Sometimes I am invited to speak about the things I write about. I enjoy seeing how God works in different groups, churches, and organizations who follow his lead into the mission field.(The pictures are from my LifeGroup's service at last month's Student Age Parent Program monthly meeting, an example I tell others about.)
Recently, I spent the day with the deacon leadership of Sunset Canyon Baptist Church in Dripping Springs, TX, the site of my LiveStrong ride last October. Dripping Springs is growing like northwest Plano was when we moved out on our current property. I was able to tell them of our early, easy growth but how transfer growth was not what ultimately counted in being the people of God is one's mission field.
We wrestled with questions like "Where do you spend most of your time and energy as a staff and leadership? Internally, on running the organization, or, externally, meeting the needs of your community in the name of Jesus?" I shared Legacy's story again of the shifts we chose to make in order to make the mission field (local and global) the focus of our daily efforts.
Monday, I spoke to the Dallas Baptist Association's monthly Pastor's lunch. I saw friends from my teenage years in Beaumont, my college days, my youth ministry days at FBC, Richardson, and guys I have served with for the past 20 something years. I'm always afraid when people who know me hear me ;-) They know me, and my message had better line up with the real me.
Again, Legacy's story was my message. I told how our embrace of "community based servant evangelism" has allowed us to be salt and light servants to meet needs in our community. I challenged them as leaders to stop managing the institution 100% of their time and to begin mobilizing those they lead to enter the mission field around them through acts of service in the name of Jesus. I told them of stories from Legacy Church that exemplified a people on mission with God to "bless the nations" by being and living as His people.I have captured Legacy's story in Paul on Leadership and Evangelism Where You Live. I look forward to telling more of what God is doing through his people in my writing and speaking in the days ahead.