If you have been following my blog this week, you know we are on our Annual Staff Advance. After our morning session today, we are returning home. I want to share with you some lessons from this week. I believe you will be encouraged.

Lesson #1: People follow vision. When vision is shared, people follow. As I shared some matters of vision for our team and church, their attitudes have been, “We know our direction, now let’s get it done.” While we may question the “how” of getting there, we embrace the “what” we believe God wants us to do. Whatever you do in your life, family, and business, remember: People follow vision.

Lesson #2: Diversity is healthy. The diversity of our team exists. We have people from all ages on our team to help us lead this ministry. You would be pleased to know just how diverse this team is. At times, we may think having more people just like us is healthy; however, no one is “just like us.” Therefore, accept diversity, embrace diversity. It is healthy. In all areas of your life, learn to accept the various gifts of the Spirit and the diversity of God’s people, in fact, all people.

Lesson #3: Others can help you. We have been reminded this week that others can help us. Dr. Danny Akin helped our church this week. He helped us on Sunday fall in love with the Word of God, the coming of Jesus, and taking the gospel to the ends of the earth. He helped us on this retreat to accept God’s design for us, to learn theology, and to have a greater passion to see the nations won to Christ. Yes, others have helped us. Friends, do not close yourself to others. Others can help you.

Lesson #4: People love the Great Commission. Yesterday morning as I shared with our team about the Great Commission Resurgence of the Southern Baptist Convention, people who did not understand it before began to realize it is all about taking the gospel to the world. Yes, people love the Great Commission of Jesus – regionally, nationally, and globally. Christ-followers, embrace taking the gospel to your world.

Lesson #5: Love is on our team. I can assure you, our team loves one another. While struggles may come, love is greater than those struggles. Be encouraged in your family and in your friendships, love can take place. Love others like Jesus loves you.

Sunday is the Lord’s Supper and Baptism, a celebration of the ordinances of our church. Do not miss being at the table of our Lord. He is inviting you.

One of the most powerful investments we have made in my almost 23 years here is in our Annual Staff Advance. Retreating from the normal for four days and really investing into the future of our church has had an incredible payoff. Without these days, past failures and victories would not be addressed or celebrated. Without these days, future and relationships would be forfeited or neglected.

1. Investing in Relationships
When you have a large staff team as well as two campuses, relationships many times can become unimportant. Why? Honestly, because there is so much to do. Our Annual Staff Advance covers a multitude of sins. How? When people are together and do life together, everyone understands the value of one another. We realize the power of team. We understand what a team really is. Since ministry is dependent on relationships, then staff relationships matter. They must be full of integrity and honor.Investing in Doing Church

2. Investing in Doing Church
Many laypersons and pastors just do not get it regarding what it takes to “do church.” Since they do not live in that world or they seem to think it is no big deal, at times they just undervalue what it takes to pull off just one Sunday, one major event, or an ongoing ministry. Additionally, the power of pulling all that together without division or individual preference takes a miracle from God. This week is about us pulling together to do church together. It takes a lot to do all of the above.

3. Investing in the Future
So many churches forfeit their future on the altar of neglect or excuses. Neglect calls us to not do the job we need to do. Excuses call us to reason why we should not or cannot get away to advance together as a team, whether that team is a pastor and his lay-leaders in a smaller church or a pastor and his staff team in a larger church. Well, neglect and excuses are just inexcusable. We are in the most eternal business on earth: winning people to Jesus and discipling them into Christlikeness. The future is so valuable to claim and experience; therefore, we must advance! Yes, it takes planning and being together to advance.

I am thankful to God for the great church we serve and for the leadership that sees the value of Investing in our Team.

The fall season is one of my favorite times of the year for many reasons. Let me share with you some things that I am looking forward to in the next month or two as we move into the fall season.

Football season is back. Let’s face it, there is no better time of the year with Friday night ball games, Saturday mornings on the couch watching football, and Sunday NFL games. I love it all. Sportscenter during the late summer is filled with baseball and soccer highlights…oh my. Late summer is like the time leading up to your wedding day. It stinks, it is hard to be patient, and you are longing for the day to come. That is my life from about May – July as I wait for football season.

I love the cool fall weather. The fall in Northwest Arkansas is beautiful as we see the trees change color. I love bundling up for Friday night games and then spending my Saturdays indoors watching cold weather games. (I am wondering if I have an addiction to football…) Hayrides, Thanksgiving, fireplaces…oh I love the fall.

