Lead Pastor Blog II.XIII

In January 2010 I shared a series of messages from Matthew 25 the story Jesus told about the sheep and the goats. This story is not one of those that makes you scratch your head wondering what Jesus meant. No, this one is crystal clear but honestly some of us still don’t get it.

The essence of the story is that Jesus is saying whatever we did or did not do to “the least of these” we did or did not do to Him. To the hungry we gave food, to the thirsty we gave water, to those needing clothes we clothed them and to those sick or in prison we helped them or we did nothing.

Throughout this year we have been reminded at various times and in various ways about this passage which leads me to believe it is a message God wants Cornerstone to hear.

On the second Sunday of Advent this year God met us at church in a startling fashion. He drew our attention to the needs in our own city. Not Toronto or Vancouver but Saskatoon. The way that happened was through Hands On Ministries down on 20th. We had Rick Langlais come and share at our Friday morning men’s breakfast. We left disturbed with the news of what is happening within our own city. We discovered that we have over 250 prostitutes under 16 working our streets. These are under age children so as Rick said let’s call it what it is….these girls are being raped.

It was a sobering, disturbing Sunday because we were talking about the coming of the Messiah. It should be nice and Christmas-like but the truth is Jesus came to change lives. He did not come so we could have church. He did not come to make us comfortable. He did not come so we could be nice. He came to change our hearts and to give us a message to share.

Early on Monday morning a group of men met at a local restaurant to answer…what’s next? Here is what the plan is. 1. Rick Langlais will speak at Cornerstone this Sunday December 12th. 2. We will have an orientation session with police and Rick to train us how to work in that part of our city. We will announce the date once we have it arranged. 3. We want a team of people to commit to praying. This is a spiritual battle. We need to address it spiritually in prayer. 4. We will be putting together a small team to give leadership to this area of our church. 5. This Sunday and every month in 2011 on the second Sunday we will gather dry goods/groceries to give to Hands On for the work they do with children. If you go back and look over those action plan steps all of us can be involved somewhere.

Let’s start this Sunday by bringing groceries and listening to Rick. Be prepared to be challenged. Rick is blunt.

God is at work. There are a host of stories I could share already about the work God is doing. I told our men this morning if we get into this we aren’t doing it short-term. We either commit or we don’t do it at all. Remember the vision…Cornerstone will be a church that changes the world by the grace of God. This is the kind of stuff that changes the world. Are you ready? Pray.

Lead Pastor’s Blog II.XII

I have a number of books on the go right now. I recently read these words from Bill Hybel’s latest book, “The Power of a Whisper”. He said, “There is no more critical goal in life than to keep a pliable heart before God.”

I have just completed a series of messages on the topic of stewardship. We covered finances, gifts/talents/abilities, life itself and lastly thoughts. We are called by God to live as wise stewards with the things we have under our own control.

I would not be surprised if Mr. Hybels shared his statement above from the context of this verse of scripture in I Samuel 16. But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” Samuel must be confused at this point. He has come to annoint the next king of Israel and this guy named Eliab is perfect….in Samuel’s eyes. Samuel thought he knew what a king should look like and he had a king in his presence but God said “not him.” God’s standards are different.

God knows my heart. God knows my thoughts. Stop. Right. Here. This should change everything. If I truly believe this verse then it changes everything about the way I live and see my world. God knows my thoughts right now. Ponder. Think. Meditate. God sees what no one else sees. Who am I fooling? What difference does it make about how I look? God will not now nor will he ever judge me on how I look. This verse has the chance to revolutionize the church in North America.

David was not invited to the coronation. David was an after thought of his father, his brothers and even the prophet of God Samuel. David was too young. David was too small. David was not fit for the role of king. David was not kingly material in the eyes of his world. Finally after all the fuss and muss David is issued an invitation to come from the fields where he was tending sheep. As the shepherd boy walks through the door God speaks to Samuel. “Rise and annoint him; he is the one.”

God loved David’s heart. God loved the things that were inside of David that no one else saw. God saw a king when the world saw a shepherd boy. When I choose to live out the truth of I Samuel 16:7 it changes me. It changes my priorities. It changes what is important to me. It changes how I relate to my world as well as how I relate to the people in my world.

