Dwight's Monthly Letter, August 2010

Here we are in August already! Can you believe it? Time flies by so fast. I trust that you have been enjoying your summer.

David and John did a great job communicating what it really means to say yes to Christ during the CHRISTIAN series. They ended the series talking about surrendering to Christ, and it was so exciting to see the response! Saying yes to Christ and surrendering to Him really means two specific things:

1. Jesus said, “I have come to serve, not to be served” (Matt. 20:28). This Sunday is GO ‘10, where we worship and celebrate in a very tangible way by serving others. I trust that you have already signed up for a project to express your “Yes” to Christ. If not, call the church office (330.602.5600) for a specific opportunity. Be sure to do it; it will do your heart good.

2. Jesus also said, “I have come to seek and save that which is lost” (Luke 19:10). August 9, we are kicking off a new series called Behind the Curtain. I promise you don’t want to miss it. You’ll be given a clear picture of why we do what we do here at NewPointe. Ultimately, the reason for everything we do is to build a bridge strong enough to bear the weight of truth that needs to be shared.

You might ask, “What is that truth?” Well, it’s that Jesus Christ is the only way to experience a personal relationship with God, ensuring that you will spend forever with Him. We believe that everybody spends forever somewhere. Everybody – that means your mom, dad, spouse, kids, siblings, friends, co-workers, neighbors, etc. . . . EVERYBODY! NewPointe is committed to helping you reach the people who are most precious to you.

When you understand why we do what we do, it is easier to be in sync with all that happens at NewPointe. As you probably already know, we are not your typical church, so I am sure that you have questions. The next series Behind the Curtain will help answer many of those, so don’t miss it! I am excited about sharing it with you.

One last thing: At the beginning of the summer, I asked you to list 3 people who did not know Jesus Christ as the forgiver of their sins and the leader of their lives. I believe that as you have prayed, God has been preparing their hearts and that He is going to do some incredible stuff. We have prayed and planned strategically to reach our communities, and we are making some changes in order to be in the best position to receive all the people that God has been preparing. You will learn more and more about these changes in the coming weeks. We need everyone on board to leverage this opportunity, so be sure to get in the game and not be on the sidelines!

British Open Champion

They crowned an unknown as the British Open Champion. His name is Louis Oosthuizen, and he is described as a 27-year-old family man from South Africa. One of the commentators, Paul Azinger, referred to Louis’s willingness to embrace the moment and the great opportunity before him on the final round, saying “Everybody wants to be noticed, but no one wants to be watched.”

Wow, what a thought! We do want to be noticed as – a leader, a servant, a Christ-follower, and the list could go on and on, but we really aren’t all that excited about being watched. We say, “Notice me, I’m special,” but we really don’t want people to watch how we relate to people, how we treat people, how we work, live, etc.

The apostle Paul had just the opposite view. He basically said that he didn’t want to be noticed as someone special. He even said that he was the least of all the apostles. But he did encourage everybody to watch him. Paul told us in 1 Corinthians 11:1, “Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.”

This is a great question to think about: Are you into getting noticed, or being watched?

Clarity

I spent some time with a group of guys getting clarity. We talked about what God is saying to NewPointe; also, what I felt God is saying to me. It was amazing!

I had told my wife, Patty, at the beginning of the year, that I wasn’t sure what God was saying to me. I was kind of in a fog, and I hadn’t experienced that for over 20 years – and it was frustrating! I sensed that God wanted to speak to me about the season of my life and ministry. I told God that I needed to receive a word from Him. He started to speak to me, and He gave me pieces of what I believe He was asking of me.

Well – it has come to fruition. We put things up on a white board with numbers alongside each item. As I sat there, a little bit of fear came over me. The group leader kept saying, “Dwight you have 10 years left to do this.” I kept thinking, “WHAT? I’m not that old.” But, the fact of the matter is I am. Ten years from now I will be 60 years old.

As I looked at the board, I took inventory of my life. It was another humbling experience. It was like being on the other side of your life. I knew that if I was going to pursue these things with integrity, I could not remain the same. I believe that if you want to go to the NEXT LEVEL in ministry, or in life, you’ve got to go the NEXT LEVEL in your relationship with God. And this was going to have to be true of me.

I came home and shared everything with Patty and asked her to pray for me. I told her that I knew God was asking me to stop some things and to start or re-start some things. I told her that I knew I had no chance of fulfilling what He was asking me to do, without a radical transformation in my personal life.

Maybe you have a dream, vision, etc., and it is not coming to fruition. You don’t know why. You can’t figure it out. Maybe it is because you have tried to go to the next of level leadership (professionally, or in ministry) without going to the next level in your relationship with God.

It is, at least, a worthy question.

Wreck

I was in a car wreck last week; it was the first one in more than 25-plus years. I had just picked up our son Jonathon from a golf match, and we were engaged in conversation about how he did. As I was talking to him, my phone went off with a text, and I went from looking at him to looking down at my phone. Yep, you guessed it. A car in front of me stopped, and I couldn’t stop quickly enough!

Well – you know what happened. I hit the car in the rear. Thank God, no one was hurt, and the person in the other car was very understanding. I apologized over and over again to her.

I felt bad all night and the rest of the next day. It made me realize that car accidents are going to happen if you are going to drive. We want to do everything we can to avoid them, but they are going to happen – it’s a part of life.

It caused me to think about life and about leading. If you do something long enough, you’re going to have a few wrecks. But what really matters is how you handle them.

Are you going to handle them responsibly? Honestly? Courageously?

