Ordination, 2017

I've had an eventful month of July.

On Sunday, July 2nd, I preached my first Sunday morning sermon at Fellowship Bible Church.

On Saturday, July 8th, I went before an ordination council comprised of mentors, peers, and church elders, and then -- on Sunday, July 9th -- was publicly ordained as a pastor before my church family at FBC, and alongside my friend and fellow pastor/elder, Scott Foreman.

Photo courtesy of Julie Moore @ Julebug Photography.

I've been deeply encouraged by friends and family at FBC throughout this process, and it has been such a blessing to see the Lord at work in my life, preparing me for this journey.  Over the past weeks, I've recounted to a number of people that my mom was the prophet, not me.  She told me at 13 that I should consider one day becoming a pastor instead of a writer, which is what I always envisioned myself being.  Perhaps as few as 5 years ago, the pastorate still wasn't a goal for me.  But that was before I entered into the realm of full-time ministry, by virtue of simply being available, and gradually fell in love with local church ministry.  Since then, the Lord has been preparing me for this noble task, training me in matters of the heart, leadership, and administration, and appointing in His sovereignty the perfect time for me to step into the role of FBC's youth and worship pastor.

I thought I'd use this post to answer some of the questions I've frequently been asked in the days leading up to and following ordination.

"Are you now an elder now?"

Yes.  As a non-denominational, independent church, Fellowship Bible is governed by a plurality of elders rather than by a top-down, Senior Pastor or executive-style power structure.  We believe that this is the biblical model of church government (as per 1 Timothy 4.14; 5.17 and 1 Peter 5.1), and also that it provides our pastors and bi-vocational elders with a great degree of accountability and encouragement.  Because the Scriptures also use the Greek terms for elder, pastor, and overseer interchangeably (1 Timothy 3.1ff; 1 Peter 5.1-2), we also bestow the title of elder on each pastor of our church family.  This is a role I am deeply humbled to hold, alongside godly men who have demonstrated themselves to be above reproach over years of service to our local body.

My transition from FBC's youth/worship director to youth/worship pastor/elder hasn't brought any immediate changes, simply because my previous role already carried with it a number of pastoral responsibilities.  So my schedule and priorities largely remain the same in my current areas of oversight, though there will inevitably be new responsibilities and considerations for me as we shape our church leadership team and seek to hire a children's' pastor this year.

"What seminary did you go to?"

The answer to this question might be surprising to some, but seminary is a yet-future goal for me.  My background is actually in English (BA from Rowan University, class of 2012), but I have 5+ years of studying and teaching the Word as a paid, full-time employee of Fellowship Bible Church, in addition to 20+ years of sitting under the pastoral insights of our teaching pastor, Phil Moser, as well as 13 years of discipleship and training under/beside our former youth pastor, Jack Klose (Sr. Pastor at Evangelical Free Church of Keokuk, IA).  This, plus a lifetime of personal investment into the Word of God, which I believe I have been Spirit-gifted to understand and teach.

So seminary is a future goal.  Several months ago, I applied to Southern Theological Seminary to pursue an MDiv with a concentration in Biblical Counseling, and could possibly begin online studies as early as spring 2018.

"Did you get grilled for your ordination?"

No.  And as a positively encourageable person, I'm very thankful for that.  Rather than an adversarial, stump-the-pastoral-candidate kind of ordeal, the ordination council was actually an immensely thoughtful, conversational, and warm experience for me, structured more to discuss sticking points of theology and potential ministry challenges (such as hypothetical scenarios and difficult counseling topics).  In fact, I wish it had been a little longer.  We began at 8:00 AM on Saturday morning and were done by noon.  Scott and I both had one hour each for sharing our testimonies to the council and defending our statements of faith, and forty-five minutes each to interview on our ministry papers.  Because the men comprising the council had ample time to consider our character, beliefs, and Spiritual gifting, as well as serving hand-in-hand with us in various FBC-based ministries (and in Scott's case, in ministry partnerships in Word of Life Canada), the vetting process differed greatly from what might transpire at other churches of various denominations.