The church needs to hear this message. God is looking and has always looked at our hearts. God sees what we don’t want anyone else to see. Quit comparing yourself to what someone else is, has or does. Take your heart and surrender that to God. Ask him to reshape your heart into one that He will be impressed with.

Hybels went on to make these three short statements: God cannot be seen by spiritual eyes that are shut. God cannot be heard by spiritual ears that are plugged. And God cannot be followed by a heart that stubbornly stays hard.

How soft is your heart right now?

Lead Pastor’s Blog II.XI

October is stewardship month for Cornerstone. I like the word stewardship. The word steward, according to the Collins Universal Dictionary, means one who manages another’s property. Carrying that thought a little further we see that stewardship is about management. Obviously stewardship is not just about finances. We can talk about stewardship of our natural resources or stewardship of our relationships or our bodies. Managing what we have been entrusted with is a good way of looking at stewardship.

In Hebrews 9:27 we are told that man is appointed to die once and after that to face the judgment. There will come a day when I leave this earth and in a moment, a twinkling of the eye I will be in the presence of eternal glory. I will see God for the very first time. I will lay eyes on the one who has done so much for me. I will see the nail scarred hands of my Saviour. I will look at the one called Jesus who loved me so much that He was willing to take my sin upon Himself and pay the price for my salvation on a cruel Roman cross.

I will see Jesus. Nothing will ever be the same after that for I will be in heaven. Eternity in the presence of my Lord. At that moment when I stand/kneel/bow before Him I do not want regrets. I do not want to be there with a whole lot of oh my goodness I wish I had lived life differently thoughts racing through my head. Now is the time to make that happen.

You see what I experience then is to a certain degree determined by how I live now. I know I am not going to live the rest of my years perfectly. I know I make mistakes each and every day of my life. However I also know God is prompting me in many different areas to change, to grow if you will. This is a good thing. I have much to learn in regards to living like Jesus. This is a process I am trying to embrace because I know it is for my benefit to change.

Being a wise steward or manager is simply planning for the future. In the area of finances it is wise not to make money all about me. It is wise to be generous. It is wise to help others. It is wise to live with less in order to plan for the future. It is wise to live like a steward understanding the money has never been mine but rather God’s. Wisdom is directly connected to living life God’s way and not my way. Wisdom means I ask God how He wnats me to live. Wisdom is about asking God for direction in regards to the money that I am managing. My wife and I have been greatly challenged in this area. We are examining everything from the car we drive to the home we live in. We are laying these things before God asking for His direction sensing that things are about to change in our own journey as a couple. Paul told Timothy in his first letter chapter 6:8 that if we have food and clothing we will be content with that. We are asking ourselves where does our contentment sit? Is our current stewardship pleasing to the one who owns it all?

I will stand before Him sooner than I think. How I live here has an impact upon that moment. The person that I am stewarding all this stuff for has said that I can lay up for myself treasures in heaven.

That seems like a pretty good trade-off to me. I do with a little less here so that I have a lot more there to offer to the one who did everything for me. Are you living for the here and now or the there and forever?

Lead Pastor’s Blog II.X

I bounce back and forth between the truth that there is so much work that needs to be done versus I am so excited about where we are headed as a church family. As a general rule of church leadership summer moving into fall carries that kind of weight. Programs are getting ready to start up again. New ministries are often launched at this time of year. New people have moved in and are looking for a church. It is an exciting time each year. This year is the same and different. It is the same in that we have lots of ministries gearing up for the fall. We are truly excited about that but this year things are also different.

God has been moving in our midst this summer at Cornerstone. The Sunday in July when Mr. Mike Hack spoke was a Sunday to remember, a Sunday when people were making life-changing decisions. Mike works for a ministry called Operation Mobilization and he lives in South Africa even though he grew up in nearby Waldheim. God used Mike to awaken us to the truth that we are in a Spiritual battle and that we need to make a life decision to surrender to Jesus Christ. It seems to simple but it has such profound implications.

