news.zionbuffalo.org

by Pastor Ted Vanderpan

Zion is a large church – that is what I have been writing about in this space for a couple of months. One of the ways life is different in a large church is the way the staff functions. People who study these kinds of things – how churches work at different sizes – identify several key concepts about staff in larger churches. The role of the Senior Pastor becomes more focused and less general. Staff become competent experts in leading their respective ministry areas. Decision making has several layers; elected leaders, staff, and committees. Pastoral care comes not just from the pastoral staff.

In larger churches the Senior Pastor needs to focus most of their effort on several key areas. Preaching 65% to 70% of Sunday mornings; preaching, leading worship and teaching can take 30% to 40% of the Senior Pastor‘s time. Leading the congregation in an ongoing process of strategic visioning, then transferring that vision into the day to day work of staff and committees is a key priority for the lead pastor. Staff development, building a strong competent staff team who provide effective leadership for all the ministries of the church, becomes an important focus for the Senior Pastor.

One of the most important keys to the success of the large size church is the effective leadership of paid staff. For the sake of the congregation‘s mission, the staff must be a cohesive and well trained team. Read the rest of this entry »

The topic of church size has come up in a number of conversations around Zion over the last month.

I recently attended a conference for Senior Pastors of larger ELCA churches. The reason the ELCA brings these Senior Pastors together is because the dynamics of leading a larger church are quite different than the dynamics in smaller churches. During the conference, I was able to sit and visit with other pastors working with the same dynamics that we deal with at Zion.

Congregations fall into distinctive size categories based primarily on their worship attendance, and each size has recognizable patterns of behavior. The dynamics of how a small congregation works are not the same as the dynamics of a medium size church. The dynamics of how a medium sized church works are not the same as the dynamics of a large church.

Zion has become a large church and this means that Zion functions quite differently today than it has in the past. Zion is in the top, approximately one half of one percent of the largest ELCA congregations. Read the rest of this entry »

Soon all of us will find ourselves intrigued with one of that rare breed. We will soon be observing the Friday we call “good”. It is a day God took something that seemed broken and damaged, useless and hopeless, and turned it into a masterpiece. On that day God watched a world out of control ready to throw away his gift to them, a savior. As they lined the streets they yelled for Jesus‟ death, “Crucify Him. Crucify Him.” They no longer saw him as the great teacher, healer and leader. They just wanted to get rid of him like a pile of junk.

As you prepare for Holy Week, Good Friday and Easter, remember those three crosses on the hill called Golgotha. Remember that it was sin that killed Jesus that day. The sin of those present that day, but yours and mine as well. Jesus suffered a horrible and cruel death. It was real pain, real blood, real thorns, and a real spear. It was real nails that pierced his hands and real tears that flowed down his cheeks.

But God took an ugly and tragic death, something so broken and useless that there seemed to be no hope, and made it “good”. Let me tell you that God is still doing that today. God is taking people‟s broken lives and remaking them into something good. In fact you and I have people all around us that are waiting, hoping for God to do just that. There are many people looking to reconnect with God, looking for forgiveness, looking for a fresh start, looking for a church home. Holy Week it is a perfect time to invite someone to worship. Zion‟s Good Friday Services are at 10am and 7pm. Zion‟s Easter schedule includes Sunrise Service at 7am, Festival Worship at 8:30am, Family Express at 9:45am, and Festival Worship at 10:30am.

Pastor Ted

I grew up believing the Bible at face value. What it said is what it meant. When I was in college I heard a speaker say, “Either Jesus Christ was who he said he was, or else the greatest liar and biggest fraud the world has ever known.” I thought about that sentence and for the first time wondered:

• Are Jesus miracles real? Did they actually happen?
• Did Jesus really rise from the dead?
• Is there really life after death for me?

Over the years, again and again, I think of that statement and I have come to the conclusion that there seems to be enough evidence inside and outside of the Bible for me to believe. Having confidence that Jesus is who he said he was has opened the door to the next phase – building and living my life on the promises of Jesus. Like every believer, however, I have made more mistakes than I care to admit. There are times when the memory of those sins sweeps into my memory like a thick, deep fog suddenly appears in front of a car speeding down the highway. Where did that memory come from? Why now? How can God forgive me for that? How could I fail my Lord, my family, or my friends?

I am sure I am not alone. I am sure that you find yourself struggling with this dilemma on more occasions that you would like to admit. There is a story in Luke 5 about a paralyzed man. His friends bring him to Jesus to be healed, but the crowd is too large to get close enough to get Jesus attention. The friends lower him through the roof right in front of Jesus. What happens next surprises everyone. Seeing the faith of the friends, Jesus says to the paralyzed man, ―Your sins are forgiven.‖ Read it for yourself and when you do, take notice that Jesus came to heal us, body and soul. He came to heal us spiritually, mentally, and emotionally. One of my mentors pointed out that in the story we see a savior who recognizes that ―mending a past is as important as mending a leg.”

That story took place about 2000 years ago, but it can happen again today – for you. Just bring your tattered and torn life before the savior and ask for his forgiveness. Make your confession with a sincere intention to more fully live your life for him. And then, hear the words of Christ, ―Friend, go in peace. Your sins are forgiven.‖ Yes, forgiveness is real! It is real for yesterday, today and tomorrow. It is real for me and real for you.

Pastor Ted

Adam and Jean kissed mommy good-bye when she left to go spend a week with her parents in California. As Adam and Jean walked down the corridor of the airport, they got into a profound conversation. Adam said to his little sister, “Do you think mommy will ever come back home again?” Jean quickly responded, ”I know mommy will come back again because she left her most valuable possessions at home.” Adam questioned, ”Well, what are her most valuable possessions?’ Jean quickly said, “Us.”

During the next month, most of us will do everything we can to let our loved ones know that they are our most valuable possessions. Most of us will take time to do special activities with them. We will buy and give them presents. Some of them we will call. Many we will write letters to or fly ourselves across the country to visit them in person. As Christmas comes closer, most of us, I think, will be intentional about remembering that which is most important to us, people.

But what is the most important way to show them? There is something I come back to year after year at Christmas. It is a gift that endures, a gift that transcends all the stages of life. It is the gift of knowing Christ Jesus. Beyond the satisfaction that comes from watching kids grow up; beyond their growing ability to add numbers and combine verbs and nouns, there is something far more fascinating to watch. That something is the step by step, day by day building of a living relationship between our children and Jesus Christ.

When we give them the gift of faith, faith in Jesus Christ, we have shown them the one who will love them not only today but long after we are gone. When we give the gift of faith we give them one who will help them view life as more than possessions, popularity, or power. By encouraging them to walk through life with Christ, we give them one who will help them walk down the path that brings real peace and true satisfaction. When we give the gift of faith, we can rest assured that when they face the struggles and difficulties of life (and they will) we will be able to hear them speak their own words of faith and confidence in God’s love for them. When we give the gift of faith we can rest assured that when they fail (and they will) they will be able to find strength from God to try again; that when they sin (and they will) they will find forgiveness and grace to start over.

“I bring you good news of great joy for all people, to you is born this day in the city of David, a savior, who is Christ the Lord.” Luke 2:10,11

The baby who was laid in the manger has come to find you and me. In the midst of all those things that preoccupy our lives and capture our attention, Christ has come to find us, to be our savior, to show us another way of living life. He is the one who brings forgiveness to the sinner, hope to the hopeless, direction to the directionless. He comes to fill our lives with joy, not just at Christmas but year round.

Pastor Ted