Marriage Mentoring

This year AMBC allocated budget support for our first in-house Marriage Enrichment Conference. On August 26-27, 2011, Dr. Scott Floyd and his wife will be our guests for this exciting event. (More on this later.) As part of this conference and in line with our Milestones strategy, we will offer marriage mentors to those attending the conference.

Who are mentors? "Mentoring involves life-to-life exchanges that help others discover and pursue their passions and sort out their priorities." David Stoddard¹ Mentors are couples who model life, help mentorees set and keep goals and challenge and encourage couples in their journey.

Why do we sometimes need mentors? Jan & I were remodeling our home in Alvin several years back. One delivery truck was loaded with lumber and supplies. As the truck backed into our driveway, the weight was too much and the truck sank in the soft clay soil just off the drive. It wasn't going anywhere without help. Jan was keeping a toddler at the time and he was watching all this take place. The driver came to the door and told us. "I need to call Bobby." Bobby was the dispatcher at the lumberyard. Our small toddler friend heard this and commented, "I sure hope Bobby has a tractor." Like tractors, mentors can help keep the relationship moving. Whether we have slowed down or come to a complete stop, we may need a little help to get out of the clay and back on firm ground.

Who might profit from a mentoring relationship? Anyone can. Whether we are preparing for, repairing or trying to maximize our marriage, mentors can be the short term guide for the journey.

If you are interested in looking into having a mentor in your marriage, sign up today for the Marriage Enrichment Conference. Click on the stack of cups to register.

¹
The Complete Guide to Mentoring. Drs. Les and Leslie Parrott. Zondervan, 2005. Page 28

Crafting a Lesson- Part 1

Time is the biggest enemy of preparing a life changing lesson. As teachers, we are able to work with the eternal Word of God. Though we desire to prepare and present a life changing message, time seems to leak away each week. Saturday night comes and we have barely thought about the Sunday's lesson, much less prepared any thing of substance for our class. Sound familiar?

I am not talking about a "Home Run" lesson each and every Sunday, but our Lord and our class deserve much more. So here's ONE 'How to" that may help you use time to your advantage rather than be overcome by the lack of time.

Begin as soon as the previous lesson is completed and presented on Sunday. If I take just a few minutes on Sunday afternoon to preview the lesson direction and a few additional minutes to read the larger passage, my heart begins the process of working through the scriptures and the suggested talking points. Notice I said "heart." That is where the life change takes place in my life and this is the target for the members of the class.

Sometimes there are great teaching tools such as LifeWay's "Quicksource Leader" book for their "Explore the Bible (ETB) Series". My personal favorite is the "Parable Plan". Quicksource suggests a common object to use during the lesson to keep the class focussed on the life change principle.

I find taking an extra look at the beginning of a quarter, will help me stay focused on where the scriptures are headed. Remember, it's only Sunday. We begin by taking a cursory look.

More later...

Lord, You got me into this!

How do we remained focused in uncertain times? These past few months many of us have experienced uncertain times. Lost jobs, lost health, lost relationships and a shaky outlook for tomorrow. Lord, You got me into this. Sometimes we get into a situation that seems to have no way out. Can't move forward, to the right or to the left. We're stuck! "I thought I had a plan."

When the plan doesn't seem to be working, don't be afraid to admit, "It was a bad plan." I wish I had abandoned some plans earlier than I did, but sometimes we will think it more honorable to die on the hill of our plan.

The problem with plans is that they are subject to change. Just ask all those travelers who had their plans interrupted by record snow falls in the east. Realize that vision needs to be stable. Plans need to be flexible. Failure in a plan doesn't mean it was a bad vision. Our vision may be to work toward a lifestyle that will honor God, provide for my family and fund my ministry. Plans may help us through specific time, but sometimes they rarely endure to the end. Vision endures.

Don't let "changed plans" derail us as we move toward the vision.

Hebrews 12:2 (NASB)

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

We are to fix our eyes. Establish the vision God has for you. Make plans, but allow God to change them as needed.

"Lord, you got me into this. I'm trusting You to see me through this."

Priority, Preference or Passion

Think. What would you consider a priority for your day, today- right now? Work, school, chores, health, or something else we say is important to us? When our priorities are challenged, what do we do? We put a "price" on the priority and hope that some other person, event, or urgency doesn't exceed the price of our priority. In other words, can our priorities be "bought off" even though we might have said that we'd never allow the priority to fall from our top shelf.

Jesus' priorities were under constant scrutiny. The government, others and especially His own disciples tried to deter Him from the goal- Savior of the World. (John 3:16) We are blessed to day because nothing stopped Jesus from His destination.

