Author Archives: Lane Corley
On Ramp to Spiritual Growth: Understand God’s Will
God wants you to grow! And He’s provided everything necessary for you to grow! However, there are obstacles. Just like merging onto a freeway, many times we’re hesitant, things get in the way, we’re lazy, or fearful. One of the on ramps for me personally, was when began to understand what God is doing in the world. What is God’s will? is a frequently asked question. When I saw that God’s will was not difficult or hard to understand, my desire for spiritual growth increased. Here are three words that have helped me understand God’s will:
1. Relationship – The God of the Universe wants a relationship with you. And He went to great lengths to make that a possibility. Jesus showed his desire to have a relationship with us by giving His very life. See John 3:16. The growing Christian will see their life through the lens of this relationship God through Christ.
2. Identity – Christianity is not about what you do, it’s about who you are. Or really, WHOSE you are. God shapes our identity through our relationship with Him. As we relate to Him & draw closer to Him, we become identified with his character & his mission in the world.
3. Eternity – God made us for more than this life. Eternal life starts when we place our faith & trust in Christ, not when we die. One meaning of the word eternal is TIMELESS. Salvation makes us timeless. And this reminds us that God has more in mind for us than just the 60-80 years that we may live on this earth. We’re made for eternity. We are also saved & sent to help others understand & get ready to face eternity.
What helps you understand God’s will?
This month Bridge Church in Madisonville is talking about On Ramps to Spiritual Growth & Transformation. Join us Sunday’s, 10:30am at the Maritime Museum in Madisonville.
You are… You Have…
Dear Church Member,
You are…
- God’s plan to display his glory to the nations.
- God’s plan to show your kids how to follow Christ.
- God’s plan to reach your neighbors & show them what it means to know Christ.
- God’s plan to expand his kingdom in your town, city, state.
- God’s plan to show His wisdom to the world through pooling your gifts with other believers in a local church.
- Loved. Chosen. Favored. Saved. Filled. Forgiven. And so much more.
You have…
- God’s power within to help you overcome the daily & the deadly.
- God’s word to guide you in the way to believe & behave.
- God’s gifts to build others up & help grow his kingdom.
- God’s resources to be managed in a way that honors him & shows others that He is better than this world.
- God’s promise that He will be with you & he will use you & he will empower you.
- God’s people around you to encourage & build you up.
- Power. Wisdom. Grace. Eternal Life. Peace. And so much more.
YOU ARE, much more than just a volunteer. YOU ARE a leader in God’s kingdom & YOU HAVE everything you need to make a difference. No excuses. No delay. No looking at others. Be who YOU ARE meant to be. Use what YOU HAVE.
What’s stopping you? “I’m not…” or “I don’t have…” or “I can’t…” Really?
On Ramps
I live in a growing community where the Interstate – I-12 – basically serves as a service road. That being said, merging onto the Interstate has become quite an adventure over the last few years. We’ve added on ramps & there is a wide diversity of drivers moving about every day. Along with that, there has been some questionable engineering on area bridges & on ramps. All this together means sometimes tying to merge onto or off of the interstate can cause you to get stuck.
Spiritual life is like that as well. Many people today get stuck on or never approach the path to Spiritual Growth. This past Sunday at Bridge Church we drew some parallels to growing spiritually & merging onto the Interstate.
1. Some drivers are just too HESITANT.
They approach the on ramp too slowly, they ride the shoulder. Other drivers are screaming, “ARE YOU GETTING ON OR NOT?”
A lot of people are like this spiritually. They are faithful to church for awhile or every now & then. We like the idea of spiritual growth, but we struggle to make a lasting commitment. Call it being “on the fence.” Jesus called it being LUKEWARM & SICKENING (Revelation 3:16).
2. Some drivers are easily DELAYED.
Something – a crash, debris, etc. – gets in the way.
Spiritually, our past, poor relationships, the opinions of others, sinful habits, lack of discipline, misunderstanding God & His will are some of the things that can get in our way & drastically slow our spiritual development.
3. Some drivers are just plain LAZY.
They avoid the interstate all together, even though its the fastest way, just because its TOO MUCH TROUBLE.
Relationships, commitment, dealing with our selfishness, being challenged to get out of our comfort zone. These are the things that growing spiritually will put you in the middle of. Some people opt out, because it’s not the easiest path.
