The Boomer Generation, Pastors and Technology

If you are over 50 and still afraid of the internet, you are missing out on a great opportunity to reach the next generation with the Gospel. This simple little article will help you to find ways to bridge the cyber gap that may exist in your ministry.

I consider myself somewhat computer savvy. The speed of the changes that occur in the world of technology make me feel like I am getting hopelessly behind. And yet, I find that growing at least in one area at a time can reap generous rewards.

When I first undertook blogging a couple of years ago, All I knew how to do was enter text. Then I learned to create links within my posts, add pictures, and add other features. I will eventually learn how to embed video and other stuff. In the meantime, I am continually amazed at how many people read my blog. While I often don't get a lot of comments, if I fail to post anything new in any given week, I'll start getting emails wondering if I quit blogging or asking if everything is all right with me.

I want to challenge those of my generation to stay current with computer technology. Just as you don't have to know all of the parts of a cars engine to enjoy driving a car, you don't have to know everything about computers to enjoy using them to communicate to friends, family and even strangers who happen to trip over you blog on the way somewhere else.

Are You Ready for Some Bible Study!

It is no secret that men are in the minority in most churches. For decades the split has been about the same. 60% women, 40% men. Even the men who are church members rarely engage in in-depth Bible study, service ministries (beyond ushers and board members), and spiritual disciplines such as prayer, fasting, worship etc.

One church has found a creative way to engage their men. They bundle MNF (Monday Night Football) with a topical, timely study. It combines, fellowship with Bible study. It is similar to what some parents are doing to get their children to eat their vegetables. One mom put some butternut squash in a blender, mixed it into some mac and cheese and her children didn't know, but loved the concoction. She has taken to finding other creative ways to sneak some vegetables in other dishes thereby helping her children eat more healthily.

Everybody knows vegetables are good for you, but cheeseburgers taste better. Pastors and Christians know that Bible study is good for you, but watching MNF is more fun. By blending the two churches are helping their men become healthier.

A funny thing happened to my children who hated broccoli when they were young. When they got older, they developed a taste for it. Now they eat it all the time. Hopefully the men in our churches will mature beyond just football and develop a taste for God's Word.

Stand in the Gap II

It was October of 1997. Two busloads of Christian men left the campus of Christian Life College in Mount Prospect to participate in the Promise Keepers call to Stand in the Gap. It was a meeting of over one million men who descended on the Washington D.C. mall area to worship, pray and call our nation to a time of prayer and fasting. I will never forget that day.

While we were traveling east on I-80 it seemed that every other car, van or bus had a sign in its window that said something to the effect of: Stand in the Gap, I am a Promise Keeper, Washington D.C or bust, etc. During the wee hours of the morning, at every rest stop there were vehicles filled with men fellowshiping, praying and encouraging one another to call America back to God.

Well, it looks like another call is being extended. It's called "Stand in the Gap 2007" and will be held in October, ten years after the original call. Our nation needs a humbling time of prayer and worship once again like never before. Men are being called to take the lead. I'm planning on being there.

I took my sons with me in 1997. It was a bonding experience and unbelievably edifying. To stand in Washington, the seat of political power, and to declare to the nation that it is not by might, or by power, but by God's Spirit, focused my attention on who controls the universe, our world, our nation, my family and me.

Pass this message on to other men, pastors and church leaders. Let's make a statement in Washington in October. It's never to early to block that date on your calendar and do whatever it takes to Stand in the Gap. You can get more information by clicking here.