My Life Rule (Rule of Bob Nass)

A little over a month ago, I spent a week in deep reflection on my life and ministry.  I will write three blogs to speak to some of the things I've learned, in hopes that my friends will understand better who I am and where God is taking me.

My Life Rule (Rule of Bob Nass)

As a disciple of Jesus Christ, it is my desire to live for Him and to live a life of health, wholeness, and holiness.  I am compelled to write a “life rule” explaining and facilitating my spiritual formation and my growth in the “grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.”  (2 Peter 3:18)  As I consider my life I will look at every category (physical, relational, spiritual, and vocational) and contemplate how God is calling me to live.

Physical

In 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, God’s Word tells me that my “body is the temple of the Holy Spirit . . . honor God with (my) body.”  Central in my Christian worldview is the understanding that God created humanity in our bodily form and exclaimed, “it was good” (Gen. 1:31).  

To honor God with my body means that I need to continually care for it and use it well.  I do that by eating minimally processed, sustainable, fresh, and local food as much as possible.  I also care for my body by living an active life and running, biking, or lifting weights four or five days a week.  I try to incorporate this activity into my regular routines and, when the weather is good, I bike to work as much as possible.  Rest is a very important part of physical care and I prioritize this by intentionally sleeping 7-8 hours most nights. 

A vital part of my physical life rule is the way I set aside most Saturdays as a family Sabbath day.  We usually spend the morning sleeping in, eating a big breakfast together, and reading God’s Word together, then we spend the rest of the day in seasonal activities that are most often both physical and relational.  

In the summer we spend many weekends camping with our family and with other families.  When we go camping we spend time hiking, biking, climbing, canoeing, and swimming as we enjoy exploring new places in God’s creation.  Also the summer is spent working in our family garden/orchard.  We spend a great deal of time composting, planting, watering, weeding, and harvesting the crops.  

In the fall our family continues the work of harvesting.  I also take a day or two to go whitewater kayaking and enjoy the camaraderie of that activity.  Fall is also my time to work on house projects and to help others in projects as we prepare for winter.

Our family thoroughly enjoys winter sports.  We spend many winter Saturdays X/C skiing, skijoring, downhill skiing, and sledding.  These times of winter play can be incredibly challenging, especially when our kids were younger and needed a lot of care to stay warm and happy in the sled, but they are also a huge source of joy and fun.

In the spring, we spend time working on house projects and going to the woods to cut firewood to prepare for another winter.

Relational (Emotional)

Luke tells us in Acts 2:46 that the early church continued to meet together daily, broke bread together in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts . . . Of utmost importance in my theology is the understanding that God is a relational God (illustrated in the Trinity), and that it is not good for humanity to be alone (Gen. 2:18).  I am in need of relationship for friendship (Prov. 17:17) and accountability (Heb 10:24).

To honor God with my relationships means that I need to continually pursue my wife and take time to develop our relationship.  On a daily basis this means taking time after our kids have gone to bed to clean the house together, talk, and/or watch a movie.  On a (at least) weekly basis we eat a meal together while our kids watch a movie.  On a yearly basis we take a full weekend retreat on our anniversary to deepen and work on our relationship.  

I’m also called to honor God in my relationships with my children.  I do this by teaming with my wife in encouraging/helping them in their schoolwork, playing together and spending time together during evenings, on Saturdays and vacations.  At least once a week I lead my family in a time of devotional reflection on God’s Word.  When I’m home I need to be intentional about talking about life and engaging with and correcting my children.  

  Finally, I’m called to honor God in my relationships with friends and neighbors.  I do this by meeting weekly with my small group of men for conversation, accountability and prayer.  As a family we invite our children’s friends to our home and try to live a life of hospitality with friends.  I also look out for the needs of my older neighbors and I shovel snow, change light bulbs, and take out trash for the widow across the road.

Spiritual

  The Lord Jesus tells us that the greatest command in scripture is to “Love the Lord with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength” (Matt. 22:37).  To honor God with my Spiritual life means that He is to be central in all I do: physical, emotional, and vocational.  

  As a born again Christian, I have committed my whole life to Jesus Christ.  I am called to “live Jesus and give Jesus.”  To live Jesus means that I trust Him alone as my Savior.  It means that I glorify Him with all my actions by praying constantly that He would be honored in my life and in my family.  It means that I grow in grace (2 Peter 3:18) by spending time daily in prayer and by studying and meditating on God’s Word.  It also means that I grow in obedience and Christ likeness by applying His Word to my life.  

