Perspective – You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good. ~Joseph
It will happen. Bad things happen to good people all the time. What is our perspective on the bad things happening to us? If we have enemies, backstabbers, and nay-sayers, we can say to them, "Beware. Good will come." It’s a matter of perspective.
“You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.” (Gen. 50:20, NLT).
Unpacking the Pastor’s Workload: 7 Tips for Women to Help Out
All hands on deck! The job is big and the pastor can’t do it alone. Women can help unpack the pastor’s workload and make a powerful impact in the lives of those in the community and the church. As I mentioned in the previous post, Partnership with Pastors, I have a desire to help the ministries of the church be effective in their mission. The following is part two of that post and lists seven tips for women ministering to women. Ladies, you can do this.
*You can make a difference. With so many needs in our communities and churches, you have a great opportunity to assist life change by joining others and partnering with pastors.
* photo from www.jrscience.wcp.muohio.edu.
Please contribute your comment below. I’d love to know about your interest in ministry and leadership.
This is part of the Insights into Ministry & Leadership Series. If you enjoyed it you may also like the Living and Working on Mission Series, the Spiritual Journey’s Gentle Nudges Series or the other Blog Series.
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The “little ole me” attitude keeps me from partnering with others to do big things, or try feats that could never be done on my own. Feelings like, “What can I do? Not much, I’m not trained.” But partnering with pastors and other leaders with vision will build God’s kingdom and strengthen our families.
Faith and togetherness. Our weaknesses are made strong with God and others. I feel inadequate (no big secret), but with faith to trust and obey God along with joining others, amazing acts are completed. When I consider what faith and togetherness does in my life, it’s nothing short of a miracle.
When Lynn Snider, the Executive Director of South Baptist Texas Association, heard about my desire to partner with churches to reach women, he invited me to share at several pastor’s luncheons of the SBTA. I offered my assistance to make a difference in the lives of women in their community. Being a pastor’s wife, I understand the burden and workload of pastors and the benefit of women ministering to women.
At one luncheon I joined Anita Wood, SBTC Women’s Ministry Regional Representative and speaker at Capture Me! iGETitLIFE Women’s Event. We traveled to the 4th Ward in Houston and met Rev. Elmo Johnson, pastor of Rose of Sharon Missionary Baptist Church and president of UpLift 4th Ward Community Development. Anita and I offered our assistance to the pastors followed by an awesome prayer time and lunch at This is It Soul Food. We met some of Rev. Johnson’s members working and dining at the restaurant. His ministry is evident all over the 4th Ward. If you want to make a difference in the lives of people, seek out and learn from Rev. Elmo Johnson.
During each pastor gathering I offered:
• Inspirational events for the community and churches
• Women’s ministry training for leaders of women
• Vision casting for the women of the church (to assist the pastor in counseling and ministering to women)
The pastors appreciated the counseling women vision and were eager to find that kind of assistance. My pastor-husband brought a godly woman, or most often myself, into every counseling situation with females. He found extra support for the lady in crisis, a “girlfriend” with which to pray and talk. This partnership lightens the pastor’s workload and frees him to focus elsewhere.
Look for future post Tips for Women Ministering to Women, Unloading the Pastor’s Workload
Robin Bryce will bring the program at each Luncheon.
Monday, June 22
11:30 am
China Ko!
5310 E. Sam Houston Pkwy
Just North of Woodforest Blvd
11:30 am – 1:00 pm
~~~
Tuesday, June 23
11:30 am
Rose of Sharon Baptist Church
1106 Valentine
Houston, TX 77019
(Just West of Downtown Houston)
11:30 am – 1:00 pm
~~~
Thursday, June 25
11:30 am
Ryan’s Steak House Conroe
1413 N. Loop 336
11:30 am – 1:00 pm
http://southtexasba.com/
Due to the response of Twittering Church, I’ve been questioning men to get their input on how twitter could help a men’s accountability group.
My husband suggested creating “Rules of Engagement.” Obviously, since twitter is social, the opportunity to a small accountability group is available.
