Christmas night in the emergency room

So I had a great Christmas...mostly.

Christmas morning we have Candace & Aaron, Jake & Shawna, and Julie's immediate family over for a breakfast feast. Then in the afternoon we went to Grandmas in Millersville. Very nice.

When we got home there was a mound of Christmas goodies that nice people at church gave us. I took a couple of hands full of some kind of candy coated popcorn and nuts thing, and ate it like there was going to be a famine. Like I needed more junk.

About 15 minutes later, I started feeling pressure in my stomach. It got worse, and worse untilI had trouble breathing and functioning at all. I was very tired from doing the three Christmas Eve service, and had wanted to go to bed early. But instead, I paced the floor in the worst agony I have ever been in.

For hours.

Julie prayed over me awhile. Finally, I told her to please to go to bed, while I walked and twisted to get some kind of relief. I tried laying, and sitting, and doing whatever I could think of to get a little relief. Nothing seemed to help. I was crying in excruciating pain. About 3:17am I had enough. I left Julie a note to please sleep on, but I was going to the hospital to find out how a lizard had crawled into my stomach and had a thousand babies.

In the hospital, they told me that I had gallstones, and that I might get more attacks until I one day get tired of it and take out my gallbladder.

So today I am sore from all the tension of being in so much pain. I am also a bit suspicious of food- it may not be my friend anymore. And I am seeking answers about gall stones.

Steve and Tracy Wulf

In the rush of deadlines and Christmas events, I have still not written about my friend Steve Wulf. Steve and Tracy have planted Connection Point church in Tampa in September. They are dong quite well. Steve is full of vision, passion, and excellence. I got to meet Tracy's Dad, who is also part of the team, the worship leader, and another leader or two.

I believe Steve and Tracy are excellent leaders and will go far. They have a great plan and are executing it very well. Not only will they plant this church, but many more churches will come out of this one as well.

These days 60 people gather weekly and being assimilated into a powerful force for God in the Citrus Park area of Tampa. Discipleship is happening, and the group is growing steadily. Outreach plans and development ideas are flowing.

Because this church exists, precious individuals will live for eternity in Heaven. Marriages will become storybook love lives, and serious illnesses will be healed, and world changing children will be raised. I am deeply honored to have friends like Steve and Tracy, and believe that God will use them incredibly to do great things.

Freedom Valley got to play a very small role in this new church's planting. We are the sponsoring church, have given a few dollars, and have guarateed their financial responsbility to ARC. I am chairman of the board. I pray for them often, and we hope to be able to give more finances in the near future. These items don't seem like much but it is an honor to have ANY role in something this powerful.

God has a great plan, and I am always amazed that He allows me to be part of it.  Life giving churches being planted are one of the great thrills of my life, and certainly the great hope for America.

strategy wanted

I would like to be the kind of guy that thinks big. Big enough to build actual plans to affect an entire nation with goodness, forgiveness, love, and vision. 

Jesus.

Does that kind of stuff only happen by circumstantial fortune? Or is there a way to strategically make it happen?

There are 4 million people in Tampa alone, I was told today. We found a couple of new and  growing churches. Some of them are doing stupendous jobs, but still only reaching several thousand all together. To reach this city (only one of many in my beloved country), we would need literally hundreds of them if we were content to raise the water level by only 10 degrees!

God has given us a tiny little plan to raise the water level in a tiny little county (Adams) by a degree or two- perhaps even three if we are blessed. That could make a big difference for us. But if we want to reach a nation, somebody needs to think a LOT larger than ANY plans I have heard of.

God, please help me think a little more of your thoughts. Help me do my part on my scale, while I seek and find you on how to do a far larger thing than I even know how to imagine. 

My big brother is 18 years older than me. He talks of retirement, and fights health issues. If I become like him in the next 18 years, I would surely like to make them count in a way that gets a lot of people walking into Heaven for eternity.

holding the new baby

Almost 22 years ago, I held my oldest daughter for the first time.

I was completely unprepared for the rush of feelings and powerful ideas that rocked my world as I held her. I couldn't stop looking at her, or finding other people who had to look at her too. And if some unfortunate soul in a rough mood would have looked at her even slightly oddly, I would be in prison for life.

It's not the same, but neither is it unrelated to what I feel this week as I travel to Tampa and spend a little time in the world of our newest church plant, Connection Point.

Don't get me wrong. I had little to do with this church plant. But we helped where we could, and need to celebrate what God did in bringing this new entity into the world. Steve and Tracy Wulf are the church planters, and people I am very proud to work with.

The bottom line is, people will spend eternity in Heaven because of this new church. This is as exciting as when each of my four awesome children were born.

I can't wait to see and hear about what God is doing.

heroes are standing up

Wow. I was hardly prepared for the avalanche of family issues that this past weekend brought up. Yesterday it was something like 3:30pm when I finally got done praying with couples, families, and individuals who had to face the wreckage of sinful lives- either their own or someone else's.

Several marriages dealt with infidelity for the first time. I talked to kids who wanted to know how to handle an abusive parent- some Mom's and some Dad's. I talked to quite a few very remorseful people who made huge mistakes and now have to face forgiving themselves even more than other people.

I count it unspeakably precious to be able to help in difficult places like these. And by the grace of God, I believe in some ways, I did.

From time to time, someone tells me that they wouldn't want my job, because it involves to much "playing in the sewer of human pain". But this is the job I was born to do and I am thrilled beyond belief when I get to do it, and it helps someone. All I do, is lead them to the foot of the cross, and help them see the value of bending their knee before a forgiving and understanding God who is acquainted with pain and can help them heal.

And after years of doing this job, here's what I know. Every person who finds their way through these excruciatingly painful events and survives it by falling on their knees before Jesus, will emerge with the strength and vitality of a super-hero. I never get tired of seeing that happen.

So you think your family's messed up?

We are into the real Christmas story again this week, with "I'll be home for Christmas" 2: Making Family Count.

There's a lot to learn out of the family Jesus chose:

1. Greatness can come out of all kinds of wreckage of family life. There was a lot of dysfunctionality in the family history Jesus chose to come to the earth in. But somebody stood up, reached for character and greatness, and chose not to allow the labels of the past to define the present.

2. Great leaders of great families know their rights, but tend toward mercy. Joseph knew it was his right to end the engagement when he heard that Mary was pregnant and not by him. But while he could end it, he didn't. He tended toward mercy when he had the chance, and reaped the rewards that can only come when mercy pays off.

3. They stepped into glory, by hearing God's voice. Joseph and Mary were asked to do things that no one else had ever done, were not well thought of, and seemed impossible. But by hearing His voice when he spoke, they stepped into the kind of history that is only made when somebody emerges from the bland landscape of everyday humanity and becomes great by doing what God called him to do.

oh wretched man

I am more and more aware of how different I am as a person. 

Two weeks ago, my niece wrote on the Stoltzfoos Family Yahoo Group that she wanted to do a "fabric exchange" at the Stoltzfoos family Christmas thing. I'll be honest; I cannot imagine spending more than about 12 seconds discussing fabric. I could not have known a subject that I am less interested in.

But that little email blurb generated a ton of interest. I didn't know the Stoltzfoos's had so much to say! On and on the 'fabric' discussion went, like we were talking about something interesting(!) like motorcycles, or church. You know, fun stuff. At least to me.

And I discovered recently that there are people out there who love the color purple. Which to me, is a little like loving the devil. Or Osama Ben Laden. It seems unthinkable in my tiny brain.

And then there is leadership. When I get with other leaders, I realize that my leadership thinking is way different. We start at a different place, take different paths to any given destination, and struggle to see the end point as the same place.

And I suspect that it is not them that is wrong, usually- it is me. 

I guess I thought I was a pretty regular guy. A pretty normal dude. But recently, I am painfully aware that I am just... not... normal.

Sorry world. I hope my abnormalities don't bother too many people, or make too many people feel like they are the strange ones. For those of you still reading this drivel, please know that I know that it is definitely me who is the odd one. I fervently hope that my strong and odd opinions are not the source of pain for the people around me.

Know that I am writing this tongue-in-cheek. I sort of like who I am even if I am different. But I genuinely hope I don't bother other people with it.

God, please help me not hurt people with my oddities.

15 church planters needed

My current time with God is being spent on one question; how does one go about finding 15 church planters? Because while the goal is to plant at least 10 new churches, I would like to recruit 15 church planters by June 1, 09, so there there is room for attrition in the ranks as leaders decide whether or not this is their calling, and this is the time.

So how do we do that, -find 15 church planting teams?

Maybe I can write it out and discover something by trying to express it. maybe someone who reads this blog will have an idea. My current thought is something like this:

We find someone who can visit the twelve key churches (and other churches that later choose to get involved), and share the dream with congregations, asking for those who might be interested in exploring church planting to come to a special exploratory meeting on the subject.