It has therefore been my unique experience to begin pastoral ministry as a hands-on disciple, to grow and learn via experience alongside a mentor, and to enter the role of an ordained minister with both feet on the ground, with the loving accountability and support from a leadership team that has watched me grow over the years.  Not every pastor gets to have that kind of homegrown experience, and I'm immensely grateful for it.


For anyone interested, I'd like to make available my Statement of Faith and Philosophy of Youth Ministry paper, documents I wrote/compiled for my ordination.  I welcome dialogue or questions on either.

My heart is full as I look forward to what the Lord will do through me at Fellowship Bible Church over the years to come.  To Him be the glory.

"Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen."

Jude 24-25

You don't have to be a leader to be a leader

The leadership books our culture promotes are tomes full of management techniques, suggestions for maximum efficiency, and quotes about the benefit of humility.  Kevin Kruse of Forbes.com defines leadership in this way:

"Leadership is a process of social influence, which maximizes the efforts of others, towards the achievement of a goal."

Here's the thing.  Good leadership does originate from the ability to instruct, direct, and influence, but it is predicated on more than simply action.  Good leadership is about achieving a goal, but that goal is more than simply meeting a quota or overcoming an obstacle.  Humility is essential for leadership, but it is more than simply rolling up your sleeves in order to share the workload of your subordinates.  It is more than simply seeing yourself the way others see you.  In other words, the philosophy on leadership which the modern corporate world embraces isn't necessarily wrong.  It's just incomplete.

The qualifications Paul lists in Titus 1 for Elders and Pastors (overseers) are listed below.  An Elder must be:

• above reproach - a man who is "without fault": in other words, a man who - while imperfect - is unable to be accused of ongoing sinful conduct

• the husband of one wife - a man of "conjugal chastity" (Matthew Henry); a man who practices godly sexuality, whose heart and body are satisfied with the wife of his youth (Proverbs 5.18)

• the father of godly children - a man who raises his children to avoid sexual promiscuity (debauchery), who encourages them to aspire to commendable character, who teaches them to submit to authority

• a steward - a man who recognizes that the role he fills is merely one of a shepherd, understanding that he boasts no ownership; a man who is set apart for ministry

• patient - a man who is not quick-tempered, who is able both to endure disagreeable circumstances with faith and to extend grace to difficult people

• temperate - a man who is not a drunkard, not prone to violence, and not greedy for monetary or physical gain

• hospitable - a man who is less concerned about expense and inconvenience than the comfort and needs of others

• a lover of good - a purveyor of righteousness and justice; a man whose heart breaks for the same reasons as the Lord's

• upright and holy - a man who genuinely pursues God's command to be holy as He is holy with every facet of his life (1 Peter 1.16)

• disciplined - a man of practiced routine, of spiritual and physical exercise, of hard work

• given to sound doctrine - a man dedicated to both a). the teaching of correct theology and b). the sharp rebuke of faulty theology

I'm not making the argument that every person in any position of authority must fulfill each of these characteristics, possess an M.Div., and boast hours of community service.  That's not the reason Paul, by the direction of the Holy Spirit, made this list.  However, I am submitting this a challenge.

We should all be pastors in our own way - leaders of men no matter what our profession.  Reading through this impressive list of character traits convicted me of the fact that, regardless of my occupation and social status, I want these qualities to be indicative of my life and my character.  Whether or not I find myself in church leadership now or in the future, I want to aspire to be a leader of men.  I owe this not only to those who look up to me, but to the One who sacrificed so much to enable me to walk in such holiness - the very One who desires the best for me, whose glorification is not only my greatest privilege but also my greatest responsibility.

Social leadership values gain, advancement, efficiency, and the benefit of the whole, but it lacks the motivation of righteousness.  Godly social leadership values the same exact things, but interpreted via the light of the Kingdom.  Godly social leadership says, "Let me make sure my life is in order (advancement; efficiency) so that I can a). bring the most glory to God through my decisions (gain) and b). simultaneously have the maximum amount of positive influence on the lives with which I am in direct conjunction (benefit of the whole)."

Isn't that what this is all about?