Fan or Follower??

A couple of weeks ago, I read a blog (I don't remember who wrote it) about being a fan of Jesus. I used it as a jumping off point and discussed in my sermon why being a fan was not enough.

To start off the sermon I had the sound man playing "Take Me Out To The Ball Game." I entered the sanctuary dressed in my Columbus Blue Jackets jersey (NHL), my Ohio State scarlet and gray hair, waving a checkered flag and a giant foam hand from the Peoria Chiefs baseball team. I got the congregation involved singing the song and then doing a couple of cheers, like "I've got spirit, yes I do...."

We then looked at the dictionary definition of the word fan and follower:
Fan - 1: an enthusiastic devotee (as of a sport or performing art) usually as a spectator 2: an ardent admirer or enthusiast (as of a celebrity or a pursuit)

Follower - 1a: one in the service of another b; one that follows the opinions or teaching of another c: one that imitates another 2: one that chases

Jesus has enough fans, what he needs are more followers. We are called to be followers, we are supposed to serve Christ and others. We are to follow his teachings and live our lives to bring honor to him and his Father, God. So you can see why my sermon focused on the fact that being a fan of Jesus is not enough, we must be followers.

"If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it." Matthew 16:24-25

Influence

Over the past week or so I have heard a great deal about influence. At our District Assembly and at some other services I have been to, they discussed influence as it relates to discipleship. We are constantly influencing others. Whether we intend to or not. People are always seeing us and reacting to how we behave, talk, live our lives. Sometimes they adopt what they see, hopefully only the good. That is why it is important to understand our influence on others. I find my Mama or Daddy's words coming out of my mouth many times. It was their influence that helped mold me in many ways into the man I am today. My children are under my influence all the time. Sometimes, to be honest, I really mess up. But my goal is to be a positive influence in their lives. I pray that they will see Jesus living in me and know that my goal is to live like He (Jesus) would want me to. In my last post I spoke about my Aunt Doris and her influence in my life. I know that there are hundreds, even thousands of people all over this country and maybe even the world who could share about her influence on them. We also must remember that our influence may seem like it hasn't done much for Christ during our lives. But I remember the story of DL Moody and his conversion. Moody was a shoe salesman and one day a man came in to buy shoes. In the process he lead DL Moody to the Lord and the rest, as they say, is history. Most Christians know how DL Moody is, but very few know the name of the man who lead Moody to a relationship with Christ. Yet, through that man's influence millions have heard the gospel through Moody, and through those who followed and went to his school in Chicago. We never know what will result from our influence. John Maxwell wrote this in his book "Leadership 101"

My Influence

My life shall touch a dozen lives

Before this day is done.

Leave countless marks of good or ill,

E'er sets the evening sun.

This, the wish I always wish,

The prayer I always pray:

Lord, may my life help other lives

It touches by the way.

May that also be our prayer everyday.

Don't Wait

On January 11th I lost a dear Aunt and encourager. Doris was always in our lives, her husband was our pastor for all of our life as children. She was there at church playing the piano and worshiping the Lord. I can still hear her as she sings about Jesus or heaven. She was there when our Mom died and she did her best to insure that we were taken care of. Although I was 19 when Mama passed away, Doris felt it her duty to take care of us. She always said that she had promised Louise, that was my Mom's name, that she would take care of her boys.

I had just completed my freshman year of college when Mama died. One thing that Doris did was to encourage me to go to Bible College. I had absolutely no desire to go to Bible College. But Doris was persistent, that is one thing you could say about her. Once she got something in her head she would not let it go. She kept after me while I completed my second year of college. I was going to a 2 year school, so I was finished. But Doris wasn't anywhere near finished. I finally agreed to go to the Bible College in Nashville. I had it in my mind to go for a semester and then go home and tell her that I had tried it and I didn't like it. But God had other plans. God is funny that way.

I went to Bible College and really loved it. I meet a wonderful girl who eventually became my bride. I entered ministry and am now serving my Savior. A great deal of the credit goes to Doris. She encouraged me (constantly) to go, she prayed for and encouraged me after I went and always supported me throughout this journey.

When she died, I wondered if I had ever told her what she meant to me. I know that I had told her that I loved her, and I know that she loved me. But, had I ever told her what an influence she had been in my Christian life. What a model of Christlike love she had been. I don't know if I did. I believe that she knows it now, in heaven, but I wish I had told her myself. So my advice to you is "Don't Wait!" If someone has influenced you, tell them now. Let them know what their life has meant to you. I wish I could do that now.

School's Out For The Summer

I am reminded of that old song today, "School's out for the summer!!" Today was the last day of school for my three boys. They are excited that school is out, and so am I. It just seems that we have more time to spend with each other in the summer. We don't have to worry so much about being in bed at a set time and we have a little more freedom to do things during the day. My greatest concern is to not let this time get past me. You know what I mean, we think we have so much time so we put off doing things and spending time with our children, and then before you know it, your busy shopping for school supplies. I don't want that to happen this year. I want to spend time with them, I want to be a great Dad. My Dad is in heaven now, he was not a Christian for most of his life, but near the end of his life he accepted Christ. He was not a bad Father, he provided for his family and he taught us right from wrong. But, he was not a very hands on kind of guy. He did not spend time with us and he did not show affection. I regret that aspect of our relationship. I wish that we would have had a better relationship as we grew up, but we did have a good relationship when he passed away. All that said, I don't want to be like my father though. I want to spend time with my boys, I want them to know that I am there for them, I want to show them that I love them. I want to help them develop into godly men who follow the Lord with a passion, who want to see people come to know Christ. That is the kind of legacy that I hope to leave when I leave this world.

Palm Sunday

This past weekend we held our Easter Egg Hunt at the church. It was a lot of fun. We had approx. 80 people here. A lot of parents with their kids and most of them were new people that the church had not had contact with before. Everyone had a great time, and Donna and I were exhausted after it was all over.

This past Sunday was of course Palm Sunday. The kids did a march around the sanctuary waving palm branches, while the congregation sang "Hosanna." It was a very good service and everyone really enjoyed seeing the kids be a part of the service. It was also a very exciting day because we had 7 visitors. We have been praying for several of them for a while and it was thrilling to see them in the service.

We have been really pushing Easter Sunday and asking everyone to invite their FRAN's -Friends, Relatives, Associates, and Neighbors. I think that everyone is excited about it, and I have had many reports of people inviting others to attend. We are expecting a great day, and we are praying for the Holy Spirit to do a great work among us this coming week. I am excited by the excitement of the people in the church. They are getting excited to see people coming to our church and hopefully that excitement will just build and not diminish. God has great things in store for us, all we have to do is trust Him, pray and follow His direction.