living in the outflow

That’s the way it is with the Son of Man. He did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many people.” Matthew 20:28

I have to confess to you that for many, many years I was really more concerned about the overflow in my life than the outflow. Let me explain. I was one of those pastors who kept thinking and kept teaching that “there must be more than this”. My comments were focussed at, what I called, the church machine. In my mind, the church had become something of a machine that had to be maintained so that it could function … just to exist. I kept seeing most people just wanted to “go to church” so that they could say that they “went”. There was no passion, no commitment — just a machine that opened it’s doors each Sunday for education, worship, and preaching. The common thing said on the way out was … “ba bye, see you next week”. I grew tired of that and began to search for something more. I did find the power I needed with a great experience with the Holy Spirit. It was empowering and I led my church to experience that overflow in their lives. It was cool, for a while. There was passion. There was commitment. That’s where it stopped. I could not figure out for the life of me why it seemed to still bottle neck on Sunday morning. Our crowds grew. People were flocking … inward.

Fast forward 5 years. Yes, 5 years! Here I am, pastoring a new church start up … but with a new focus. It’s not all about getting your shout on. It’s not all about getting a good worship set in on Sunday AM. I am involved in a project … not a machine. My project … to learn to live in the outflow of God’s grace, kindness, and generous love to others.

The benefits … well, they are pretty cool. One, benefit … I am serving because I want to and not because I have to. Two, stories. Stories of hope and help … “they overcame … but the word of their testimony”. Three, something comes back to me when the outflow happens.  Now, some might see that 3rd benefit as a reason to serve … I will tell you that if that is your reason … you won’t get what I am trying to explain. Luke 6:38 takes over and the bumper crop that you are experiencing is overwhelming.

Where is Journey Church headed? Out not In. Giving not receiving. Opening doors. Serving.

Want to join us?

Oh, what’s the deal with the picture of the lawn mower. I read a story about a pastor who calls himself … the lawn pastor. He mows the yards of people for little or no money for the benefit of serving them. See, it’s the small things that push the gospel forward.

wg

 

dont just stand there … be something

Oh, it’s the catch phrase of the decade. Stop going to church and “be” the church. We need to preach this. We need to live this.

Yesterday Lori called me and told me that her employer, First Methodist Church in McKinney, might need to use my 16 ft. trailer. She said she volunteered it for “us”. Then she said … I volunteered you to … to pull it with your truck. I was excited … didn’t know what I was going to do with it … but it sounded adventurous. FUMC had been collecting stuff to go to Galveston Island … diapers, toilet paper, peanut butter, water … in fact 3 trailers worth. She called back and said they needed a covered trailer and alas mine is not a covered trailer. They left yesterday to distribute.

It’s true that Journey Church does not have a lot of people attending at this point. We average 10 on Sunday morning. It sort of reminds me of Steve Sjogren when he started a Vineyard church in Cincinnati. After 18 months … they had 37 people attending.

Then Sjogren returned to the Gospels and saw that Jesus served everywhere he went. Then the 37 went into their community to serve, including scouring the restrooms at local bars while disbelieving employees looked on.

That’s right … he gathered up his little band of people and they started cleaning toilets in bars. 18 years later … 7,000 people go out every Saturday for 2 hours to serve others. Serve Fest is what they call it.

You want to know why I started Journey Church … this is why. To serve, like Jesus.

wg < —

 

church is for losers

I read a very interesting blog this morning here. In Austrailia, several church leaders have come together to basically … “market” Jesus. I have my opinions about church marketing … but they are always in a state of flux, so I am open (most days). So, they hire Angus Kinnaird, a self-described “non-believing humanist.” Ok … now I am very interested. Why would they hire an atheist to help Australians get back to church?

Kinnaird says —

“I’ve had lots of clients wanting to update their image,” says the Melbourne strategy director of FutureBrand. “But I don’t think I’ve ever come across one that has quite as many problems as the church.”

So after his research … what does he come up with? Jesus! That’s right … the strategy of the campaign to get people to go to church in Australia … is Jesus! What a novel idea! Brought to you by … a non-believer.

Why Jesus? “That was the only place we had to go,” Kinnaird says. The research shows that the church is almost an insurmountable obstacle to the campaign. “The church was seen as the problem, not the solution,” he says.

The blog goes on to say that other campaigns focused on Christianity have failed.

“The problem we detected from our research was that a lot of Australians see Christianity as being for losers,” Kinnaird says. “Focusing on personal crisis as the reason for talking to the church would simply reinforce the existing perception that the Christian church is a place for people who have failed.”

The problem? Isn’t that the whole message of the gospel? We have failed and come short. We need something. We can’t get it on our own. I know we would just like to “spin” the church into something that is really cool and hip … but really, how are we going to get by of the message of Christ who says … to be first, you must be last. Jesus is the answer. The church has done a bungling job of getting that message out … but, when it’s all said and done … “those that lose their lives … will find it”.

(quotes from church marketing sucks)

<< — wg

 

toward pilot point

The misty moors toward Pilot Point. Yesterday morning gave me this picture out my back door. Everything green and the fog laying on the ground like elevated snow. Looks like you could scoop it up with a shovel.

