Thinking Out Loud – Pastoral Edition
- I’m trying to chart out my sermon themes & Scriptures at least nine months in advance. It’s been much more difficult than I originally thought. I have an idea of what I’m going to do from mid-October ’07 through mid-May ’08. Of course, that could change pretty quickly, but it makes me feel a little better right now.
- I’m thinking of starting off with a sermon series from 1 John, talking about loving one another and all that jazz. What do you think?
- I have another LJ blog that I haven’t posted anything on. I’m thinking about keeping MattDanTodd Land about stuff that has to do with our family and using
as a church-related blog. I figure if you want to read all the stuff about our church, you can go to it and this one will be more personal in nature. Just a thought.
- I’m thinking about renaming MattDanTodd Land. What about something like The Fox’s Den, or something like that? Remember – Todd means ‘Sly as a fox,’ or something else fox-related.
- I read The Big Idea over the weekend. I really like the concept, but they seem to make too many assumptions – like you have a staff big enough to write its own curriculum and there are other churches in the area that would want to collaborate with you on such an extreme level. It was still a helpful read and got me to start charting out my sermons for the next few months (see above). It’s a quick read and was worth the time.
- There are days that I think, ‘Cool, I’m gonna be a pastor. I get to help lead a church in their spiritual development.’ Then there are other days that I think, ‘Holy crap! I’m gonna be a pastor! I’m going to be responsible for the spiritual development of many, many people! What am I getting myself into?’ Most of the time, I’m thinking the latter.
- Mark Batterson has some pretty cool baptism pictures on his blog. It’s a pretty cool reminder of what this whole gospel thing is all about!
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Howdy. I'm Matt. My wife, Christy, and I have four kids and two dogs, I'm passionate about orphan care. I'm a die-hard fan of the Evansville Aces, the Indiana Hoosiers, and Star Wars. I'm trying to live life by the Todd family motto: "It behooves us to live!"
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I think you’re smart to plan ahead, and it will probably get easier as you get to know your church better. Hope you don’t mind- I gave my dad your email and livejournal info. He’s been a small church pastor for over 30 years, so he knows the ropes. He also was telling me about a small church conference that he went to recently, so he might have gotten some nifty materials there.
Thanks for passing along my info. I look foward to hearing from him!
I was actually going to ask you for his info and if he’d mind if I got in touch with him. Like always, you’re one step ahead of me!
Holy Crap
I’m not so sure that I like “The Fox’s Den.” I didn’t get it without your explanation.. how does that go about a joke that has to be explained? Anyway, I don’t think that a fox would be the animal that I think of to represent you. How about “Wookie’s House?”
I can’t believe you are planning ahead like that. I’m really impressed–I can’t wait until we get to come hear Uncle Reverend preach!
Holy crap! You’re going to be a pastor!!!!
Re: Holy Crap
You’re right. The fox reference is too obscure – even if you’ve watched The Fox and the Hound a bazillion times you probably wouldn’t get the reference right away.
I don’t think I want to do another Star Wars reference. The only reason I used Anakin Redeemed is as a reminder to myself that no one is beyond the hope of the Gospel. I used that name in chatrooms way back in the day when that was the thing to do on the Net.
How about “Holy Crap!! I’m a friggin’ pastor! What were they thinking?” Think it’s a memorable title?
Or I could use the newsletter name, “From the Mountaintop”
I’m sure someone could think of some better names. Help! Please!!
I John
Just got done with a short 4 week Beth Moore study titled “Loving Well.” (and if you’re familiar with Beth, you know that to pair her name with SHORT is an oxymoron…) Anyway – it’s all on I John – might want to check it out! SM
Re: I John
I’ll look into it. I already did a catalog search for Emmanuel’s library and it’s not there. Thanks for the advice!