Confession Time

We just finished the most successful series in the last 12 months on Mother's Day. So why do I feel like we are still dealing with issues that existed long before I arrived?

I've had two enlightening conversations in the past 24 hours and I have a feeling that both of them are right and I am misguided. (I remember saying something about "having a Nathan, aka Editor (read: butt-kicker)" back in November from the pulpit.) Those two conversations put words to the feelings I was having during the latter part of the Sound Vows series - this isn't my material, I just borrowed it because it worked somewhere else and tried to replicate it here.

In an era of ministry where I can (try to) absorb the best practices of churches all across the globe from my desktop, Mark Batterson rightly points out that "one God idea is better than one thousand good ideas." He expands his thinking on that concept here, here, here, and here.

I now realize that Granger's "God idea" became University's "good idea" and the impact here was perhaps less than it could have been. Therefore, I have spent a few days re-evaluating the preaching schedule for the rest of 2009 and trying to find more ways to seek God's direction for worship here at University, not adopting other church's success in order to try and make it our success.

I covet your prayers during this season of discernment and apologize for not taking my own advice until now.

Update: Read this post from MarkB - it's like he's writing just for me this week!