Office Devotions: Face to Face

3 John 1:14     I hope to see you soon, and we will talk face to face.

I enjoy using Facebook each day on the computer because it let’s me see what other people are thinking and doing. I can keep in contact with my family in Scotland and share their celebrations. I can see how my daughters are doing at college and empathize with them. I can also keep up with church families and friends and share prayer requests, thoughts, and jokes with them. It’s a wonderful invention and I think that the Apostle Paul would have put it to good use in reaching out to churches across the Mediterranean had Facebook been available to him.

Now it’s not all that good at times. There are too many silly quizzes and games – some with computer viruses attached – that fragment our leisure time. When I first start using Facebook this year, I did a lot of quizzes, but these days I’m beyond that. I’m more interested in the lives of the many people who use it to upload photos, comment on current issues, and share some good ideas about faith, family, and fun.

When I first started these devotions, it was to build up spiritual connections with our church staff and elders. Over the years, this has become a multi-national ministry with hundreds of thousands of readers in any given year. It’s amazing what God can do with so little to turn it into so much. I hope that one day, when we all get to heaven, I’ll get the opportunity to meet those people from other places in the world who read one of these devotions, which helped them to draw closer to God. Now that’s a face to face meeting that I will really look forward to!

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, help us to develop news ways of using the new media to share our faith. Give us opportunities to send words of comfort, sympathy, and prayer via email, Facebook, blogs, and texts. Thank You for this wonderful way of reaching out to the world from our churches and homes. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Office Devotions: Outside the Box

Psalm 37: 5 Commit your way to the LORD; trust in Him and He will do this.

Our congregation is about to embark on a new adventure. We are trying to raise $1 million in order to renovate our church in such a way that the next generation of church members will not face mounting bills which will limit their mission. We’ve come a long way to get here and sometimes people don’t truly understand how much effort it takes to keep a church growing.

During the last fourteen years, we’ve seen a steady increase at Erin. In contrast, our denomination (PCUSA) and Presbytery have been diminishing. Previous pastors had followed the denominational path and subsequently the church stopped growing. Erin took a great risk in 1995 when I was invited to be the pastor because my thinking would usually be outside of the denominational box.

I know that throughout the years some people have left because I don’t toe the denominational line, but my response to them is this: would you have rather had a mediocre church that was dying, or would you prefer a church that has constantly grown and has a dynamic future?

I’ve mentioned before that our wee church is at a major crossroads. We stand at the threshold of a new and vibrant future, but in order to progress forward we need to get over the past. If I’m expected to totally give of myself to this campaign and this church, then I cannot keep looking back. I’m committing my way to the LORD and focusing on the future of this congregation. I firmly believe that if everyone else gets on board, then God will truly do great things here.

Finally, I had lunch with the local Presbytery Executive last week and he sees how important our work is at Erin. He asked me to consider being a part of the New Development Strategy for Presbyterian churches in our area. Toeing the denominational line has not helped to grow our local churches. He wants someone involved who can “think outside the box.” I see that as an affirmation of what I have tried to accomplish here with the people of Erin and by the Spirit of God. It’s nice to have a PCUSA representative officially recognize what’s happening here. Maybe we can help other churches to do the same.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are the One who permits churches to grow and Your Holy Spirit’s presence is essential for those congregations who would grow in the future. Without You, we are just another religious club trying to keep afloat. Help us to think outside of the box and go outside of our church in order to find where Your Spirit is working in the midst of our community. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.