So often, what we consider a priority as only a preference. Priorities stick; preferences slide! Preferences aren't inherently bad. There just not priorities. How would my life be different if I had priorities that stuck? Priorities like serving others before I served myself or starting my day thinking about God rather than my to-do-list.

When Jesus answered the demands of government, others and friends, the scripture records, "no one dared question Him any longer." (Mark 12:34b)

Reset your priorities today and you'll re-discover your passion.

(PHOTO: I wish my life was as ordered as these veggies at a farmer's market in San Antonio. I guess I'd better stop wishing and be something.)

Excuses for Not Giving to the Lord

“If I had more money, then I could give.”
America’s biggest givers are the lowest income earners. Those who earn less than $10,000 give 2.3% of their income. Those who earn $70,000 or more only give 1.2%. (Source: Passing the Plate. By Christian Smith, Michael Emerson and Patrician Snell)

“I have so many bills and so little money.”
Pick a starting point and move toward giving a tithe. Many don’t do anything or give God only “a tip.” Ask yourself, “Would God lead me to make this purchase (have this service or have this perk), if it meant decreasing my giving to Him?” Giving has little to do with prosperity. When Americans earned less following the Great Depression, they gave more. When income went up, they began to give less of it away.

“I live on a fixed income.”
No one lives on a fixed income. We can make money by decreasing expenses, skipping an activity, trip or “night out friends.” Look for ways to surprise your self in this area of giving.

My greatest joy has been to watch God work in my life through the area of giving. Each year, actually each calendar quarter, Jan & I look for ways to give more. God never fails.

The Chapel at the

U.S. Air Force Academy

Colorado Springs, CO

What Jesus' Call Means to Me- Part 2

The call continued to Austin, Texas in the spring of 2001.  I received an unexpected call from a friend in a Houston church who asked, "Would you be interested in making a move to Austin?"  Jan & I had never moved.  That would certainly be an adventure.  Shortly, I received a call from Pastor Rod Minor who wanted to meet and talk about the work at Anderson Mill Baptist Church.  I was very excited about a fresh opportunity to serve.  The call was at work again.

(Yes, there are lots of details that get us to this point, but this is a blog, not a book!)

What does Jesus' call mean to me today?  In a word- relationships. What wonderful relationships we have in Austin.  Austin continues to be a great place to give your best.  My prayer is that each of us would invest in people whatever is necessary to make disciples that honor Christ.  In our lesson this week in Mark 2, Jesus issues the call to follow Him, serve others, and tell others how to discover and accept the call.

What Jesus' Call Means to Me

It was in the summer of 1994 that I began to sense God's call on my life to give Him all.  I had given Him, I thought,  my best, but I discovered that giving my all IS the Best.  I began to see God close the chapter in my life that had been a great chapter for 18 years.  Jan & I were blessed by a family business in the petroleum distribution arena.  Time for a change- a new adventure.  God had me serving in churches for years in every capacity imaginable.  So why change?  The Call!  God had fresh ideas for me.  Ideas He had set in motion while I was a student at Texas A & M.  It was there that I learned to love the Lord with all my heart.  In general, the Lord had be in an intense learning environment of work, the Bible, and ministry.  It was during this time I received the best Biblical training imaginable- one-on-one.  God placed me in the path of Arthur "Prof" Smith.  For the next 22 years I learned about life from God's perspective as Prof taught me to love God and serve people.  

The call to a paid position with a church in 1994 was a new idea for Jan & me in, but God was at work.  The Call was to leave the corporate world and serve Him in a new place with a new income and new relationships.  After a series of events and lots of prayer, Jan & I accepted the call to enter the adventure of a church staff family for the next 6 1/2 years in Santa Fe, Texas

For me, Jesus' call meant change. 

Read Through the Bible This Next Year

In a recent ABF lesson from Psalm 119, we were challenged to read the Bible more, read it intentionally and if necessary use a plan. But read the Bible. I am challenging each of you to join Jan & me in reading the Bible through in 2010. You 'll discover interesting facts such as these:
What kind of man was Boaz before he married?
(Ans: Ruthless)
Who was the greatest financier in the Bible?
(Ans: Noah. He was floating his stock while everyone else was in liquidation.)
Who was the greatest female financier in the Bible?
(Ans: Pharaoh’s daughter. She went to the bank of the Nile and drew out a little prophet.)

We were challenged to begin this discipline several years ago while on vacation. Several saints in our path have read the Bible though dozens of times. Though just reading won’t bring a changed life for some, it will provide us the tools the Holy Spirit can use to challenge us in every area of our life. Begin 2010 reading more than you have done in the past. If you need a plan, let me know. There are several which just might give the “push” you need.