Reflections on Fun in the Son Opening Night

Philip proudly stood up and showed everyone his drawing of an elephant. Surprisingly, it was quite good, better than I could have done. It actually looked like an elephant.

Others were just as excited to show their work. From grandparents to the youngest child, we were all challenged to draw, create in clay, or just help someone else with their idea to represent our favorite part of God’s creation.

That was last night when we launched “Fun in the Son” which begins at 5:00 p.m. on Sunday evenings. We watched videos of creation, heard a dramatic reading, and just had fun as a family. Some came by themselves and adopted families; others just formed their own family with friends they recognized from Church. All in all, it was a wonderful time, and from the oldest to the youngest, we all saw this as a time of bonding and great fun.

One of the greatest gifts we can give our children, and we can receive ourselves, is the gift of community. In this day and age, our children and youth rarely have an opportunity to become exposed to the adults of their Church. Anything that can bring us together as a Church family should be encouraged, supported, and attended. Everyone benefits when all the ages of our Church are connected to each other.

Sunday the 26th, the staff is putting together videos, skits, music, readings, and projects around the subject of Noah. Now that should be interesting.

Just say YES!

PJ

One of the greatest honors anyone can receive is the privilege of being allowed to look through someone’s Bible. It is truly amazing what one can discover.

Over the years, a well used Bible will act as a Spiritual record of our journey in life with Christ. This past week a member of our congregation shared a poem that she found in her Bible. I want to share this poem with you. While it was written several years ago, its message and meaning is such that it could have been written yesterday. It is a parody of Joyce Kilmer’s poem about a tree, and I thought this poem was especially lovely.

The Perfect Church

I think that I shall never see
A church that’s all it ought to be;
A church whose members never stray
Beyond the straight and narrow way;
A church that has no empty pews
Whose pastor never sings the blues;
A church whose stewards never stew
And ideas aren’t killed
just because they’re new;
Where gossips never peddle lies,
Or make complaints or criticize;
Where all are always sweet and kind,
And all to others faults are blind.
Such perfect churches there may be,
But none of them is known to me.
But still I’ll work and pray and plan
To make our own the best I can.

- Unknown -

You are a wonderful congregation, and I thank God that He has allowed me to serve you as your Pastor. I think that we all sense the wind of the Spirit especially strong these days. This is an exciting time.

PJ

“The woman who makes a sweet, beautiful home, filling it with love and prayer and purity, is doing something better than anything else her hands could find to do beneath the skies. A true mother is one of the holiest secrets of home happiness. God sends many beautiful things to this world, many noble gifts, but no blessing is richer than that which He bestows in a mother who has learned love's lessons well and has realized something of the meaning of her sacred calling.”
J.R. Miller

“I learned more about Christianity from my mother than from all the theologians in England.”
John Wesley

This Sunday, we will celebrate our mothers and honor them throughout the service. Mom’s are like shoes in that one size and one style does not fit all. Every mother is different, unique, and specially suited for her family.

However, her work is the same. Men may have the authority in a family, but women have the influence. The mother, more than the father, is the one who molds and shapes those little lives from day one.

A godly woman blesses not just her own children but will influence many others as well.

I think all of us can bring to mind women who have touched our lives and helped us become who we are today. There is just something about the gentle correction and quiet encouragement of a godly woman. As banks guide a river, so “mothers” guide her children, all her children.

I thank God for the gift of mom’s.

PJ

Have you ever heard of Youth Challenge? This is a ministry that has served the Peninsula for the past 40 years and has been a huge catalyst to bring spiritual healing and recovery to thousands of people struggling with addictions.

As their choir sang for us on Sunday morning and then led during the evening service, I couldn’t help but be moved by the sight of these young men and women who all could have passed for our own children. Many had been sentenced by the courts to attend Youth Challenge, and in so doing, the courts acknowledged this was a program, dare I say ministry, that was responsible for bringing about authentic change through the power of God.

Secular efforts to accomplish this have come up way short. Our government spends billions attempting to address this problem to no avail. Their success rate is measured in the fractions of a percent. Yet, here is a ministry that provides something money can’t buy—salvation through faith in a living Savior and surrendering to His Lordship and love.

This is at the very heart of Youth Challenge, but by no means is it all they do. Education and vocational training are just a few things the residents of Youth Challenge experience. God is literally using this ministry to bring people back to life.

There was a joy in the room as two of the residents shared their journeys. Both had lost their families, health, and lives. Both were facing long sentences for multiple felonies, and both, through the love and power of God, were receiving back everything they had lost and more.

I noticed something else. Not once did anyone state they were a “recovering alcoholic or drug addict;” rather they stated quite boldly that they were new creatures. Through Christ they were born again with a whole new identity. It was quite evident that Youth Challenge seeks to transform people through faith in Christ rather than just reform old habits and thinking.

I am aware several people in our Church have adult children who have found their way to Youth Challenge or are about to enter the program. This is truly a worthy cause, and I hope it is a ministry we can support through missions and our service. I’ve been invited to speak there on a Wednesday morning for their Chapel service, and I’ll be exploring ways we can serve this ministry in the months and years to come.