4. Some drivers are too FEARFUL.
I’ve talked with people in our area, that won’t drive on the Interstate, because they are afraid of WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN.
They might ask me to serve in the nursery. I might be challenged to deal with that pain in the past. I might be disappointed again by a pastor or leader. Commitment is always risky. Jesus commended risk taking & actually sternly warned the fearful who choose the easy path (Matthew 25:14-30).
Where are you on the Path to Spiritual Growth? Are you driving full speed ahead? Are you hesitating? Are you delayed? Does it seem like too much trouble? Are you afraid?
God wants you to grow! And He’s provided all that you need to grow, starting with a relationship with Him through Jesus’ death & resurrection. He’s promised his presence & power for those that get on board with this journey. There’s no need to hesitate. You can do this! This year!
Join Bridge Church in Madisonville as we tackle this topic this month in a series we’re calling On Ramps to Spiritual Growth. Sundays, 10:30am at the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Maritime Museum, 133 Mabel Drive.
82% of Churches are Below 125 in attendance – How do we breakthrough?
Only 10% of our current church plants in Louisiana have broken the 125 Growth Barrier. Actually, 82% of all evangelical churches in Louisiana are under 125 in attendance. Here’s a great podcast on how to break through at NewChurches.com.
https://newchurches.com/episode-23-break-through-the-125-growth-barrier/
- “Getting past the 125 barrier requires a systems mindset.”
- “To break the 125 barrier, you need 5-10 leaders, and 4-5 leaders of leaders.”
- “Protect your time with the leaders and the lost.”
- “What are the things that only you can uniquely do?”
- “Why do must churches stay small? Largely because most pastors don’t know how to build systems, structures, and processes that are not contingent upon them. Most pastors can care for people, but don’t build systems of care. Most pastors can develop leaders individually, but lack the skill to implement a process of leadership development. When a pastor can’t build systems and structures that support ministry, the only people who are cared for or empowered to lead are those who are “near” the pastor or those very close to the pastor. This limits the size of the church to the size of the pastor.” – Darrin Patrick
Pastoral Prayer for Humility #Tozer
Now, 0 Lord of heaven and earth, I consecrate my remaining days to Thee; let them be many or few, as Thou wilt. I accept hard work and small rewards in this life. I ask for no easy place. I shall try to be blind to the little ways that could make life easier. If others seek the smoother path I will try to take the hard way without judging them too harshly. I shall expect opposition and try to take it quietly when it comes. Or if, as sometimes it falleth out to Thy servants, I should have grateful gifts pressed upon me by Thy kindly people, stand by me then and save me from the blight that often follows. Teach me to use whatever l receive in such manner that will not injure my soul nor diminish my spiritual power. Let me never forget that I am a man with all the natural faults and passions that plague the race of men. And if in Thy permissive providence honor should come to me from Thy Church, let me not forget that I am unworthy of the least of Thy mercies.
#NewYear: Gospel – Devotion – Relationships – Mission
21 Questions for clarity & focus in 2016.
Gospel:
- Is my hope & trust in Jesus Christ & His work for my salvation, success, sustenance in 2016?
- What situation, life issue, or circumstance do I most need God’s help with this year?
- Am I trusting God or myself in this situation, or life issue?
- What person or relationship needs more grace & truth from me this year?
- What sin do I need to confess & forsake right now?
- How will I share the Gospel with others in 2016? In my home? In my community? at my work place?
Devo:
- How will I draw closer to God with intentionality in 2016?
- What character quality, habit, discipline do I need to develop or hone in 2016?
- When & where will I spend time with God in 2016?
- What Bible reading plan will I follow to connect with God everyday? What books will read to grow my faith?
- How will I lead my family to experience God & his word in 2016?
Relationships:
- What relationships do I need to work on mending in 2016?
- Who will I lean on for advice? as a mentor? for accountability? & as a prayer partner?
- Who can I call at 3am? or when I’m desperate?
- Who can I open up to with my deepest hurts? confess my wrongs? share my private prayer requests?
- Do I need to pray for deeper relationships?
- Who will I mentor? Share the Gospel with? Pray for? Invest in?
