I got very fired up while preaching yesterday. I love it when the Spirit moves, people are engaged and I can just let myself be moved along by the energy of real worship when I preach. Yesterday was fun, well most of it was fun. Let’s get on with the musings …

-I preached on vision. I love preaching on vision. God has been doing so many great things among us in the past year and we took a glace back at the past year during the message. We celebrated some great things. Then we focused forward as I laid out our vision for this coming year.

-We had outstanding attendance in worship. We were just 1 below our Easter attendance of a year ago! We had a lot of children and a great group of adults. Yesterday morning was a good snapshot of the great things that have taken place in the past year.

-Our small group had another good night of looking at the Word and discussing how we are applying it to our lives and how to reach out to our friends with the Word.

-It was great to see a few people able to attend worship after missing some weeks because of illness or surgery.

-I was exhausted heading into this Sunday. There has been a lot going on and from Thursday morning until Sunday evening I have been going non-stop. I took my first day off in a month earlier in the week. But I think my body and brain are screaming for a few days away. We’ll see what can be done about that issue.

-I am very encouraged by several who have really gotten serious about becoming people of prayer. While that is encouraging I am very burdened by the number of people who have not shown any desire to increase this part of their life.

-Between weddings and funerals I have worn a suit more in the past 6 weeks than in the past year. And I have a couple things already on the calendar that call for me to wear suit in the next month. What is going on?

-I am very encouraged by the number of people who are really speaking to others about their faith and those who are inviting people to attend worship with them. This will lead to great things.

-Our family’s annual bracket challenge is very interesting this year. For the first 3 days of the tournament my youngest grandson, he just turned 8, was leading us all. He is still in 3rd place after the first 2 rounds and is only 2 points out of first.

-I thought we were past winter weather. The forecast for the next few days indicates that I may have rejoiced a little too early.

-One of my activities this weekend was a draft for a Fantasy Baseball team with several people in our church. I love that kind of stuff. My fear is that those in the league are about to see the competitive side of me that they may not have witnessed up to this point. You may want to pray for them.

-With two weeks until Easter Sunday I am working hard on that sermon. There are likely to be several people in attendance who do not normally attend any church. I want to declare the Good News in a way that is understandable and will prompt some life-changing thinking and actions. That is a big responsibility and I take it very seriously.

-My son and oldest grandson will be with us for a couple of days soon as they come from Kenya so that my grandson can look at some colleges. I am so excited to have them with us and I am trying to figure out how I can have a grandson who will be attending college in a couple of years.

Here’s hoping that you have a great week no matter what the weather does where you are and that you find someone to encourage.

Dennis

We enjoyed a spectacular day of weather and another very good day of worship yesterday. My musings …

-Wow, what a gorgeous day we enjoyed yesterday.

-Our time of singing in Worship went well and the congregation is really becoming more and more engaged during the music part of worship. This makes a huge difference in the overall worship service.

-We seemed to overcome the natural letdown that often takes place following a week of great Revival/Renewal services.

-People seemed engaged during the message. After enjoying 5 services of Revival where I did not preach, I had a little too much prepared for the sermon yesterday. I was frustrated with myself because I felt rushed at the conclusion of my sermon.

-We had quite a scare after the service as one of our older gentlemen passed out as he was leaving and fell hard. He has a nasty scrape on his head and will have some sore ribs and back for a while. He was fortunate it happened inside the building, he was only about 4 steps from the door. He was checked out at the hospital and released yesterday afternoon. So thankful that he was not seriously injured.

-While at the hospital visiting with this man and his family I was asked to go to another area of the hospital and pray with another family that was having a difficult day. What an honor to be able to serve and hopefully bring some comfort.

-We had a good time in our small group last evening. It would have gone a little smoother if I had remembered to print the whole study for everyone. In my haste yesterday with everything going on, I only printed 1 page of the 2 pages of material.

-Our small group is great. They still had some great discussion in spite of my error. I love their vulnerability and openness.

-I also love the extra conversations with people after small group or after Sunday morning worship. Sometimes those are the best things that happen on a Sunday.

-Our attendance was reasonable, not great, but still 12 above the same Sunday a year ago.

-It was great to see some people back in attendance who had missed a few weeks with illness and other events.

-I continue to be amazed and so thankful for the many people who serve each week in our church. From cleaning the building in preparation for ministry, to the Sunday School teachers, to nursery workers, children’s church workers, ushers, greeters and more. There are many people who serve so that each Sunday goes well. We are truly becoming a community, a growing community.

