I’m sure you can relate.  Maybe not with writing, but with some other task or work.  Donald Miller just wrote a great piece, sharing his method of getting his writing done.  I think the same tool could be used in accomplishing most tasks without distraction.  You can click here to read Don’s post.

Preaching

Speaking live allows you to sense your audience and receive feedback from them.  A good communicator takes advantage of those in front of them by monitoring their expressions to help judge when people are connecting, understanding, or confused.

Preaching allows you to use a visual aid.

You are able to say things with a certain tone or expression that may give more meaning to your words when you speak live.

Most people have a longer attention span when it comes to watching and hearing over just reading.

Speaking to someone who is at the same place you are causes you to have their attention better than if they are on their computer at home or work where many other things are fighting for their interest.

Blogging

Writing allows you to look at what you have written and even go back and rewrite it if need be to make sure you express yourself clearly.

Written words in books or on websites have the potential to reach more people than you could pack into even the largest room.

Posting short blogs several times a week allows you to address more casual, secondary issues that you may feel need attention but are not necessarily worthy of your forty minute slot on the weekend.

Blogs allow the author to “take you there” with the ability to attach and add links that help the reader experience their point.

Having a blog allows the person with something to say, who struggles with the idea of being in front of people, present their message with confidence.

I enjoy both of these forms of communicating and information sharing.  Studies show that we retain information a lot better if we teach it to others, so find some outlet to be heard.  Take advantage of the many forms of networking that our information age provides.

I would rather be in front of a crowd than a computer any day, but that is not going to keep me from sharing the lessons of my life through whatever means necessary.  Which form of communication do you prefer?

Since I began blogging last spring, I have posted my thoughts on entertainment, politics, spirituality, my own personal life, and more.  Looking back, some of these posts were great fun to write, bring back good memories, or come as a result of great growth in my life.  I have looked over all my entries from the year and listed my favorite ten (in no particular order) below:

• During the summer I visited a church in South Carolina to hear their pastor but ended up writing about how one of the worship songs spoke to me.

• I experienced the importance of living and working with vision as a result of a gym working out and wrote about it here.

• This post reveals my epiphany this year that I am growing up.

• I wrote a two part series on some of the things I have learned about prayer.  You can review part one and
• part two here.

• What would I give for the ministry dream that’s in my heart?  God asked me that question in a public restroom and I wrote about it in the fall.

• I originally launched this blog to promote a book I wrote as a result of some events that went on in my life which effected my work and ministry.  I wrote about those events in The Story and The Story…Continued.

• The Have vs. Say principle changed my life, so I wrote about it of course.

• I got several comments and a lot of feedback from this post on looking back over my former ministry.

• I took a breathtaking vacation to beautiful Montana early in the year and smiled the entire time I wrote this recap of the trip.

I frantically scratched notes during both presentations and have listed below just some of the things I thought or learned from the night.

From Susan Isaacs:

“When none of the Christians in my life approved of me, I assumed God didn’t either”

We assume that everyone who disagrees with us is full of pride

What if our relationship with God depended on us being vulnerable with Him?

“Sometimes we marry God for His money”

Her story and more of these thoughts can be found in her book based on the idea that if she was married to God she would take Him to marriage counseling.

From Donald Miller:

The antagonist in story always acts like they are better than everyone else.  So when Christians act like that people assume we are the bad guy.

It doesn’t matter if the main character wins if it’s not obvious he is the good guy or makes others feel on his team and want to root for him.  This shows us that success alone is not the goal.

A story is made up of your actions; not your intentions or good ideas, but what you actually do.

It’s only a sacrifice if it’s something you don’t want to do.

There is nothing wrong with wanting nice things.  But if that is all you want or is your main goal in life, then your story stinks.

Our world teaches us to avoid conflict when it is conflict that helps us grow.

Characters only change through pain.

In Genesis 2, after Adam realizes he has a void, God puts him to work naming the animals before fixing his conflict.  Never though does Adam doubt God is there or that God loves him.  He realizes pain is just a part of life (even before the fall).

When we can’t find meaning in our lives, we numb ourselves with pleasure.

I’m excited about some of the things happening in my life.  I have begun contacting other church planters and church planting organizations in getting the ball rolling.  Just last week we went down to Dallas, GA to West Ridge Church to meet with Jim Akins and while I was there he introduced me to Tony Morgan.  I got to meet Tony Morgan (as in, THE Tony Morgan)!!!