Our Moderator has had our church leadership read a book called “Radical” by David Platt. To say it has stirred us would be understating the truth. The message in the book is very much in line with the message Mike shared with us. We need to wake up to the truth that God is calling us to absolute surrender. The church in North America needs to wake up says Mr. Platt. Wake up to the needs of the poor in our world and the biblical truth about salvation. God is stirring in our midst, so as much as things are the same as most summers…..this year there is a difference.

It is not business as usual. It is not just another summer heading into fall. This year things are different. As you walk into a Sunday service or connect with people during the week there is just a sense that things are different in a very positive way. Cornerstone is on the move. Perhaps a wave is a good mental picture to contemplate. A fresh wave of God’s Spirit pouring over us. A cleansing wave causing us to examine our own lives and get things right with God. A wave moving us in a fresh direction of God’s choosing. We are not in control of the wave. We just choose whether we watch the wave or catch the wave. Catching the wave has an incredible excitment associated with it.

It also has our future associated with it. If this is God’s wave then we do need ride it as a church body. As a collection of individuals we need to catch this wave and ride it empowered by the Spirit who created the wave. This summer things are different at Cornerstone. This summer God has stirred within us a church family. He has called us back to the basics. Where are you? Are you riding the wave? Are you watching the wave? Are you surrendered to Jesus Christ?

Things are the same as any other year but things are definitely different this year. Have you sensed it? Come on, let’s ride the wave together.

Lead Pastor’s Blog II.IX

I want to follow up the message from Sunday July 18 with some thoughts that may help those who were there or even challenge those who were not in attendance. If you missed that Sunday you may want to listen to the podcast once it’s up on our website.

The thrust of the message was that we are called by our very relational God to serve Him. When God showed up on Moses’ job site in Exodus 3 He was coming to call Moses into service. Each and every one of us who dare to call ourselves Christians are called to serve. As I pondered the message on Sunday afternoon I wondered why I would not serve God. Why would I deliberately choose to not serve this incredible God who has done so much for me? Every day of my life I am the beneficiary of His abundant grace. Every day there are new opportunities for me to grow in my understanding of what He has in store for me as I walk with Him. Every day it is a privilege to serve this indescribable God. Why would I not serve Him?

The truth is the evangelical church in North America has an abundance of people who make that choice each day. They choose not to serve. Now the reasons are many. It may be that some feel too stressed or too busy. It may be that some feel inadequate. I have heard the old standby of I did my time indicating that currently their job is simply to take up a spot in the service on Sunday morning. I have been given the line that I’m attending university so I can’t serve. There are many more excuses given as to why people choose not to serve. Honestly though there are very few excuses that hold any water when we talk about serving God.

Maybe we have the wrong vision when it comes to serving. Maybe we think in terms of holding some kind of position in a church like an elder or youth sponsor or Sunday School teacher. We look at the positions and conclude they are outside of our individual skill sets hence we don’t or can’t serve.

When I talk about serving I am thinking of a big picture idea not a small picture idea. I am thinking of those who indeed hold actual positions of service but also those who make coffee or set up chairs or pick up people for church. The list of possible service ideas is only limited by our creativity. People serve through their financial giving or through praying. People serve by visiting shut-ins or those in the hospital. People serve by tutoring students who struggle with school or taking food supplies to those struggling with financial issues. Really people serve when they are in the business of meeting needs. God called Moses to meet a need….lead the nation. They had been in bondage to Egypt and now God was about to answer their cries for freedom but a leader is needed. Moses is called into service.

Each and every one of us are the same as Moses in that we are called into service. It is just simply a matter of figuring out what and where God wants us to serve because He DOES want us to serve. I will speaking about this again in September when we will be having a minsitry trade fair offering all kinds of opportunities for people to get involved. As I said on Sunday I want to raise the bar when it comes to serving at Cornerstone. I want us to see and buy into the idea that it is both a privilege as well as a responsibility to serve God. We are going to establish a culture where people see serving as a natural part of our church DNA as opposed to some kind of added chore if I attend this church. We are in the process of developing a small group minsitry whereby you can attend and discover what your spiritual gifts, abilities and interests are so as to help you make wise choices when it comes to serving.