Mission:
- How will I allow God to use my gifts? resources? home? money?
- Is there a ministry at my church that I am investing in? that I can improve? that I can invite others to engage in ?
- Is there a new ministry or need or project that God is laying on my heart to engage?
- Who around me need encouragement? challenging? confronting? a listening ear? a prayer partner?
15 Technology Recommends from 2015
Technology continues to dominate our time & attention for the good & bad. Here’s the good list for me in 2015, that will be making the jump with me to 2016 & that I’d recommend to my friends.
1. Turn off all Social Media Notifications. One of the best decisions I made in 2015 was to turn off notifications on my iPhone so that social media comes to me on my time & not in real time. Likes & shares, tweets & retweets are just not that important in the grand scheme of things. Social media can be a good servant or a terrible master. Start getting on top of things by turning off notifications.
2. Got an external hard drive & ran Omni Disk Sweeper on my Macbook Air. On my 3rd Macbook Air. Love it. But they do clog up. This year, I broke down & bought an expensive external hard drive & started saving everything there. Also started regularly running Omni Disk Sweeper, which kills off unneeded clutter. My Macbook now has another year or two in it & it even feels lighter. Ha!
3. Audible.com. I drive about 2k miles & walk/run about 25 miles each month. Audible.com has allowed me to redeem this time through listening to great books. Tripled my usual reading load for the year. Also allowed me to get in more biography & history, which is easier to listen to, & stick non-fiction leadership type books in my hands, which are better to read with a highlighter, which I love.
4. Youversion.com One Year Bible Plan. “Every Christian worth his salt reads the Bible cover-to-cover every year” – J.I. Packer. My first time all the way through the One Year Bible Plan & I loved it. Youversion.com is such a great tool, allowing ease of sharing on social media. And for days I’m off too early to read, I can listen to my Bible reading for that day in the app.
5. NFL.com Fantasy Football App. I managed to avoid Fantasy Football for 40 years of my life, but got drawn in this year by friends from my church. And I LOVED IT! Didn’t win much, but there’s always next year. Ha!
6. Fitbit.com & the Fitbit App. I took 3.5 million steps, covering 1,634 miles this year. How do I know? Fitbit! Loved having this quirky tool to track exercise & daily steps this year. And you don’t have to have a Fitbit. You can track your steps with your phone or other wearable.
7. 7-Minute Workout App. Cut the gym out of the budget to make room for some other things this year. Along with the Fitbit, the 7-Minute Workout has been a good tool to try to keep the Dad bod from completely taking over. Try it out! You’ll be surprised.
8. Feedly.com & Feedly App. My Feedly Newsfeed has replaced the morning paper for me. Keeps me up to date on news & my favorite writers around the globe. Also, allows me to save & tag articles for later reading & for preparing teaching & sermons.
9. PluggedIn.com & PluggedIn App. “Hey dad, can I go watch ____ movie with my friends?” “Can I download this game?” Plugged In App allows me to check out movies & games from a Christian perspective very quickly.
10. Waze App. Saw this on a billboard in Texas. Driving 2k miles per month this has been a great companion & community to be a apart of. Allows other drivers to alert me to faster routes, police nearby, debris in road, etc. Check it out on your next road trip.
11. Biblehub.com. When I got my last computer I opted to try to do without a Bible Software. I found that a lot of the tools that I’d used were available for free online. Biblehub.com has been the most frequent site I’ve used for sermon prep with language tools I was familiar with & a lot of other helps. Without the drain on hard drive space & costly prices.
12. BizExpense Tracker App. There are a lot of Expense tracker apps. I’ve found the BizExpense works best for me, because it allows me to track multiple accounts – My work with the LBC, my church miles & expenses, our medical travel (for those who itemize expenses), volunteer hours & miles.
13. Covenant Eyes & Covenant Eyes App. Wouldn’t go without the Covenant Eyes Filter & Accountability software. Also use the Search Engine on all our kids devices. Block Safari or Internet Explorer, so that they can only search through the Covenant Eyes. CE does a great job helping our family keep covenant with our eyes (Job 31:1). Also, love following the Covenant Eyes blog for great stories of redemption, parenting tips, & current issues in the pursuit of purity.