Thanksgiving is only a few months away. Growing up with family out of state, we really didn’t build a lot of traditions around Christmas. Instead, Thanksgiving was the holiday that we built tradition around. Surprise…surprise…this holiday for the Floyd family also revolves around football. For many years we woke up on Thanksgiving morning, headed out to our local high school stadium for morning practice before the playoff game, came home and ate Thanksgiving lunch, fell asleep watching football, then attended a bonfire/pep rally for the Friday night game. This is one of my favorite days of the year. Food, fun, football, and the Floyds…great combination.

Fall marks a new beginning. Kids start new school years. Teams start new seasons. I like new beginnings. I like the opportunity God gives us to start fresh. I encourage you to take advantage of this new beginning. So often we may think, “Well, next year I’ll focus on this or that. I’ll do a New Years resolution to cover that.” Take advantage of the new beginning of fall. Is there some discipline you need to start again? Is there a priority that you have let fall by the wayside? Do you need to start fresh in your walk with God? Maybe you need to reconnect with your church. Use the fall as an excuse to start fresh. Biblically, we don’t even have to wait for the fall. The Bible tells us that God’s mercies are new every morning. (Lamentations 3:22-23) Why don’t you start fresh today?

This Sunday at both of our campuses, we will hear Dr. Danny Akin, the President of the Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, North Carolina. Jeana and I will be here, looking forward to hearing God’s Word proclaimed. Dr. Akin and Charlotte will be with us on Sunday, plus he will be accompanying us for one day of our Staff Advance. Both he and his wife will be used of God to speak to our staff in various settings.

Dr. Akin has done a superb job in this exciting seminary. Thousands of men and women are being trained for ministry here and across the oceans. You might want to visit www.DanielAkin.com to learn more about Dr. Akin and his ministry. He is one of God’s great gifts to the church of Jesus Christ.

It is not often we get to hear a man like Dr. Akin, so bring someone with you this week. Dear friends, he is one gifted man and I want you to be a part of this weekend.

Pray for Dr. Akin and myself as we serve together on the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force of the Southern Baptist Convention. We have an incredible task before us and we need your prayer support daily.

Today, we are going to wrap up our look back at our recent series on 2 Timothy.  Check out this truth from 2 Timothy 4: 16-22.

Where are you in your life?  Do you expect the Lord to stand with you?  We need to expect the Lord to stand with us:

• When no one else does (vs. 16). In this verse, Stephen was alone – no one came to stand by him or support him.  But as he knew, we too must realize, Jesus will stand with us through it ALL.

• When you need strength (vs. 17a). “Stood” means “ to stand by one’s side, to come to.”  God’s power is sufficient: spiritually, as well as physically, mentally and emotionally.

• When you need to present the gospel to the lost (vs. 17b). We must recapture this conviction:  Lostness leads to hell.   Christ died for all sins and for all people everywhere.  We must share the Gospel with others.  In the name of Jesus, I call our church to:

1. Return to the gospel – it is our only hope today.
2. Become a “gospel-centered” church. This is urgent!  We must do this now – and if we do, I am confident that God will stand with us.

• When you are in danger (vs. 17c). Psalm 22:21 and Daniel 6:22 remind us that the Lord will stand with us in danger.

• When you face death (vs. 18). Paul knew he would be executed soon.  God does not always release us from our present danger of death or from the lion’s mouth of death!  BUT HE DOES promise to release you from this present evil world.  Insight:  Death is a rescue.  We are rescued from evil, pain and suffering.  You will be personally ushered into heaven.  Death brings glory to God.  God’s plan is fulfilled:  death to life!

When life is tough, please recall these Top Ten Ways to Make It Through Difficult Times:

1. Know You Are Saved
2. Hold On To The Grace of God
3. Work On Your Walk With Christ
4. Make The Right Choices
5. Understand The Times
6. Continue In The Sacred Scriptures
7. Accomplish Your Life Purpose
8. Live For Eternity
9. Discern Whom You Can Trust
10. Expect The Lord To Stand With You

Only through God – will we live victorious lives!
Live in victory today!

For almost a year, we have lifted up the five core values of our ministry:  Christ-likeness, Relationships, Trust, Teamwork, and Excellence.  Let’s look at Trust today.

TRUST
•    We do the right thing.
•    We do what we say we will do.
•    We tell each other the truth.