Serving is not some kind of spiritual punishment. Serving is God’s way of allowing us to engage His plan for the world. Serving is a privilege that leads to joyful satisfaction understanding I am doing what God pre-wired me to do.

As we raise the bar we will also be raising the sense of expectation about how God will use us in accomplishing His purposes. You can’t read the scriptures and find people who regretted serving God. It is just the most fantastic concept that God would allow me the honour of serving Him. There is more to come on this topic but I feel a bit better now. Have you discovered the joy of serving?

Lead Pastor’s Blog II.VIII

I read these words recently: “Jeroboam enticed Israel away from following the Lord and caused them to commit a great sin.” (II Kings 17:21) I just sat back and stopped reading at that point. Jeroboam was a king, a leader of the nation God had chosen. Can you imagine those words being penned about you personally? I said it out loud with my name and the name of the church I lead inserted in place of Jeroboam and Israel. It just sent a shudder down my spine.

It is such a challenge to live life in the place of leadership but we all do in some way. Perhaps it is as a parent or on your job site or in a volunteer position. Leadership is an immense challenge but also an incredible privilege. Parents would you like it said of you that you enticed your children away from the Lord and caused them to commit a great sin? Wow doesn’t that just grip your heart with a certain sense of fear? It seems God takes note when we lead people astray and we will one day give an account of our actions.

This past Sunday we had one of those special moments as a church family. As my friend, Mike Hack of Operation Mobilization, spoke God moved within our body of believers. There was a challenge and a warning. The challenge was in regards to whom we bow our knee in service and worship. The warning was that there is a very real spiritual battle going on and the evil one is out to deceive as well as destroy. People were making serious decisions. Some bowed and prayed. Some wept. Others just wandered out like everything was the same as usual. This was not a Jeroboam moment where people were being enticed away. This was more of a Hezekiah kind of moment. A few days ago I read these words about this king, “This is what Hezekiah did throughout Judah, doing what was good and right and faithful before the Lord.” (II Chronicles 31:20)

Two different leaders with two very different influences on their followers. Of Hezekiah it was said that he sought his God and worked wholeheartedly. Later on in II Kings it says of the people of Israel that while they were worshipping the Lord they were serving their idols. In other words God was not number one. I think much of the North American church is right here. God is in play but not number one. Other pursuits, priorities and passtimes surpass God in our personal lives. We still worship when it is convenient but honestly He is not number one.

Today that can all change. Today each one of us can make an individual decision that will put God in His proper place in our lives. Today because of God’s wonderful grace we can bow our knees willingly to the King of Kings. Today is a day of opportunity. Will you seize it?

At the end of your days would you rather have the life impact of Jeroboam or Hezekiah? It is your choice. Choose wisely my friend.

Lead Pastor Blog II.VII

It’s a rainy Tuesday morning. I have found myself this past weekend revisiting my dreams for Cornerstone as well as for my own life. I have been pondering the vision of Cornerstone changing our world.  I find it disturbing, dangerous, frustrating, humbling and a host of other emotions to spend much time dreaming. Are you currently chasing something that has your complete attention?

I don’t know if many of us slow down long enough to think about what is consuming our time and attention. One week slides into a month. One month leads to another and a year is gone. What have I accomplished from eternity’s perspective? I am at a stage of life where that is what matters to me. I guess that is why I find this dreaming stuff frustrating when I look back to see what has been accomplished in and through my life.

Joseph is my go to guy in the Bible when it comes to dreaming. He was an imperfect character as all men in the Bible were. Received a very cool dream from God but then he flaunted it in front of the family. Essentially he tells them that in his dream they are going to bow down to him. At this stage of his life let’s just say that Joseph did not have humility mastered. Later on in Genesis 37 as he goes to check on how the family business is doing we read in verse 19 “Here comes that dreamer!” Clearly his brothers were not saying it with any sense of respect or awe. No matter how you slice it that did characterize Jospeh, he was a dreamer. I’m not sure we have many Joseph’s in our midst these days. Men and women of vision. Individuals who have heard from God and are chasing the dream.