Personally I am trying to figure out my weekly schedule. I recently began serving one day a week at our local hospital as a Chaplain. I love this opportunity to minister to people in need. The difficulty is that the day I was given is the day that I had been trying to use as my day off. Now I am trying to figure out another day to try and use as a day off. The problem is that I am going to have to rearrange some standing things in order to find a day I can regularly use. After a month of not having a day off I am feeling the effects. I am not attempting to whine or gather sympathy, but would appreciate prayers as I work this out.

Here’s hoping you have a fantastic week and that you are able to encourage someone that comes across your path.

Dennis

Yesterday was an up and down day for me. I was not feeling well as the worship service began and did not stand during any of our music because I was saving my strength for my time of preaching. I hate when I feel that way on a Sunday morning. I started feeling shaky and lousy about half way through teaching my small group during our Sunday School hour. While I was preaching I felt puny a few times and sat on a stool during those moments. Of course I didn’t stay on the stool, anyone who knows me is not surprised by that information. I survived. So let’s get on to the musings …

-We had a few annoying technical issues yesterday. Mainly with my mic.

-A couple who visited our church for the first time last Sunday came back. That is always encouraging.

-I am sure my perception is a little out of whack given how I was feeling, but it seemed that most people were engaged in the message. This was the second in a three part series on “Breaking Free from Financial Bondage”. The real proof of their engagement will come when we offer some follow-up help concerning getting out from under financial pressure. If people respond then they are more than interested, they are actually engaged.

-I am excited at the possibilities for those who will get serious about getting out from under financial stress they are currently under. Relationships can improve, marriages can be healed and people can be free to really receive all that God has for them.

-It was very cold yesterday. We have had some nasty wind chill numbers in the past few days.

-Our Sunday evening small group was a tiny group yesterday. Even with the very small number we had a great time of study and sharing. There are some exciting things taking place in the lives of some in our group.

-I love getting reports from the groups and ministries in which I am not directly involved or attending. Hearing, or reading, about what is taking place and who is attending is encouraging.

-We seem to have been overwhelmed with many people struggling with physical needs in the past several weeks. Some are the expected winter issues but we have had a larger than expected number of people facing life-changing physical issues. This has led to some great acts of care and compassion. It has also led to some increased focus on prayer.

-Yesterday was the last Sunday of our fiscal church year. In starting the process of putting year-end numbers together and reflecting on what has taken place I am humbled and encouraged by what I am seeing. This has been a very good year in many areas of ministry. People coming to Christ, people stepping out in service, attendance on the rise, a great spirit in most of our ministries, giving up slightly and a wonderful sense of excitement and expectation.

Here’s hoping you are able to encourage someone today.

Dennis

We enjoyed a great time of God’s presence in our worship service yesterday. I love it when we are ready to receive what God wants to show us. Our time of music and prayer was powerful. It had been a very hectic week for me and I was feeling very scattered early Sunday morning, so the time in our worship service was even more meaningful to me. I guess I have already started musing …

-It was a great time of worship. Our technical glitches were very minimal and the service flowed well.

-We had a lot of children present yesterday. That always adds a lot energy to the building. I am very encouraged by the growth we are experiencing in our children’s ministries.

-Yesterday had such a great spirit that we even had people saying amen, and praise the Lord out loud! That is not the norm for our congregation, though I wish it happened a lot more often.

-I started a new series entitled “Breaking Free from Financial Bondage”. For 3 weeks we are looking at what the Bible says about handling our money. No, it is not a series on giving to the church. It is a series on getting control of what God has provided instead of wondering what happened to your money and being enslaved to your debt.

-Had a great conversation with someone who just recently started tackling their debt and is seeing great progress and is creating a tool that can help others figure out bills, debt and a budget. What great timing. God really knows what he is doing.

-Early last week I was working on a completely different message, but I just kept feeling blocked as I studied. On Wednesday I began looking at this topic and it just flowed as I studied.

-We had a very lively, fun and meaningful discussion as we continued to study grace and truth in our small group last evening. The group was small in number but it was a great time of discussing. I really enjoyed the debate and discussion. I love the openness to ask questions that is in this group.

-We had some new people attend yesterday and they are in our community looking for a church home. That is always encouraging, and especially so if they come back.

-We are 3 weeks from a special series of Revival/Renewal services. We have several special times of praying for revival planned. I am anxious to see how our church responds to the opportunities to pray and to participate in the special services.

-Our attendance was up yesterday which added to the feeling of anticipation in the building. Most encouraging was seeing that attendance and realizing that we had a lot of fairly consistent attenders absent.

