Scott Miller Blog :: Good Stuff

Why…Simple - Top 5!

If there was one word that would explain the way we approach ministry at Pathway, it would be 'Simple.' I've seen enough churches make involvement in the local church about as easy as getting your kids Christmas present out of its box!

We're committed to leading significant, spiritually impacting ministry…at the same time…leaving time for you to stay plugged in to the local community!

There are 5 main areas of focus for Pathway:

1. Sunday Services
2. Life Groups
3. Kids Ministry
4. Youth Ministry
5. Missions

Sure there are other things we do, but these would be the main 5 at this point. Given that this approach is drastically different than the majority of churches, let me take the next few days to further explain each one of these top 5!

Family Times

I've been reading Reggie Joiner's book, Think Orange. Kind of slow going…but good content…this made me think from page 72…

4 key times all families can leverage to build faith in their children:

• MEAL TIME – When you sit at home…Focused discussion as a teacher to establish core values
• DRIVE TIME – When you walk along the road…Informal dialogue as a friend to help your child interpret life
• BED TIME – When you lie down…Intimate conversation as a counselor to listen to the heart of your child
• MORNING TIME – When you get up…Encouraging words as a coach who gives a sense of value and instills purpose

Deuteronomy 6:7 ⁷Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 

Why…start new churches and campuses?

You can read more of the how concerning new churches and campuses in this previous post. Let me hit the why in this post…

The ultimate goal is to reach as many people as we can with the Gospel and help them grow in their faith. When we started Pathway, we put it like this in our list of dreams:

It is the dream of…a regional church that profoundly impacts Middlebury, eastern Elkhart County, Indiana, the United States and the world with the life changing message of Jesus Christ.

Not sure we even understood what we were saying back then, but it was in our heart to make an impact on northern Indiana (outside of Middlebury) from the get go!

We feel like starting a new churches/campuses in a new area is the right thing to do b/c:

• Church planting is Biblical. We see it happening all throughout the book of Acts.
• There are people that we will never reach simply b/c of our location. Having more than one campus affords us the opportunity to reach new people geographically.
• It gives us the opportunity to be a part of something larger for God's Kingdom than just in one location alone. We can work together to reach the region with like minded churches! Given the structure of one church many campuses, it's built into our DNA to work together.
• It gives new opportunity for people to use their gifts in the context of the local church.
• It causes the other campuses to ask the hard "why" questions and learn from each other. There are already things we've started pursuing here at the Middlebury campus b/c we've asked the question about the Elkhart campus!
• Bottom Line - We feel like it's what God wants us to do!

CMA Awards

OK…I am not a big country music fan…but…I did watch a good portion of last night’s CMA awards…why you ask?  Good question…my top 5 reasons:

1. B/c it came on just as Hayden was slipping into her evening screaming time (yes, I love the little darling…but she still has her moments of emotion most every evening)…
2. The shots that were taken at Kanye West all through the night…why anyone would ever own any Kanye music is beyond me…
3. It brought back memories of my earlier years, when I did enjoy a little country. I remember in elementary school, after everyone else was in bed, mom and dad got me out of bed so I could watch my favorite Oak Ridge Boys sing their hit “Bobbie Sue” on the CMA award show.
4. The whole culture of country music intrigues me.  I don't understand how Kid Rock and George Strait can both be classified in the country genre. 
5. Did I mention the slams on Kanye?

Enjoy a little Bobbie Sue here...

Drunk Woman falls onto tracks

Did you see this?  This gals life was inches from being over!  Way to go bystanders!

Why…a Local Church?

I'd like to take some time over the next week (or week's) to bring you in on some of our 'Why' discussion this past weekend at the LT retreat. Today, we start with 'Why the local church'?

