Several years ago, Natalie and I attended a teacher training conference in Pasadena, and one of the breakout sessions was by a ministry specialist named Steve Alley. Alley gave an illustration that has always stuck with us about Cinnabon.

The teacher explained how Cinnabon shops are strategically located just inside the shopping mall entrance to draw you in. As the doors whoosh open and closed, the draft carries the smell down through the food court and outside. He described their fresh bakery smell, the warm fluffy dough, the fresh cinnamon sprinkles, and that thick layer of cream cheese frosting. You probably went to the mall to buy a pair of shoes, and yet now all of a sudden, with that amazing smell, you’re craving cinnamon rolls!

Cinnabon bakes delicious cinnamon rolls. Not only that, they are brilliant at creating an atmosphere that draws you in. And Alley challenged us to do the same in our children’s ministries. You don’t want visitors as they enter to hear screaming children, observe snappy ministry workers, and smell dirty diapers. You want to make a good first impression with a joyful atmosphere, friendly workers, and fresh smells. This all sets a positive tone for parents and for the children themselves.

We can call this the “Cinnabon Effect.” In a similar way, the whole church should aim for this goal. From the moment a new person sets foot on our campus or visits our website, we want there to be an “aroma” that draws them in. I’m not talking about the free coffee bar and Sugarbox donuts we serve on the patio every Sunday, though that helps! I’m talking about a spirit of love that makes people glad to be here, and then makes them want to stay. The church should be permeated with a spirit of love and a culture of grace that makes people glad they came, then makes them want to stay. In this lesson, we learn…

• The attractive nature of love
• The importance of preaching the gospel to ourselves daily
• Some nasty behaviors we need to “put off”
• What’s the difference between patience and kindness?
• Signs of a loving church

Thanks for listening. This sermon was preached at Calvary Church West Hills on Sunday, April 21, 2024 as part of my introductory series on the five foundations of ministry. For more info on our church, please visit our website. For a complete list of my sermons and Bible studies organized by category, please visit the sermon page on my blog.

Audio – visit the Sermon Page on our church website or listen here:

Video – visit our church’s Youtube channel or watch below:

Francis Schaeffer once said, “There are no little people, no little places.” The prophet Zechariah would agree. He reminds us in chapter four of his book that we should never “despise the day of small things.” Last Sunday, we looked at the second half of this chapter and learned…

• That spiritual growth is a process rather than the sudden, mystical “flipping of a light switch”
• Who is Zerubbabel, and why is he important?
• How do we avoid growing discouraged when growth and progress is slower than we’d hoped
• God’s promise to watch over the blameless
• The need for godly leadership in the 21st century 

This sermon was preached at Calvary Church West Hills on Sunday, August 11, 2024. You can listen or watch below.

Audio – visit the Sermon Page on our church website or listen here:

Video – visit our church’s Youtube channel or watch below:

For more about our ministry, please visit our website. For a complete list of my sermons and Bible studies organized by category, please visit my sermon page on this blog.

Today I was listening to an interview between Pastors Keith Fosky and Tom Ascol. Fosky asked Dr. Ascol, “What advice would you give to young men aspiring to pastoral ministry?” Ascol gave an answer that resonated with me. It describes perfectly the training I received at Placerita Baptist Church, and what I hope our church can provide for many young men at Calvary Church West Hills. Ascol said,

Well, I say to every Christian who asks me for this kind of general counsel is to find a healthy church and build your life around it. If that means move, then move. There’s nothing more significant on a practical day-in day-out basis than to do that.

So I would say something similar to a young man that desires ministry. Find a faithful church with faithful elders. Not perfect elders because they don’t exist. Not a perfect church because it doesn’t exist. But faithful elders. And go and submit yourself to them and serve in that congregation. Build your life around it. If you can, do some formal theological education. That’s wonderful to do that. But that will not replace what you can gain in a faithful church that’s been led by faithful elders. Just being a part of church, like breathing the air, seeing the rhythms of life, being a part of the relationships is formative and it’s very, very valuable.

So I would encourage every young man to attempt to do that. If you can do that in context where there’s a good opportunity for theological education, man, all the better. But don’t sacrifice a church for something that you think might prepare you better than a church to engage in pastoral ministry.

Here’s the full interview: