kylegilbert

Over the next few months, you’re going to hear Dr. Marr and I talk a lot about the Leadership Summit.  This is an annual event that our staff has attended together for several years, and last year Southcliff began hosting a live satellite feed of the Summit (projected on a huge movie screen we set up at the Main Campus). 

The big misunderstanding we ran into last year was that a lot of people thought the event was just for people on church staff.  That’s not the case.  It’s also for those of you who serve in ministry, who are thinking about serving in ministry, or who have leadership responsibilities in other areas of your life. I can’t say enough good things about the Leadership Summit.  It’s one of the major highlights of the year for me.  The speakers are always terrific, the music and drama is awesome, and God seems to speak to my heart in a significant way each year. 

To be honest with you, I wish every person on our West Campus would attend.  It’s just that good.  And the only thing better than getting to go is getting to go with you guys, so I hope you’ll join me. 

The cost is $75 per person for members and regular attenders (a huge discount compared to what others have to pay), but we don’t want to let money stand in the way of anyone attending, so let me know if that’s an issue. 

Begging isn’t beneath me, so if that’s what it takes to get you to attend, just let me know, and I’ll be happy to oblige.

Do you ever struggle with the apparent tension between Jesus’ command to turn the other cheek and the decision of governments to declare war on other nations?  Below is an excerpt of a thoughtful e-mail I received a few months ago on the subject

I have some questions that I hope you can help me to resolve.  I have grown up in the Christian faith.   This leads me to strive to follow the teachings of Jesus.   Jesus, it seems to me, lead a peaceful existence to the point that many around him were puzzled by his lack of retaliation or preemptive attacks on others.

This being the case I cannot understand why so many Christians support various wars.  If a church leaders mission and all Christian’s mission is to teach the way of Christ, supporting war and violence seems inconsistent.  Christ’s teachings do not make any exceptions for violence.  He says faith, hope, and love are what the world needs, not violence.   The world has tried violence for thousands of years and it has brought us nothing but more violence….

What do you think of this?  Am I missing something?  How is supporting any war consistent with following Jesus’ teachings?  Is it not the case that according to Jesus’ teachings that it is a sin to continue to support a war?  Thank you for your time and help.

Here is an excerpt of my response, and I hope that many of you will find it helpful:

Thank you so much for your thoughtful and well-communicated question.  I believe this is a question that every believer must ask themselves and wrestle with.
 
While I do not want to present my personal view as the “Christian view” or even the view of Southcliff, I would like to share an article with you that articulates my own conviction on the subject.

Please let me know if I can be of further assistance as you prayerfully consider this difficult topic. 

Ever since college, I’ve been committed to reading through the Bible at least once each year. Some of the reading plans I’ve used have been more helpful than others, but I’ve stuck with a variation of the same plan for the past few years. However, this year I’m going to try a new plan.

Here are some things I especially like about this Bible reading plan:

• It goes through the Scriptures chronologically.
• You read through the gospels twice.
• There’s a passage from the New Testament and Old Testament each day.
• You read a Proverb or Psalm almost every day.
• You can download the plan for free and print it out.

Do you have a New Year’s resolution you’d like to share, another plan you’re going to use, or are you considering joining me in reading this Bible reading plan?

Recently our Pastor preached a message on the subject of pornography. The following list of resources has been made available to help you or someone you know as they battle in this area.

——————–

Free Accountability Software:
x3watch Software

Free Filtering
k9webprotection.com

Excellent Books:
“At the Altar of Sexual Immorality”, Steve Gallagher
“Not Even a Hint: Guarding Your Heart Against Lust”, Joshua Harris
“Every Man’s Battle”, Stephen Arterburn, Fred Stoeker, and Mike Yorkey

Statistics & Information:
http://www.wisechoice.net/porn-statistics/

Other Resources You May Find Helpful:
BattleZONE Ministries
PureOnline
Online Counseling
Protecting Kids
Free Filtering Software and Training

——————–

Honestly, this is an area where I know I must be vigilant. I’ve used the x3watch software on my home and work computers for several years now, and my wife and my brother are the ones who get the e-mail twice a month. In addition to them, there are also several other guys in my life who hold me accountable and who I help hold accountable.

UPDATE 8/29/08: I’ve been using the K9 Filter for several months now, and it’s the best thing I’ve come across, especially for free.  It can be customized, and I highly recommend it.

I may be a pastor, but I’m still human, and I realize that accountability is a huge part of living in a way that’s pleasing to God.

Tonight I remembered a book by Marva J. Dawn that I read about four years ago called “A Royal ‘Waste’ of Time: The Splendor of Worshipping God and Being Church for the World”. It was a very thoughtful book on worship, and one of the things I liked most about it was the tongue-in-cheek title. Worship is when we use up or “waste” our time and our very selves on the Royalty of the universe.

I think I’m drawn to this description of worship because it points out my biggest personal struggle with prayer. As I mentioned in “What’s Up with Fasting”, I tend to be very task focused, and prayer doesn’t often feel like a very productive thing to do. That’s what I like so much about describing worship as a “royal ‘waste’ of time” – it’s a great reminder that worship and prayer isn’t about being productive from a human standpoint. It’s about relating to God and showing Him my love. It’s about “wasting” our time on Him.

Of course we do this all the time with people we love, but sometimes we forget that it should be the same way with God. I sit on my couch with my wife, and we talk about things and read books out loud together. I ask her questions and listen to her opinion of things. We take walks together and enjoy meals together. It’s all great fun, but it’s certainly not productive, and it should be the same way with God.

So for those of you who join me each week in “wasting” our time setting up and taking down the West Campus stuff, and for those of you who “waste” your time on gathering together to read the Word and sing songs to God… keep up the good work! It’s what we were made for!

Here’s a great topic that a member of our fellowship suggested for the blog: There are many instances in Scripture where we read about God communicating to people through their dreams, but what about now? Does God still speak to people through dreams? What about the enemy? Do you think Satan and his demons have the ability to invade our dreams?

If you’ve ever struggled with the apparent contradiction between God’s unchanging nature and His desire for us to bring our requests to Him, you’ll enjoy this excellent excerpt from a book by Philip Yancey.

Although we discussed this issue a week ago in my cell group, I felt that the conversation was helpful, and I thought I’d open up the topic here in hope that it will be beneficial to others.

Almost every day my mind and heart does battle with a strange emotion – a nagging feeling in my soul. It’s a bit difficult to explain, but it’s an unsettled feeling. It usually expresses itself in my mind as something like “I wonder if God wants me to do more for Him?” or “My relationship with God and my family is great, so why does it feel like there is still something missing?”

Can anyone else out there relate to these feelings? Do you think it’s because I’m a perfectionist or because I’m insecure, or do you think it’s something else?

I recently asked the West Campus congregation to join me in a couple of days of prayer and fasting for our church, and there were a handful of people that responded and showed up. Even still, I notice that there’s often some resistance to this sort of thing. I even feel it myself. I have a tendency to be very productivity focused, and well… prayer often doesn’t feel like a very productive thing to do.

So I thought this topic might be a good thing to open up for discussion. Specifically, what’s the deal with fasting? Is it like a starvation protest where we twist God’s arm and get Him to do what we want Him to do?

What about prayer? Why do you think churches and people don’t pray more often? Why does an hour of prayer seem impossible to most of us? Do you prefer to pray alone or with a group? Is it difficult to keep you attention focused?

I’d love to hear what you guys think, so please post your comments.