Life Here and There

I recently received a question from a reader that I thought would make a great blog post because it’s such a common question: Should I talk to God like I talk to anybody else? Or should I use prettier words?

The bottom line is that prayer is talking, asking, and conversing with God. He knows your heart and your thoughts. He gave you your personality and He’s aware of your attitudes, so why wear a mask? Why use “special” language with God?

Don’t misunderstand, I do think our holy God deserves reverence in the same way our earthly fathers deserve our respect. I don’t like phrases like “the man upstairs” any more than I like it when people call their Dads “my old man.” Show some basic respect.

Nevertheless, think about this. Maybe if we prayed to God the same way we talked to other people (with some respect, of course), then maybe we’d talk to Him more often?

Thoughts?

photo credit: kalandrakas

I often peruse websites about web design and last night noticed this article about giving an elevator speech. I thought about how it applies to Pastors. There are often crucial moments when we have an opportunity to be vision-casters with people, one-on-one. It may be a car ride making a visit, coffee with a fellow member, or a staff meeting with five extra minutes at the end. It begs the question, could I state my vision for my church if I only had a few floors to travel in an elevator with someone?

You see, vision is great, but it needs to be transferrable. Members of a church should be able to share their church’s vision with their friends, relatives, associates, and neighbors, but they can only share a vision that has been concisely articulated from their leadership. And a vision isn’t “reaching people” or “glorifying God.” Those are eternal purposes, universal to every church. A vision (in an elevator speech format) would be more like, “I want our church to be a visible and active change agent in Bentonville. I want us to share the gospel outside the walls of our church through our words, our integrity, and our acts of service. And I want us to help leaders have greater confidence in sharing the gospel in their circles of influence.”

I suppose that’s my elevator speech, or at least one version I might share in an elevator this week. What’s your elevator speech about your vision for your church?