-I am supposed to go through a volunteer orientation at our local hospital this week so I can begin serving 1 day a week as a chaplain. I am looking forward to beginning that ministry.

Here’s hoping you see some encouraging things this week.

Dennis

The Sunday after a very low attended Sunday, this was because of weather, can have a little different feeling sometimes, but yesterday was a very good day. So here are a few of my musings this morning …

-God showed up in a powerful way during our worship service yesterday. Love it when that happens. This was one of those times that everyone saw and felt it.

-We had a spontaneous time of testimonies during the service and it was powerful. If memory serves me correctly there were 9 different people who shared during that time of our worship. The best was a wonderful man who last week had to place his wife of 64 years into assisted living. He shared that she told him she is ready to meet the Lord whenever he is ready to take her. Wow! This is a couple who have served this church generously for decades. He had tears streaming down his face all during the service and after he spoke everyone else did as well.

-Our time of singing really set the tone for the whole service. The way the songs flowed together, the power of the words, the sweet spirit of those leading and the great passion of the people’s singing made for great worship.

-We shared communion together at the close of our worship and this was one of those times where you could sense that people were really thinking of what Christ did for them and were humbly rejoicing as they remembered.

-I felt a little rushed as I preached yesterday. With the testimonies and knowing we were closing with communion my time was shorter, and that is okay. The other things that happened spoke much better than I could and I planned for a shorter message, but I still felt rushed. It was my own feeling, not something from anyone else, but I hate when I do that to myself. Because then I know I don’t communicate as well.

-Our attendance was back up to just above our average. I was reviewing some things this morning and realized that ¼ of those in attendance were not attending here when I arrived a year ago. Most of that is a positive about our growth, but I have to also acknowledge that we are missing some who have left during that same time.

-I loved having a new family come up to me and ask a question about the passage of scripture I used in my message. They are following the reading plan I gave to read through the Bible in a year. The passage they just read the day before was the same event I shared Sunday but from a different passage. They had a question at home as they read it and then again when I preached and came directly to me for clarification. I love that they are reading the Word and reading it for understanding. That made this pastor’s heart soar.

-We had a very good time of study, discussion and fellowship in our small group last night. We had some people attend who had not been to the group previously. We also had a brand new group begin yesterday and I got a text from the leader of that group last night and it sounds like it was a good beginning. We have been praying and planning on really expanding and increasing the number of groups we have and the number of people involved in this important ministry.

-We have had so many people with illnesses, injuries and difficult diagnosis in the past few months that at times it has felt overwhelming. I love how our people have reached out to so many of them to help and how they are praying for all of them. It is a joy to pastor a group that is willing to act on the concern they express.

-We are 4 weeks from a series of special meetings with an outside minister coming to speak. We call these meetings a revival. My prayer is that there will be some real reviving take place in those who are already here and that it will spill over to some that do not yet attend.

Here’s hoping you have a week of seeing and sensing God’s power and presence.

Dennis

Yesterday was winter at its finest. We got about 5 inches of very wet and heavy snow by the time our services began and it was still snowing. We had church because it was so warm that the snow was no longer accumulating and our parking lot was plowed and the city was doing a good job on the streets. So it was a very different kind of Sunday, which leads to different kinds of musings …

-The weather kept many people at home. Our attendance was about 40% of our normal worship attendance.

-The low numbers gave the service a very different feel.

-We had a great time of worship during the music and prayer time. Maybe the lower numbers made some people feel like that had to participate a little more passionately. If that is true then I need to find a way to get them to feel that way on more normal Sundays.

-Our worship team was only half of its regular size but they did a marvelous job of leading us as they worshiped.

-The difficulty on days like yesterday is that many people who do not venture out in the weather assume you know they are not coming and don’t bother to let us know they are not attending. Which leads to some scrambling and adjusting on the fly. That really bothers me and I will leave it at that for now.

-I believe that those who do attend on Sundays like yesterday have a memorable experience and it is something that they bond over with the others who attended.

-I believe people were engaged during the sermon. One nice thing for a pastor on a day like yesterday is that with the smaller number people can’t hide behind other people. We attempted to video the sermon but I haven’t put myself through the pain of watching it yet.

-I did have a hospital visit yesterday with a dear lady from our church. It is difficult to watch ones who have been so active and vital in a church as age and disease limit their ability to serve. I love being able to minister to them at times like this, but I hurt for them.

-Our small group gathered to watch the Super Bowl last evening. The outcome of the game was not what I wanted, but then I would have said that if the other team had won. I was wishing that somehow they could both lose. It was an entertaining game and I had great company as I watched the game. Love our small group.

