Modern Day “Good Samaritans”

March 12, 2009 – 1:09 pm

job-seekers1One of the greatest challenges of The Church is to be “part” of a community not just “in” the community.  I always ask myself…What happened if Fairhaven Church were to close its doors?  Would the community know, care or be affected?  Maybe there is another question that we should ask…How can we be a “Good Samaritan” in the community?  If we help people on the side of the road when they have been beaten up, we can be a Samaritan!

Well, YOU (the church) have done it again!  When the chapel was full of people today…people who are on the side of the road…beaten up…jobless that is, we were there. 

We started a ministry with volunteers from the church family.  We are calling it – Job Seekers Support!  They came in looking for hope, encouragement, skills on resume writing.  They got it!  More than that, they got “The Church” being the Good Samaritan.

Do you see anyone on the “side of the road?”  Go for it.  I dare you.  The truth is, you will get more out of it then they will. 

Many worries plus good Samaritans equal… NO Worries.

http://www.fairhavenchurch.org/community.php?id=Job%20Seekers%20Group

By dsmith | Posted in In the Loop | Tagged , | Comments (0)

Meet Justin!

March 10, 2009 – 8:08 pm

So, with hard hat on, I was walking around the construction today and met Justin.  He is one of the masons that is building the Multipurpose Activity Building.  He walked up to me and said, “Hey, Dave!”  I said, “Hi, do I know you?”  Justin proceeded to tell me that he attends Fairhaven Church.

How cool is that?  He is building his church so that HE (God) will build HIS church!  Don’t worry!  I him thanked for all of us. 

Then he told me his story!  He went through a difficult time a year ago and couldn’t get anyone to talk to him.  He called the church office and asked if it would be possible to talk to someone.  Justin was treated with grace and invited to come over and talk.  That is exactly what he did and the “rest is history.”  He is now part of our church.  He then thanked me.  I told him, I don’t deserve it, in fact, YOU (the church) do.  We, the church, need to remember that there are so many “Justins” in our community looking for someone to talk too. 

No Worries…Justin is working hard out there.  Stop by and say hello!

By dsmith | Posted in On My Mind | Tagged , | Comments (1)

Take this job and ….

March 8, 2009 – 3:04 pm

On my mind…

Last Sunday I had two men who came up and wanted to pray.  Both of them were unemployed.  One of them, we will call “Bob,” said that he had an interview this last Thursday.  So, we prayed!  And prayed.  My guess is his family prayed.  The staff prayed.  And prayed. 

He came up today after one of our services and said that the interview went great!  In fact, they told “Bob” that he should be offered a job on Tuesday.  Wow!  We prayed and God said “take this job and ….”   If Bob is offered the job this Tuesday, my guess is he will take the job and….honor God.  “Bob” if you read this, I can’t tell you how thankful I am to be part of the pray team. 

There are still others that are waiting for their answer….let’s pray for the many people who need employment.

When we give it to God…No Worries!

By dsmith | Posted in On My Mind | Comments (2)

Only a bus ride away…

March 7, 2009 – 12:43 pm

On my mind…

My oldest son, Tyler, came home last night.  Late last night.  Actually early this morning as I picked him up on a corner in Cincinnati.  See, his roommate who lives up the road on I-75 usually gives him a ride home but his car broke down.  Of course, we only found this out on Wednesday…and he was coming home Friday.  So, we discovered Mega Bus.  What a great deal.  He took a train to Chicago, got on the Mega Bus at 10 p.m. and arrived in Cincinnati at 4:30 a.m.  Saved a 12 hour trip for us, a lot of gas, and a lot of juggling of schedules.  Great price.

That meant I had to get up at 3 a.m. and drive down to Cinci…that is early or late depending on how you look at it! 

No Worries…he is home!

By dsmith | Posted in On My Mind | Comments (0)

The Tithe?

March 6, 2009 – 3:02 pm

Read More »

By dsmith | Posted in Sermon Extras | Comments (2)

God? Who needs Him?

March 6, 2009 – 2:37 pm

There are two times when we will hear these questions. One – when things are going well. When there is prosperity and health. When people have no concerns they are at risk of not being concerned about God. Two – when things are going badly. When there is fear and confusion about prosperity and health. When people only see concerns all around them they become concerned that God doesn’t care.

It seems to me that people all around us are in fear! Confusion and fear seem to be the words of the day. Listen to the conversations of people and you will hear something about the confusing politics or the uncertainty of the economy. The dominant stories on the front of newspapers and the top stories on the news are about either of these subjects.

It is very easy to get caught up in the fast moving current of all the experts that come down hard on these two issues. It’s hard not to get caught up in the minutia of all of it! Many of us are affected with all that is going on, whether in our own personal finances or in our businesses we are affected.

So, how should we respond? What is our response as leaders to the people of God?

