So I’ve been thinking a lot about the church lately…
You might say, “Well, of course. You’re doing a church planting internship!”
Yes, that’s true, but that’s only part of it. Another part of it is simply the fact that I see local churches everywhere I go, whether in Omaha or in the Des Moines area.
I love how Hebrews 12 begins: “Seeing then that we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses…” In the context the author is urging his readers to live in faith, following the example of the many men and women of faith mentioned in Hebrews 11.
As I begin my church planting internship and anticipate many years of church planting ministry in the years to come, I love every opportunity I have to interact with the church planters who have gone before me.
No, pastors and church planters don’t have one-day work weeks, preaching on Sunday and then taking rest of the week off. Sunday is only the end of one week of hard work and the beginning of another.
Yesterday was my first full day in Bennington for my internship. In fact, in all my trips out here over the past five years, it was literally my first full day out here.
Anyway, the day was filled with meetings of various sorts. At 9am I attended the regional pastors’ meeting with several pastors from the Omaha area and beyond. It was a great time of Christian fellowship, light-hearted humor, mutual prayer, and engaging discussion.
I enjoyed catching up with several men that I had previously met and hearing how God was working in their churches. It was also fun to catch their vision for the future, especially in the areas of discipleship and church growth.
For lunch we went to a Chinese restaurant where I got to sit in on part of the a camp board meeting. Having worked at IRBC for several summers, it was interesting to hear the pastors discuss the ongoing ministry of the camp here in Nebraska.
Finally, I had a meeting with Pastor Eric to discuss the general plan for my internship. It was a great discussion not only about the internship but about church planting and life in general. I’m excited to see how God will teach both of us in the upcoming days.
For supper I ate Nebraska’s famous Runzas with the family, and afterward I headed to my house for the evening.
Before I went to bed I was able to do some reading from Haddon Robinson’s classic “Biblical Preaching” and download some other free books for future reading.
‘Twas a good day and a great way to start the internship! More than anything I was reminded of why I’m here. The vision and excitement and initiative of these Omaha-area pastors is exactly what I want to be a part of this year and in the future.
Preface: This post (and the next four) are LONG overdue. I completed my ministry in Brasil in July 2013, but I never finished writing about it. After spending time with Uncle Jim and Aunt Julie tonight in freezing Iowa, and soon to embark on a new ministry experience, I decided I need to get on here and finish recording my Brasil experience.
Today we left Exu for another city in another state- Petrolina, Pernambuco. It is home to the Reiner’s, but it is my first time outside of Ceara since coming to Brazil. We woke up around 7:00, packed our stuff, and ate a breakfast of French rolls and butter, cheese, goiaba juice, hot milk, and cake. We quickly ate and loaded up, moving on to our next destination which was several hours away.
What should I write about next? Are there issues that you are facing or that the church is facing today that need to be addressed? Take 15 seconds to let me know!
