Church Visits- March 26, 2006- Liquid Church, Millington, NJ

Website- www.liquidchurch.com
Don't let the traditional appearance of the Millington Baptist Church fool you. This church is far from traditional! "Liquid Church" (which meets every Sunday evening at 5:00PM & 7:30PM) has a reputation for effectively reaching young adults with the message of Jesus Christ. It was filled with 20's & 30's young adults who call this church their home. They run 2 services, and the attendance at each one runs around 250+. The church was packed. I was probably the oldest one there that evening. As I looked around during the worship service, I noticed that these young adults were really WORSHIPPING- lifting up their voices, standing, sitting, kneeling, whatever seemed appropriate for the mood of the service at the moment. Worship was very contemporary- "cutting edge"- but, also with a mix of traditional hymns mixed in (played in a contemporary style).
The pastor of Liquid, Pastor Tim Lukas, was an excellent teacher. He was dressed informally, sat on a bench (sometimes- although, he got up at times when his energy increased) in his jeans and sportshirt, and he spoke very clearly on keeping balance in our Christian lives- balance between spending time with the Lord, spending time with Christians and spending time with unbelievers. I especially appreciated Pastor Tim's transparency. He did not speak as one who "had it all together", but rather as one who was along with all of us on the journey, struggling and trusting the Lord to obey and follow His commands. I have been to "Liquid" 3 times, and each time, I heard Tim say, "This is the area that I struggle with...and let me tell you what that looks like." This does not make him LESS worthy of being a leader, but rather MORE worthy of being a leader. I found myself saying, "yeah- I struggle with that too"- but, he did not leave us without an answer. The answer was always- JESUS! Flee to Him...trust Him...pray to Him- that's the way to "get it done" in the Christian life. I believe that young adults- actually, even old guys like me- appreciate that kind of transparency and genuineness. The pastor is ministering WITH the congregation, not ministering TO the congregation.
After the worship service, they had an informal meeting downstairs with a gift-bag full of gifts and information on the worship service, and a chance to meet with "Pastor Tim" and a few of the others on staff. Again, it was easy to talk with these people, easy to feel like a part of things right away.
This ministry is also very strong in outreach, in serving within the world as a witness to the world about the love of Jesus Christ. For instance, they have a section on the website, "Church without walls" (of course, this topic is of special interest to me- this is the "theme" for our vision for church planting), and it shows some of the projects that they have been involved with- trips to New Orleans, Boardwalk ministry, etc. I was especially interested in their giving away bottled water in New Jersey's annual "Gay Pride Celebration", and meeting with and talking people about the love of Jesus Christ. The sign at their booth said, "FREE WATER! Refreshing, No Strings Attached...Just like God's Love". Wow- that's bold stuff- the kind of ministry that is making a difference. Pastor Tim told a story about talking with a lesbian woman about being "Baptist"- she said, "Are you here to tell us that if we don't change, we are going to hell?" Pastor Tim's response was, "Not at all- actually, God is changing US- many of us as Christians have been pretty judgmental- but, Jesus is changing OUR hearts. So, we are here today just to serve and try humbly to reconcile..." The response was immediate and heartfelt- "Thank you! Finally a group of religious people who are treating us like REAL Christians are supposed to..."
My friends, THAT kind of mission thinking is what will make a difference in our broken, sinful and alienated world!

Reflections of a bus driver

I recently got the job at Aristocrat Bus & Limo company, so that I can do some "tentmaking" ministry- that is, to secure a secular job so that I will not be a financial burden to the mission. The attached picture is of the bus I drove on my first bus run last week. During the spring season, I will be taking a few "training runs" to acclimate me to the job, to familiarize me with the routine, and to get used to driving again. I took one run last week to bring a baseball team from Parsippany High School to Brick High School to play a double header. It was about a 2 hour drive, then I had 6 hours on the bus to type, make phone calls, rest, read, etc. then, 2 hours return trip. It is interesting- I was writing a Bible study on Acts 27 during this time, and it is about Paul on a ship on the ocean during a storm, and how he was the one who took over as "captain" of the ship. And, one of his lines was, "And the Lord has given me those who sail with me." In other words, the Lord used him to protect all the people on the ship. I pray that prayer every time I get on the bus- "Lord, you have given me the responsibility for all those who are aboard this bus. Protect us all for the sake of your name, and for all the families that they represent." I believe that I can get used to the job.
But, there has been another interesting lesson from this job. Who am I? For almost 26 years, if you asked me, I would have answered, "Pastor Pete". But, when I am on this job, who am I? Am I the "bus driver"? Actually, I have had to learn to become "a person", a Christian person, and not just defined by my role as pastor. That is a healthy perspective, I believe. It is easy as a pastor to get an insulated, isolated view of life as you spend time mostly with other Christians, in church settings, in the role of "a pastor". Now, I'm relearning how to become a man of God without the role- living, serving, working within the world, rubbing shoulders with bus drivers and group leaders and kids on a regular basis, learning how to be a witness again by serving and representing Christ in everyday settings.
For all of us, it is a good lesson- who are you? Have you defined yourself by your role- by your job? Are you a "corporate executive"- a "builder"- a "teacher"? Who are you? Remember always- first and foremost, you are a PERSON, made in the image of God, remade by the new birth in Christ Jesus.

Reflections after an operation on my vocal cords

I had an operation on my vocal cords today. They actually found two polyps, so I was worse off than originally thought. I have a bit of a sore throat, but not too bad- only hurts (slightly) when I swallow. Hey, though- I can still eat whatever I want. But not too much "scratchy stuff" (chips, tacos, chex mix, etc.). It really went fine. I am glad to have the operation over with, and now to be on the mend. I should recover at least 80% of my vocal capacity after the recovery period (somewhere between 2-3 months). Hopefully, I will be able to sing again one day!
It has been interesting to go into a period of silence for about a week to ten days (according to the doctor- although my voice therapist says more like 12 -14 days.) I have had time to reflect on the power of words. It is interesting to sit in with a group of people, and to hear them talking, but not to be able to respond to them (except what I can write on my "white-board"). My wife and daughters say that it is a bit lonely to have me in the room, but not to be able to converse with me. We all talk about everything. I am grateful for our communication in our family over the years, that we can share what is in our hearts, to share words of encouragement and blessing, to challenge each other with our thoughts on various subjects, to make plans together. We need not only to be with each other, but also to share with each other- and, the primary way that this is done is through words. Without words, we can communicate SOME things, but not ALL things. We cannot share our HEARTS, our THOUGHTS, our PLANS, our EXPERIENCES. How much we are dependent upon our words to communicate OURSELVES.
As I have thought about all of this, I have thought about our relationship with The Lord, and the power of The Word. What if God had chosen to only be revealed to us in nature, in His creation- but, had never chosen to speak to us in words? Can you imagine what a lonely place this universe would be? What if He was present with us, but we never knew His thoughts, His plans, His blessing, His heart? What if Jesus came to the earth, and the only thing He did was miracles of healing, and calming the storm and even raising the dead- but, He never taught anything, or communicated the thoughts and intentions of His heart through words? What if we did not have the written word- the Bible- to communicate from generation to generation what the purposes of the Lord were? How would we interpret these events? Can you imagine anything more lonely than than to try to have a relationship with the Lord without words? Today, as you pray for me (and, I appreciate your prayers and your notes), also praise the Lord for the word, and for God's communication with us through words. Believe me- when you don't have them as readily available to you as you would like, you realize their value!