Courage! Courage to pray! Courage to pray a prayer that the writer of Proverbs 30 prayed when the people around him were saying – God? Who needs Him?

The prayer: “O Lord, give me neither poverty nor riches but give me ONLY my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ or I may become poor and steal and so dishonor the name of God.” (Prov. 30:8, 9)

Wow! What a prayer.

Jesus himself, as he was teaching the disciples to pray, prayed – “…Give us today our daily bread.” (Matt. 6:11)

It takes courage to pray ONLY for our DAILY bread. Most of the fear and confusion is because we are looking for bread for tomorrow, next week, next month, and next year. It takes courage to trust God only for TODAY.

Let’s lead our congregations with the courage to pray ONLY for daily bread!

With God…No Worries!

By dsmith | Posted in Leadership for Lead Pastors | Comments (0)

Shhh…Listen!

February 22, 2009 – 8:13 pm

I was reading and studying and landed on several verses in Psalm 50. These verses seemed to jump off the page and into my heart. They weren’t just several verses, they were a promise; a guarantee! I was so taken by these verses that I brought them with me for my executive pastors retreat, where I take the guys out of town and we dream, talk about vision and plan ministry.

“The Mighty One, God, the LORD,speaks and summons the earthfrom the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.From Zion, perfect in beauty, God shines forth.Our God comes and will not be silent; a fire devours before him, and around him a tempest rages.” – Psalm 50:1-3

Maybe it was just what I needed in that moment.Maybe it is what we need in this moment. Definitely it is what we will have in the next moments of this next year!

These verses speak of two things: Who God is and What God will do. As we begin this year of ministry together, maybe we ought to remind ourselves of these awesome truths!

Who God is…

Mighty, The One, LORD, He speaks, He summons, He is in control of everything, Perfect, Beautiful, Majestic, Powerful, Creates a path

What God will do…

He will come and He will not be silent

My prayer for Fairhaven Church is that “God will come” and meet us again this year. That he will continue to bring people into relationship with Him, bring transformation in people’s lives, bring healing where needed, and bring glory to Himself. I also pray that He will not be “silent” but that His vision become focused, His word become clear, His presence become real, His power become manifested and His grace become central.

As He “comes” may we praise Him and as He is “not silent” may be courageous to lead, decisive to apply, impacted to change, awestruck to acknowledge, and grace-filled to love!

My guess is this is your prayer as well!

No Worries…

By dsmith | Posted in Leadership for Lead Pastors | Comments (0)

What Season Is It?

February 22, 2009 – 7:51 pm

It’s been said that a church goes through seasons! The seasons have been identified by Bill Hybels as:

  1. Season of Growth – Attendance is spiking; programs are thriving; systems are stressed; “How long can we keep it going?”
  2. Season of Consolidation – Coming out of growth; assimilating and supporting people; focused on discipleship, community, care; working on infrastructure.
  3. Season of Transition – Several staff have left; everything feels a bit off balance and uncertain; complicated by economy or upheaval in community; people want to hear your voice.
  4. Season of Malice – Things are somber; a bit stale; just plain stuck; feeling dated; no buzz to be found; we need a shake up.
  5. Season of Reinvention – Putting every ministry under the microscope; discerning what needs a facelift, an overhaul or a funeral; pruning to make room for growth

What season are you in?

Take a shot! If you had to pick a season, even though the temptation is to see yourself in several season, which one would you pick?

This is a question that I am asking myself because: A key responsibility of leaders is to know what season the organization is in, to name it, and then to communicate the implication of that season to his or her followers.

I’ll tell you mine, if you tell me yours!

O.K…. I’ll tell you. I believe that we are coming into a season of growth. We are seeing record number of visitors; attendance and giving continue to be strong. The season of growth is defined by a “spike” in growth not consistent growth. Fairhaven has been blessed of God to see consistent growth over these last 45 years. But we seem to be experiencing a “spike” in growth. This plus the beginning of construction is causing our present systems to be stressed:

- Parking lot is full and we need more parking

- Nursery has people lined up outside the door to pick kids up

- Hallways are beyond crowded

- Sanctuary is full and we have added another service

Each season has joys and obstacles for us as leaders. But what is probably more important than identifying what season we are in is identifying the source and strength of each season – God! I am thankful to God for what he continues to allow.

“I will bless them and the places surrounding my hill. I will send down showers in season; there will be showers of blessing.” – Ezekiel 34:26

No Worries…

By dsmith | Posted in Leadership for Lead Pastors | Comments (0)

Blogging?

February 19, 2009 – 10:32 pm

I am blogging….I get to share my ideas about people, issues, news, church, ministries and family!

Thanks for joining me in cyberspace for a brief chat.

No worries!

By dsmith | Posted in On My Mind | Comments (0)