggling to lead the Hebrew people through the desert and is constantly coming to God for assurance of His favor. Accommodating Moses’ desperation, the Lord replies, “My presence will go with you” (Exodus 33:14).

I love Moses’ response: “If Your presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here” (Exodus 33:15).

Moses understands that it would be a complete waste of time to attempt to lead, or do anything, without God’s help.

I long for every Christian pastor to come to that same realization. That, before we seek to implement our 24 step plan, before we launch that new outreach program, before we seek to do anything…we seek God first.

Friend, I urge you: Be desperate for God.

Few hymns capture such a spirit the way the hymn, I Need Thee Every Hour, does.

I need thee every hour; stay thou nearby;
temptations lose their power when thou art nigh.

I need thee every hour, in joy or pain;
come quickly and abide, or life is vain.

We want our efforts to count for something. We don’t want anything that we do to be in vain. There is a way to make things count. There is a particular way to go if we want to make a lasting difference. We need to go with God…Every step of the way.

As a pastor, one of the best things I can do for the congregation entrusted to my care is to model desperation. Model desperation for the One “who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us” (Ephesians 3:20).

Stay desperate my friends!

Tim Tebow has been referred to as the most polarizing individual in the NFL. Fans seem to either adore him or loathe him.

On the field, Tebow is a proven winner. In 2007, he won the Heisman Trophy as a sophmore. In 2008, Tebow led the Florida Gators to their 2nd National Championship in 3 years. As I write this, Tebow is 7-1 as a starter for the Denver Broncos (who began the season 1-4). Of those 7 wins, 6 were 4th quarter comebacks (unprecedented). Not surprising that “Tebow-mania” is running wild.

When he’s not eluding tacklers or throwing to receivers, Tebow is promoting his faith in Jesus Christ. For some people, this is a turn-off. Critics ask rhetorically whether God actually cares who wins a football game. Others chirp, suggesting that if God was with Tebow, “He would throw a tighter spiral”. Some television analysts (former NFL QBs) have implored Tebow to “tone it down”. Even Kurt Warner (fellow Christian, and former NFL QB) has suggested that Tebow do less talking, with regard to his relationship with Christ.

I happen to be among those who hugely respect Tim Tebow and the way he carries himself on, and off, the field. It’s not just because he’s a Christian (and a pastor’s son)–there are Christians on every NFL team. Tebow is different. He’s special. And here are the 5 main reasons I love to cheer for Tim Tebow:

5) His Toughness

You could argue that toughness comes easily when you are 6’3 and 250 lbs. Tebow is no Doug Flutie. And yet, in a league filled with QBs of similar physical proportions, none take on tacklers the way Tebow does. In his junior year of high school football, Tebow suffered an injury to his right leg late in the first half of a game. Originally thought by the coaching staff to be a bad cramp, Tebow played the entire second half with a broken fibula, at one point rushing for a 29-yard touchdown.

4) His Sticktoitiveness

Tebow has this attribute on and off the field. On the field, the clearest demonstration of Tebow’s sticktoitiveness are his six 4th quarter comebacks. Sure, there were some long field goals and big defensive stands, but Tebow was the engineer of those comebacks and is undisputed leader of his team. Off the field, Tebow has been equally passionate and persistent in his promotion of Jesus Christ. Critics plead for his silence. Reporters attempt to draw him away from talking about God. Peers exhort him to “just play football”. But Tebow is undeterred. By every appearance, talking about Jesus Christ is the natural overflow of Tebow’s love for Christ. In the face of great pressure to stop talking about Jesus, Tim Tebow keeps talking about Jesus.

3) His Boldness

Tebow rarely misses an opportunity to promote Jesus Christ. In his college playing days, Tebow even wore Bible verses on his eye paint. In 2010, a new rule for the next NCAA football season, dubbed “The Tebow Rule” by media, banned messages on eye paint. In the 2009 BCS Championship Game, Tebow wore John 3:16 on his eye paint, and as a result, 92 million people searched “John 3:16″ on Google during or shortly after the game. When Tebow switched to another verse, there were 3.43 million searches of “Tim Tebow” and “Proverbs 3:5-6″ together. On the sidelines, Tebow is so often seen praying that the action is now widely known as ‘Tebowing’. The technical definition for Tebowing is “to get down on a knee and start praying, even if everyone else around you is doing something completely different.”

2) His Generosity

Not too many 24 year-old athletes have set up foundations designed to help impoverished people. The Tim Tebow Foundation is the outgrowth of an initiative from his college days, “First and 15″. Tebow’s foundation has raised funds for Uncle Dick’s Orphanage in the Phillipines, Shands Hospital (Pediatric Cancer Center) in Gainesville, FL, and the foundation is currently raising funds to build a children’s hospital in the Philippines. Tim Tebow is serious about helping others.

