Riding the Rollercoaster

Christmas is coming, and the easy way to tell is not the snow on the ground this morning, nor the shoppers crammed into Costco every day. No, it's the roller coaster we get at church this time of year. We've been very intentional over the last few years to cut down on the number of nights out for people during Christmas, since this is the season for concerts, company parties, family get togethers, and all manner of other crazy. We as a church decided God didn't want us to be so busy coming to church that we didn't have any bandwidth left to invest in and invite other people. So we do less and pray for greater impact.

But one thing that hasn't changed in all these years is the way 'crazy cake' gets layered on during any holiday season (Easter is usually worse, believe it or not). The last 30 hours are a great example of what I mean when I say the roller coaster of up and down is at full speed.

Yesterday at staff meeting, we had a great discussion about all the great things going on in our ministry right now: 5 people just baptized, 10 more on the waiting list for next time, including three kids, one teen - the rest are adults! The I Saw the Lord campaign was a huge success, and we shared stories of how it touched people (by the way, if you have a story, e-mail me, PLEASE!!), and all the other great things God is doing. Then, we talked about the finances: things are not good. Whether the economy is good or not, the giving is not, and it's holding us back from some great opportunities we could be leveraging for God's kingdom.

Then last night, the Night of Prayer was good. Over 30 people there to pray, ready to praise God for the good, and some visibly stunned by the news that the finances are so far off. But in the end, a good time of prayer for our community and for our effectiveness as a church family this Christmas.

This morning we walked thru the Angel Tree party preparations, getting ready for next weekend's event, and things were good. Some folks came to see me after that, and I got to lead someone to Christ and talk to them about getting baptized. THAT WAS AWESOME!! Right after that, I got some news that disappointed and frustrated me to my core. I hate it when Satan draws people into the trap of separation; he's the father of lies, and his lies hurt people. It makes me mad.

Up. Down. Up. Down. Up. PARTY IN HEAVEN!! Deep downer down. That's the graph of my life right now. One of the things I'm learning in my life is how a leader needs to combat the roller coaster:

The first way is prayer: getting alone with God and dumping all this on Him. It's His church, His people, His sheep. He cares, He wants to make to His kingdom grow, and He sees the mess before it gets made. I'm about to go and sit with Jesus and tell Him how much I need His help to not be angry and ineffective because of the downs, and how thankful I am for the ups.

Second, I get around 'up' people. I had lunch today with a perpetual 'up' person. I have a list of people that I need to be around regularly in order to keep my perspective in the positive zone. Without them in my life on a regular basis, I get depressed and stay down for long periods, so I don't let myself skip on those meetings.


Third, I remember what God has been doing. God has been blessing this church. Some folks, for whatever reason, can't always see that. I realized that I can't always see it, either. I get caught up in the 'crapola' and miss what God is doing if I don't remember to pay attention and intentionally call to mind God's goodness and faithfulness in the past. When the nation of Israel got to the other side of the Red Sea, it took all of three days to forget God's miracle and grumble about their lack of water. If God can part the sea, He can make a spring in the desert. I have to remember the miracles, the life change, the faithfulness of God, and be obedient to what He says, rather than always looking at what we don't have.

We're going to have another baptism service on Dec. 21, and we will get to celebrate the miracle of lives that have been changed by Jesus Christ. It's an answer to many prayers. People will cheer! God will provide the water. I need to obey and be there.