  To give Jesus means that I verbally proclaim the message of the cross of Jesus Christ in all my spheres of influence.

Vocational

To honor God in my vocation means that I “work with all my heart, as working for the Lord, not men (Colossians 4:23).”  Working hard is part of this idea of working with all my heart.  However, as a person called to pastoral leadership, working hard is only part of the equation.    

As I consider where God is taking me and how I am to serve Him I need to be diligent to find a place where I can do so in the most excellent way, and that I set up systems to hold me accountable for vocational excellence.  First off, I need to work with vision and purpose knowing where I am now and where I am going.  I also need to work in community and relationship and develop ministry teams for accountability and growth.  I need to have consistent review to make sure I am working in collaboration with and with respect toward those in authority over me.  I also need to establish a committee for review so that those under my care have a voice to critique how I am doing as I teach them and care for them.

My desire as a minister is that those whom God entrusts to me grow deeper in their relationship with Christ.  I will use the GROW acronym to make sure that what I’m preaching, teaching, and living deepens people in God’s Word, Relationships, Obedient Living, and Worship.

I consistently look for ways to glean knowledge and collegiality from other ministers through leading and attending local pastoral networks, leading camps and events together, and going to denominational gatherings.  These times are of great importance to me.

I desire to constantly learn and grow so I look for books, events, and seminars that increase my knowledge of God’s Word and best practices in ministry.  I desire to pursue this more intensely and I have enrolled in Seminary classes so that I will be better qualified as a leader in the church. 

Conclusion

  Philippians 2:13 tells us “It is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfill his good purpose.”  I am convinced that God has been and will continue to work out His purposes in my life as I dedicate myself as a willing vessel for His use.  

How are your practices of Ministry going to change?

A little over a month ago, I spent a week in deep reflection on my life and ministry.  I will write three blogs to speak to some of the things I've learned, in hopes that my friends will understand better who I am and where God is taking me.

How are your practices of Ministry going to change?

As I returned home it was very clear to me that huge changes needed to occur in my life.  I was ignoring some massive problems at my church that included: emotion based preaching, a void of rest, authority of the Spirit elevated over the Word, and an absence of accountability.  As I saw it, those problems came as a direct result of the way that our Senior Pastor was leading.  In addition to those problems that were affecting our whole church, he had personal problems that included a lack of Covenant collegiality, no desire for relationship with his staff, inability to forgive, absence of trust, lack of care for brothers and sisters in disagreement, and inability to share the pulpit.  I recognized that by ignoring those things in the name of unity, I was sharing in the responsibility for them.  As I returned home I was convinced that I must do what I could to change the culture of our church by working with my Senior Pastor.

I also recognized more fully that things could not move forward without reconciliation between my wife and my pastor’s wife.   

Coming back to my church I was convinced that I had the tools to begin the hard work of learning to collaborate with my Senior Pastor, but I realized that there had to be a desire on his part for that kind of teamwork.  So instead of ignoring him, or competing with him I just tried to ask him questions.  I asked questions like “what’s your desire/vision for the church?  What are you looking for in your life?   How do you see the state of the union between you and me?  Do you see a future for us working together?”  The answers to those questions and the discussions that followed were telling and heartbreaking.  There was truly no desire to work together.  He saw himself as the leader of the church and me as “staff” that was not to be a part in making decisions about the church.  He saw my views of ministry as wrong and unworthy of his consideration or conversation.

In addition, my wife sat down with his wife and asked similar questions.  My wife was told that she was “not worth her (the Sr. Pastor’s wife’s) time and energy,” and that my wife was untrustworthy and there was not a desire to allow her to earn trust.

So the first answer to the question of how my ministry will change is that I have resigned my position as Youth Pastor at Selah Covenant Church and I am looking for a new call in ministry.

As I move forward in ministry there will be many changes as a result of this class.  First, I plan on taking Seminary classes to work toward a Pastoral degree and to be better prepared for future ministry.  

I also will be firm in only serving in ministries that value accountability.  I will make sure that any ministry that I am a part of has a Pastoral Relations Committee (or something similar) to hold me and the other leadership of the church to the standard of God’s Word and to deal with conflict in a healthy manner.

Instead of working in my default conflict modes of trying to get my way, I will establish a collaborative environment with all teams that I serve with.  This will be of first importance with those I am under the authority of and those I am responsible for.  In order to do this I will have to be accountable to them to make sure I am in check since collaboration can be difficult for me.