I feel like things are starting to happen toward church planting and I’m getting my foot in the door with some connections.  My book is currently being professionally edited and will probably be released in January or February of next year and I’m about to begin booking a speaking tour to promote it.  I’ve also been looking for doors to open up to be able to move back to Chattanooga and begin to contribute to that community.

All of this makes me very excited when I think about it, but it kind of in a way totally freaks me out as well.  Because of the latter feeling, I have been driven to prayer a lot more as of late.  I actually made a commitment to leave my radio off for the entire month of October and focus on praying while in my car.  I’ve also amped up my personal time with God on Mondays and started spending more time with Him whenever I have the chance.  A lot of the moves I’ve made in the past weeks have been as a result of having peace and I believe I’m in a place right now where I’m really hearing from God.

It hit me the other day while driving that God has really been speaking to me as of late.  I feel like I have gotten through to Him and He has been answering a lot of my request.  I’ve prayed for wisdom and feel like He has provided.  I prayed for direction and I have seen Him respond.  Because I feel He is listening, I have begun praying for my finances, blessings on others, and the health of several of my relationships.

It’s kind of scary when you realize you are being heard by the Almighty and He is answering what you pray.  I got really nervous actually when I noticed this was happening consistently.  That kind of connection and feeling of intimacy with God is so special and indescribable, and hearing for God is something that many Godly people struggle with, so if I feel I am experiencing that, I need to fight for it.  Hearing from God should serve as motivation for us to rid ourselves of anything that could mess that up.  Daily, I must recognize I need to guard myself and keep myself in a pure and humble position because I don’t think God will stop speaking, but I sure don’t want to fall into a place where I’m no longer able to hear Him.

One NFL story I have been particularly interested in is the return of Michael Vick, who after almost two years in jail and a short suspension for his acts in dog fighting and killing of dogs has returned to the league.  Watching Vick play some with his new team in Philadelphia reminded me how I used him as an example in my book in chapter three where I discuss why it is that we repent.  So, because of Vick’s play sparking my memory, and since I am long over-due for sharing another part of my book with you, here is a somewhat lengthy excerpt from Chapter three:

The time frame in which I was going through this life changing experience was in correlation with the animal cruelty trial of Michael Vick, a National Football League quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons.  In the summer of 2007, Vick was accused of hosting dog fights on property he owned in Virginia.  For weeks it was talked about and during that time friends of Vick’s came forward and confessed to partaking in dog fighting events and even killing some dogs that were unable to fight.  Sports writers jumped to judgment and debated on what punishment Vick should face.  All of this continued for some time, while Vick continued to deny that he had any part in or knowledge of what had happened at his out-of-state home.

When I accepted the staff position at my former church, I moved from my college campus in Chattanooga, Tennessee, into Georgia to live across the street from the church.  Because I was very far away from my home town of Canton, Ohio and I am an avid sports fan, I tried to get into the professional teams in the nearest large city, which was Atlanta.  I liked their basketball team, the Hawks, about as much as they won, which was not much, and could never get over the fact that the Braves baseball team had beat my Cleveland Indians in the 1995 World Series, so I couldn’t cheer for them.  The Falcons was the only Atlanta sports team I was really able to support.  They were slightly above average, but all of their success was because of the exciting, agile play of their mobile quarterback, Michael Vick.  Knowing that if he had to serve jail time or was suspended, the team would be in big trouble caused me to keep up with the story throughout the summer, not realizing the connection with Vick I would later feel.

On August 27, just over a week after my resignation, Vick came forward and admitted he was guilty of the illegal acts that went on at his Virginia home.  On that day, Vick delivered, without notes, what seemed like a very heartfelt apology for every part he had in the dog fighting scandal.  He apologized to the team, the fans, and all the kids who looked up to him and his super-star status.  Sports writers and TV commentators began to immediately make remarks about Vick’s speech, declaring whether they thought it was sincere or an act.

As I heard these sports experts give their opinion on an issue that had little to do with sports, I couldn’t help but reflect on the situation I was in and the sorrow I was feeling at that time.  I saw the situation in an entirely different light, being in one myself where I was dealing with a lot of regret and sorrow, hoping for the forgiveness of others.