LeBron Lesson

Dan Gilbert, owner of the Cavs, wrote a seething open letter to the fans of the Cleveland Cavaliers. He shared his frustrations, anger and hurt. Reading between the lines you could see that they basically did everything LeBron asked of them, whether it pertained to the coach, players, spending money beyond the cap, whatever. Really, there was nothing that Gilbert and the Cavs didn’t do to try to satisfy all of LeBron’s wants and wishes. Well, we all know what happened, right? – LeBron left. In spite of everything the Cavs did. He said he had to do what he felt was best for him.

Lessons for leaders: It’s bad leadership to think that you can’t afford to lose a player. Catering to a specific individual, to the degree that it goes against the organization’s values and vision, puts you in a bad position. I am not suggesting that you treat everybody alike (I don’t agree with that), but I am saying that you can’t sacrifice the team of the future for the sake of one person. Those kinds of moves will always come back to haunt you – just ask Dan Gilbert.

No matter what – sacrifice the one for the many, never the many for the one. Whom are you afraid of losing? It may be having a bigger affect on your future than you realize.

LeBron's Decision

In northeast Ohio (that’s where I live, Sugarcreek, Ohio) there is a large cloud looming over. For many there is a sense of discouragement, depression, and defeat. I think, though, that there are enough lessons to go around for everyone. 

LeBron James had the right to make any choice he wanted to make. Even God gives that to us, so we must give it to others. The problem is we don’t get to control the consequences of those decisions, and that’s what LeBron is feeling right now. He is experiencing something that probably he has never experienced before – a lot of negative and angry emotions.

Here’s another thought: Just because you say you are humble doesn’t mean that you are humble. Actions do speak louder than words. LeBron spoke of being humble, but last Thursday night was anything but an expression of humility.

Which leads me to a third thought: Be careful whom you get your advice from. It seems LeBron’s circle was more concerned about making a splash in the media, than how it would affect people. I imagine, that though they may not change their minds, they would change the way in which they delivered the message. It is said that “perception is reality,” and for most people that perception was that LeBron was arrogant, not humble.

It is said that off the court LeBron had a huge impact as well – injecting economic life into a franchise and an entire city. According to analysis by the Cleveland Plain Dealer, LeBron leaving will have an economic hit on the city and the region of nearly $200 million, and the value of the Cavs is projected to drop by about $100 million a year.

You should never be that dependent upon one individual.

The Church has left the Building

The phrase "Elvis has left the building!” was often used by public address announcers following Elvis Presley concerts to disperse audiences who lingered in hopes of an Elvis encore. On Sunday, August 1, 2010 we are leaving the building, too (but we will return)!

For one whole Sunday, NewPointe will be leaving its buildings, classrooms, microphones, kids’ areas and more to go and serve. It’s called Community Impact Day or GO ‘10, and we need you. We’ll be helping people and organizations in our surrounding communities tackle things like carpentry, painting, weeding, mulching, cleaning, etc. Some will bake and deliver cookies to those who serve us - like the police, hospital, and other emergency services. Others are needed to visit the residents of nursing homes and retirement centers.

I encourage you to take advantage of this opportunity to make a difference. It’s a great way to convey Jesus’ love for others through your act of service. Many projects are still available. To find out more or to sign up, call the church office at 330.602.5600. Or go online http://www.newpointe.org/pages/page.asp?page_id=113313 to review what’s still available and register online!

Not So Fast ...

That’s the saying of College Game Day show host Lee Corso. Someone makes a statement about a player or football team, and he yells out, “Not So Fast,” insinuating that there is more information you must take into account before making that statement.

While listening to a radio station, I heard the verse from Matthew 6:34: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” And I thought, really? Don’t worry? People just might need to be worried about tomorrow. There are over 7,000 promises in the Bible, but what you first have to realize is that those promises are for the people who know and love Jesus Christ. Secondly, with a promise there is always a premise.

Matthew 6:34 begins with the word “therefore.” When you see a “therefore” it is saying “because of what I just said.” So what does Matthew 6:33 say? “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.”

Here is what we ultimately need to understand: If you are seeking God’s kingdom first, you have nothing to worry about.

“Not So Fast.” Before claiming a promise, make sure that you are fulfilling the premise of the promise, otherwise, you will have false hope.

Inconvenience

I was talking to a friend of mine the other day, and he was sharing with me about his vision. By the way – do you have a vision of what God wants for you? Proverbs 29:18 states that where there is no vision, the people perish. 

Anyway, my friend has a huge vision. He talked about an opportunity that presented itself to him. He said that the timing was great, but that it was really inconvenient. Yet, it was necessary, so he seized it. Solomon tells us, “If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get anything done.” (Ecclesiastes 11:) 

What are you putting off that is necessary for you to fulfill the vision, but is not convenient? Opportunity is missed by most people, because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. William James said, “He who refuses to embrace a unique opportunity, loses the prize as surely as if he had failed.”

Prayer?

Louisiana's state senate has declared June 20 a statewide day of prayer in response to the Gulf oil spill."Thus far efforts made by mortals to try to solve the crisis have been to no avail," state Sen. Robert Adley said in a statement: "It is clearly time for a miracle for us."

From the senate resolution – WHEREAS, a day of unified, intercessory prayer, by and for those people living throughout the regions around the Gulf of Mexico, to pray for an end to this environmental emergency, sparing us all from the destruction of both culture and livelihood.

It would be great if we would call a day of prayer for the moral disaster that we are experiencing in America, that would spare us from the destruction of both cultural and family livelihood. “Is anyone among you in trouble? Let them pray... The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.” (James 5:13, 16)