mainly mentoring...

Mentor -- a wise and trusted counselor or teacher 

As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.--Proverbs 27:17

To share ourselves with those who are younger or less experienced is an often overlooked ministry in the church today. The ministry called mentoring is the oil to the wheel of progressing closer to God as individuals and as a church. The wheel is our spiritual walk with God. That walk is a growing walk that affects both individuals and the church as a whole. To share of your life with someone else is probably the most effective tool for the church to have spiritual children and grandchildren that make an impact in the world. To have someone invest in your life will change you forever and stimulate you to do the same with someone else.

Accountability groups will usually be the next step that follows a mentoring ministry. Groups of people who allow themselves to be held accountable to keep a current walk with the Lord through commitment and interaction with trusted friends who are growing in their relationship with the Lord. I believe accountability groups cause a close fellowship in a church family and keep us upright in our attitude and about others and ministry.

I want our Worship Ministry to take this next step in ministry. In the future, I will be sharing a creative, concise way for us to establish a mentoring ministry in the choir that will be enhanced by accountability groups within our choir fellowship. The end result will be a choir more focused on living a life that is an example of Christ and a life that is a total life of worship. The ministry of our choir will continue to improve and grow as each of us help each other draw closer to the Lord. Sound exciting? That’s because it is! Just think about it: God drawing us closer and closer together through His Word and through our interaction with each other. We are totally qualified to have this kind of fellowship and should run to it.

Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.--Galatians 6:10

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

internal medicine...

As we think about the upcoming health needs of our country and all that is going on to make sure we get good medical care, it brings to mind the Great Physician and His health care plan and the benefits of His great care. Even though He is our healer in the physical needs of our body, His greatest healing comes on the inside. The part that everything else rotates around is found in our internal organs. Those are the heart, the soul, the mind and the spirit. In Luke 10:27 Jesus said, "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.’” When all of our inner being is focused on loving God, our outward expressions will mirror His great love for us.

My oldest son is a doctor and when looking at the field he would pursue in medicine, he thought a lot about internal medicine. When talking to him I remember him saying that he would be working on the part you only see when you make an opening and go inside. Or, in other words, you work on those parts of the body that are only seen when an incision is made. He didn’t go into that field, but it helped me realize that God sees the deepest part of each of us and knows what we need and how we tick. He takes that which no one else can see or understand and makes sense of it all by daily drawing us closer to His image. He changes us from the inside out.

Our worship will always be more God-centered when we respond to the God of internal medicine. Get in on God’s health care plan and allow Him to work His great healing in your heart, your mind, your soul and your spirit. If he is working on those areas every day, the outward result will be a person who is whole and healed.The Pilgrimage continues....

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

Which able are you?

I had someone ask me about taking on a fresh new ministry area a few years ago. As I was talking to them, I made the comment, “I’m available, but I don’t know if I’m able!” This person in turn said, “If you are able, then you try to be available.” I thought about that one for a while and I came up with some good excuses from past books I had read about being overcommitted and burned out. I pretty much stopped myself from falling into the trap of being too active for Christ. Whew, that was close. I almost became a living sacrifice for Christ! Wait a minute…

It can happen to the best of us. We know God has equipped us for a specific task or ministry effort and then we pull out the list. You know, the list of reasons why I’m not available for this specific ministry that I am perfectly fitted for by God. Somewhere on the list I find the one that takes away as much guilt as possible and then I log it in my memory and get on with what I want to do. Mission accomplished, I have found a good way to say NO on just about everything God has uniquely equipped me to do. But now who’s gonna do it? Oh, someone will…won’t they?

The truth is that the “fearfully and wonderfully” made part in scripture is actually talking about uniquely gifted people God has made to serve Him. It’s a great reason to be against abortion, and also a great reason to allow God to use your gifts for His plan. If we celebrate the essence of life, shouldn’t we also celebrate the presence of life given by God to EACH of us by serving Him with all our heart? I think so.

God has made each of us able to serve Him. He also empowers us to be available, the other able. So, which able are you? I hope you are both, able and available. Listen to what Jim Cymbala, pastor of the Brooklyn Tabernacle Church said once, “No matter the society or culture, the city or town, God has never lacked the power to work through available people to glorify His Name.” Let everything and everyone that has breath praise the Lord, by using the gifts He has given each of us.

Let everything that has breath
praise the LORD.
--Psalm 150:6

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren

continue fighting the good fight...

To continue fighting the good fight means we are in this whole thing for the long haul. It means that every day we get up, put on our battle gear and head to the battlefield. The preparation for fighting those battles is done long before walking out the door. The preparation is done in your time alone with God, our General, as we listen for His marching orders. He always has a battle plan and He is faithful to give us instructions on how, when and where to fight. To win the battles in the world, we must first win the battle of our will. The battle of the will is a battle that must be fought out before the Lord as we learn to submit to His will and battle plan. Oswald Chambers says it well – “Our battles are first won or lost in the secret places of our will in God’s presence, never in full view of the world. The Spirit of God seizes me and I am compelled to get alone with God and fight the battle before Him. Until I do this, I will lose every time. The battle may take one minute or one year, but that will depend on me, not God. However long it takes, I must wrestle with it alone before God, and I must resolve to go through the hell of renunciation or rejection before Him. Nothing has any power over someone who has fought the battle before God and won there.”

Submit is a strange word to some, but a must for believers who really want to get in the battle. When we submit to His will and way, we find truth and direction as never before. Some think that to submit to someone means we lose all the good things we want in life. To submit to God means we find true freedom that is centered in His word. When we follow His Word we always find the very best of life.

Is there a battle still raging in your heart? It’s time to hoist the white flag and surrender to God in everything you say and do. Take a step back and look at the things around you from His perspective. He sees all. We are too close to the problem to see the solution. Let His perspective fuel the war machine in your heart and the enemy WILL fall.

