I was standing in the Costco checkout line the other day, minding my own business and scrolling on my phone, when suddenly, I began to smell coffee. In that moment, I wanted coffee.
You probably know you can buy whole coffee beans at Costco and grind them there if you don’t have a grinder at home. I looked around, and the grinder machine was probably 50 feet away. A dad and his daughter were standing there grinding coffee beans, and the rest of us got to enjoy the side effects. The aroma permeated the whole area.
In a similar way, our presence and activities should send a pleasing aroma into the community. Do people see and “smell” a difference in us, and are they drawn to Christ?
“But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads the fragrance of the knowledge of him everywhere” (2 Corinthians 2:14).
I love lists like this, and though it’s unlikely I’ll get all the way through a list of this size, these questions offer food for thought and great conversation starters. A few of the questions include:
What is the single biggest time-waster in your life, and what will you do about it this year?
What is the most helpful new way you could strengthen your church?
For whose salvation will you pray most fervently this year?
What’s the most important way you will, by God’s grace, try to make this year different from last year?
What one thing could you do to improve your prayer life this year?
We live in a day and age that lacks reflection. Part of it is simply how busy, distracted, and media-dependent we’ve become. People are self-conscious, but I don’t know that we’re good at getting below the surface. Questions like this help us slow down and ponder the deeper things of life.
Something I’m doing personally to improve my prayer life is writing more in my prayer journal and updating the list of people active in all my ministries (Ministerial Staff, Bible Study Community, Welcome Team, BSC Directors) so I can more consistently remember to pray for specific people.
To see Dr. Whitney’s full set of questions, click here. What is one area you’d like to grow in 2024?
As we wrap up 2023, we wanted to share a few highlights and give thanks for all God has done. This was a historic year, since all three kids are now in middle and high school. Dylan is a senior, Heidi is a sophomore, and Abby is in 7th grade.
My associate pastor role at Immanuel Baptist Church allows me to lead ministerial staff, mentor interns, do pastoral counseling, train Bible Study Community directors, and teach Sunday School. In July, I had the privilege of joining a missions team to Athens and taught several theology lessons to refugee pastors from Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, and Congo. Here’s an update from the rest of the family…
Natalie: This year we saw the Lord answer many of our prayers. He allowed each of us to enjoy deepening friendships. We saw our children grow in their faith. I was able to be productive in the home and mentor several ladies in the summer while the rest of the family traveled far and wide. Stephen started a Bible Study Community for median adults in August, and we have seen relationships grow in that class. They bring such joy to me because they are deep thinkers, asking such good (and hard!) questions and spurring one another to love and good deeds. We praise God for these and many other answers to prayer.
Dylan: Hello, this year was a fantastic year of friends and fun. This was an extra special year for me, because I turned eighteen years old. I am still practicing martial arts; this year, I focused a little more on kickboxing. I continue to learn about computers. I decided that I am going to pursue a career in cybersecurity. This summer, Heidi and I traveled to northern California for camp and a missions trip. One of the big things we learned at camp was how important it is to encourage one another, because we are made in the image of God. During our missions trip, we were able to practice servant leadership as we helped a church put on VBS. I also started one-on-one discipleship with a mentor this year, and I have been reading Disciplines of a Godly Man by R. Kent Hughes. This has been a very special year.
Heidi: I turned 15 this year and have been continuing my training in ballet and in my walk with God. I was able to perform in a spring show in May, and also in Inland Dance Theater’s production of the Nutcracker earlier this month. My roles were the Snow dance and Waltz of the Flowers. This year, I was able to go to two Christian camps with our youth group (one in winter and one in summer). Directly after summer camp, I went with a smaller group of the youth on a missions trip to help a small church in Northern California with their VBS. It was one of the highlights of the year because I grew my social skills, my relationships with the youth, and my relationship with God.
Abby: This past year has been a good one. In May, our family took a five-day cruise to Cabo San Lucas, followed closely by a day trip to Knotts Berry Farm. In July, the children from our church went to summer camp for one week. I grew my friendship with my friends, and grew my relationship with the LORD. This past Thanksgiving, we went on a trip to Oklahoma to visit our grandparents. I hope you all are having a great year too. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Last night, Immanuel Baptist Church held a special business meeting to vote on our next lead pastor.
After two and half years of prayer and diligent searching, the Pastor Search Committee recommended Dr. Chris Morgan to the position. The church was in agreement, and Dr. Morgan joyously accepted.
It has been a pleasure to work with Dr. Morgan these past two years since moving to Highland, and I look forward to continuing this partnership. He is a mentor, a friend, a gifted teacher, and a wise leader.
May the exhortation by the Apostle Paul to the elders at Ephesus resound in our hearts as well. “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood” (Acts 20:28).
The last time I wrote a blog post was back on March 10, 2021. That next week, our lives took a dramatic turn. Things still haven’t completely returned to “normal” yet, but we’re beginning to adjust to our new routine and ministry, so I wanted to take a few minutes to explain what’s been going on.
In mid-March, I received a call from Dr. Chris Morgan, the Dean of the School of Christian Ministries at California Baptist University. He’s a sharp theologian, a godly example, a brilliant leader, and a personal friend. He told me he was currently serving as interim pastor at Immanuel Baptist Church in Highland, and that the church was going through some transitions and may have an opening for me. I was skeptical at first, but as I learned more about the need, I knew this was something Natalie and I needed to pray about.
Fast forward a few months, and now I’m serving as Associate Pastor of Ministry Leadership at Immanuel Baptist Church in Highland. Essentially, my role is to oversee the ministerial staff, to supervise day-to-day operations of our discipleship and missions ministries, and to support the interim (and eventually senior) pastor in carrying out the overall mission and vision of the church.
What would cause a senior pastor of 15 years to “step down” and become an associate pastor? (though all forms of pastoral ministry are important). Why would we uproot our family, say goodbye to an amazing church family, leave a quiet neighborhood, and even slightly downsize our property? Why would I give up an Adjunct Teaching position at a Christian university? All to join a church that doesn’t even have a senior pastor? The answer is simple … because we felt called by God. We prayed, searched the scriptures, sought wise counsel, discussed it as a family, consulted both our sending church and receiving church, and considered both the short term needs and long term opportunities this would present. In the end, it was clear that it was the right thing to do.
That first night after I first spoke with Dr. Morgan, I prayed the Lord would give clear direction from his word. I believe when the Bible speaks, God speaks, and that his word gives all that we need for life and godliness. I know we must be exceedingly careful not to “read into” the scriptures or misapply them. But sometimes we need clear direction, and if ever there was a time I needed confirmation from the Lord, this was it. We would be giving up our loving church family, our comfortable home, and our quiet neighborhood. What if we made a mistake and later regretted it? In the providence of God, that night I came to this passage:
Peter began to say to him, “See, we have left everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Truly, I say to you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and in the age to come eternal life. (Mark 10:28–30)
This was exactly what I needed to hear. A reminder that my life is not my own, and that the call to discipleship is a call to die to self. In this life, we sometimes make sacrifices, but they pale against Christ’s sacrifice. And he promises to more than compensate when we do it “for his sake and for the gospel’s.” There were many more conversations that needed to take place to confirm God’s will, but this passage opened my heart to at least the possibility God was at work, and that he was leading us to make a change.
Thank you all who have prayed for us and supported us through this transition. Now over a month into this new assignment, Natalie and I can see God’s hand in so many details, and we are thrilled to begin this new chapter of ministry.
Pinch Of Clay 