Once you understand and accept the problem, the solution becomes simple…right?
If I simply stopped listening to preachers altogether because I wasn’t being moved or challenged…
Or if I am committed to attending a particular church but just wish you got more out of the sermons…
I understand that all of those preachers have other responsibilities that separate them from the Word. Even the made-for-television preacher have congregations with congregational politics & concerns.
So if I want to be challenged and taken deeper, I need someone who spends more time with the Word.
That’s why I do what I do…
A few years ago I realized some things about myself.
I wasn’t an effective parish priest.
Preaching and visiting the sick & shut in…community engagement. Those were my strong suit.
Parish politics was the death of me.
Politics period…The way we use politics in our Society.
It’s so unchristian…
And I just want us to see the Word.
I believe and want to believe that if we just could…would…engage the Christian faith in a deeper way, we truly could become Beloved Community.
I believe Becoming Beloved Community is more than a slogan and a framework. Rather it is the point and objective of evangelism.
And to get to that Beloved Community takes a radical shift in our approach. It takes some deep thinking…confronting what we thought was with what is and what might be.
And I believe that understanding the Word of God at a deeper level is critical to ability to become Beloved Community in this time.
And I love diving into the Word…
Seeking pearls to guide us in making sense of these times…of our lives in these times.
Seeking His Light on this journey to the Promised Land.
And then conveying a message with hopes of keeping us ever mindful of the journey. Keeping us committed to the journey and holding one another accountable on our journey to the Promised Land.
So for the past year I have been preaching sermons online…
It started because my grandfather missed hearing my sermons. I had been recording my sermons for years…since field ed in seminary. And I posted them online.
And in five years of consistent preaching, I had developed quite a library. And my grandfather listened to them.
When I resigned my last church, my grandfather began missing my sermons.
And while on retreat during July 2017, I was reconsidering all that I had experienced. All we had experienced as a family.
I was considering where I was spiritually, in all this…
I realized I missed preaching.
I missed the rhythm I had with Scripture. I missed the depth of exploration. I missed trying out different levels of thought with a group to see how high we could ascend together!
It encouraged me to engage the Word at deeper level.
How could I reclaim that space? How could I enter into that space again?
I could make sermons for my grandfather…
I could record them and post them online. And my mom could play them for him.
And if I’m going to record them, I might as well share them with my network…my fan base 😳
Now…since the two massive category five hurricanes that devastated the Virgin Islands, my grandfather hadn’t been able to watch consistently.
But I’ve still posted them…
I started recognizing an online appreciation for my postings.
Views…engagements…comments…shares.
And what if there could be a connection?
What if you are the one I’ve been building for? What if I am the one you’ve been looking for?
What if you are the type of person who wants to be challenged and have your mind stretched? Who wants to be in a state of spiritual growth? Who wants to moved to deeper engagement?
And what if you’ve been looking for…
Or at least agree that you could be served by someone who has and dedicated the time to conveying the Word of God in ways that encourages you to remain focused on and committed to the journey to the Promised Land…
What if the Spirit of the Lord has brought us to this point?
If so…I’d love to have you in the Promised Land Study Club.