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

Calling all Patriots...

Patriot – someone who practices Patriotism. Patriotism is love of and/or devotion to one's country. The word comes from the Greek patris.

I was watching the Mel Gibson movie, The Patriot, the other night and I was amazed by the struggle of early Americans for independence from the British. It was such a seemingly small and ineffective group of people seeking freedom that led the battle cry for many who came after them. Small in numbers, but great in heart. Ineffective in the type of weapons they used, but just enough to allow them to gain ground with every battle. It drove home the point of what it takes to acquire and keep true freedom. It is sometimes too easy to start a battle but not finish a battle.

1. We must first of all be committed to the task. When the going got rough, many fell to the side and could not keep up the continuing fight. Their commitment level was easily seen by how much they were willing to give.
2. We must be pure in heart. The enemy would pick out those who were less than noble in their fight and lure them into giving out information on their own people. The end result of their lack of integrity resulted in many freedom fighters’ deaths.
3. We must be one in purpose. The weakest part of a chain is found when the weak link shows that it is not strong enough in its union to the other links to hold when the pressure is applied.
4. We must be willing to continue when all others fall away. True patriots believe in what they are fighting for and that belief is not centered on others and their commitment. The commitment of a true patriot is from deep inside their heart and that flame cannot be extinguished.

We are called to be Patriots. Not just for our country, but for our Lord. Our love and devotion for Jesus drives the vehicle of our life to the point of sacrifice -- sacrifice for our Savior and sacrifice for our fellow man. The sacrifices made by many for our freedom show us the depth of patriotism and we flourish because of those sacrifices. The sacrifice of one, Jesus Christ, for our eternal freedom shows us the depth of God’s love for us and gives us the manual for being a true patriot. May we take up the mantle of true freedom and fight while there is still time for the one who gives us true freedom. Calling all Patriots! Today is our Independence Day Celebration. Today we fight the good fight!

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

dawn of the walking dead?

If you have ever watched any of the old or new zombie movies you will quickly see that most of them have a recurring story line. A stupid story line, but a line! There is either a meteor or out of control government experiment, aliens or terrible air born virus that has infected a group of people. Those people in turn bite and infect others until almost all you see is a group of zombies, or half-dead people, walking around looking for who they will infect. They are breathing, their eyes work, they can definitely eat and for whatever reason, they are attracted to those who aren’t infected yet. Those who are aren’t infected run for their lives and try to keep from becoming “the walking dead”!

Sounds like some of my friends in the ministry. Walking through life in a daze with no direction. Just hoping to share their apathy infection with others to add to their numbers. This malady is infecting believers all over and the walking dead are growing in numbers, in a time when we need more life than ever before. Romans 12:1 says that we are to offer our bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God, and that this is our spiritual act of worship. We are to no longer be the Zombies who walk around in a daze. The commission is the same as before. Reach the world, wherever OUR world is.

Paul goes on in verse 2 to tell us to no longer conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of our minds. In other words, resist the infection of just living. The world will always give us easy outs and try to lure us into the snare of apathy. Don’t fall asleep and let it happen. Stay awake and not only resist, but also advance. Now is the time, and we have the tools to do it. May we all be found serving with all our hearts, and that when others see us they see a group of believers who are fanning the flame and growing in numbers. The only thing we are to be dead to is sin, as Paul says in Romans 6:1-2.

My prayer is that in the days ahead we will see a new way of looking at the Christian life. The “dawn of the walking living” is what we need to see. May we be found faithful in walking with that vibrant group of people who will rise from the sea of apathy in a ship that is on a course set with the compass given by God -- the Bible. Get on course now and wake up. This a new dawn and there are no dead people in it!

The Pilgrimage continues....

David Warren

Camp Focus...

This past week I had the great privilege of leading worship at Camp Focus in Panama City, FL. It was a great time of rejuvenation for me, Andra, Jessica and Seth as we experienced God in a very refreshing way. The speaker was Dean Folks from Columbus, OH and he nailed down the need to put on the armor of God. His preaching was very relevant and his heart for God was evident to all. He explained God’s Word in a very clear and concise manner and challenged us all to live a real life of true commitment to the Lord. Our times of worship got better as the week continued and by Thursday we were worshipping as friends, and brothers and sisters in Christ.

A great plus from the week is I got to spend time with dear friends from Nettleton Baptist Church in Jonesboro, AK. The youth pastor, Craig Miller, was in our youth ministry when we served at Nettleton Baptist and he had everything very organized and well thought out. His heart for enabling and empowering youth to live for Christ is the driving force behind everything he does and the camp showed that kind of heart. I appreciate the fellowship with them and pray that God will use the decisions for salvation, rededication and Christian service to impact the world for Christ.

Camp Focus was also fun for me as I got to use my keyboard and guitar to lead worship. I started out a little rusty, but felt better as the week went on. There is nothing like leading people to worship God in Spirit and Truth and see lives changed for eternity. I appreciate Tommy and Allison filling the gap here on Wednesday and Sunday, and it was good to be back at Scotts Hill this past Sunday.

The words Camp Focus say a lot. We need to stay focused on God this summer and keep our eyes looking to Him for power and direction. I’m thankful God never takes a summer vacation, even though He rested on the seventh day. Of course, it was after creating the heavens and the earth! May our times of rest be offensive as we refresh to serve even more effectively in the days ahead. Until He comes, lets find ourselves focused on serving the Lord.

So let's keep focused on that goal, those of us who want everything God has for us. If any of you have something else in mind, something less than total commitment, God will clear your blurred vision—you'll see it yet! Now that we're on the right track, let's stay on it. Philippians 3:15-16

The Pilgrimage continues.....

David Warren