The PF Women Team at our Annual Team Retreat ~ 2018 Today on Seth Godin's blog, he said: It's tempting to decide to make a profit first, then invest in training, people, facilities, promotion, customer service and most of all, doing important work. In general, though, it goes the other way. Yes, it does. If you are waiting to make a profit before you do these things, in my experience you're not going to make a profit. So many organizations, ministries and churches are struggling with financial issues. I know your pain. As anyone who follows our story knows, our ministry was in a ton of debt four years ago when I came on as director. Since that time, we've gotten out of debt and turned a profit every year. God has done amazing things through out team, for which we give Him the glory! I find that what Seth is saying here is absolutely true, with one disclaimer. For Christian leaders, spiritual disciplines must always be first. Before we started i...
Well, I missed church ALL DAY. Today of all days. The missions convention with Robert Solomon. I can count the number of times I have missed Sunday church (aside from vacation) over the past 20 years on one hand. To my knowledge, as far back as I can remember...I've only missed once Sunday for each of the births of my kids, and then for my gallbladder operation. That was it. It's not just because I'm a pastor/pastor's wife, but as you can tell by my previous posts, I simply love the house of the Lord. Today was a miserable day. Just being honest. Prepare for my Psalm. My imprecatory Psalm...O LORD, HEAR FROM 5036 SPECTACULAR BID DRIVE, AND HEAL THY SERVANT...FOR I AM WEAK, AND EVEN MY STOMACH HURTETH AND THOU KNOWEST THAT MY INWARD PARTS ARE WRETCHED IN PAIN.............. :-)
When my alarm rang this morning I felt dizzy. I went out to the kitchen to turn the coffee pot on, and things started spinning and suddenly I felt "chills." I called to Larry and said, "rebuke this thing now! Something is happening to me!" He did, but moments later I was puking my guts up and pretty much did that until noon. Couldn't keep anything down, and just feeling horrible. We had to call Mark and Jeanne at 6:30 and ask them to take care of my responsibilities which they gladly did.
The biggest thing I was upset about missing today for was not even having to back out of my responsibilities but missing Robert's ministry. Larry got me the CD already of course. But it won't be the same. I get MAD at sickness. It's such a demonic thing. Straight from the devil. And I am not joking about my strong feelings on that. Every good and perfect gift comes from the father. Throwing up? Comes straight from the pit...
I decided if I was totally done throwing up by about 4 pm, and had the chills under control, I was going to go to the banquet tonight, just to hear Robert and then slip out. I am just going crazy not going to church today!!! I miss church, I miss the people, I miss seeing everything I had such a big part in planning but will only see in photos now. (Pastor Lindsay is taking pictures of everything for me - the centerpieces, the food, the place settings, the napkins, the posters, the stage, the speaker, yada yada yada. Still it won't be the same. I have watched the Church Channel, TBN, CTN, and Daystar networks all day and heard about 8 sermons AT LEAST but nothing makes up for this, not even T.D. Jakes or Jentezen Franklin, or even Frank M. Reid III (three of my favorite preachers.)
I went without throwing up for 2 hours but then it started all over again. Blah!!!!!
So how can I manage to type this right now? Once I throw up and then take some Tylenol suppositories (yeah, totally honest blogging here) it takes away the chills and fever and everything else and I feel better for about an hour...until I get so dehydrated I drink...then, there it all comes again. Right now is a pretty good moment because I threw up, washed off in soap and real hot water and now decided to lay here with my computer and read and write a little bit. I have clorox wipes and everything I touch I'm wiping down. I even made my kids clorox wipe themselves after they came home and greeted me today. I know, I know, I have worse problems than just the flu... ha ha! I get a little crazy about germs. Which is funny, I'm an antibacterial queen and here I sit...SICK.
Okay so I'm sitting here typing on my clorox wiped computer. Yes, I even write when I'm sick. I know, I'm THAT crazy about reading and writing. I even do it when I'm throwing my guts up, with chills, fever, and other gross things. This is part of the reason I know I'm called to write. This is a calling, something I'm meant to give my life to. God made that clearer than clear to me this past year as I re-evaluated my life and considered several avenues to take. And, in addition to pastoring...this is it. I can't stay away from it. Not for a day. Not when I'm sick, not on vacation, not when I'm busy, NEVER. Writing to me is breathing. So here I sit. I'll throw the laptop off to the side if and when I need to head to the bathroom again real quick. :-)
My Bible, my laptop, the three good sermons, and talking to Pastor Linds to get the low-down on the morning service were the highlights of my day. Larry doesn't give me enough details. Lindsay tells me EVERYTHING just like I want it. Who was there...who wasn't. How the worship went, all the details about worship, right down to key changes, how the people respond (or don't respond), the bulletin (lots of people commented on our new bulletins today she says...), the announcements, the special music, the speaker. She just called and gave me the 4-1-1 on everything from her rehearsal today, to a poster that was falling down in the banquet hall. She tried for 15 minutes to put it back up. Finally asked Pastor Aaron. See, I LOVE the details. I believe ADMINISTRATION is a gift of the Holy Ghost. Truly it is if you read scripture like I do. And Linds and I? Well, we pretty much LIVE for administration among other things like...Paris tea, paper, Panera, (uh, lots of P's there...) and GOOD SUNDAYS! (which we have most of the time)
Right now I'm listening to a lady make up a prophetic song at her keyboard while she goes along. She's not real good at this but I don't think anybody has told her that. She's sweating like crazy, screeching her lungs out singing, "I WAS MADE FOR THIS..." and I'm truly wondering, "WHO, PRAY TELL, TOLD YOU THAT?" The pastor who told her that should be flogged. I cant' imagine that Jesus told her that. Nor a spiritual gifts inventory. We need some spiritual Simon Cowells in the church who aren't afraid to say, 'Lady, that was the strangest bloody thing I've ever heard in a church service...." Yikes. The microphone is distorted, she's on it so close and it's so loud. Doesn't anybody with an eye or ear for these things tell these people this? I guess they don't have a Pastor Lindsay...or really any other people like our NS staff would who take care of that in a NEW YORK MINUTE. I'm so glad at our church we are thoroughly PENTECOSTAL, spirit filled, spirit led, and ALIVE, yet not a freak show.