-This is shaping up to be a very busy week with many different tasks and a lot of emotion involved.

-Very grateful for people who came early yesterday to make sure those who ventured out would have a great experience when they arrived. I love seeing people serve with such passion and love.

Here’s hoping you are safe and relatively warm today. Take some time to be thankful for the blessings you have and pray for those who are struggling today.

Dennis

What a difference a year makes. This past weekend marked one year since I moved in to our current location. When we unloaded our trailer a year ago the temperature was about 30 degrees colder and there was several more inches of snow on the ground. This year was so mild it was hard to believe it was January. Now to the musings…

-The mild weather didn’t help our attendance at all. We were down considerably from the week before, however it was still 10 more than we were averaging at this time a year ago.

-We had a few sound issues yesterday, nothing dramatic. Just enough to remind me that we can’t go too much longer without doing some major work on our sound system.

-We had a very emotional time of prayer. We have a few people in our congregation going through some major issues at this time. These are life-changing issues. I love the concern that our congregation is showing and that they are reaching out to these people to help in tangible ways.

-My wife was out of town yesterday caring for some of our grandkids so their parents could go minister with a group for the weekend. Things are never the same when she is gone. I draw great strength from her support and she helps me with details, since I can be a big picture person and miss details at times. I was also missing her observations as I was reviewing the service last night. The good news is she is supposed to get back home today.

-Illness is still wreaking havoc among our people. This stuff just doesn’t want to go away.

-I felt good about the sermon ahead of time, but I did not like how it went during the service. I was struggling all the way through and as a result it didn’t seem that the people were very engaged during the message. I will beat myself up for a few days over that one.

-I had a great conversation with one of our newer families after the service yesterday. I was greatly encouraged by that conversation.

-I headed to hospital right after the service. This hospital is about 40 minutes away. The good news is that the person I visited is doing much better (not because of my visit).

-Our small group was very small last night. We still had some good discussion and it was great to spend time with them.

-My Sunday morning small group had a very meaningful lesson and discussion. The lesson was exactly what a few of them are dealing with at this time. I love those lessons that are right on time.

-The day ended poorly when my NFL team suffered a crushing defeat, ouch!

I am looking forward to my wife getting home today. What are you looking forward to today?

Dennis

Winter is in full force around here. Sub-zero temps several days last week. 5 inches of snow on Tuesday and another 3 or 4 inches overnight on top of some freezing rain. We are still much better off than last year at this time, but we are certainly being reminded that we are in the middle of winter. We got a bit spoiled in December. As for the musings …

-Yesterday was a great picture of the growth we have experienced. The day felt like just a so-so day as far as attendance, but we actually had 25 more than we were averaging at this time last year. We had no first time visitors and we had 10 or 12 very regular attenders who were absent.

-One of our college students, from Olivet Nazarene University, shared about his upcoming mission trip. I love that we get to be a part of sending him on this trip. I love that he is willing to go. I love that people are giving and praying for him and his team. Hoping to use this as a springboard for others to go on mission trips.

-I began teaching an 8 week elective small group during our Sunday School hour. It has been a while since I did a weekly group on Sunday mornings. I love doing it but I have to be very prepared for the day and it takes some shifting of mindsets to go from teaching a small group directly into worship and preaching. It was a great start with this new group. They are going to be fun to teach.

-We made it through worship with no issues with our technology. That is a great praise. It has been a while since we were issue free on a Sunday with our technology.

-This was the 2nd message in my series “Directions”. I am burdened, and excited, to see people really dig into this series and apply it to their lives and to the life our church. People seemed engaged during the message and in conversations following the service I know there are people looking to apply the message.

-Our small group cancelled last night due to icy roads. We still had a new person show up, so my wife and I sat and talked with her for an hour. It was a great time to get to know her much better. We now have her on our list of contacts when anything changes in the group.

-It was good to see a few people back in church who have missed recently due to illness. The junk going around is still impacting a lot of people and some were still absent yesterday.

-I am excited that our Men’s group is going to start meeting again this week after a couple of months off. It is a group that meets at a local restaurant for fellowship. I love meeting with those guys. This time around we are going to have 1 question we deal with each time we meet. I am smiling as I type this in anticipation of the discussion we are likely to experience.

My back is yelling at me from the hour of shoveling this morning and I have a couple who are due to meet with me any minute, so I need to stop musing. Looking forward to a great week of ministry. What are you looking forward to this week?

Dennis