But before I make suggestions for “Rules of Engagement,” I want to describe how I could see twitter working for a small group.
I have a small group that can be mimicked. My group is my family. My husband and two older children twitter along together. We set our “devices” to “on” so we can see what each other are doing when we post.
My husband may tweet something about being frustrated at work, or how he had an awesome lunch meeting with someone. My kids may tweet “About to take a hard test,” or “Not feeling so hot today.” One may say something funny. One may ask via direct message (dm) for a deep prayer concern.
We laugh making no response. We pray for something mentioned. We respond with encouragement. We direct message our love, concern, and jokes directly into their circumstances in real time. (On a side note, my honey and I send “love” tweets too. Maybe I should write an article on how twitter can help your marriage.)
“Devices” are our cell phones that receive text messages. Twitter sends their tweets to our phones as a text message and we can respond via text messages in three manners.
There are more advanced methods such as creating groups and using hashtags (#), but the simple texting method keeps our family digitally connected and involved in one another’s life. I believe if your group creates “Rules for Engagement” and commits to increased digital accountability, twitter will greatly enhance your group.
(Twitter just hit Time Magazine’s front cover. Twitter is changing our culture. I really think the church ought to be involved and engaged in such awesome conversations.)
Twitter “Rules for Engagement” for group accountability and encouragement.
I welcome more input, especially from men who twitter and are a part of a small accountability group. Please respond for the edification of all.
Founder and speaker of iGETitLIFE, Robin Bryce and her pastor/husband Chuck present "He Said, She’s Sad" No wait that’s "He Said, She Said" a topic on marriage at Central Cities Church in Copperas Cove, TX in the center of the greater Ft. Hood area. If you’re in the area, come for the fun and laughs and leave with inspiration for a better marriage.
June 27-28th, 2009.
Have you ever synced with the wrong data? Or old data? It’s a pain to get rid of that we don’t need. And it can even break us, like when I accidentally Bluetoothed my Blackberry contacts to my daughter’s regular phone. Her phone locked up with all the “wrong stuff.”
Do we synchronize our faith? Do we plug our God into the USB port of our need or personal world and blend it until nothing is true, definable, or authentic? Could we be guilty of religious syncing with wrong stuff?
Us? We’re believers, right. Worshippers of God. We couldn’t be guilty, could we?
Do we worship the institution called church? Do we give our everything to our children, spouse, or family? Do we worship our selfish interests, or “this is the way I am” and “this is the way I do things.” Could we be guilty of setting our desires and longing on stuff, yet blend all this worship with a religious nod toward God?
Do we synchronize our faith in the One True God with all these culturally acceptable behaviors?
I’m guilty.
The last part of chapter 17 in 2 Kings describes how groups from various nations were settled in Israel bringing their culture with them, blending worship of God into their life’s mix. “And though they worshipped the Lord, they continued to follow their own gods according to the religious customs of the nations from which they came” (2 Kgs. 17:33).
The people practiced a spiritual acknowledgement of God without a commitment or change in their life. How can we not be guilty of the same thing? How can we be totally given to God? Without mixture? How can we be a true, definable, and authentic Christ follower?
What insights can you share from your journey?
Are churches engaging the culture, making changes to spread the news and share the hope of Jesus? Or are they just twittering?
In business, I’ve tweeted quotes of conference speakers. And, when attendance wasn’t an option, I’ve watched tweets of twitterers at the conference. Their twittering created a feeling of connection with the event and gave the most impressive information almost like I was there. I’ve also taken conference notes on my iPhone and scheduled noted events in my calendar all while listening to the speaker. I’ve seen speakers reading scripture from their Blackberry and following their presentation notes from the same. Mobile devices aren’t just phones to those who utilize their great functionality. They’re cool tools!
Should these awesome devices be used during church? For a long time I’ve thought how Twitter can be used to create a community that is involved rather than spectating during church. Christ followers want to interact, make a difference, and worship. They don’t want to watch church. They want to engage. Those who use mobile devices and Twitter in their everyday life will naturally want to do so during church.