It became evident as I took this course that I was missing self-reflection in my life and in ministry.  Christ tells us that the greatest calling is to Love God and to love others as we love ourselves.  I think I have neglected the pursuit of myself and I’ve neglected the tools available for helping my students pursue personal reflection.  I plan on doing more of that in my future and specifically using the Enneagram to help others and myself to understand better who we are and how we relate to God.

           I plan on making personal time with God a greater emphasis in my future ministry and using the Grow resources to encourage others to spend time with God.

What have you learned about yourself? What are your potential concerns/vulnerabilities and benefits?

A little over a month ago, I spent a week in deep reflection on my life and ministry.  I will write three blogs to speak to some of the things I've learned, in hopes that my friends will understand better who I am and where God is taking me

What have you learned about yourself?

A little over a month ago, I spent one week in deep reflection on my life and ministry.  As I took this time to think about at my personality, strengths, and weaknesses there was a lot to consider.  I am an optimistic person who loves life and loves to help others find true joy in their lives through knowledge and faith in Jesus Christ.  I am gregarious, optimistic, and I love to come up with new ideas and pursue new possibilities.

  Some of my personality weaknesses are that when I loose balance I tend to look at the world through “rose colored glasses.”  During these times I have difficulty dealing with pain and suffering.  I often will avoid dealing with unpleasantness and working through problems.  I also am more likely to connect with people on a more basic level and miss going deeper with them.

  The thing that really stood out to me as a massive fault and issue in my life can be seen in the above descriptions, but really came out as I studied my Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Indicator.  That study suggested that I respond to conflict by avoiding and ignoring it altogether or by competing to get my way regardless of the impact on others.  When I saw this problem laid out for me in black and white I was struck by the impact that has had on my life and ministry.  I have ignored far too many problems in my life and have not done the hard work of collaborating to create a culture of teamwork.  I have blamed those in authority over me for not bringing about that kind of culture, but have ignored my own culpability in pursuing what is right.

30 Hour Famine

Sign up for the 30 Hour Famine Today as a student (7-9th grade) or a leader (10th grade-adult)! To attend the famine, May 4-5, you need to donate $30 of your own money to World Vision, commit to raise at least $30 for World Vision, and fill out a 30 hour famine form and a parental release form.

Pick up a fundraiser kit from Bob and also visit www.30hourfamine.org for tons of ideas and support. You can even build your own on-line fundraising page and raise money through facebook and email. The direct link to that page is at www.30hourfamine.org/en/student-fundraising (type in "Selah Covenant Church" under group name).

We have been doing the 30 Hour Famine for 6 years and have raised $7000 for numerous projects: bringing food, health and the good news of Jesus to the world. This year our funds will be going toward the partnership between The Evangelical Covenant Church and World Vision in Congo. This exciting new partnership will empower the Congo Covenant Church with it's 1600 congregations (compared to our 885 in the US) to assist in community-identified initiatives around clean water, nutrition, education, health, and micro-enterprise that will benefit everyone.

Ephesians 5:22-33. Friendship, Dating, Marriage.

At Youth Group tonight we bagan by watching this video: http://www.thedougandjonshow.com/cafe-de-kara/cafe-de-kara-videos/love-trouble

Here's the transcript from my message:

I wanted to talk about dating and relationships tonight and I thought I would begin with my story.

My first girlfriend was around 8^th grade. I was Colby the Christian Computer in our church play in 6^th grade and Jane* (*names have been changed to protect the innocent) was Colbette, some kind of strange and beautiful Computer. My friends, Ryan and Jacob, and I were all smitten by Jane*. Even though she was probably 10 inches taller than me she fell for me (and not Jacob or Ryan). As an awkward homeschooler I was not about to talk with her on the phone (with a cord), so we were always together at youth group and church and our relationship reached it’s height when we were on the bus coming back from our church winter retreat and we were sleeping head on head on the bus. (have you ever noticed how tired couples are on a road trip, they just have to use that human pillow)

So Jane* wrote me a break-up note a few months after her family moved away. My next official relationship was my Junior year with Alice*. We had a lot in common and had great conversations. We also moved further physically to the holding hands stage and then progressed withs some kissing. But after a few months I realized that she was not the person I wanted to spend my life with and I broke her heart with some lame excuse about summer freedom.

