Tag Archives: ministry

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I think my blogging hiatus is about over…

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It’s been quite some time since I’ve blogged regularly. I think things have slowed down just enough for me to get back into it.

This past year has been quite an adjustment in many ways. I’ve been adjusting to the demands of being back in school. This is the first time I’ve gone to school while working “full-time.” I always thought I worked a lot in college and seminary but the increased level of responsibilities at the church in combination with the higher academic expectations of PhD courses has been daunting at times.

I’ve enjoyed teaching more regularly at Nansemond River Baptist Church. In fact, I just uploaded a recent series on “Discipleship” under the resources tab. I’ve been very happy to watch our church embrace a vision of shared leadership. I must say that I pastor alongside some of the most talented and godly men on the planet. In addition, the church has been very receptive to the Scriptures. I believe NRBC has a bright future as a church that embraces the Great Commission in every area of life.

This summer has been busy as we took the teenagers at NRBC to camp. Also, we’ve been using Dare2Share’s “Gospel Journey Maui” curriculum on Wednesdays. The thoughtfulness and openness of the discussion among our students has been an encouragement. I sense a desire among them to embrace a radical vision of obedience to the call of Christ.

On a personal note, Whitney and I have also been adjusting to a lot of things. Whitney will be starting classes at William and Mary this fall to pursue a Master’s of Higher Education. In addition, she starts a new job at W&M on August 18. She is very excited about all of these changes but they are changes nonetheless. In addition, God has been teaching Whitney and I a lot about risk, obedience, faith, and contentment. We are wrestling with what it means to leverage our marriage for the cause of Christ. It is scary to ask such questions but we are convinced that whatever we must sacrifice is well worth the reward.

I hope this fall will allow me time to post my musings on life, culture, mission, and miscellany. I know I have some music and book recommendations and I am rarely want for an over-the-top rant.

Thanks for reading.

church, community, education, gospel, great commission

Investing in the Community

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Partners in Education at Creekside Elementary School included, from left, Assistant Principal Tara Moore, Principal Katrina Bowers, Nansemond River Baptist Church Pastors Gary Vaughan, Mark Turner, and Jeff Walton, and Dr. Lynn Cross, Assistant Superintendent for Special Projects.

I was very excited when my church, Nansemond River Baptist, was named Suffolk Public School’s “Partner of the Year.”  The Suffolk News-Herald has a nice summary of all that was involved.

Our church, led by our Jeff Walton (our Children’s Pastor and one of our elders), has been partnering with Creekside Elementary School for the past year.  At the beginning of the year the small groups at NRBC provided 60 bags full of school supplies to children in need.  Throughout the year the church has provided one-on-one mentors and helped with various school activities.  At the recent Creekside Carnival our church provided volunteers as well as various equipment (e.g., snow cone machine, popcorn machine, etc.).

I am so excited that the community sees the value of partnering with our church and I am even more excited that the members of NRBC are intentionally investing in the community.  The relationships that have been built in Suffolk, VA will provide meaningful opportunities to demonstrate and explain the good news of the love of Jesus.

church, ministry

Rethinking "Clergy/Laity" – Priesthood of Pastors? (pt. 5)

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With the idea that professional Christians function as Christian priests comes an emphasis on the “office” of pastor.  You see this in Protestant churches with the frequent requirement that the pastor must baptize new believers and administer the Eucharist/Lord’s Supper/Communion.  There is a glorification of the office over the person.

When I read the New Testament, I see leadership titles (deacon, elder, pastor, etc.) as descriptive rather than prescriptive.  Merely because someone is ordained, has graduated from seminary, or  has received their magical “call to ministry” does not indicate they have the gifts to lead and shepherd a church body.  In fact, I know a man who is not even a member of a church who considers himself a pastor because he is ordained and came forward as a young man to surrender to “the ministry.”

“To say that a Wandering Levite who has no Flock is a Pastor, is as good sense as to say, that the man who has no Children is a Father, and that the man who has no Wife is a Husband.”

– Increase Mather, The Order of the Gospel

A pastor is someone who pastors!  A title, ordination, or seminary degree does not make someone a pastor (I can call myself an athlete but the sad fact is that in two years of junior high basketball I scored more points for the opposite team than for my own).  Education can give one tools to be a better pastor.  An ordination can publicly recognize one’s gifts to teach and lead.  The title “pastor” does not magically give someone gifts or leadership qualities that they did not already have.