Directions

Tomorrow I will be riding to Montgomery, Millbrook and Nashville on a mini-vacation ... then Sunday I will be preaching both services at Prattville 1st United Methodist Church in Prattville, Alabama.  It will be a bit of a homecoming and I will meet old and new friends, see my grand kids and I will miss my flock here in Santa Rosa Beach.  To get the places I am going I will be driving Lee's car and using the GPS on my phone.  Other travelers will come to these locations by bus, plane and other modes of travel.

As I was thinking about this I wondered how people reach the place where they meet and develop a life-long relationship with Jesus Christ?  For some this will be an event.  For others it will be a process that may take months or years.  In any case, it is our primary calling to lead people to that place.  My journey went a bit like this ...

When I was 9 I gave my life to Christ at a Baptist church in Charlotte.  I had little clue what that moment actually meant and received little directional guidance from that church.  Thankfully I had some home guidance that was solid and cumulative over the years.  At 34 I finally reached that place where I had the heart, head and soul knowledge that all came together in what I would call a true faith decision and I was baptized into the faith with my son and daughter in Louisiana.  I would count that as my true faith decision.  I am not alone.  John Wesley served as an Anglican pastor for years ... was a religious person ... was actually an ordained minister ... and even served as a missionary in Georgia until one day, at age 35, his heart was 'strangely warmed' and he too reached that place of salvation and conversion.  Millions have come to know Jesus because of what God did with John Wesley, and his conversion is directly connected to my conversion as we share similar experiences in our conversion/salvation experience.  But without the foundation of learning, serving, family and church I don't think either of us would have reached that place where we became the people God could use for His Kingdom work.

Some of you tell me you had different experiences and directions. While I am thankful for those who led and taught me in those early years (and I am truly thankful for Godly parents who upheld God's direction at home) I am truly indebted to a pastor named Jimmy Pyles who taught, preached, modeled and led me to a place of true faith.   He is the reason I am a pastor ... and he was a solid foundation for my family in a little church in Louisiana.  I so recall the value and necessity of those who taught me during that time I was watching, listening, learning and observing.  It is interesting ... the people that taught me the faith were not the 'religious' people who pushed me down the 'Roman Road' or fed me the Christian 'cliche' of the week.'  They were those who stopped from their busy life and taught me ... spent time with me ... engaged me in conversation ... took the time to break down theology into bite sized chunks that I could digest and save for that day when God called me.  I think John Wesley would say the same about those who influenced him.  In fact, a group of Moravians who were unafraid of God's provision during a terrible storm showed John that his faith needed a gut check.  I also believe Jesus knew this key to faith when he told amazing stories ... gave people the truth whether they wanted it or not ... and generally avoided much of the 'church-speak' we somehow believe is effective.

Are you needing direction?  God says we can come to him by bus, plane, car or on foot ... just come empty handed, empty-hearted and ready to be filled.  I, our staff and hopefully our worship will tell you the truth in a way that challenges you to process what Jesus said.  I pray that you will come (as I did when I was 34 years old) to a place of humility when I realized my path ... my direction ... my plan ... was clearly not working.  My pastor told me about a God with a plan for me and a path I could follow.  He didn't ask me to wash up before I came in the door.  He didn't profess the holiness of liturgical hoops I needed to jump through to be saved.  He just said God loved me where I was and that I didn't need to fear the journey forward ... God had a plan and a way.  Thank you, Jimmy!  You told me and showed me Jesus.  You prayed for me and my family.  You didn't feed me Christian one-liners.  You reflected Jesus to me.  I will try to do the same for my flock too!  And thank you Jesus for sending Jimmy to me right at the perfect time.