My next relationship was my freshman year of college. I was a California boy all the way, I surfed, climbed mountains, skied, and I only wore shorts. But going to a Christian College was my highest priority, even higher than staying in California for me, so I found myself with an almost full ride swimming scholarship at John Brown University in Arkansas. A few weeks after I packed my bags and jumped on that plane to Arkansas I met this beautiful blonde Sophomore from Oklahoma named Wendy Moen and after a few conversations I was totally crushing on her. She was a solid Christian who truly loved Jesus first in her life. She was full of conviction. And she was a ton of fun and full of activity. I asked her out a few weeks later and a year and a half later I asked her to marry me in a field Cross Country Skiing in Tahoe, CA. And a little over a year after that we were married.

So, I tell my story here because Wendy and I have been married for 12 years and we are still madly in love with each other. The foundation of our relationship from the beginning has been on having a great friendship and putting Jesus Christ at the center of our lives. We knew God’s word that described sex as wonderful and created by God, but then we also knew the verses like what Nicole and Joleen read to you last week: “among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality.” So early in our relationship we talked about where our physical boundaries were. Later on, especially after we were engaged, I decided that it would be okay to push those boundaries because I really wanted to, but Wendy held her ground. I think that if she had not stood firm, we would not have been married as early, because like most men, a huge part of why I wanted to get married was because I wanted to do the deed.

That’s a little hint for all you girls, when you’re looking for a guy to make the plunge to marry you, your chances decrease massively if you choose to give in sexually to him. The age people get married in the US keeps going up and up as people sleep with more and more people before they get married (if they get married)

Today our study of Ephesians takes us to Chapter 5 verses 22-33. These verses have been critical in my pursuit of women before marriage and in my 12 years and counting with Wendy.

So let’s look at these verses, but we can’t just jump in without a little review of last week, so let’s back up to verse 18

18 Do not get drunk on wine, which lead to debauchery. Instead be filled with the Spirit.

So drinking too much wine, or toking weed changes people. It alters a person’s reality and changes their personality. God is saying that “your identity should not be altered by a substance that just changes things for a while and leaves you crashed with regret for what you did while you were in an altered state, but your identity should be changed by the Spirit of God that will alter you in the right ways and give you joy that lasts forever."

19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

When a person is filled with the Spirit of God there are some things you will see in their lives. They’ll speak, sing, give thanks to God, and submit to one another. This word submit in the greek is hü-po-tä's-sō it means “to arrange under.” It’s the idea that Paul describes in Philippians 2:3 “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.” A few weeks ago the Love Doctor, Brad Henning, came to the Jr. High and gave us his definition of love, that he stole from God (the jerk). He said love is to: choose the highest good for the other person. That’s submitting, and this verse says that those who have the Spirit of God in them should submit to each other. They should look out for what is best for their friends.

I need two volunteers for this next passage. (get a guy and a girl on stage)

22 Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. Now as the church submits of Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.

From culture to culture there has always been a way that people have shown submission to another. They bow to show that they have placed themselves under the person they see as superior. So now let’s say our volunteers are married, according the God’s word who should be bowing here? (get her to bow down). Now she is in a posture of honor toward him, but before we read that we’re supposed to submit to one another, so how does that submission look for the husband?

25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

Husbands are supposed to love their wives. This word love in greek is ä-gä-pä'-ō. It means “to take pleasure in the thing, be unwilling to abandon it or do without it.” Paul is telling husbands to put their wives on the pedestal of their lives. (Put the volunteer girl on the stool) She is to be his dictionary definition of beauty, of relationship, of enjoyment.

As a side note, what would pornography that this guy looked at when he was your age do to this love. Would his wife be the definition of beauty, or would a naked airbrushed model be the definition?

Now what does this look like as she submits to him and he loves her in the Christian model of mutual submission? It looks like equality with different roles. They are at the same level, but in different places.

28 In the same way husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated his own body, but he feeds and cares for it, just as Christ does the church—for we are members of his body.

So marriage is more than marriage, it’s a picture of Christ’s love for the church.

“For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.”

Yes, he says that marriage is between a man and a woman, it takes priority way over any in-laws or other relationships, and there should no longer be a “his and hers”, only a “theirs.”

32 “This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself and the wife must respect her husband.”

I’m assuming that none of you Jr. Highers are married yet, and some of you may copy Jesus and never get married. But all of you are preparing for marriage and future relationships today by your actions and beliefs. I can say with enthusiasm that if you give yourself fully to Jesus Christ and make him your Savior, he will guide you toward true love that chooses the highest good for the other person, in your friendships with guys, girls, and eventually the person you will marry.