Did I mention, I miss church? Did I mention I miss the people? Did I mention I'm sick of my toilet? I hope everybody missed me, just a little bit...although I know things went just awesome without me (they should), I just hope they missed my smiling face and my enthusiasm just a tad...
When my alarm rang this morning I felt dizzy. I went out to the kitchen to turn the coffee pot on, and things started spinning and suddenly I felt "chills." I called to Larry and said, "rebuke this thing now! Something is happening to me!" He did, but moments later I was puking my guts up and pretty much did that until noon. Couldn't keep anything down, and just feeling horrible. We had to call Mark and Jeanne at 6:30 and ask them to take care of my responsibilities which they gladly did.
The biggest thing I was upset about missing today for was not even having to back out of my responsibilities but missing Robert's ministry. Larry got me the CD already of course. But it won't be the same. I get MAD at sickness. It's such a demonic thing. Straight from the devil. And I am not joking about my strong feelings on that. Every good and perfect gift comes from the father. Throwing up? Comes straight from the pit...
I decided if I was totally done throwing up by about 4 pm, and had the chills under control, I was going to go to the banquet tonight, just to hear Robert and then slip out. I am just going crazy not going to church today!!! I miss church, I miss the people, I miss seeing everything I had such a big part in planning but will only see in photos now. (Pastor Lindsay is taking pictures of everything for me - the centerpieces, the food, the place settings, the napkins, the posters, the stage, the speaker, yada yada yada. Still it won't be the same. I have watched the Church Channel, TBN, CTN, and Daystar networks all day and heard about 8 sermons AT LEAST but nothing makes up for this, not even T.D. Jakes or Jentezen Franklin, or even Frank M. Reid III (three of my favorite preachers.)
I went without throwing up for 2 hours but then it started all over again. Blah!!!!!
So how can I manage to type this right now? Once I throw up and then take some Tylenol suppositories (yeah, totally honest blogging here) it takes away the chills and fever and everything else and I feel better for about an hour...until I get so dehydrated I drink...then, there it all comes again. Right now is a pretty good moment because I threw up, washed off in soap and real hot water and now decided to lay here with my computer and read and write a little bit. I have clorox wipes and everything I touch I'm wiping down. I even made my kids clorox wipe themselves after they came home and greeted me today. I know, I know, I have worse problems than just the flu... ha ha! I get a little crazy about germs. Which is funny, I'm an antibacterial queen and here I sit...SICK.
Okay so I'm sitting here typing on my clorox wiped computer. Yes, I even write when I'm sick. I know, I'm THAT crazy about reading and writing. I even do it when I'm throwing my guts up, with chills, fever, and other gross things. This is part of the reason I know I'm called to write. This is a calling, something I'm meant to give my life to. God made that clearer than clear to me this past year as I re-evaluated my life and considered several avenues to take. And, in addition to pastoring...this is it. I can't stay away from it. Not for a day. Not when I'm sick, not on vacation, not when I'm busy, NEVER. Writing to me is breathing. So here I sit. I'll throw the laptop off to the side if and when I need to head to the bathroom again real quick. :-)
My Bible, my laptop, the three good sermons, and talking to Pastor Linds to get the low-down on the morning service were the highlights of my day. Larry doesn't give me enough details. Lindsay tells me EVERYTHING just like I want it. Who was there...who wasn't. How the worship went, all the details about worship, right down to key changes, how the people respond (or don't respond), the bulletin (lots of people commented on our new bulletins today she says...), the announcements, the special music, the speaker. She just called and gave me the 4-1-1 on everything from her rehearsal today, to a poster that was falling down in the banquet hall. She tried for 15 minutes to put it back up. Finally asked Pastor Aaron. See, I LOVE the details. I believe ADMINISTRATION is a gift of the Holy Ghost. Truly it is if you read scripture like I do. And Linds and I? Well, we pretty much LIVE for administration among other things like...Paris tea, paper, Panera, (uh, lots of P's there...) and GOOD SUNDAYS! (which we have most of the time)
Right now I'm listening to a lady make up a prophetic song at her keyboard while she goes along. She's not real good at this but I don't think anybody has told her that. She's sweating like crazy, screeching her lungs out singing, "I WAS MADE FOR THIS..." and I'm truly wondering, "WHO, PRAY TELL, TOLD YOU THAT?" The pastor who told her that should be flogged. I cant' imagine that Jesus told her that. Nor a spiritual gifts inventory. We need some spiritual Simon Cowells in the church who aren't afraid to say, 'Lady, that was the strangest bloody thing I've ever heard in a church service...." Yikes. The microphone is distorted, she's on it so close and it's so loud. Doesn't anybody with an eye or ear for these things tell these people this? I guess they don't have a Pastor Lindsay...or really any other people like our NS staff would who take care of that in a NEW YORK MINUTE. I'm so glad at our church we are thoroughly PENTECOSTAL, spirit filled, spirit led, and ALIVE, yet not a freak show.
Did I mention, I miss church? Did I mention I miss the people? Did I mention I'm sick of my toilet? I hope everybody missed me, just a little bit...although I know things went just awesome without me (they should), I just hope they missed my smiling face and my enthusiasm just a tad...
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