I really believe we need those people. We need dreamers to dream new great God-inspired dreams for the church today. If life is just about the stuff around us then life is so small. I don’t want my children and grand-children to spend their lives chasing what we can see. I don’t want the people of Cornerstone to spend their lives chasing stuff.  Honestly to me that is such a small way to spend our lives. It has no lasting influence.

Joseph reminds me that dreams don’t just happen. They definitely don’t happen in a straight line. Joseph had many ups and downs on the way to his dreams becoming reality. He had long periods of time where it appeared his dreams had been derailed. It must have been tough at those times to still believe. Genesis tells us that Joseph had another party who was guiding, guarding, watching over the dream. God had not been derailed in His purposes being accomplished in and through Joseph.

Perhaps that is where I am today. Maybe God is just reminding me that He is in control and not me. But right now I want more. I want to see more of Cornerstone’s influence in this world. I want to know that my individual life is having a lasting impact. God I want more. I want to see changed lives…lots of changed lives. I want to see broken people healed. I want to see lost people find the answer in Jesus Christ. I want to see hardened people softened. I want to see the uncommited become commited to the life changer named Jesus. I want to see the unmistakable hand of God at work.

What are you chasing today? Do you have a dream that has captured your attention? Is your life being spent or invested? Does Jesus have your attention? Do you think Jesus has the attention of Cornerstone Church?

I find this stuff so humbling, frustrating, disturbing and yes even dangerous. It is really hard to just be comfortable when it feels like God is poking me.

This change the world stuff is ……….

Lead Pastor’s Blog II.VI

Cornerstone you have my attention. I will take a short blogging break from examing our congregational test scores from April 25th to comment on our recent track record of responding to Matthew 25.

In January 2010 we started our year looking at Matthew 25 and the story of the sheep and the goats. Let me refresh your memory. In that story Jesus essentially says that whatever we did unto the least of these we did unto Him. So, if we feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give water to the thirsty, visit those sick or in prison we effectively minister to Jesus Himself. Not only that but he also tells us that those are the faith entrance requirements for eternity in heaven. My challenge at the beginning of the year was for us to do something within those categories during this calendar year. Get involved in some way in helping the poor. Let me give you some recent results.

In October 2009 we gave you the opportunity to sponsor a child through Compassion Canada. Each Sunday we had people manning a table where we could sign up to help a child in need. During that month over 30 children were sponsored. On Sunday April 25th World Vision was here and they told me we sponsored 19 children. On May 2nd Watoto Children’s Choir was here and we sponsored 21 children in Uganda. Since October Cornerstone has sponsored over 70 children from various places around the world. This does not include children sponsored through Haiti Arise as I know some families have responded to that need in Haiti.

I applaud your response to Matthew 25. Remember Jesus said that whatever you did to the least of these you did to me. You have been obedient and I want to encourage you for being obedient. We cannot be a church that turns its attention away from the very real needs in our world. We will not be a church that talks a good game but does nothing. We will not stop responding even when it means we sacrifice in order to meet the needs of those in our world. Part of our vision entails meeting practical needs in our world in the name of Jesus Christ. We are changing our world through our participation in Matthew 25.

However, I believe something esle is happening as well. Not only are we engaging in the vision of changing our world but what is happening is that we are being changed. Jesus Christ changes lives. Jesus Christ is changing our lives. That is such great news. If we are going to continue to be obedient to Matthew 25 we need to have our hearts become more like the heart of our Saviour.

Cornerstone you have my attention. Paul wrote in Galatians 6:9, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” By the way, we set an all time attendance record on Sunday May 2nd for Cornerstone. We saw 663 people attend our services that day. God is at work. Come on, there is still more to do so let’s keep it up.