Here are perhaps some of the characteristics of a church planter:

a. Already leading in some way.

b. Has brought someone to Christ within the last year

c. Has demonstrated ability to believe for something that does not yet exist.

d. Has an interest in seeing the Kingdom expanded.

e. Is self motivated

f. Has already started something successfully

g. Is passionate about the body of Christ growing in excellence

h. Is passionate to make disciples of Christ.

i. Has demonstrated an ability to recruit and lead a team

j. Tends to stick to what they started.

Anyone else have any ideas about how to do this crucial step?

Johannes is coming Feb 8

So Johannes is available to come Sunday Feb 8. I hope the area Pastors and Leadership teams can meet him and get to know him a bit, as we do. I am hoping and praying that God will use him in a big way in those churches, so that we can continue to move forward into Harvest Cry with a lot of buy-in and a lot of momentum.

The bottom line is, if we are to see 1000 baptisms in water in June 2008, we need for God to put together a movement that will launch us into even greater momentum. We need a soul winning passion to be ignited in every Pastor and church leader, and then also in every person who attends our churches.

And then we need the Holy Spirit to blow on it. Because a spark is just a spark until the right combination of events makes it THE spark that ignites a movement.

We need to openly ask God for drug dealers to get saved. And criminals of all kinds. And frustrated youth, and about-to-divorce couples, and suicidally depressed individuals, and some healthy families, and some good people who did not know that they too are bound for Hell if they don't know how to escape it in Christ!

Much as I love Johannes, this isn't about him at all. He would be the first to say that. It is about us, the church, becoming the people that the Holy Spirit will use to create a movement. But I hope that our people will trust Johannes enough that they will pray harder, work smarter, and lay it all out there to see our county come to Jesus.

trying to think it through

What would Adam's County and the surrounding counties be like, if the spiritual water level was raised here by three degrees?

The plan we are discussing is ambitious, huge, and far reaching if we think of it in terms of what has been done n other places around the country. If I recall correctly, it was Barna or some such researcher who said that they have not yet found one county in America that is gaining in market share, defined as more people attending church now than there were 10 years ago.

Maybe ours could be one such county, if we succeed at planting 10 churches, and discipling 3000 new believers.

But could three degrees really make a difference? Could the general public, or even the churches really feel it if 3000 more people, or 3% more of our county attend church? This may be a huge number as measured by other communities and whether it's been done before. But is seems small if measured against what someone said was the national average of 17% church attendance. It only brings it to 20% at best! I want to celebrate possible growth without losing a passion for the other 80%!

For now, I need to build some ideas of what it could look like if our county grew in church attendance by 3%! Here are some of my little ideas. I'd love to hear some of yours.

1. These 3000 new believers would be passionate, not sleepy attendees! New life could come into everything because of their passion!

2. Person responsive to the gospel are often responsive because of personal crisis going on inside of them. Could that mean that we could disproportionately reach those who might be in desperate places, like those who might be headed for legal troubles, crisis, divorce court, and even prison? Could we even reduce the financial burden of our legal system by reaching these 3000? 

3. New people in each church would mean a disrupted norm for every church that participates. Could we hope for each church to reorganize into something more focused on the mission Jesus gave us? I am certainly hoping for that in Freedom Valley! Disturb us Lord, right Jess? (Your tag line at the bottom of every email)

How else could it make a difference? Let's build a compelling list of how God might use us if we step out of our comfy little boats... Help me everybody, will you?

Johannes might be avaliable to be here in February!

I got some good news today. Johannes might be available to be in the area Feb 8, as well as several days in March (dates to be announced). 

So we might be able to get a few more people into meetings with him and help them see why we think he is the right person to help us reach Adam's County and plant 10 new churches!

I am very excited about what this could mean for churches that have not connected with him yet. I will also want to take some extra time with him to talk strategy and learn every tip that we can to make it all that it can be!

New developments... every day?

Today in another call with Leo Crosby of Church Multiplication Network, I was given gifts from Heaven- ideas for how to raise the $50,000 we dream of for Harvest cry next year (you don't even want to know what we might be asking God for for the 2010 event).

Leo outlined for me how we might raise the needed funds by offering local corporate sponsors something they want- access to faith-based customers. He helped me see a path forward that could get us what we want by helping other people get what they want. It could also help us connect with some potential new believers in those businesses!

What could be better than that?

Everyday, God seems to give the gift of another nugget-of-an-idea. Or two.

On a less happy note, this evening my good friend Bud Sheridan went to be with Jesus. I am so glad that he is there, but I will miss him deeply. He was a veteran, a friend, a prayer warrior, and someone I could always depend on to tell me the truth, good, bad, or ugly. I feel honored to have been his Pastor.

again with the inspiration

In my prayer time this morning, I just listened to and prayed over the material from Tuesday's Pastor's meeting. It is now available on our website here. Good stuff! Again I feel very inspired by Jim's message, and each Pastor's comments on the project.

And then, I got this email from a prophetess friend in England, Beryl. She heard about our efforts, and prayed over us (bless her Lord). She said God spoke powerfully over the Pastor's meeting that we held Tuesday past, and... well.. here it is in her words...

"God impressed me on just how significant it was that there were 12 churches represented who to come to that meeting. He said 12 is a foundational number. (12 patriarchs, tribes, stones, disciples). God is going to build something mighty in Gettysburg, and He is laying the foundation stones!"

That bears witness in my spirit in a big way. I believe these twelve churches and their leaders, are very foundational to this county, and us working together on anything is so significant. But to work together on what God cares about -His Bride, the church- and reaching precious people who feel lost, that is powerful!

So, in case you are praying with me for these powerful people, here are these 12 foundation stones as I had listed them...

1. Jeff Wilson, Heritage Assembly of God

2. Allan Joines, Cross Keys Fellowship

3. Bob Costello, Liberty Worship Center

4. Jim Ruddy, Bethel Assembly of God

5. Bob Murr, Bethel Mennonite

6. Don Wolabaugh, Harvest Chapel

7. Carl Harris, First Baptist

8. Mark Knight, Calvary Assembly of God

9. Tony Joyner/Jeff Deitrich Freedom Valley Site churches

10. John Talcott, New Church fellowship

11. Mark Chester, Foursquare

12. Gerry Stoltzfoos, Freedom Valley

the mountain that needs removed

I think it was Vaughn who challenged something in my email to staff, where I mentioned something about climbing the mountain. He suggested that this is a mountain that needs to be spoken to and told to be removed, not one that needs to be climbed.

Okay, Vaughn was more gentle than that as he always is, but when I read his brief sentences, that is what I heard from the Holy Spirit. I felt more than a little nudged by the Holy Spirit on a couple of things.

The first mountain we faced was the mountain of unity among churches. Only a powerful Holy Spirit could bring us 12 Pastors together, and brought us to a place of possibly wanting to work together. I am still amazed. This mountain is in retreat, but may try to reappear at some awkward moment. I hope to be ready, and have the grace to play any role I am asked to play for it to remain gone.

The second mountain might be finances. My logistics team dreams of a $50,000 budget for outreach in June 2009. This mountain still likes to try to wake me up at night and shout at me about how this cannot be done.

Another huge mountain that leers at me right now, is the mountain of raising up 15 church planters by June 1, 2009. I would like those planters to mostly come out of the other 11 foundational churches, but I have no workable plan to recruit in those churches as of now. (I do have one little idea)

And to make things even more awkward, God has given me a number of possible planters out of our church already. I'm not sure what to do with all of that, or how to handle it. For now, I am just sort of telling the mountain to mind it's own business. it will get to swim with the fishes later perhaps if the Holy Spirit reveals where to send it.

what a great day!

Today we met with 12 Pastors in our community who are as serious about making a difference as we are. They got excited about our plan to plant 10 churches- helping them plant their first church. They also got excited about about thousands of new beleivers, and about this never having been done in America before. That God could do something cool and unique to help America get back on track again.

Jim Ruddy did an amazing job. I was realy inspired and helped as he talked about Abraham's journey into an uncomfortable place, a place that God would give him.

And the guest Pastors responded enthusiastically to the idea that we could be part opf making history here- all together! This could be Book of Acts kind of stuff, and I am very excited about getting to live a bit of it out. 

One of my favorite quotes from Johannes as we hit the streets to do witnessing in downtown Kathmandu; " we are gonna go do some crazy stuff, with God". I'm dreaming of crazy stuff like the Book of Acts, here.

tomorrow

Team,

Tomorrow is shaping up as an incredibly important day. At noon we will have a gathering of Adam's County Pastors in a way that I do not believe has ever happened before. These leaders are the true leaders of the county in my mind, and truly shape the Kingdom as I know it. They are my heroes and co-laborers.

Just the fact that they agreed to come (hoping that I really do have an idea that could make a huge difference), means that they care about what we care about- lost people finding Christ! Again, I think that is is possible that there has never been a gathering such as this one for our county.