We are so blessed to be able to live in such a pretty place. 3 miles east of the Pilot Point on a ridge that looks down on the city of Pilot Point. Actually you can’t see the city from our place … but you can see Hwy 377.

I love this place. Pastoring a church in a little town, getting to know the people, and meeting the challenges of a growing business! I have my plate full! I am sort of shocked that I have not found any other Pilot Point bloggers. (except for James and Mer)  There has to be some more out there … somewhere.

have a blessed day! < — wg

 

we want to help kirbyville

(photo from AP)

This post is an open invitation for churches or other relief organizations to use our help!!

As some of you know, we helped a family fleeing Ike last week house their 4 horses for several days. That family left last Saturday to return home to no power … but minimal damage to their homes … but the barn was gone. They were from the Kirbyville, Texas area. We have not heard much media coverage in the Dallas area from Southeast Texas … mainly Galveston and Houston.

I am a pastor of a local church and I want to help coordinate help to the Kirbyville … Jasper County area. My goal is to try and get as many other local churches involved in any type of relief needed. We are just like every one else … we have a little more time than we have a little more money … so our talents and skills will have to do for help. I know a number of carpenters, electricians, plumbers, and a bunch of semi skilled or non skilled folks who could come help in any way.

I have contacted “somebody cares” in Houston … but do not know any other way to contact local pastors in the Jasper county area. If someone could contact me today … I would try and get in touch with as many pastors in our area prior to tomorrow as possible … to find out who could come and when. We just need someone in the area to tell us what you need and how to get there.

Please contact me through this email address … give a phone number … I will return your call.

wgooden (at) yahoo.com

wayne gooden – pastor, and all around good guy.

 

again, stick a fork in it

(this is a reprint of a previous post, please excuse) Being a preacher for a bunch of years lends itself to times of hearing stories and seeing images in your mind … linking that together in some sort of logical form … for the purpose of teaching that truth to others. Today, while we rode the Goldwing, this truth came to me.

First off, it is no secret that the modern church has became spiritually obese. By that I mean … most believers think that the purpose of the church is to “feed them”. I have a visual of the Mike Myers character in the movie Austin Powers … saying “get in my belly.” That is not the purpose of the new testament church.

I can’t tell you how many living rooms I sat in … visiting prospective church members when I could recite this line from 90% of those visits. “We left our previous church and began visiting your church … because we just were not being fed.” In my mind I was going “oh great, if they come to my church I will have another mouth to feed.” I always wanted to stop those very sincere folks and ask … “how old do you have to be as a follower of Christ before you start feeding yourself?”

Anyway, today I got this visual of a FORK and began to think about the four prongs of the fork and began to ask myself … How do I know if I am getting spiritual nourished as a believer? I also remembered a cliche that has been around for several years … stick a fork in it … it’s done. Here’s how you will know if you are “getting done.”

F = Are you making FRIENDS and being friendly. Jesus said, “I no longer call you slaves … but friends.” Let’s not confuse the term friends and fellowship together. Fellowship is a church word that describes an activity. Friendship costs something … time, effort and love.

O = Is your OUTLOOK on life going forward?

R = Are you RETURNING to others better than what you receive?

K = Are your actions and attitude kind? Do you invent acts of kindness toward others?

This is a simple straight forward way of finding out if your Christian Education is just increasing the size of your head … or increasing the size of your heart.

I hope when others stick the fork in me … they can say … he’s done.

wayne gooden

 

one thing, keep moving

photo from here.

Today marks our second worship service as a new church. Journey Church is a new church in Pilot Point, Texas … that we have started from a little different model as most are doing these days. blah, blah.  I don’t know why I keep saying that … it’s not really important. We are just being obedient to what we feel God wants us to do.

I also put my message I am about to present on this blog. Probably because more people will read this blog than come to our service … not a biggie.

I was reading in Philippians this week. To me, it’s the letter of encouragement. It’s upbeat and has a lot of great instruction. Chapter 3 Paul is exhorting the church to watch out for the “life suckers”.  Now, you won’t find that terminology in scripture … but the truth is there. His warning is to beware of religious people who talk the talk … but do not have a clue about what a relationship is.

Sometimes, you have to lose it all to find it all. In other words, to know Christ you have to be willing to know Him all the way … in the suffering as well as the good times.

He then gives this great statment … “but one thing I do.” Now, we all know he did more than one thing. So, we know he is making a value statement or a mission statement. It is a foundational truth that he can stand on … no matter what. Whether he is having a good day or a not so good day … this one thing I do. What is it? He says … Forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead. … I press on.  Very poetic.

He doesn’t actually mean he can physiologically forget. He means … I will not purposefully dwell on the past. I have my hands full of present and I am reaching for the future. In other words … keep moving.  If you are rowing against the current … and let’s face it, as a believer, you should be … and you quit rowing … you will not be going forward and you will drift. Eventually it will turn your boat around and you will have a more difficult time to get your vessel turned back. Paul says … just keep moving.  When you stop moving you … 1.) lose your balance, 2.) lose your momentum, 3.) lose your race.

If you don’t remember anything else today … just, keep moving.

<< wg