Making a Mormon My Brother

The next two days I will receive extensive training from the Interfaith Evangelism Program sponsored by the SBTC. The emphasis will be learning how to lovingly and effectively share the true gospel with Mormons.

In my life the two most difficult groups to share Christ with are Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses. These two cult-like religions are difficult because they use Christian terminology, but with different meanings. The God, Jesus, and faith that these systems discuss are NOT what is found in the Bible. Most people don't recognize the difference. I have heard statistics that most converts to Mormonism and Jehovah's Witnesses come from Baptist backgrounds. That is extremely troubling and impresses upon me the need to disciple and educate my own church what the Bible actually teaches.

I am also excited to learn some things that can help me in my encounters with people from these groups. The people that I know and have met from these two religions are great people! I have a lot in common with many of them. I also have a responsibility to love them in Christ and share the true gospel with them for the salvation of their souls.

People Need The Lord

A quote from David Platt's book Radical

"A majority of individuals supposedly saved from eternal damnation by the gospel are now sitting back and making excuses for not sharing that gospel with the rest of the world." page 75

Scary Moment

The last part of our trip home from vacation contained one of the scariest moments I have ever had on a plane.
We were on a flight from Tampa to DFW, been in the air for about 15 minutes. Then there was a loud boom, and the plane shuddered. Everyone gasped, but then the plane just kept on course. No one knew what happened.

So, what happened? An engine blew!!!!! The pilots eventually told us that there was an engine failure and we were turning around for Tampa. The fire trucks would be waiting. They had to shut down all air traffic and we actually landed on the takeoff runway because the pilots didn't want to risk circling for the landing strip. Later, while waiting in the terminal, Michelle saw the plane being towed and the back end was charred black.

While in the air, it took me a few minutes to grasp that something was wrong. At that moment I began to pray. I wanted to live, but if God wanted to take me, I was surrendered to His will. Then I thought, should I stand up and shout out the gospel to all these people on the plane? Then I was thankful that my daughters hadn't caught on that something was wrong. They would have panicked.

I thank God for getting us down and home safely. And I also thanked the pilots for doing a great job landing a plane with a blown engine.

At least life is never dull!

Vacation 2010

Last week was vacation time. I intended to blog and stay in touch while on the trip, but was completely unplugged. No phone, no internet. Probably, a blessing in disguise.

We spent 7 days on a cruise through the Caribbean! It was a wonderful trip. While we were only gone 7 days, the travel schedule required me to miss 2 sundays in a row. This is the first time I have ever done that in my pastorate. A break is always a rejuvenating time, but it also reminds me of my love for what God has called me to do, the place the Lord has led me to be, and the people to whom I am called to shepherd. All that to say, I had a great vacation, but I am glad to be back.

The great part about our cruise was the minimal expense. Michelle earned a trip for 2 through her Arbonne business. For minimal cost, we added the girls and turned it into an incredible family vacation. We got to travel the seas, visit a tiny Island called Labadee, Jamaica, Grand Cayman, and Cozumel. There was never a dull moment and we got to spend some incredible time together as a family. What a blessing!

There were many highlights. In the Grand Caymans we got to swim and snorkel with stingrays. The girls absolutely loved it. Petting and feeding these incredible creatures was an awesome experience.

I am thankful to the Lord for my family and the bonding time we got to spend together.