There are about 12 area Pastors who committed to come. Please pray for them, and that God would create something powerful out of our relationships and passion for lost people to find Jesus. We think that about 3000 eternal souls may be at stake here, and 10 new churches. This is huge and could launch the Kingdom toward some major new developments, if our crucial jobs tomorrow is successful.

What I am asking God for, is an amazing spirit of unity and productivity that will rally around this bold idea to reach 300 new believers and plant 10 new churches. There are so many possible roadblocks that could seemingly derail us. Please do not take this lightly, as it is unheard of for churches to do what God has inspired us to do! It will require great prayer and favor with God to get it done!


Let's ask for it together.

Gerry

PS: The Catalyst meeting will have an hour of leadership training by Jim Ruddy, and then a few minutes to share and discuss our idea of Harvest Cry and Signs and Wonders Festival. I'll need you to be in prayer as we work through it.


Gerry Stoltzfoos
Senior Pastor
Freedom Valley Worship Center
3185 York Road Gettysburg, PA. 17325
717-624-3411 www.freedomvalley.org

Worship changes how you treat people

This weekend at Freedom Valley, we are exploring how worship makes you better to live with.

Because who wants to live with a grouch?

It is fun to live with someone who chooses to look at the positive, is thankful,  has such a good attitude that other people's bad attitude doesn't even affect them.

Paul was one of those people. He chose to forget his painful episodes of his past, and focus on what had and was going right. He didn't waste time talking about all that went wrong, or choosing to remember those places where great pain happened. He kept focusing on the things that went right, the people who changed for the better, and the greatness that he was reaching for. He became noble instead of average, healthy instead of bitter, positive instead of negative.

I want to be like that. That's why I worship.

funny fundraiseing ideas by Brenda

Brenda Bartels sent me some funny fundraiser ideas that she came up with. I LOVED these!

1.  You know how bikers like to ride for charity, well, how about you get together a gigantic group to tour Amish country.  Then contact the Amish guys and see if they'll pay even more for you all to stay home!

2. More common:  you hear a lot about coaches, principals, etc who honor a fundraising milestone by shaving their head.........never mind, that would be kinda pointless.

(Sorry, I know, that was just mean) Maybe if Marv or Jeremiah did it.  NO, actually head shavings freak me out.

3.  My favorite idea:   Sitting in the 11:15 service, I notice a lot of tattoos creeping over collars and snaking out of sleeves. Sooo.....how about a TATTOO-A-THON!! Yes, now everyone in the congregation can be decorated for a good cause!  I hear there are now temporary inks to be used for those not willing to make a total commitment.  The artist could use Christian symbols or Bible verses (a favorite of the more timid: "Jesus wept").  It would be like face painting for adults.  We could even do face painting for the kids.  The YWCA actually did something similar last week, a night about India, featuring Indian cooking and the art of henna drawing on hands (this looks cool, I had a few students in the past that came in from some Indian holiday or wedding with these designs all over their hands.) How you would go about doing all this I have no idea, I am just providing the inspiration.

Hope that doesn't make the system crash again!

4. NO I wasn't going to suggest mud wrestling, but , hey, what about melted chocolate wrestling?

Chocolate.........chocolate........sorry, lost my train of thought.

 

new levels and new realities

I am feeling so stretched right now...again. My comfort zone is very destroyed and very, well... uncomfortable.

Not that it's a bad thing. I need to be stretched and I need to grow up again, and take on new levels of challenges. I have so much to learn, and am eager to learn it.

This week had been full of organizational meetings. In fact, some of the meetings were so organizational that it made my head hurt and my stomach churn. I sometimes imagine myself getting better at being an organized thinker until I get in one of those. One four hour session left me feeling like I would throw up. I honestly did not think I was capable of getting nauseous over anything, but especially over something I thought I was growing in.

Nevertheless, the stuff we are organizing, is amazing! I am thrilled the potential to raise the water level of faith in our community, and equip church to plant new churches. I am thrilled with the ability to reach out beyond our borders, and connect with new believers in Jesus, as well as reconnecting previous members of the body of Christ.

I think what the Holy Spirit is teaching me right now, is how to deploy and bless my team in their gifts.  It's hard for me to imagine that there are people who thrive on this stuff, but then it is also very exciting that some do... Because if I use my gifts, and they use their gifts, we can rock the world together.

It's not a new concept, I know. But learning to live it out is new to me on this level.

I feel the love

I guess I have never felt such an outpouring of kindness and love as I have today- on my 47'th birthday. I don't usually do a lot about other people's birthday's and I don't really expect a lot for mine.

But today, I feel loved. Calls, cards, emails, notes, gifts, and kindnesses of every kind. Truly, God has put me in good places and allowed me to be around some of the nicest people in the world. I feel very privileged, very happy, and very blessed.

Today, 47 doesn't feel so bad.

Father, please bless these really kind and considerate people. Thanks for letting me be their Pastor, and doing the job I love so much. Help me serve them well, and honor you.

Perspective is a crazy thing

I was a little discouraged Saturday night. I just didn't feel like I communicated well. It's such a miserable feeling when you did your best but it feels flat. I left feeling like I was unclear, scattered, and messy.

But I watched in again just to try to identify where I missed it. To my surprise, it didn't seem as bad the second time.

I don't know if God covers up my messes, or if my perspective was off. But God is so kind to me, that I suspect that somewhere between delivery and watching it again, He made it better.

I know- it sounds crazy to you. But I like to think of it that way. He is so good to me, and He could easily do it, right?

Sunday morning, the 9:15 service seemed amazingly better! And at the 11:15, God did a special thing, where he turned that message into a salvation altar call, with more than a dozen responses. It was a very holy moment as I prayed with people who were confessing sin, turning from the past, and getting a fresh revelation of God. It was unbelievable and powerful.

South Hanover site

I am sitting in an exciting leadership meeting at our South Hanover location. This morning's attendance was 105. Weekly youth attendance is growing. We are praying about a new location, with more space. Kid's Ministries are badly out of space.

Most impressively, this leadership team was presented with the idea to add to their tithe so that Jeff could reduce his hours at the camp ground, and serve this body more. They got so excited about it, that some said they would start giving extra immediately! Very cool!

This is awesome.

Traction on Saturday ight

This week in the Power of Worship 5, we are talking about how being a worshipper makes you attractive. There are several examples in scripture where God Himself is attracted to worshippers- even puts Himself in the middle of it when it happens!

Crowds gather when people worship. People come to watch, they come to experience, and they come to participate.  Worship makes you incredibly attractive to the people around you. It's an often overlooked element of usefulness that God gave His people!

On Saturday nights...

Something very cool is happening to our Saturday services! Our numbers are growing, and real passion is coming. The lines for the meal are long, and lots of kids are happily playing in the bounce house. Kid's Ministries seem superb, and the preaching- well it's usually better than it was tonight.

I didn't feel like I did that well tonight. Hoefully tomrrow I can do better.

The best services for me so far this weekend, were the 24 hours prayer vigil that started Friday adn ended this morning. Those hours were the most awesome time I have had in the presence of God for some time. I was there at various times, and enjoyed every minute of it. Jeremiah and Charity really create an atmostphere where God shows Himself. What a pleasure it is to enjoy the presence of God like that!

an army of missionaries

God is just flooding me with vision lately. I have rarely -if ever- had a season like this.

Like today as I was combing through a raft of great ideas of shaping and maturing an army of leaders. Peter helped me see a better picture of what they do in their missions school, and how it affects their work in unreached people around the world.

Each missions student is ask for at least a six month commitment at one of their several missions bases around the world. Many of them come back then, work several jobs to save money- and go again for longer. Some are blessed with the ability to stay without even a season of coming back. Still others do their 6 months, and come back for good.

If I understood correctly, the missions bases are set up after a Signs and Wonders festival where 10 or more churches get planted. A seasoned missions leader is left behind to start a mother church that nurtures the other new churches, and trains leaders from it. A trusted leader is found out of the newly reached peoples. This leader will likely move into the house with the missions team leader, where he and his wife will be personally trained, nurtured and coached into the leader who will lead the works after the SOS leader is gone. The SOS leader stays on the ground at the missions base for about 5 years, establishing a strong, indigenous church that will perpetuate itself long after they are gone.

Every person who responded to a salvation call will get a visit from this team of young missionaries, be prayed with, given literature if possible, encouraged to get into a church, and coached toward jesus! One recent crusade involved 600 decisions for Christ and it took many months to visit them all! Meanwhile this y9oung missions team also holds additional outreaches, both to train new believers in outreach, and to reach more people for eternity!

I don't know if I explained it well, but it is an exciting idea in world missions. And also in developing and sending young people out for at least a 6 month period of exciting, world changing adventures in God!

I think we might have something here...