A question I usually ask when a celebrity or well-recognized public figure gets in a situation which demands their apology is, “Are they really sorry or just sorry because they were caught?”  Once again I reflected back to my own situation, where I was facing guilt because I lost my job over an incident that happened more than a month earlier.  Though I felt bad at the time I messed up, it was not until the consequences came about later that I was driven to a deeper state of sorrow and repentance.

So what is the difference?  Does it matter?  In the spiritual sense, is the means what matters, or is it just that we get to the point, somehow, someway, to where we are truly sorry?  It is here that I must stop drawing the comparisons with Michael Vick’s situation and mine.  Since that late August press conference, Vick has since done things that would point towards his apology being less genuine than I had hoped.

I think it’s quite evident when someone is truly sorry.  If their sins have to find them out to drive them to that point of sorrow, then that just may have to be the way it goes.  I believe God is more interested in our heart’s attitude than our body’s comfort.  If it takes more for some to admit what they’ve done and bring them to a desire to change, nothing in scripture causes me to believe that God will not do everything He must to have them come back to Him.  The
Bible says that God chases those who are His.

So despite the opinions some had and continue to have about Michael Vick, I learned something from him.  God used a professional athlete who broke the law to teach me that he wants all who are guilty to repent.  For some, it may simply be their conscience telling them something was wrong, and they quickly confess it.  Others may need to be exposed before they are willing to face up to what they have done.  Either way, whatever it takes or whatever circumstances must occur that will lead us to sorrow, it is at that point of sorrow that we feel regret for what we have done and acknowledge that something must be done about it.   The righteous sorrow God brings into our lives serves as our reason for repentance.

If I’m going to deal with one subject (repentance) in such detail as I do, it would be good to clearly define the term, show how it applies, and mention any other terms it may be linked to or confused with; which is what I feel we do with the word confess.  Amidst the quotes from 3,500 page theology books and original language meanings though, I tell this story, showing how the dry, doctrinal term came to life and touched me right where I was at.

……..I was preaching through a series I titled “We Believe” with the youth at our church in which my point was to express how Christianity is not about condemnation or rules, but about faith, hope, and empowerment.  I was trying to take some of the negative things Christians are known for and show how they are actually positive things we have interpreted or represented in the wrong way.  One of these was the term repent.  When I used to hear the word, I would think of street corner preachers yelling, “Repent or go to hell!”  I used to picture fundamentalists condemning others, using this word repentance as the only option for others in order for God or Christians to love them.  I spoke to this one night during the series and used Mark 1:15 as my text.  In the first chapter of Mark, John the Baptist is inviting, not demanding, others to come and repent and be baptized.  He speaks of this as a freeing effort and we see in the chapter that there were lines of people volunteering to do this.  It was obviously a positive thing people were drawn to.  It was not a spiritual beat down.

I had read this passage several times and even consulted some good commentaries in preparation for that message.  It was not until the week after I had been asked to resign that my eyes were really opened to this verse.  I was at home reading Mark chapter one for my personal devotions at a time when I thought I had already experienced repentance because I was feeling guilt, shame, and remorse.  I had just ordered a copy of The Message, a Bible paraphrase by Eugene Peterson, and was reading from it.  The Message is an amazingly rich version of the Bible that rephrases many passages differently from all other translations, giving a fresh insight to the meaning of the passage.  Such is the case with Mark chapter one.  I immediately realized that the actual word “repent” was not being used in the chapter.  Instead, The Message used the term “life change”.

Wow!  Life change!  What a great thought.  Repentance is not about taking spiritual punishment, though at times that may be necessary.  Repentance is not about going in front of a church and saying you messed up and are now a second class Christian.  Repentance is about change – life change.  I sat on my couch and read the phrase over and over.  No commentaries.  No sermon notes. Just a verse about this great evangelist inviting others to come and receive the power for life change.  They could be dead in sins, but once they meet Jesus they receive the power to make that 180 degree turn and live a changed life.  That’s repentance.

Southern Baptists are facing a membership decline that could shrink the nation’s largest Protestant denomination by nearly half in 40 years, its convention president said Tuesday.

The Rev. Johnny Hunt, a megachurch pastor from Woodstock, Ga., told convention members gathered in Louisville that Southern Baptist need to give more to worldwide missions and attract minorities.