1) His Christian Integrity

We’re familiar with the saying, “If you’re going to talk the talk, you had better be prepared to walk the walk.” Tim Tebow talks about Christ, but more importantly, Tim Tebow lives in a manner consistent with the ways of Christ. While critics continue to dissect the technical aspects of Tebow’s passing game, none have been able to find fault or failure with Tebow’s lifestyle choices. No, Tim Tebow, is not perfect—we all get that. But there is a consistency to his message and manner which I find winsome and inspiring.

I’ve never been a Broncos fan (I’m a Niagara Falls born boy who grew up cheering for the Bills), but Tebow has changed that. I’m now cheering for the Broncos. And I’m cheering for Tim Tebow—on and off the field.

GB2

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After writing this post on Dec. 15, the Broncos lost 3 in a row and backed into the playoffs at 8-8. Tebow struggled massively in those three games. Today, Tebow and the Broncos shocked the football world and the Pittsburgh Steelers with a 29-23 win in OT. It was Tebow’s best ever professional game.

When asked for his immediate reaction to the game winning touchdown, Tebow responded, ”When I saw him scoring, first of all, I just thought, ‘Thank you, Lord.’ Then, I was running pretty fast, chasing him — Like I can catch up to D.T! Then I just jumped into the stands, first time I’ve done that. That was fun. Then, got on a knee and thanked the Lord again and tried to celebrate with my teammates and the fans.”

My copy of Tebow’s book, “Through My Eyes”, arrived in Nassau on Friday. I look forward to that read and posting a review in the coming weeks.

GB2

The leaders at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Kirk in Nassau, Bahamas recently developed a mission statement to better direct our focus and activity: Pursuing Christ-likeness and community transformation according to the Word of God. The launch and promotion of this new mission statement included a 10-week sermon series from The Book of Nehemiah, changes to our signage, changes to our website and, most recently, this promotional video.

The footage for this video was shot by the very talented Tim Aylen. The editing for this video was executed beautifully by his daughter, Julia. My role was simply that of the narrator and cheerleader for my tech experts.

I’ll let this 2 minute video tell most of the story, but if I had to add a point it would be this: Our growth in Christ-likeness should benefit other people. As we experience transformation by Christ’s Spirit, we also become agents of transformation by Christ’s Spirit—we become God’s difference-makers in our local communities.

There is a cost for freedom.

On November 11, we set aside time to remember that many gave their lives in order to preserve our national freedom.

Whenever Christians gather at the Lord’s Table we remember that Jesus gave up His life in order to obtain our eternal freedom.

There is a cost for freedom.

You could say that anything worth having, or keeping, comes at a price. There are times when the cost is so high that we term the payment as a sacrifice.

I recently delivered a message, based on Nehemiah 5:1-19, entitled “Sacrificing For The Vision” (audio below). In this message I identify the “sacrifices” made by those charged with rebuilding Jerusalem’s walls. I note the sacrifices that Nehemiah makes, giving up certain allowances and privileges and sharing his resources with those in need.

The pattern we see throughout Scripture is that faithfulness to God takes work. We have to give up things. I think it is noteworthy that the Gospels don’t simply say that the first disciples followed Jesus, but we’re told that Simon Peter and Andrew “left their nets and followed (Jesus)” (Mt. 4:20). James and John are said to have “left the boat and their father and followed (Jesus)” (Mt. 4:22).

Indeed, there is a cost to discipleship.

Our role models in this regard are many—Abraham, Moses, Ruth, David, Nehemiah, the early apostles, are just the first that come to mind when I think of those who gave up much in their effort to honour the Lord.

My encouragement to the people of St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Kirk was to prepare themselves to similarly sacrifice for the kingdom of God. I urged them to give time, energy, and resources to help further the Gospel of Christ. In a word, there was a call to sacrifice for the mission.

And yet, part of me blushes to use the word sacrifice. Yes, discipleship is costly, but I think David Livingstone ‘s response to Cambridge University students in 1857 sheds appropriate light for us:

For my own part, I have never ceased to rejoice that God has appointed me to such an office. People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending so much of my life in Africa. . . . Is that a sacrifice which brings its own blest reward in healthful activity, the consciousness of doing good, peace of mind, and a bright hope of a glorious destiny hereafter? Away with the word in such a view, and with such a thought! It is emphatically no sacrifice. Say rather it is a privilege. Anxiety, sickness, suffering, or danger, now and then, with a foregoing of the common conveniences and charities of this life, may make us pause, and cause the spirit to waver, and the soul to sink; but let this only be for a moment. All these are nothing when compared with the glory which shall be revealed in and for us. I never made a sacrifice.

It takes considerable commitment and effort to walk the narrow road and to promote the Gospel in the face of persecution, but perhaps we need to choose a word other than sacrifice.

What I can safely say is that we need to move beyond half-measures. Or to quote the great hymn writer, Isaac Watts:

Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were an offering far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.

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“Sacrificing For The Vision”, based on Nehemiah 5:1-19, was preached at St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Kirk on Sunday, October 30, 2011.