Could freedom Valley join them in targeting an unreached peoples group, planting 10 strong churches at a time, sending armies of young people out for adventures in God, and changing the world?

with some of my heroes

Johannes Amritzer, Ron Johnson, Peter Almquist, Jeff Leake, Steven Sybyala, David homas, Terry Broadwater, Brad Leache, Steve DeFrain, Joel Hunter, so many others...

These guys sharing their best ideas, along with my mighty men- Jason, Marvin, & Jeremiah. How can life get a whole lot better than that? I feel like I am walking with angels or something. These people cause me to dream bigger, breathe more deeply, and want to "do some crazy stuff for Jesus", as Johannes says. I love them and grow so much being around them.

We are at Jeff Leake's Leaders Roundtable. Just the ride out here with my guys was worth the price of admission for all the Kingdom talk we got in. It strengthens me so much.

Jocelyn's legacy

So last summer, when we lost our precious Jocelyn, her family (and all of us) ask for the consolation prize of 100 salvations. As of October, we are something over 150 I think. Rick (her dad) said recently that he decided to go ahead and ask for 1000 now. I'm with him.

I was sharing the Holy Spirit plan for those 1000 today with Tom Rees at Bootcamp. And I was selling the plan to plant 10 new churches out of the Signs and Wonders festival (and another 2000 salvations) with Johannes in 2010. I was deeply engrossed in trying to help Tom understand my little ideas, when I noticed something moving beside me. I looked up and suddenly realized that a large crowd of guys had gathered around and eyes were glistening with excitement and even a little emotion.

The ideas started flowing. "You really think this can work?" one guy sort of whispered behind me. I thought he was talking to me and started to answer when like 3 other people chimed in with comments like "you must not have been listening. Certainly this can work!"

One guys said, "I think we should get General Council to pay for this thing, giving all 10 churches away to other organizations, and showing that we are real Kingdom players." Pastor Brian Bolt chimed in at that point and said "Forget General Council- I want to help invest in something like this. I'm gonna go home and write you a check as fast as I can. I want in!"

It's a set of crazy ideas that seem to be catching on like wildfire. The ramifications are amazing! What could one county be like if the water level of spirituality came up 1% in a year, then 2 more percent in a subsequent year, with 10 new churches in place! 

Could we see God do crazy stuff like this in our day? I think He could and he MIGHT use these amazing churches in Adam's County to do it.

Tonight I was telling my two sons about this and they got SO excited they said they might not be able to sleep. They went to their bedrooms more to pray than sleep I bet.

best years ahead

This morning in my prayer time, the Holy Spirit told me very simple, but very powerful things:

1. This will nevertheless be the church's finest hour. We flourish when times are tough, and stand strong in the face of... well,... mockery, sin, and even our own death. Persecution only seems to make us stronger, and ill winds are still "worked together for good to those who love the Lord".

2. This will be our time to shine. Character, godliness, forgiveness, and joy will still be our strength. Our society may be going down, but the church is on the rise, and going to win.

Never has there been a better time for good people to rise up and be counted. Scarcity only makes us shine more!

last night's meeting

My heart is beyond full after last night's meeting. We gathered our leaders together and presented our plan to double our sanctuary space, along with the other space needs that this presents: storage, concourse, kid's playground, kid's theatre, Shining Stars arena.

It's a masisve plan that will require real and uncomfortable sacrifices from our people, starting with me. 

But our people so far, seem to eagerly reach for it. I am overwhelmed with their kind, sacrificial, and giving hearts. I am also overwhelmed with God's plan, and I feel it unfolding as fast as I can handle it. 

Power of Worship

We are journeying through the Power of Worship. I was hoping that in this series we would be able to help people get fresh appreciation for the body of Christ and what happens when we worship God together.

You can worship God by yourself, of course.

But something different happens when we worship together. I am stimulated, encouraged, and strengthened by the faith of others when I feel them put themselves into worship. It motivates me through my own weaknesses when someone who has had a tougher time than me, nevertheless gives God more. I benefit from their joy, and feed off of their energy, and it opens me up to relationship with them because we are connected by a common interest.

And then something else happens that gets my attention. In the early church of Acts 2, God adds to them. It's not their outreach, not their witnessing, and not their programs, that causes them to grow. It simply seems to be that God wants them to because of who they are!

Who they are, is a bunch of serious worshipers who put God first, and into, everything they do. They live for him, spend time with him, and give him (and each other) everything. God seems to not only enjoy hanging out with them, but also sending other people to hang out with them.

I want to be a church like that- where God enjoys being with us, and compels others to be with us.

Of course, in the next chapter, persecution begins BECAUSE they are growing so well and enjoying so much popularity. I guess I'd prefer that persecution doesn't follow effectiveness. But if it does, God help me get myself ready and stay true to Him, no matter what is ahead.

Freedom House!

Not much excites me more than making the impossible possible. That is what Freedom House does. Guys impossibly hooked on drugs can find Jesus and get it all turned around in 6 months.

I just got out of a meeting with the Freedom House team. We have 4 guys in the house, 2 directors, and two new interviews happening in the next 24 hours. We are moving into a bigger house to accommodate more guys.  Jake, Ed and Chris (directors) are really getting it done!

The best thing is loves are being changed from hopelessly out of control, to being useful, productive,  Godly leaders.

Very, very exciting.

facing my own giants

Everybody else's challenges seem easier than our own I guess.

So I am back from Nepal, and facing a few of my own giants.

We have carefully reviewed many options. Either a church keep challenging itself to grow, or it dies. Churches were built to build people, not just comfort them. Freedom Valley is no exception.

We have explored a lot of options on how to move forward. The bottom line is, after all of those options have been explored, it seems like the time is right to double our sanctuary space, so that we can continue to expand our ability to change lives, build families, and make the world a kinder, more excellent place.

Sunday night, I meet with key leaders to talk about why I think this is the time, and this is the way to reach our world more effectively. I want to hear from our leaders and have us seek the heart of God together, and move forward.

There is a lot at stake for us. I'm looking forward to the journey.

airport bound

Friends,

While the seminars have been done for two days, still we wait to leave Kathmandu, Nepal. Our tickets were far more expensive to get an earlier flight out. So we dideiced to take the last couple of days and save a large pile of money.

This gave me time to preach in another church, where people crowded in by the thousand. They all take off their shoes at the door, and sit on the carpet (Persian rug style that covered everything) for the entire service. You can really pack them in that way.

When we arrived, the service had already begun. They ushered us in through a side door near the stage. then an usher came and brought me over to the sernior Pastor, whose was sitting on the floor up against the stage. every square inch of floor space was taken, making sitting there even more uncomfortable.

When I introduced myself, I asked in anyone had been to Gettysburg and 5-6 people raised their hands! One of them was from Strasburg, next to my home town of Gap. She/they are missionaries over here. after the service we met another young American lady who is working for the United Nations's Unicef children's program as an interpreter. She grew up speaking 5 or 6 languages, and could help them tremendously i that way. I asked her how she felt about the U.N. efforts to help children and she said it seemed as if most of the money was wasted, and far too little actually helped anybody. Sad. But we as a nation are U.N. drunk, and keep giving them millions to waste.

But that was Saturday. This is Monday morning. We have said goodbye to Johannes, and Peter, and Walter, all from SOS international. Our India host Asoken and his family are still here with us, and providing any help we need as useless foreigners. He is Johannes' man here i India, and has seen 160 churches planted under Johannes' SOS international ministry, with almost no financial support from Johannes. Their last report was almost 3000 believers in those churches, and growing so rapidly that they may hit 4000 by Spring!

This morning Asoken (pronounced ash-ol-ken) asked for a last sevrice with us, and insisted in washing out feet. This is an amazingly humbling event. It is also amazingly bonding.

So we cannot wait to get on that airplane and come home! We are packing, doing last minute shopping, and generally getting it all put together. In a few minutes I need to go down and pay our bill for the week.
Thank you all for making this possible financially. And for carrying us in prayer. We have been tested in many ways, but God brought us through and helped us all along the way. we have seen healing, salvations, and Pastors being healed. We hope and pray that every penny of value was used to the uttermost for His Kingdom.

Gerry

prayer... again?

You-all have been so generous, praying for us every step of the way.

So I guess I will boldy ask yet again. In about an hour, about 11pm your time, we will be an our next service- a huge church service of 1500- to 2000 people. I covert your prayers as I preach.

Thanks, you-all.

Gerry

Nepal Pastor's seminars are finished!

It's Friday evening here in Nepal. 5:09 pm here, but 7:30am for you! It is always interesting to me that the end of our day is your beginning. Getting ahead of you people is not easy, but I finally did it! (lame joke alert)

Our seminar for India Pastors is over. Many of them headed home tonight. Some leave in the morning. A number of them have more than 4 days journey home, but bus, train, and whatever else they have to do. Some of them Pastor multiple churches, and as far as I can tell ALL of them plan to plant multiple churches yet this year.