Holy cow…you could come from a lot of different angles here…let me take a stab Biblically…

I think the greatest reason for the local church is b/c that's the New Testament model we see! We see this as the model Paul used throughout the book of Acts. You go to a community, start a church, appoint Elders/Overseer's, and there you go. Paul didn't start soup kitchens, outreach ministries, Bible Colleges, etc., he started churches. He knew that if people were really going to accomplish the great commission and great commandment, it would have to be done through a local church. More on this in a previous post…

The local church provides/facilitates a place for 5 things to happen that we also see exampled in the NT church:

1. Fellowship
2. Discipleship
3. Evangelism
4. Ministry
5. Worship

I could say a whole lot more about this, but I'll save my typing for further Why's!

My Big Mouth

I've been thinking on something ever since I shared a message on the subject this past summer…My mouth is powerful! Has very little to do with whether I just ate garlic or not…and everything to do with what's in my heart, that's coming out of my mouth!

Proverbs 18:21 says, "The tongue has the power of life and death, and those who love it will eat its fruit." The power of life and death? Are you serious?

The Book of James compares our tongue/mouth to a boats rudder as it guides our lives…or as a fire that can destroy our life or the lives of others…or as a spring of water – pointing to the fact that stuff just doesn't come out of our mouth on accident – it flows directly out of our heart.

"Oh, I didn't mean to say that…" Yep, you did. You allowed something in your heart to fester and camp out…and unfortunately, you lacked the self control to stop it from coming out of your mouth!

Believe you me, I've been there, done that, bought the t-shirt and the underoo's (remember those things when you were a kid?...I think I had The Dukes of Hazard underoo's).

You're not a loser if you struggle with this…in fact, the book of James says in essence that if any of us say we don't struggle with our mouths we are fooling ourselves!

Be determined this week to let only those things that are profitable and life-giving to come out of your mouth! The next time something negative starts to come out, just begin to thank God for the opposite to come out of the situation. Speak out of faith, not out of fear…speak life, not death.

I think there might be another message brewing in this thought somewhere….

Why do we do that?

I feel like I've been running since the middle of last week! Had a great time with the Pathway Leadership Team during our yearly retreat this past weekend. It was a bit of a different feel this year as we spent the whole time Saturday asking the question 'Why?' Why do we have Sunday services? Why do we have youth ministry? Why do we do what we do?

We've got a great team of LT members with the heart and passion to see God's vision accomplished!

Habakkuk 2:2 Write the vision and make it plain on tablets, that he may run who reads it.

Jobs in Middlebury

I've literally prayed for headlines like these…

Jayco Hires 200 to fill order backlog

NLI Helena Video

Great video testimony of the power of the Gospel...Bill and Linda Howell, with Next Level International, will be with us this week in Middlebury, and next week in Elkhart via video. 

Before Goliath, there was a lion and a bear

Most are familiar with the story of David and Goliath (1 Samuel 17). As I studied it last week, something jumped out at me...before there ever was a Goliath, there was a lion and a bear.

Before God ever had David take out the ugly Goliath, he had him take out a lion and a bear. When that lion came and stole one of the sheep in his fold, he ran after it and killed the thing. The same thing is inferred concerning the bear.

Thought – There are times when God allows us to go through battles with the lion and the bear, in order to prepare us for the final battle with Goliath! It stinks, but it's true. (notice the use of the preferred 'stinks'…I cannot yet bring myself to use the word 'sucks,' which is apparently now an ok Christian swear word…so for now, and in the future, I plan on sticking with 'stinks'…thanks for allowing me to air my personal feelings on the 's' word) He loves us too much to just throw us out at Goliath, so he walks with us, building our faith every step of the way!

Some of you are struggling every time a lion or a bear shows up, you engage, but then run. It's too hard of a fight. It's too hard of a battle. But the truth is, until you get past your lion and your bear, you'll never get victory over your Goliath. STOP RUNNING from it – engage it – allow God and other followers of Jesus to walk with you through it – get past it – and see your spiritual growth multiply in one season!

I know what a few of the lions and bears are in my life right now, what are yours? You pray about it…just see how the Lord leads you…