Thanks to Anna (Ben) Crumback at Sointula Community Church for producing the Church of the Week!
Jason (Susanna) Lavergne (see photo above), has served as lead pastor at Fort Langley EFC since June of 2019. They are not new to the LPD or to Fort Langley EFC, however. Jason served as youth pastor at Fort Langley, before leaving to attend ACTS Seminary and serve at Trinity Western University. He and Susanna returned to Fort Langley EFC in 2014, to serve as Associate Pastor of Community Outreach, until being called to the position of lead pastor.
Please pray for Jason, Susanna and family, for the church staff team, for the volunteers and for the congregation, as they seek the Lord’s direction to build upon the rich heritage of ministry the church has enjoyed.
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Do as I say – or do as I do?
How we answer the above question makes all the difference in the world as a parent; as a leader; as a disciple of Christ; as a pastor, and as a witness of Christ’s work.
One of the challenges of pastoral ministry is that with our focus on the crafting and delivery of sermons, we may find ourselves teaching and “equipping” others to do what we have not done and perhaps are not capable of doing ourselves.
In recent personal Bible study in the Book of Galatians, I was intrigued, if not a little disturbed, by a word study of Galatians 6:1,2, “Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently. But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.”
The word “restore,” (katarizo) is used of a physician setting a broken bone to that it will heal correctly and be serviceable again. It is also used of a fisherman mending nets, so that they can be serviceable to go and catch fish.
If the definition sounds somewhat familiar, so it should. The verb is from the same word that is used in Ephesians 4: 12, where the role of the pastor-teacher is to “equip his (Christ’s) people works of service.”
Virtually every resume that I receive from prospective pastors speaks of the conviction that a pastor is to “equip others to do ministry,” but this has come to be understood as delivering good sermons.
The work actually implies more of a “hands on” approach to ministry. Ministry is really more about ministering to broken people, so that they will be suitable for service of our Lord Jesus Christ. While preaching/teaching is part of this, there is also the coming alongside and patiently and skillfully restoring people to spiritual health and service.
Leadership, pastoring and discipleship demand more that “telling.” They demand “showing” – do as I do, not just as I say. This is true, both within the body of Christ, and also as we reach out to our neighbours and world.
Over time, an organization’s culture is both shaped by the leader, and reflects the leader. A church is no exception. A church will reflect its pastor. A good leader will model, reinforce and celebrate the mission, culture and values of the organization that he or she leads.
Thom Rainer reflects a similar conviction as he reflects on the discouraging statistics pertaining to the future of the Southern Baptist Convention. While attendance and the number of baptisms has been in decline, Rainer sees hope in pastors and congregations taking personal responsibility for sharing the Gospel.
Aaron Earls, in an article, “Thom Rainer Points Way Forward Despite Denominational Challenges,” writes of Rainer sharing his personal story of when he pastored a small rural church. Earls writes:
“After spending weeks railing at these people for not doing anything to reach others,” Rainer said, “God challenged me. ‘What are you doing personally?’”
He (Rainer) made personal evangelism a priority and started to see new people come to Christ who then reached more new people. “This church of seven people grew to a church of 70 because we started to reach those around us,”
Here is a link to the article by Earls:
thom-rainer-points-way-forward-despite-denominational-challenges/
As I go about day by ministry, I do not want to be one who simply seeks to equip by “telling,” to say, “do as I say.” We are called to be people who invite others to “do as we do.”
As we pray for and reach out to our neighbours, I do not wait for our church to minister to them. God has placed us among them, and we pray for them daily, seeking out whatever opportunities God provides. This week, I had an opportunity to reach out as a neighbour without a husband needed someone to install a car battery, and asked me to help. As we talked as installed the battery, she suggested a block party to get everyone together…
Rainer observes that, “Change in the SBC will not come from the denomination down—it will start with the churches,” and I believe that this is true in our EFCC, our LPD, and even within our churches – if we simply focus on “being” and “sharing,” rather than simply “telling.”
As we being a New Year, let’s be known for inviting others to, “do as we do, and not just as we say.” We have Good News to celebrate and to both show and tell!
Please pray for:
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Upcoming Events:
EFCC Lay Leader Training
This is being rescheduled for spring 2020. Please watch for details…
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LPD Conference
at
Grace Hanin Community Church
March 6,7
with Dr. Randy Wollf of ACTS Seminaries.
“The Heart of Discipleship”
Discipleship has been the focus of much discussion among Christian leaders in recent years. While we have many “methods” of discipleship and “pathways” toward discipleship, we are humbled to recognize that the church has not done well to produce obedient disciples of Christ. Might we have missed the “heart” of discipleship, where we invite God to do what we cannot?
As we meet for LPD Conference this year, will explore the “heart” of discipleship, by focusing on the themes of, prayerfulness, hearing and responding to God’s voice, a love for people and a heart bent on mission
We are so glad to welcome our presenter, Dr. Randy Wollf, Assistant Professor of Practical Theology and Leadership Studies; Mennonite Brethren Biblical Seminary at ACTS. Randy (Lore) Wollf became our first LPD Missionaries in 2005, as they planted “The Journey.” Randy is a practitioner when it comes to church, and believes that there are several practical essentials for effective discipleship in our local churches that transcends our methods and effort.
Please plan to join us for this important time of sharing together, learning together and providing direction to the ministry of our Lower Pacific District. All are welcome to join us for the workshop with Randy on Friday, to the informal dinners with ministry colleagues on Friday evening, and the Saturday morning time for teaching, ministry reporting and decisions. We will end off with lunch together, including an informal fellowship lunch and prayer time for ladies in ministry and ministry wives with Karen Stewart. Also, we anticipate one or more churches joining our LPD Family at conference.
We hope to see you there!
Please watch for information and registration materials in the coming days.