14. YNAB (You Need A Budget). This was our third year using YNAB for personal finances. Love it! Its a cloud based solution. My wife can enter her grocery store receipts on her iPhone on the way to the car & it’s in the program on the computer when we get home. Reports are great. Budgeting tool is clear. Did Microsoft Money, Quicken, & Mint. YNAB beats all of those for us.
15. Allowance Manager. Like most couples today, we seldom deal with cash, so allowances meant extra trips to the bank. Allowance Manager allows our kids to get money basically credited to an account that they can check & manage from their iPad Mini’s. Next step for our 13 year old this year is his own bank account. Yikes!
What app or site would you recommend for your friends?
Outreach Idea: Christmas Eve Stocking Giveaway
Christmas is about a BIG GIVEAWAY! God gave away his very best so that others could know Him & have Eternal Life (John 3:16). This year, Bridge Church took on a BIG GIVE in order to help others know God & have eternal Life. We set out to give a stocking to EVERY MULTI-HOUSING RESIDENT in Covington on Christmas Eve! Great project that any church can take on!
Here’s what we put in the Stockings:
- A copy of The Value of A Soul, this year’s My Hope DVD from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. $1 per. Three great testimonies from real people on how life In Christ impacted them.
- The Living in Christ Book from My Hope with Billy Graham. $1 per. Includes how to begin a relationship with God, 4-part study on beginning the Christian life, & the Gospel of John.
- Christmas Candy & Goodies. (Most of this was left over from our rained out Trunk or Treat. Ha!)
- Some type of small family game. Like a deck of cards or mini board game or puzzle. $1-$2 at local dollar stores.
- Fresh fruit purchased at a local fruit stand. $35 per case.
- A few packs of Hot Chocolate. $.10 each at Sam’s Club.
- Invite to our church & an area Bible Study.
We knocked on each door & said “Merry Christmas from Bridge Church!” & asked if there was anything we could pray for them about. Great conversations. Loved serving with my family & other on mission believers from our church on Christmas Eve. With great participation we were done by noon. We even had some leftovers that we were able to deliver to area Fire Stations. Probably touched over 500 people on Christmas Eve.
Hope you’ll pick a multi-housing complex or a neighborhood & tackle a BIG GIVE project next Christmas!
Top Posts of 2015
Thanks for making it a good year on the blog! Blogging is more therapy for me than for anyone else. I consider it an extension of my personal journaling and teaching opportunities. Here’s the top 10 post that got the most interest this year:
1. Things Spiritual Infants Say – How can I know where I am or where those I’m trying to disciple and lead are spiritually? Try listening.
2. Top 5 Places to Plant a Church in Louisiana – Still many cities & communities in need of new churches in one of North America’s most unique cultures.
3. #ChurchPlanting Hack: Proven Ways to Cultivate Relationships & Plant Seeds – When starting a new church or wanting to impact a community for Christ through evangelism, scattering seeds should be one of your primary missions.
4. What’s Up with the Local Baptist Association? a few encouraging observations after attending about 15 Associational Annual Meetings
5. The Church Planter’s Wife – In honor of my church planting wife on our 16th Anniversary
6. Real Life Scenarios for #ChurchRevitalization: Merger and Multisite – 9 Keys to a Successful Church Revi Transition that includes Merging & Multisite
7. 5 Things You Must Do the First Year of a Church Plant
8. 8 Things You’ll Never Hear an On Mission Christian Say – There’s a marked difference between living the Christian life ON MISSION, & just going to church on Sunday’s. You can tell which side of this equation you’re living on by what comes out of your mouth.
9. Scenarios for #ChurchRevitalization: Refocus and Re-Energize – Three steps to revitalization: Assessment, Alignment, Advancement.
10. What is a Disciple? an acrostic I found and liked
Get updates when I post a new blog by subscribing at the top right or clicking Follow if you’re already a WordPress user. Look forward to learning together in 2016 and beyond.
Merry Christmas from the Corleys!
Grateful for another year of growth & grace. Hudson (9), Lane, Kate (3), Heather, & Jackson (13)
Picture taken by Amber Veuleman. Location: Madisonville Lighthouse, Madisonville, LA. And you can’t tell, but swells were pretty high that day, so we’re kind of holding on for dear life. Lol!
Lane Corley 