As we prayed over them, God gave prophetic words, healings, and the healing of tears. A quick story: "Pastor Saybastian" told me that he had pain in his hip. It has hurt for 4 years. Two nights ago we prayed and he says he did not feel any pain at all since then. He was ecstatic!

As a team, we have survived some heavy stuff. We were rebuked for cultural insensitivities, and struggled to know which (if any) issues we should confront. So far we are all healthy, happy, and feeling as if we came and delivered what God sent us for.

Tomorrow I am preaching in a local church. They said 2000 people will likely attend this service. Then we should have about about a day to rest before we have to get on an airplane. I am so ready to be home, as I always am. My body may be here, but my heart stays in Gettysburg, with my favorite people on earth.

Thanks for being my friends,

Gerry

Thursday night in Nepal

Wow, this has been a long day. But very exciting and eventful.

Johannes preached for 2 hours this morning, then I taught for another 2. I spoke about surving the brutal criticims in leadership, and asked them if some of them wanted prayer for their hurts. They ALL wanted prayer and we went to work, hearing so many stories of so much pain, persecution, rejection by their families, and criticisms over themistakes they are making in new leadership. It was such an honor to get to be part of their healing.

After lunch the entire group hit the streets for hours of witnessing, casting out devils, and healings. It was very exciting stuff. My team and I spent the afternoon in a Hindu Temple- sharing Jesus. Amber Martin (she was amazing!) led several people to Christ, as did our interpreter. I was the back prayer warrior, and rarely if ever prayed so hard in my life.

Jake's team worked in other places. On their way back to the church, Jake was unhappy that he had not personally led anyone to Cjrist yet, so he stopped off a music store and admired a johnny Cash cd. The propietor came over, and Jake led him to Christ, referencing Johnny Cash's faith in Jesus! Those kinds of thigs were very exciting and rewarding. Other teams cast out demons, healed lame people, and saw a lot more salvations! There must have been more than 50 salvations I would guess. Johannes and Walter led our waiter here at the hotel, to Jesus, while Peter and Asoken led our driver to Christ!

But tonight we are all very tired. This team has all been getting up by 5 am so that we could each spend some extra time in prayer before we go to work. So our days have been long.

Tomorrow, we end our conference with an ordination service, in which 30 ministers will be ordained. Today Johannes got an update as to how his churches were doing, and was excited to hear that the SOS 120 church in India have about 1600 believers. This is up from 1000 in January, when he last received the report. He expects to top 2000 here before the end of the year.

Today, he and his team prayed over and plotted outa possible festival here in October, where they hope to lead many thousands to faith in Christ, and plant their first church here in Nepal. he is very pumped about that too!

So now I will drag myself to bed. Another satisfying and tiring day is done. I fele like I could fall asleep on my way to the room.

Gerry

day two in Kathmandu, Nepal

From the Kathmandu Team: Clay, Joe, Amber, Charity, and Jake-

We had a wonderful day here in Nepal, except for the terrible news that Joe and Vicky Cooper lost a wonderful nephew- Officer David Tome. Our hearts and prayers are with you in your grief.

Johannes' teaching first thing this morning, rocks my world as it usually does. Then I taught for about 3 hours, and we prophesied over each Pastor. Lana sent me a word that we would be shaping the leaders who changed nations, and I heard that a lot from the Holy Spirit as we ministered. We heard stories form a few who had their churches burned down more than once. For one of them it was his house that was burned down twice- because his church is in his house- about 50 people!

Terri Close also sent a word that she felt tremendous power when she prayed for us today. I felt it too, Terri. Thanks so much for praying and sending your prophetic words. Many of you wrote me, and each one meant more than I can say. It's like you are sending me injections of Jesus, and I crave them more than I crave breath.

Tomorrow we will teach, then do an ordination of 30 Pastors! Then we will hit the streets, two by two to heal the sick, cast out devils, and win souls. Johannes said "we will do crazy stuff. You stick with me Gerry, and we will get in trouble together" Angels quaver when he talks like that. Gerry does too.

Tonight we sat together until late (it's 11pm) talking about how to win nations to Christ. I am so small, and my faith ideas so puny when it comes to these things. Please pray that God will give me some ideas that could win more of the 9 million unchurched Pennsylvania residents who do not attend church. And some ideas for Armenia, and for the Dominican Republic. I need some kind of plan that raises my faith a notch or two above the pathetic line.

Please, please promise me that you will pray with me for that. I can't even stop weaping as I write this.

Thanks you all for being my partners. I feel like I need you so badly. This life changing gospel is so precious and so life giving, and we are reaching so few. But your prayers and partnership give me heeps of courage. Thank you so much.

Today I got a detailed account of your church staff meeting yesterday morning. As I read it, I was hit with one HUGE thought- I have an absolutely unbelievably incredible team of leaders working with me. Marvin, you are becoming superb at leading when I am out- even better than when I am there I suspect. Jason, Jeremiah, and each team meber- you are really outstanding people doing such outstanding work. I feel like I owe you more hugs than I ever give. You-all who read this- hug them for me today, will you? They are incredible people- completely dedicated to serving you to their last breath.

I love you all.

Gerry

Re: Nepal Trip Update

Friends,

Our first day of ministry in Kathmandu, Nepal, has just come to an end. Johannes preached for 3 hours, I did 1.5, and Walter, Johannes' man in Bulgaria, taught for an hour.

Preaching jet lagged is about 10 times harder. Listening to someone else preach when your body is screaming to you about it really being 4 in the morning and you should be sleeping, is harder still. I had to get up and walk to stay awake, and even then was not confident that I could do it.

But we got it done.

Johannes showed us where everyone is sleeping- in the Sunday School rooms of the host church. There was simply not enough money to buy everyone hotel rooms, so they are sleeping on the floor of the Sunday School rooms- about 15 to a room. Johannes insisted that he would sleep with them last night, and equally insisted that we would not.

Tomorrow should be about like today. But Wednesday, Johannes said that we would be sent out on an adventure for God. He said I am going with him, and if he gets thrown in jail, I am going in there with him too. He was kidding about the jail part.

I think.

Thanks everyone for praying with us and for us. I appreciate your kindness so much. A great big thanks to all who invested financially in this trip as well. May God bless you in a special way each day that we are here. I am asking Him to open the windows of financial blessing on you as well.

That is economic HIS bailout plan. Granted, it cost him more than 700 billion (the life of His boy was involved), but it's free to us. And I am praying it on you who sacrificially gave.

I love and miss you-all so much.

Gerry

from the Nepal team

We made it to JFK airport in New York. Any minute they will be calling our flight for boarding to Abu Dahbi, then on to Katmandu. We are mostly sitting around reading, and wishing for that good Third Place coffee, instead of the far lesser quality stuff here in the JFK airport.

Clay France drove us up. I love his driving because it's like mine- aggressive, yet smooth and solid. he doesn't waster any time. He knew his route and executed it like a pro.

Okay, it's like my driving in my dreams!

Anyway, thanks for all your help with generous giving, and much prayer. I have never felt as covered in prayer as I have on this one. And probably never needed it more.

We ended up bringing $7000 with us for the crusade that we are conducting in Katmandu. We previously sent $9500, so that brings us to $16,500. This is short of the $25,000 we hoped for, but a good number nevertheless! I am praying God's richest blessings on all of you who gave so generously. YOUR economy will be abundant, YOUR homes will be blessed, and your life will experience the richness that comes form the bearing the burdens of those who suffer for Jesus! I love you-all so much for caring about this.

Most of you also give sacrificially (more than your tithes) to Freedom Valley's building program as well. You are blessed for it, and much loved.

But most of all, thanks for being my friends.

From here on I HOPE to stay in touch with you, but as you know, it can be tough to do so when one travels.

leadership ideas shared by Dary Northrup of Timberline church, Colorado

Today I was in a training group for Pastors of larger churches. But these principles that Dary Northrup taught, are not about the size of the church, or about Pastoring. They are about relationships. I thought they were great ideas, and things I would like to learn better:

1. Assume that people like you; it s a self fulfilling prophecy in many cases. The opposite belief (most people will not like me) also tends to come true many times.

2. Do not think tired. Stop repeating over and over how tired you are. It makes it worse, and multiplies the resulting issues.

3. Be fully present. Stop doing things halfway. Be fully IN the things you chose to get involved in, or have to be part of.

4. Learn to pull rather than push. Lead people by getting ahead and pulling them toward you, not be getting behind and pushing. Everyone hates to be pushed.

my weakness for details

Something about my brain, does not love planning details.

Today again, I came out of the planning sessions for our possible upcoming building campaign, and I felt like a person who had been run over by a truck. And then run over again.

Vision excites me and makes me feel alive. I love dreaming about what could be, and thinking about how it could get done. But the details that go into getting it done, often make me with I had never thought of it.