All relationship are built on trust (marriage, business, friendships, etc.)  In our Scripture reading of 2 Timothy 4:9-15, Paul was trying to navigate through his relationships.  In these verses, he was mentioning names and giving statements about them.

Paul’s Relationship Network – He had many networks, but this is just one set of those relationships.  In our day, we also have many networks (Facebook, Twitter, text messaging, etc.). Paul talks of many of his relationships in these verses.  Interestingly, each statement made about them was a trust statement.  Let’s look closer:

• Timothy – I want to see you now.
• Demas:  I cannot trust him
• Crescens:  I can depend on him.
• Titus:  I believe in him.
• Luke:  I trust him with my life.
• Mark:  I can trust him now.
• Tychicus:  I can trust him to do what I ask him to do; he always follows through.
• Alexander:  I do not trust him at all.

Launching from Paul’s life and this text on relationships, let’s see how this all relates to us.

Relationships 101:
➢    Every relationship is important.
➢    Each relationship is at a different level.
➢    Trust determines the depth of every relationship.
➢    People will disappoint you (be willing to accept it, forgive them, let it go, restore them, etc.)

Discern whom you can trust. To discern means to be able to recognize or identify as unique.  How do we do this?
➢    Life – observe – watch – listen
➢    Heart – try to see into their heart
➢    Time – time reveals who you can trust
➢    Prayer

After 33 years of being a pastor of a church, I still believe in people!

I pray this will help you in your life today – have a great day!

C.S. Lewis, in The Great Divorce, stated:  “Fame in heaven and fame on earth are two quite different things.”  In 2 Timothy 4:6-8, we are admonished to “live for eternity.” How do we do that?  It involves a life of:

Giving (4:6) – Paul says, “I am pouring myself out slowly, and I willingly will shed my blood as a way to give myself all to God, even in death.”  Paul was setting sail for eternity; he was taking down the tent, and preparing to go home to be with Jesus.  In Philippians 1:21, he writes, “For me to live is Christ and for me to die is gain.”  Paul did not see himself sacrificing his life, but giving his life once and for all – for the gospel of Jesus.

Francis Chan, in his book, Crazy Love, challenges us to not see ourselves as sacrificing for God or see our relationships as doing a chore for God – if we do, “we get the glory, not God.”

Are you pouring out your life for Jesus? Are you giving your life to Jesus daily?  It’s a joy to give to Jesus!  David Livingston, missionary to Africa in the 1800’s, was speaking at Cambridge University to a group of students when he stated:  “People talk of the sacrifice I have made in spending my life in Africa . . . I never made a sacrifice.  We ought not to talk of ‘sacrifice’ when we remember the great sacrifice which He made who left His Father’s throne on high to give Himself for us.” Joyfully give yourself to Jesus daily.

Service (4:7) – In this verse, Paul is summarizing his life and was faithful to complete his life purpose.  His living testimony is:  With all that I am and with all that I have had, I have served the Lord, and I am leaving with NO REGRETS.  Live your life with no regrets!

Reward (4:8) – In this verse, we read there will be rewards for the way we live our lives.  Most of those rewards will be in heaven and not here.  The crown of righteousness will be rewarded to those who love to meditate on Jesus’ coming, resulting in them finishing the race rightly and faithfully.   A Biblical Truth:  Focusing on Jesus’ future coming will determine your behavior now and your rewards in heaven.

What are you living for?  Who are you living for?  Live for eternity!

Coach Tony Dungy said in the book, Uncommon:  “I believe my purpose is this: to serve the Lord and use all He has given me to help others.”

Rick Warren said in the book, The Purpose Driven Life:
“What on earth am I here for?”  “It’s not about you.” “You are not an accident.”  “Living on purpose is the path to peace.”  “It’s all for Him.” “You were made for a mission.”  “Your ministry is your service to believers, and your mission is your service to unbelievers.”

Our #7 way to make it through difficult times is to Accomplish our Life Purpose. Here are some principles based on 2 Timothy 4:1-5 to remember and follow in order to fulfill your life purpose:

• You are accountable to God.
• You are to receive the ministry of the Word.
• You are to do the work of an evangelist (regardless of your vocation, your ministry is the gospel…reaching all people, of all ages, of all colors, of all education and social levels and of all languages to Jesus Christ).

Accomplish your life purpose.  It’s all about Him; it is not about you.  Serve the Lord, Honor God.  Help others.  Evangelize everyone.