Twitterers heralded the prayer request for the shooting of Pastor Fred Winters of Maryville, IL that happened during a church service. My husband and I received the real-time tweet and brought the request to the attention of our church meeting a thousand miles away. Real-time prayer needs. Should we twitter in church?
I wonder if the question of twittering in church could be rephrased, “Should church engage the culture?” When we send missionaries into a culture, they study it to learn effective ministry in it. We live in a post Christian culture that needs engagement for the purpose of sharing Jesus. My previous post with great video, Twittering Ministry, shows how today’s business world has changed and the implications for necessary change in ministry.
Once I had a friend jokingly tap me on the shoulder during the service and whisper, “Are you texting in church?” Me, a preacher’s wife, texting in church? I’ll admit to nothing. At that time I was only taking notes.
It seems taboo to utilize a different way of making notes than scribbling on a piece of paper. Wasn’t there a time when scribbling on paper was considered prep for passing notes in church? Now churches have fill in the blank outlines and other methods of engaging attendees with note taking. Why not the PDA? It won’t get lost or tossed as scrap.
Churches could teach their parishioners how to engage each other and their community during church with these not-so-new tools and alleviate the stigma of “not paying attention.” The fact is users may be even more engaged in worship and ministry than those sleeping or staring blankly at the wall behind the pastor. (Do you know how many ceiling tiles are in your church?)
Time magazine released an interesting article worth reading, “Twittering in Church with the Pastor’s O.K.” Certainly our world gets it, and some churches are getting on board as well. Check out a worship leader’s perspective “Using Twitter the Phone in Church.” by Chad.
“What is Twitter?” some ask. It’s micro-blogging, or broadcast texting. You can say whatever to whoever wants to listen in 140 characters. You can use text messaging on phones, applications on PDA’s, and online computers to Tweet. For a better description of the what and how of Twitter, check out Michael Hyatt’s step-by-step posts or peruse Social Media Strategies and Tools Explained blog by Beth.
Oh, and tweet me, @RobinBryce. Let’s engage for the glory of Christ.
((sigh)) :0(
This has been a week of “Who am I?” Who really cares that I’m churchless, feeling homeless, and evidently Super Bowl Party-less?
Last Sunday night being our last at our great church, we left to answer God’s desire for us to start something new. While driving home, I felt a complete loneliness. Who will bring us chicken soup when we are all sick? Who will sit with us when we endure serious hospital stays? Who will call saying they miss us and love us? Who will care for us now?
What was I thinking? Why would God want this for us?
Isolated.
Alone.
Amongst herds of people, but lonely.
Like one living and working in New York surrounded by masses, but without community? Could this be . . .?
Is this how some people live?
Not feeling loved. Not having anyone who really cares?
Is this the reason God wanted us to leave? To make a community where people will feel loved. Where through us, God will show love those who won’t go to church.
Within the last few weeks, Chuck and I made a “Not To Do” list, solidifying what we felt was God’s leading in our lives. We made a commitment to obey the call–go out of the church. Since he called us out of a great pastorate, it would defeat our obedience simply to join another. Even if we felt lonely or the need for fellowship, we were to keep to our task. We also listed that this was our call, and would allow our children to join any youth group’s activity of their choosing. (They have lots of friends in various groups, and have their Super Bowl Party invitation.) To a certain degree, we released them from supporting our call so they may follow God’s plan for their lives. This is all very strange and new territory to us.
God’s called us to live authentic Christ follower lives amongst those who need love the most. Maybe we needed to feel as those we are to reach.
A person without a home (feeling), without a community of genuine people who care, and without an invitation to a Super Bowl Party.
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This week my song has been from an old sitcom, Cheers, where lonely people gathered, “I just wanna go where everybody knows my name . . .”
Where is the Super Bowl Party?
Where is our “Cheers”?
In the middle of this drifting feeling, I’m certain of God’s faithfulness and his promised gift–his love and presence. We have a home in him and really aren’t alone. He leads us and will help build our “Cheers” community.
This party will be a Super Party!
Do you wanna come . . . where everybody knows your name?