“I really do believe we need a revival” Hunt said in a 45-minute address to kick off the two day convention.

The denomination is declining at a rate that could shrink its membership from 16.2 million to 8.7 million by 2050, Hunt said.  Total membership of Southern Baptist churches was 16,228,438 last year, down nearly 38,400 from 2007, according to LifeWay, the convention’s research and publishing arm.

Hunt, himself a Native American from the Lumbee tribe of North Carolina, said the denomination needs to work harder to court minorities.  “We need to really join with our brothers of ethnicity in this convention” Hunt said.

The Convention, which formed in 1845 after a dispute with northern Baptists over slavery, is expected to vote this week on a resolution acknowledging the historical importance of President Barack Obama’s electoral victory.

Below is an article I wrote in response.

The Cult of Denomination

Even though I laughed, I was a little hurt in reading Wednesday’s column on the Southern Baptist Convention’s yearly conference.  Their precedents of business and religion more than spirituality amaze me in that they believe they must pass a vote in order for the significance of President Obama’s election as a black man to be real.  Just several years ago they also thought it necessary to vote on a position about women that is already clearly taught in the Bible.

As a former SBC member myself, I now appreciate being a part of a congregation that’s emphasis is on simply seeing people being saved and restored.  It’s not about getting people to join our church and our denomination, and I’m not so sure that targeting a set group of people is not narrowing the focus of the great commission.  I actually look forward to the day when church and ministry networking blurs the lines of denominations or perhaps even makes them obsolete.

My concern is that most denominations have become separate identities because their focus is on the minor issues of the religious system and these obscurities become the issues that divide and the mountains we choose to die on.  I was disappointed to hear that just this past Sunday my former SBC pastor made the comment that alcohol was never ever permissible because it discredits our witness; a statement that is completely legalistic and extra-biblical.  So many churches preach a desire to keep the main thing the main thing, but this rarely happens.  In this tough economy, there is not an opening for the job of Holy Spirit, may we instead focus on being the hands and feet of Jesus.

Aaron M. Marcelli

Former SBC Minister

Don’t be so organized!  I planned to do so many things that I never ended up doing, most of them because I did not think I had the time.  Now many of those things have been done like they were no big deal by volunteers.  I made things harder and more drawn out by doing too much planning and not enough doing.

Deal with people!  It’s about relationships.  Spend time with people.  I have little to show for 10 hour days in the office.  I received the most satisfaction by being with people, so why not do more of that.  Take people out to eat, invite them along for everyday life.  I was there to impact, teach, and help people, not programs, papers, computers, or meetings.  Talk to people in person instead of writing letters.  ALWAYS MAKE TIME FOR PEOPLE!  Get out more.  Be there for people.  Everything I thought had to be done that got in the way of having more time for just being with people is not even being done now and everything is going just fine, in some ways even better than before.

Be Simple!  Don’t make it so complex.  Don’t offer 101 things to do.  DO WHAT IS IMPORTANT.  DO WHAT IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY.  Other than that, only do the other stuff if I have time and it does not take the place of something more important.

Think big picture

Think eternal things

Make sure I take time to do well what I feel is the strength of my ministry (speaking)

Involve the students more.  Make things rely on them.  If they don’t do it, it does not happen.  Not that if they don’t do it, I will just so it gets done (youth newsletter).

Have stuff for my secretary, volunteers, and leaders to do.  Not everything has to be done by me – not everything can be done by me.

Quit making future plans.  If it is that important, do it now!

It’s always easier when looking back, for after all hindsight is 20/20.  There is no way I could have been expected to predict the future or always be able to foresee what events, games, lessons, meetings, and styles would work or not work.  Honestly, I would say that I feel I was a pretty good youth pastor, especially considering I fell into a very large youth group and was given sole control all while being barely old enough to drink.  But being forcefully removed from that position allowed me to view it from as an outsider, something I was unable to do when I was so deep into it that it was near impossible to escape from doing things out or routine, easiness, and the desire for approval.

If you’re in ministry, perhaps the above epiphanies I experienced will help you step back and evaluate.  Perhaps we all should slow down from time to time and in as honest and unbiased way as possible evaluate how we perform and behave at work, at home, with friends, with family, and with strangers.  I hope never to have to be unwillingly released from a position again in order to see how I could have done it better.