Pastor’s Blog II.V

On Sunday April 25th Cornerstone Church was issued a Bible Content Quiz put together by The Canadian Bible Society here in Saskatoon. I handed them out as part of my morning messsage and walked the people through the 35 questions. Immediately afterward we collected the quizzes and our staff have been compiling the results. I will share with you the initial results in this posting but there will be more results coming as we analyze the data.
We asked two questions at the end of the quiz just to help us with the information we knew we would receive. The first question had to do with their Bible reading habits. We gave them four different categories to select from. The categories were 1. Daily Bible Reader, 2. Weekly Bible Reader, 3. Monthly Bible Reader or 4. Seldom/never Bible Reader. We had just over 300 people participate in the quiz. Of those participants 113 said they were daily Bible readers which is great news. We have one third in this survey reading each and every day. During our series on the character traits of God I have said over and over again that we won’t trust someone we don’t know. In order to know God I need to get into His Word.
On the other end of the spectrum we had 89 who said they read the Bible either seldom or never. When we add those to the ones who said they read monthly (which our staff felt fit into the seldom category) we found another third of our respondents. Roughly one third of our people are seldom or never reading the Bible.
So, we have one third reading daily and one third seldom or never reading their Bibles. For me, as a shepherd, this is not very encouraging news. I want God’s people to be regularly ingesting truth from God’s Word into their hearts and minds.
Perhaps you are wondering about our overall knowledge score on the test. We have those initial results as well. Our overall church score on the test once we had compiled the results from all age brackets was 54%.

The average scores for the different age brackets is as follows. Remember the total number of questions was 35. The over 65 averaged 22. The 45-65 averaged 20. The 20-44 averaged 19 and the under 20 averaged 16. I said to the staff, “our job is not done.” I am open to your comments and/or interpretations.

Pastor’s Blog II.IV

I’ve been thinking about the church. Actually I’ve been thinking about the church a lot lately. True, it is my job to do this but I see it both from a professional (my job) standpoint as well as a personal (devotional) standpoint. Allow me to wander as I share what I have been thinking in regards to the church.

How much of what the church is about is to be done or accomplished on Sunday morning? We put a lot time, energy and resources into what we refer to as our Sunday morning worship service. From a staff standpoint we invest huge resources into those few hours on Sunday. From a volunteer standpoint we access huge numbers of volunteer hours to accomplish what we accomplish each Sunday morning. Is it worth it? Are we being biblical when we invest that much effort into a few hours of the week? Is it the best use of our resources? Are we fooling ourselves? What exactly are we accomplishing on Sunday morning?

We average around 400 people each Sunday at Cornerstone. If we say that we have them for about 2-3 hours and multiply that by 400 that is 800-1200 hours of time each Sunday. Are we getting a good bang for our buck?  I am completely committed to providing clear opportunities for us to worship on Sunday mornings. I am convinced of the need to clearly communicate God’s Word each Sunday morning. I am thankful for the facility we have for Sunday mornings. I believe many people have the opportunity to exercise their gifts on Sunday morning. But what about Monday through Saturday?

What is the direct connection of Sunday to the rest of the week? Is there a connection? Or is Sunday just that nice little break from all the rest of the stuff in our lives? I cringed even as I typed that question.  If we say that Sunday is important…why is it important? What does the Bible say about us meeting together once a week? Is Sunday more important than every other day of the week?

Maybe it is time to totally re-think what we do on Sunday morning. Maybe it is time to scrap the whole thing and start with a blank sheet of paper. If we had never had any exposure to a church service but wanted to begin a gathering for God’s people or those seeking God what would that group experience look like?  Please understand that I believe God loves the church. Many years ago I fell in love with the church and that has not changed. The church is an incredible place. I just feel like God is poking me saying, “ think about it. Think about what you are doing. Think about what the scriptures say. Think about it.”

I want to expand our thinking about the church. I want our vision of the church to be both clear and biblical. I want us to embrace the disturbance of the Holy Spirit. I want us to connect the dots of how the church plays itself out from Monday through Saturday. I want us to grasp this idea that God is with us each day all through the day. I want us to understand that our spiritual walk with God is never divorced from any other area of our life. I want us to stop compartmentalizing. We may be involved in secular culture all week long but spiritually God has plans for us during our interaction with that secular culture.

Church is so much more than Sunday morning. What do you think?

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