I need some new and better way of thinking about these meetings, so that I can weather them better. I need to go into them with some thought, or approach that makes it possible to live through them and even thrive on them. Today was something I don't want to live through again, and since I need to be in these meetings, I will need to figure out a way to handle it better.

I am still loving the Harvest Cry event, because I am not in the planning meetings! If I was in the meetings, I'd probably end up hating the whole event. I feel like I need to figure out why I am affected this way so that I can practice some new approach to them.

It's not my favorite part of me.

a team of 5 becomes 7

So we prayed over 5 people going to Nepal. But now that 5 has become 7.

Here's the deal; Frank canceled, so we changed the ticket for Jake Lewis to go. Now Frank is back on and the ticket is un-canceled.

The plan is to do teaching and healing services during the day, providing ministry and caring for Pastors and their families. In the evening, the plan is for a crusade to break out, one way or another, resulting in lots of salvations of precious Nepalese people.

Now a race to the finish, preparing, replacing myself here at ministry events that I will not be at, and packing bags.

We leave Sunday morning the 19'th, drive to JFK airport in NY, and fly to Abu Dabhi, then on to Katmandu, the capital of Nepal. We return on the 28'th.

Thanks everybody for praying for us! We did not yet receive the $25,000 needed. I believe we have about $15,000 or so. I am still asking for it, and believing that God has a plan.

what politics exposes

So, when the economy is poor, Obama does well, right? They say now that the worse the economy looks, the more sure it is that the opposite party gets into the White House, no matter what they advocate, believe, or lie about.

So it really is all about money. In spite of the ultra liberal shtick about being nice, and humane, and caring, and human rights, all we really care about is, who is going to make me richer. Who will put more money in my pocket. Who will make us more prosperous.

Never mind that we have fallen silent about the wanton slaughter of innocent people. (Call it a fetus, it will help you sleep). It's all about money. It is socially unacceptable for spineless politicos to even mention this useless issue. Those babies will never vote for us, so we don't care if they scream while we hack them to pieces so that we can have an easier life.

And I am about tired of whiney Christians who tell me that it's wrong to talk about politics in the pulpit, as if it waters down the gospel. Show me a 'christian' who advocates less political talk in the puplit, and I will show you a closet liberal who has not brought anyone to Christ in so long they cannot remember. The only reason they want us to shut up about character, life, and faith in politics, is that they stopped believing in it because of the sin they have embraced.

They believe that everybody is dirty, everybody lies, eveybody has an evil agenda, because it's what they are. I believe it's called projecting.

If God doesn't intervene soon, can this nation endure?

interesting discussions

I had a few interesting discussions with new people today and last weekend. A few things surprised me:

1. More than half of them came directly from another church. That strikes me as very unusual. Most of these meetings historically seemed to be full of people who never knew Christ or have not been connected to a church in many years. So this seemed very different.

Importantly, they said that they felt called to Freedom Valley, which matters a whole lot to me. Of course there were also a few who said that "so far" I have not disappointed them with my preaching. (Warning: there is always next week!)

2. Several people brought up "women in ministry" as something they wanted to know more about. They were fascinated by Pastor Linda, and Pastor Jenn, as well as other leaders. Several said they have been heavily taught about how wrong it is to have women in Pastoral Ministry, and that they were willing to explore it, but had not been exposed to it before.

Several others were refreshed to see women in ministry, and had a totally opposite view.

I have not thought about this stuff in awhile. Of course I was raised in a church where it was taught that women should never lead, never Pastor, and all that. But it has been many years since I seriously re-thought this thing. I must say that I am far more content with the hermeneutics of our current stance "in Christ there is neither male nor female", than in the fancy foot work it took to make submission and orderliness in worship mean that women cannot hold certain offices in church leadership. I think our stance is far more consistent with all of scripture, and consistent with the nature and character of God as revealed throughout every context of the word.

The "women must be held to the traditional version of submission" group seems to be more reactive to the current societal problems of divorce, thinking that we can return to a lower divorce rate by enforcing an older version of the role of women. But I cannot see their logic, nor can we know that they are right about how they view history (was marriage better then?), nor can it be demonstrated that there is less divorce in those church cultures!

Nevertheless, it is interesting that at the core of their arguments seems to be a cultural thing, rather than an attempt to accurately reflect the Word of God. And it is just simply difficult to press their view into scripture, it seems to me.

Charity makes me cry

This email, from one Charity Landis, makes me cry a lot. I've read it everyday since she sent it, and I have never not cried over it. It might make some of you cry also, but for different reasons. Like that you also wish I would be these things.

It makes me jealous of myself. I want to be this guy when I grow up! Until then, it's nice that people like Charity give me this huge reputation to live up to.


From that Charity:
I decided to put this in a top 10 format, because I'm kind of bored and it amuses me:

10) Your aversion to laws. It makes me feel like there is logic behind what I just thought were rebellious tendencies in my own heart.

9) Your honesty. Especially when you're feeling scared, or frustrated, or extremely tiny in the face of a gigantic vision. It makes me feel like if you can face a vision that's way too big for you, so can I.

8) Your determination to lead by example (integrity), and (again) your honesty when you're having a hard time with it, or outright mess up.

7) Your blog...haha...it's one of my favorite things to read.

6) Your hugs, and how much I know you love giving them.

5) The way you congratulate me on a good idea, but then proceed to give me another perspective on that idea that I wouldn't have thought of.

4) When I see you pray....I don't know why, but it's so incredibly valuable. Not only to me, but to everyone who follows you.

3) How determined you are to see me succeed....and not just me, everyone around you. When they have a good day, or accomplish something great, you have a way of sharing in that that is incredibly precious to the person you helped.

2) The way you randomly decide to pray for me and whoever I marry....out of nowhere.

1) The way you never miss an opportunity to prophesy over me, call things out in me that I didn't see myself, and encourage the heck out of me until I'm sometimes uncomfortable staying in the room.

I really don't know what I'd do without you.

Worship explodes stress

When life is all about me, I am stressed. Do enough people like me, do they treat me well enough, are my life goals coming to pass. There is a lot to worry about, and a lot to be afraid of.

Is the economy going to fall apart, is our next president the one we deserve, have I prayed enough, read my Bible enough, witnessed enough, or cared enough about my neighbor. Some stress take a religious tone.

Do I have enough in my bank account, is my future taken care of, could my worries come true? Is my health good enough?

Okay, you get the picture.

But, the challenge for me is, to get my mind and thoughts off the possibilities and fears of what could go wrong, and get a bigger perspective. Like when you are looking out of an airplane window at 15,000 feet and see the highways full of scurrying cars, and the streets of the town bustling with people. Where are all those over stressed people going? And why? And can life be that important that everyone of them is so stressed about getting there so fast?

That 15,000 foot perspective changes everything when you sort of watch the panorama, rather than living out of your own two eyes only.

There are a couple of other ways to change perspective as well. A man told me recently that he had inherited $93,000 from his parents will. He called home to tell his wife as soon as he heard the news that they were now in a much better position financially. When his wife heard his voice on the phone, she started crying hysterically about a huge new bill for $631 that has come in the mail that day, and that they were hopelessly sinking in debt.

He couldn't get a word in edge wise, so he simply had to let her cry out her frustrations. When her sobbing finally subsided enough, he told her the news.

His perspective was different because he knew stuff that she did not know! That little information changed everything. $631 meant nothing in the light of the other information- $93,000!

Worship is like that. Everything changes when you get the rest of the story, and focus on the right facts. That God is in control, that He has plenty of money, health, happiness, and good days, for you.

This weekend, we start The Power of Worship. God help us

(make that ME)

really deeply, get it.

This weekend we begin the Power of Worship

Worship is a powerful act. It's about the powerful effect that is created by focusing on anything. Whatever you look at in a focused , you are drawn toward, and will become like.

If you focus on things that are bad and falling apart, you are drawn in that direction, inching your way toward that thing. Stress gets stronger when you focus on what could go wrong and think about how wrong it could be.

But when you focus on a peaceful, unified, strong, healthy whole, you can move in that direction too. Stress falls away when you dream about what could is right and could go right. And it puts in motion an inviolable power that creates an irresistible response.

God Himself is drawn to the power of worship. He lives in it, like He cannot resist the power of joy and the choice to exert it. And where He is, there is a fullness, unlike the emptiness and shallow pain that comes from a focus on stress.

I am looking forward to what happens as we journey into this thing- worship. Take a deep breathe and plunge into it with me! 7 weeks of life-building power!

about elected leaders

A new leader gets a blank slat of sorts. our expectations are high and our ideals soar.

But no leader can live up to that.

I love this President. I know not many supposedly do right now. He doesn't defend himself well, or even seem to care to try to defend himself. I sometimes wish he would, because I think there is a lot to like about him, and most of the stuff they blame him for is spoiled-brat Americana, where we wine and complain about everything that isn't easy.