Mexico Mission Trip: We want more than just “Isn’t that sweet. . . ?”

The following is from my Selah Covenant Newsletter Article for March:

For many people in the church (not our church of course), the sum total of the support given for a youth mission trip is to listen to a few student testimonies and then murmur, “isn’t that sweet . . .?” My question for us is how can we move beyond this shallow level of engagement and truly be a part of the mission together? Here are some of my ideas below. I would love it if you would visit my blog at www.selahcovyouth.blogspot.com and add your comments and ideas.

1. Consider attending our Mexico Meeting from 5-6:30pm on Sunday,March 11 as we consider our dreams for the impact this mission could have on our students, families, and church.
2. Donate money toward a student’s account or toward the mission as a whole.
3. Attend church (8 or 10:45am) on Sunday, March 25. We’re changing our annual sendoff service to a Sunday so that we can all pray for the team and so that we understand better what this mission is all about.
4. Visit the link to our Facebook page at www.selahcov.com/mexico and follow what God is doing in and through us during the journey.
5. Get your small group or Sunday school group to pray for those on the mission and for those we are ministering to.
6. Help organize a service project in Selah or Yakima during the Mexico Trip. Visit www.yakimahabitat.org for ideas.
7. Attend church on Sunday April 15 to hear stories and testimonies of what happened during the mission.
8. Consider joining the SCC World Outreach Committee after church on Sunday March 11 and helping guide our church toward a deeper impact for God’s kingdom.

Well that’s all I have for now. I hope this get’s us all thinking.

On another note, our Jr. High youth group is continuing through our study of Ephesians. This past month we’ve talked about: living a life worthy of the calling we have received, clothing ourselves with Christ, and living as children of the light. This week we will be talking about relationships and how to be godly friends.

Our high school group has been studying “Deep Justice Journeys” by Kara Powell and Brad Griffin. We have been looking at how we can participate with what God is doing in the healing of the nations. I might add that this book is where the impetus for this blog post has come from.

In Christ | Bob Nass | 949-5680

Stickyfaith developing faith that will last a lifetime

Stickyfaith developing faith that will last a lifetime

I was able to attend the Stickyfaith seminar by Brad Griffin from the Fuller Youth Institute at the Amor Ministries adviser’s conference. I thought I would rewrite my notes here.

1. 6 out of 7 seniors don’t feel equipped with faith that prepares them for college.

a. It’s like church/youth group is a fun and wonderful driver’s ed program where students never learn to drive.

b. Though 80% of students say they intend to stay in church after graduation, 40-50% drift from the Lord and church 18 months after graduation.

i. Even if they come back later in life, some of the biggest life decisions are made in that time period.

c. College freshmen see faith as valuable, but not integrated into their lives.

2. Sticky leaders are leaders centered on Jesus.

3. Seniors want more:

a. Not games

b. Deep conversations

c. Mission trips

d. Service projects

e. Accountability

f. One on one time with leaders

4. The Red-Bull Rip Off (calories and caffine, no nutrition)

a. Gospel of sin management (a la Dallas Willard)

i. Do’s and Don’ts as opposed to the gospel that is centered on the person and work of Jesus Christ.

b. The real gospel can handle doubs

c. Kid’s need to be able to share their doubts:

i. Does God exist?

ii. Is Christianity the only way to God?

iii. Does God love me?

iv. Am I living the life God wants?

5. Sticky Churches

a. #1 influence in student’s faith is parents. “When it comes to faith, parents tend to get what they are.”

b. The Kid’s table catastrophe

i. The more resources your church has, the less connected the youth are to the church

ii. Youth need to be integrated into church life, not hanging out on their own.

iii. The more students were involved in intergenerational worship before graduation, the stickier their faith in college.

c. Instead of 5 kids to every 1 adult, we should have 5 adults influencing and targeting every 1 kid.

i. The more adults can call a kid by name, the more chance the kid has of thriving.

ii. Parent’s: ask your kid who the adults are in their lives. Be intentional about 5 Christian adults in their lives.

iii. Ideas:

1. Joint Sunday schools

2. All-church campouts

3. Serve work together.

4. Invite parents to share testimonies to youth group

6. Train students for life after youth group

a. Finding a church/faith community

b. Time and money

c. The critical first 2 weeks of college

d. Recovering from poor choices