PJ

I hope you are enjoying the study in 1 Peter just half as much as I am. Isn’t it marvelous how a letter written 2000 years ago is just as timely as if it were written yesterday? That is the mystery and the wonder of the Scriptures. They are timeless in that they address every human’s quest to understand and relate to the invisible, eternal Creator. It is true that, “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever” (Isa 40:8). Some things just never change.

All of us experience pivotal moments that I call “Ah-Ha Moments.” Theologians call these moments epiphanies. My journey as a believer began with an Ah-Ha! This was when I realized that while it seems our world is always changing, ever progressing or declining, some things just never, ever change.

It makes total sense that God would never change, but the wonder of it all is that the questions about God and His answers to us don’t change either. What this means is a man like Abraham, who lived some 5,000 years ago, was fundamentally no different than you or me. It also means his discovery of the one true God and his interaction with God would mirror our own discoveries.

From the very beginning of recorded spiritual history, we see God taking the initiative to reveal Himself to His creation. Any attempt to completely understand God falls way short; however, it is possible to compile different authentic meetings with God to more completely appreciate the nature, character, and attributes of our unseen, unchangeable God.

Our loving, holy God is singularly focused on restoring His lost creation to a place of sin-free fellowship with Him. That is the story of the Bible. Actually, it is quite simple. From Adam & Eve’s fall to Christ’s return with the creation of a new heaven and a new earth, every human being is being drawn toward that final objective. Along the way, God reveals, God loves, God draws, and above all, God forgives and saves us from the oppressive, deadly wages of sin.

PJ

Que Pasa From PJ

This past Sunday afternoon, the Education Team, lead by Wayne Blanks and Bill Melton, conducted an event called “March Madness.” While the title suggested that it had something to do with basketball, in point of fact, it had nothing at all to do with the NCAA finals but had everything to do with gathering creative and effective ideas to reach the residents of Hampton Roads with the gospel.

Jesus commissioned His church to “go and make disciples of all nations.” Notice that He never said how to do it. As with all things in the Bible, the application of Jesus’ teachings will be different depending on the culture, the times, and people’s needs. What that means is we have to listen to the leading of the Holy Spirit and think outside the box by being creative.

At the very heart of any idea is this: effective evangelism and discipleship will be accomplished when the intuitive passions of the saints are identified, supported, organized, and released.

“March Madness” sought to identify these passions and gave time to come up with creative ways to make it happen.

At the very heart of effective outreach is an openness and willingness of our Church to receive these “Babes” into our fellowship and to welcome them with open arms. They need to be invited to our Bible fellowship classes on Sunday morning, our book studies, our circles, and all the many places in our Church where “Lifeboats” are happening. Just to have them attend Sunday morning worship denies these new folks spiritual fellowship with other believers that is essential for discipleship. I guess I would say we must develop a passion for the NEW— new ideas and new people.

Now, here is a sobering thought: Lifeboats that don’t grow will eventually sink. The natural attrition through death, circumstances, and many other factors will cause even the tightest, most dedicated small group to hemorrhage people until it ceases to exist. Once a Lifeboat ceases to aggressively seek new people from the community to join them, that boat will sink within a few short years. That’s just the way it is.

So, here it is: we are looking to identify the passions of the Saints so they can be used to reach the folks in the shadows and, at the same time, challenge each member of Ivy to invite these new people into their Lifeboat.

That’s what’s happening at Ivy.

PJ

Que Pasa From PJ

George Carlin, the comedian, had a routine in the 60’s where he reported the weather as the “Hippy-Dippy Weather Man.” One of his most memorable lines was, “Que Pasa!,” or “What’s happenin’?” Just thinking of those lines makes me smile.

Well, there’s a lot of things going on behind the scenes at Ivy that should interest you, and I’ll attempt to share as much as I can with, “Que Pasa From PJ.”

“Que Pasa with the Minister of Music.” The Personnel Committee, along with the Music Council, has reported to the Admin Council that progress is being made to secure a part-time Director of Music and Worship. This will be a part-time position until we are in a better position financially, to call a full-time minister. Discussion has centered on our needs versus realistic expectations for a part-time position. You can expect to hear a report and vote on their recommendation in the very near future.

“Que Pasa with the finances and the Finance Committee.” The Church has called David Hammond to chair that committee. He had his first committee meeting and first meeting with the Admin Council last week. Two years ago, the Church voted to establish the Administrative Council. Since then, a lot of work and discussion has taken place to understand the role of the Finance Committee within the new organizational structure. This has not been easy as old organizational paradigms are being challenged with each budget cycle and each budget decision. David is helping us all work through this new relationship.

“Que Pasa with Sunday School.” Our numbers are starting to climb with an influx of young families. We are experiencing spectacular growth in our preschool during the worship hour and those families are slowly finding their way to Sunday School. We are in great need of new Life Boats (classes) and are looking for attractive places and leadership to start these new units. Shortly, I’d say by the summer, we will again find ourselves against the wall created by our lack of educational space. This is the first order of business that needs to be tackled by our Leadership Council.

There is much more that’s happening behind the scenes, and I will attempt to share these things with you in the coming weeks. God bless you, and please keep all of your servants, both lay and staff, in your prayers.

PJ