I think sometimes that America thinks it is her God-given right to win every war easily, face every economic problem handily, and rest easy in our safety nets. If some leader does not deliver our God-given right to easy life, liberty to do whatever we feel, and the pursuit of laziness, we get bitter quickly.

I hear that the majority of America think that George W. Bush has done a bad job. This seems to be because we believe things should be easier every year than it was last year.

Really? So we are mad because life didn't fall into our lap easily lately?

I know this President isn't perfect. I think that is what bothers most of us a lot- we want to hold our leaders to impossible ideals, and get angry easily if said leaders doesn't perform flawlessly. He did not accomplish all of our favorite goals, so lets stamp our spoiled little feet petulantly, and demand that he be replaced.

But he is a man of character, and honor. He stopped partial birth abortions, and appointed conservative judges. He stood up to evil and confronted it, even when it wasn't entirely popular and unanimously agreed upon as to how to do it.

I sure wish SOMEBODY had the guts to stand up and call America ungrateful, and point out the good. I wish someobody would call us on our whining about how the war should have been easy and over within 6 minutes. And without controversy or any area where people could possibly disagree.

God give good people a voice!

my problem with laws

I was pretty discouraged at New Oxford Borough Council tonight. We took the second of four steps to increase taxes, and I was the only one to vote no on it.

As President of the Borough Council, I generally cannot even vote, but I called for a roll call vote so that I would have the privilege of registering my lonely no vote. It passed anyway of course, and I can be okay with democracy in the long run.

But then we passed a change to an ordinance to fine people whose grass grows to 8" tall. (It was 12"). And we talked about a number of other problems the town has, all of which had someone proposing a new law. No truck parking in town, no skate boarding, no new residents without registering at the town office, no parking within a block of the square, are just a few that we considered or are considering.

Maybe I was not aware of how deeply held is my aversion to laws, and especially to new taxes, is. We seem to be in a law making frenzy and I cannot seem to slow or stem the tide!

My spiritual gifting is mercy, leadership, and teaching. I guess it is the mercy gift that makes me reluctant to enforce new laws on people, and tell other people what to do. But it is also a belief that laws should be kept simple, and we should be reluctant to tell others what they must do, leading by example, PERSONAL, not governmental discipline, and that government should restrain itself and give every freedom possible.

But I sure feel like a lonely reed, blowing in the wind. I have few friends in this pursuit.

It strikes me that as American society, we seem to be less and less respectful of God's laws, but more and more enamored with our own ability to control each other.

a call from a friend

Tonight I received a call from a friend, who asked me to do something I crave to do, but rarely get to do.

He wants to talk with someone about how we might strategize the Kingdom of God taking over in America.

It's really rare to find someone who wants to talk about that.

Not that we don't all want to make a difference. Or that we don't believe that we will ultimately win when God personally takes over in a Book-of-Revelation type scenario at the end of time.

But it is so rare to find someone to want to discuss how it might happen, and whether or not we can be part of catalizing (there, it's my new word, meaning "to cause something to happen") it into existence. Perhaps we don't ultimately believe it is possible, or that it is out of our reach, or that we have no options except to plod along, hoping for SOMETHING to occur that could move it forward.

Whatever the reason, I have a craving need to find people to talk to about it. I feel really small and not nearly the leader that is needed to make this happen. But neither can I let it alone. And God stirs my soul unbelievably when the idea comes up.

So what would our world look like if we once again had a majority of people attending church, loving God, healing from their past, becoming visionary, and choosing healthy lifestyles?

It wouldn't even have to be 50%. Just a growing faith community would be enough. Winning instead of losing, growing instead of shrinking, would be enough to radically change everything. Momentum in the right direction would change everything!

I have been in meeting with some gutsy visionaries who were dreaming about the body of Christ growing 5%. That is how serious this is- we dream wistfully of tiny little growth numbers!

Not many people exist who even honestly dream of doing more than diminishing less rapdily.

And I am no better. I have little vision in my soul. That is, I don't honestly know that I have any ideas of how to get it done. I have tried a lot of things that didn't work, and a lot of things that work a little.

But by the grace of God, we desperately need something that works A LOT!

good out of bad

Tonight's response to Rick Rife's message about the power of love, was awesome. Many responded to the need for God to give them love so that they could love again. Many more responded to the call to let Jesus take over their lives.

Since Jocelyn's death June 18, we have now baptized 138 new believers in water. Her Father- Rick said tonight: "we ask for 100 salvations and they came more quickly than expected. So we are asking for 1000 now. And when we get that, we will ask for 10,000." I love Ricky's faith and am partnering with the Rife family to allow God to bring good out of bad.

God is bringing good out of bad.

Jocelyn's death was a bad thing to be sure. Satan stole her away from us. But God makes good things out of bad if you trust him and these good things bring some healing to the pain of losing a really awesome young lady.

Tonight, especially, we saw the harvest happen again.

10 were baptized.

I prayed with 1 lady to receive the baptism in the Holy Spirit, and she spoke in tongues. God also allowed me to prophesy over her about her future in leadership.

And to top it off, we had one of the largest Saturday night crowds that we ever had! I feel like I can go home with that satisfied feeling that God has spoken, and I have been obedient.

There are some really powerful things happenings right now in the Saturday night service- God things. I am loving it.

Ricky Rife this weekend

This weekend at Freedom Valley will feature Ricky Rife preaching the Word.

He will be preaching a sermon I heard before- at his daughter's funeral. While we all grieved, God spoke to him about how powerful Jocelyn's 15 years were because she got what few ever get; that love is what makes life work, gives it meaning, excitement, and burst.

We've been doing the Top Seven teaching of the Bible, and I love this journey. But the fact is, you can know them all as information, and miss what makes them work- love!

I can be unbelievably gifted, and smarter than Solomon, and still miss the value that puts it all together- loving people to share it with.

The Rife family applied their faith and went to work to make Jocelyn's loving heart make a difference. At the end of that week, we baptized 97 people and another 30 since. God used Jocelyn's story again and again to help hurting people put life together and go back to loving others, building relationships, and caring.

This is an amazing family, celebrating Jocelyn's amazing life, and gathering people to see her in Heaven.

options for our local show

Our TV show in the Gettysburg area airs on Friday night, Saturday night, and Sunday morning. I am considering moving it to Sunday afternoon, Monday afternoon, and Wednesday afternoon, so that we can actually air the material from that weekend, and everyone can be on the same page with us, rather than watching old material from weeks ago, even sometimes with commercials for events that are over.

Of course there are other options.  I could try mornings, or various other times of the day.

amazing team

My team often amazes me.

We love our dress down look. But when we discussed it a month or more ago, most agreed that it would be better for our worship community if we dressed up just a it more, most rapidly agreed that it would be good. And they are doing it.

This morning we discussed having paid staff show up for all weekend services each weekend. Again, I was surprised that almost everyone agreed that it should be so, and several volunteered on the spot to make it happen for themselves. And a couple of full time volunteers who show up for 5 services each week, wrote to say that they don't mind so much that they work harder than paid staff!

I love these guys. God, I sure would like to see your most incredible blessings on them. Thank you for each of them.

of Policies

So when I read the recent book on Integrity in Ministry, it had unintended consequences. Like, I repented to God for not being better about the role of bringing correction.

I hate confrontation, and more as I get older and have done it more.

But it is needed for health in a church. And I am working on it.

In that vein, I am considering some new policies for team members. I dislike policies and even more dislike rules. Julie tells me that I am a person who has a high need from freedom, and she may be right. Especially in the area of rules.

But some personalities are much comforted by rules, and love policies in general, even if I do not tend to do so.

So I can see that policies concerning office hours, attire, and even attendance of services, would help some.

My most recent consideration has to do with asking staff to be in all three weekend services. As a staff run church, perhaps it is time to require it. Sam Masteller mentioned today that the Wave church requires staff to be in all SEVEN! They have services all over the weekend map, and are growing rapidly, so there is something being done right. Perhaps that kind of excellence that would come from more staff involvement, would help with it.

We seem to spend more time (usually led by me) explaining why our services are not growing, than figuring out how to get more people in those services where there is plenty of room. I am re-committing myself to figuring out how to get these services filled, even while making more room for more people in the big 11:15 am service, which is often uncomfortably full.

Of course, it would also make life a lot more difficult for some staff to require them to come to more services. I dread that. Perhaps even some of these precious people would need to step aside or find a more convenient job. That would smart, a lot.

Decisions, decisions.

Sunday night dead

Saturday night live is nothing like Sunday night dead. 

That is, I know of very little that feels better than a Sunday night after I got to lay it all out there for a full weekend of ministry to people. 

Like one of those weekends where I got to lead in a salvation prayer, cast out demons, pray peace and comfort on people, speak the heart of God (and learn from it even while it comes out of my own mouth!) see people get filled with the Holy Spirit, watch healings happen, and see people go deeper with God in a small group experience. And see old relationships restored that seemed hopelessly broken.

I just had a weekend like that. Thank you Jesus. I am dead tired, but feel way too thankful to sleep any time soon. I feel like I need to stay awake just to feel it a little longer.

And while I am at it, I have rarely in my life felt such a prophetic and pwoerful move of God like what I feel begin to rumble under my feet right now. There is a sense of God at work around me  in ways that I can hardly take in.

God is up to something here. I feel it, I sense it, I prophetically call it in.

following Jesus to... well just follow

On our journey into the Top Seven belief's of the Bible, we are about to take a serious plunge into a the wildest, craziest part yet.

Interesting that in John 14, as Jesus begins to talk about it, he keeps saying "trust me". It almost sounds ominous, like there is going to be something following that we may or may not like.

"Don't let your hearts be troubled", is an interesting start! 

But he doesn't stop there! "Believe in me" .  You just KNOW it's gonna be tough when a leader got to lead with that.

The thing is, I have discovered that a LOT of people want a ramped up personality. We want to be that person that is always the life if the party, or at least "on" when we need to be. Personally, I want to be "pastoral" all the time, where I am so full of Jesus that I am hugging people, offering everyone an encouraging word, and basically so full of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, and self-control, that anyone can saunter by and get some of what they need off of me.

To be that person, I have to get (and stay) full of the Spirit of God. I get to follow Jesus, and trust Him on where He takes me.  There is more potential in me if I don't always have to figure out where I am going, because I am following someobody who knows where He is going! I get a personal mentor, and encouragement to take a deep breath and relax.

Being that person means I have to unlearn a lot of coping skills, habits, and ideas I picked up from those whose minds are smaller than the Jesus I am following. I have to embrace a new personality and let it be formed in me. I like the journey, but frequently I need to remember his words about "trust me", and "just follow".

Good stuff.

people I used to Pastor...

It often happens at weddings and funerals, and I probably need to get a better way to handle it.

Those kinds of gatherings seem to..well.. gather, an unusual group of people. Among them many times, are people who once attended Freedom Valley and don't any longer. Sometimes it is an amazingly painful experience to remember what happened to disconnect them.

Omar once told me that I probably look back to much. This would probably be one of the times he would repeat that again. And he is probably right.

But recently Father, you have been gracing my life with an amazing amount of those people coming back into it. In the past two weeks I have had healing conversations with Laurel Roth, Jim Wardrop, Joshua Heckert, Cindy Lowe and so many more, all who once were close, but left a lot of pain behind when they disconnected.

It means so much to me to have any healing in those past situations.

Sometimes at those funerals or weddings, I get this urge to stop the proceedings and try one more time to explain myself, and make it all better. I'm sure it wouldn't (make it all better), but it is tempting nevertheless.

I was spending time with my three closest advisors recently, and mused out loud about how I am sometimes concerned with how hard my heart could get if I let the pain in. I never want to become someone who stops believing in people, stops giving grace freely, or stops trying again with them.

God help me keep giving grace as freely as I keep getting it. And thanks for bringing some of them back again. Forgive me if I get greedy and want it all healed from the years of pastoring and living.

over whelmed

This afternoon we spent some time exploring the future at Freedom Valley. Some things are becoming clear. To keep reaching people, we need more space. To keep planting churches, we need to keep raising up leaders, training and releasing teams, and providing finances for start-ups of those churches.

The path forward feels daunting tonight.

a new church is under way!

I was teaching leadership last week our of Luke 10, when suddenly the Holy Spirit began teaching me again.

The harvest is plentiful, therefore ask the Lord of the harvest. It was like I saw it again for the first time. It seems that The Lord of the Harvest is especially speaking to me about seeking Him for the harvest- especially for workers to work in the harvest field!

I want to explore this a lot further. I need God to teach me a lot more about seeing the harvest, asking Him to help me harvest, and how to send out workers into the harvest field.

And I am rejoicing over harvest coming in. Some of the kinds of exiting harvest:

1. Connection Pointe church launched yesterday. More than 90 people answered 15,000 flyers in a Tampa suburb and our newest church pant was born. We are very excited to have a small role in this one, and believing God for all the best. Steve and Tracy Wulf have planted before and done well, but this one feels like it is going to a whole new level!

2. Gettysburg Master's Commission is off and running again! I love it when our building fills up with these exciting, passionate, hard working leaders-in-the-making. 8 first year students, and 6? second year students are back. I look forward to seeing some of our best leaders ever emerge from this group.

3. Freedom Christian School is growing and off to another great year!

4. Shining Stars just finished a great year, with an extremely well done year-ending-event involving many other ministries to the handicapped, community groups, and time spent encouraging our precious kids.

of weddings and such

So, Shawna's wedding was a resounding bell in my life. My child-rearing days are rapidly passing by me. There are things about fathering the little guys that I will always miss- almost as much as I resented them when they existed.

I'll miss my kids needing me when I get home. They wanted to jump on me, have me take the places, ask for help with homework, or yell at me to fix their computer. Some days I dreaded coming home for all the stuff I would have to do.

Yup. I miss it.

They wanted to wrestle me, get horsey rides from me, go to the park for swing rides, and have their monthly 'date-with-Dad' (each). They wanted me to bless them at night witgh my hands on their heads as I prayed a blessing over them.

Miss it.

Not that this stage is bad. I love talking politics with Evan, or ministry with Luke, -who is actually preaching at one of our site churches this weekend. I like talking cars, and kidding about girlfriends, and helping out with projects. I like having two terrific sons-in-law.

Evan and I had an incredible conversation lately about leadership. Shawna and I have talked about a lot of things. Candace and I cried together a bunch about that dog Sam, who had the unmitigated gall too die on us two weeks ago.

Love this stage.

All-in-all, our chidren are the most incredible human beings I can imagine. They are honest, Godly, visionary, and smart. They are funny, creative, and passionate human beings. I cannot imagine being a happier Dad than I am.

And I don't miss the past much, or often. Just when weddings and funerals come around, as they have a lot lately. And when I see myself in wedding pictures and wonder how I got so... much older.

Julie's grandfather

The death sentence we are under, sometimes seems heavy.

This evening as we gathered at Grandma's in the aftermath of Grandpa's death yesterday, Grandma was talking about their conversations together concerning dying.

I guess Grandpa had a tough couple of weeks lately. The last couple of days were especially bad, with pain in his feet increasing to the point where he was inquiring about having his legs amputated. And he had to wear a Depends undergarment for the past few days, and that kind of thing. Not fun stuff, getting old.

And so she told us tonight that they had discussed dying, and that he felt like he didn't want it to be very long if the pain he was in would continue. And she talked about not knowing when her time would be either, and wondered which one would go first. He wanted it to be him who would die first. It was.

This death sentence we are under is a horrible thing. I have to keep reminding myself that it is really God's invention to get us our of a corrupt and hurtful world, and into a warm and wonderful after life. Sometimes it seems like a sinister monster.

And I know this; it is a wonderful gift when a grandparent has made preparations for his family, letting them know that he puts his trust in Christ for salvation, and prepared himself for eternity. I have performed plenty of funerals where family members are left grasping at any little hope that their loved one would be in Heaven. It is such a painful place for everyone when that occurs.

But Grandpa was very clear that His faith was in Christ. I'll see him again.

I loved the old guy so much. He was so accepting of me, so much of a fan of my little life. I felt deeply loved and cared about by him and Grandma, and always looked forward to the time I could spend with them at Easter, Christmas, and other special family times at their home. he told me last year that from watching me on TV, I was okay. He said sometimes I actually kept his interest!

I loved his strong opinions, even when I deeply disagreed with him. Like last Christmas when we argued about who would be the next President. He was a Barrack Obama fan, of which I am very much NOT! Grandma told us to knock it off. I did. Grandpa didn't. He had a lot of (wrong things, I thought) to say about the subject. And my brilliant arguments didn't seem to dissuade him, much to my frustration. We got pretty loud (for the Myer house) before Grandma stepped in. In Stoltzfoos argument terms, however, it was strictly amateur noise levels. Grandma wouldn't like a Stoltzfoos family argument, I don't think.

Nevertheless, I loved him, even for the fact that he chose to get into it with me. It was fun, (debating a wrong person!). I wish I could joke with him that I am a little bit glad that Obama has one less vote now! He would laugh hard about that.

I even had a joke I wanted to tell him tonight. He often asked me if I had any jokes to tell him. He would listen to my jokes and laugh hard, then tell me two or three of his own, warning me that I couldn't use some of them in the pulpit.

I never had any grandparents, until I met Julie, and was adopted by hers. I appreciate them so much for that. Her family is a superb group of really fine folks that I admire and appreciate deeply. Grandpa could be very proud of his family, I think.


When I become a Grandpa, I want to be just like him. Except for the bad political ideas of course.