Learning About Love.

For the past few weeks, VOSD has felt the heartbeat of God to pour out His love over the city of San Diego. So far in the past 5 weeks, we have fed, prayed & ministered to over 1000 people. You would be amazed by the response of those people that we have touched with God’s love. As you can imagine, we have learned a few things about love.

1. Love is never self-serving. Loving others takes the focus off of us, and onto them. It is amazing how love expressed to others, is so fulfilling to ourselves.

2. Love is never too busy. I have learned that love is intentional and never by accident.

3. Love cost us something. Love is never expressed if it fits our convenience, comfort or is non-sacrificial. Love requires sacrifice. As I have mentioned before, “Love will call you out!”

4. Love doesn’t receive anything in return. It is completely unconditional. This is the challenging part. To love in the “Jesus Style”, we must be willing to move through God’s love and not our own. Our love will naturally expect love in return, call it the natural side of our love, but to love through Christ, we recognize that in the same way Jesus died for us, we are called to love others. It is completely self-less. Amazing.

5. Love will point us to love the most challenging personalities. Nobody ever said love would be easy. Maybe that is why so many distance themselves from others, but love will point us to the most difficult personalities we encounter every day. Even Peter said (paraphrased), “You don’t get credit for loving the easy ones, but the difficult ones.”

Coming to a close, think about the “new you”. You have learned that God loves you, You have learned to love yourself, & you are learning to love others. Forgive the opponents of your heart. Anyone who can forgive will always rise above their enemies. 2010 is going to be a year where love covers everything you do. Keep rising!

Compassionate People Know What It’s Like.

I (Heart) San Diego. Over the last few weeks @VOSD we have set out to put God’s love on display to our community. In order for that to happen, we have taken an examination of our hearts. The question is, Does compassion flow from your heart to others?

Compassion: in it’s Latin origin is “Compati” meaning to “suffer with”. This gives us a true look at what it means to be compassionate to a hurting & confused world. Compassionate people know what it’s like because they know what it is like to walk in someone else’s shoe. (To suffer with) When looking upon others we should say to ourselves:

• Just like me, people are seeking to walk in peace in their lives.

• Just like me, people are trying to avoid hardship & struggle.

• Just like me, this person knows what it feels like to be hurt & disappointed by life & lonely.

• Just like me, this person is trying to reach their full potential. They are striving just like me.

• Just like me, this person is learning in life. Just like me this person makes mistakes.

Our challenge during this holiday season is to walk in someone else’s shoes. Do you know someone who has had a tough year? Take a little time to think about what it is like to be in that person’s circumstance. It’s funny how small our problems seem when we learn to walk in others shoes. You will be amazed. Let’s compassion flow.

I (Heart) San Diego.

New Dimension: Thinking it through.

As seasons change, people change. I’d like to believe that people get better, because things become different in our lives. Whether you have been serving the Lord with a desire to strive or you are re-engaging yourself because you have slipped away. It is your time for a new dimension.

Today I want to reveal some things that are in my mind about this new dimension that I believe that we are in.

1. People criticize what they do not understand. Here is the point. Our lives are going to challenge others when we grow. People who do not grow do not like people who are growing, because growth causes the average to take an evaluation. Disappointment sets in and then they start to attack. They say things like: I do not like their style. They do not have the vision. Wow, things have really changed. Is it that they really don’t like you? Well maybe in some cases, but in most cases it is because they are not happy with themselves.

2. Prepare for greater expectation. Sometimes life can be like a merry-go-round. The greatest expectation falls to those who are doing well. If you are having a great season, you can be sure that some responsibility is going to fall your way. Embrace it. People have a tendency to attach themselves to success, Nobody wants to connect with a person in a losing season. People want to be with winners. So what are we supposed to do? Here are a few things to consider:

• People can’t hurt your progress unless you allow them to. It’s your choice.
• Position yourself to help others in need. Be ready when they ask. Because they are going to ask.
• Prepare your mind for disappointment. Do not expect people to meet all of your expectations.

3. Partner with other winners. Relationships are so crucial to our life. A partner is someone who has a few important characteristics:

• People who get you. These are people who don’t give you the blank, “I don’t get it stare.” when you talk to them about your ideas. Sign that a person is not a partner: They are too busy texting or tweeting to give you their total attention. 
• People who give back to you. I’m all for helping people, but hey sometimes people should give back. Seriously.
• People who pray for you. You can feel it. You will know when people are with you on something. I have found that sometimes God will allow people to walk out of your life, so that new people can walk in.

Elevate.

REACH: Gateway to a New Dimension

To be perfectly honest, I am constantly asking God, “What is the next dimension for VOSD?” I am a firm believer that a growing church is a searching church. I am a firm believer that a growing church is a divinely dissatisfied church. The things that satisfy us, never satisfy God and it is our task to constantly keep our finger on the pulse of what God wants to do through our church. To me, prayer is the gateway. This week VOSD has cancelled it’s normally weekly program for a a time of corporate prayer & fasting. We have entitled this week, “REACH”. Our goal is to reach God’s heart for our lives. To reach God’s heart for our city. To reach our full-potential. I believe that this week will be a time of re-fueling, re-focus, re-fining & re-ignition. As a church we are accepting an invitation to a new dimension, all while saying goodbye to the old. If you are in the San Diego area, please feel free to join us any night this week from 7-9pm. One exciting event this week will be the recording of our very first worship album featuring the VOSD Music Ministry. You can join us on Wednesday night. Admission is free!

 Reach for the sky.

Reflection Time

As I await my wife (she is packing). We are preparing for a week long trip and a time for a little R&R. This personal trip is probably long overdue and I must admit, lately I have longed to just be alone with her. Throughout the years, I have always heard that ministry can be taxing. I have often thought of the first line of the The Tail of Two Cities, written by Charles Dickens, “It was the best of times and the worst of times.” In many ways life can be just like that. Ministry is a place where we live between those two realities. Everything is great in the ministry, but what is happening at home? (vice-versa) If you have ever felt like this was you? I want you to know that you are not alone. Our generation of leader is facing it together. Here are a few things that I am learning about this particular battle:

1. God’s promises will always prevail. His word is true. I have spent hours reading the Bible for guidance. I want you to know that God’s word is powerful.

2. Great models.We have been given great models. I thank God for those who have defeated those giants in their personal lives. Divorce, raising godly children, financial pressure, bankruptcy. If they could do it, we can do it too.

3. Greater strength. God wants us to endure these challenges for ourselves. A personal battle is just that. Personal. Our job is to overcome it with the help of the Lord. What we gain is worth its weight in gold. You will become stronger. 

4. Great opportunity. What is on the other side of your struggle? There are just too many cliches to quote that will speak to that truth in our lives. The important thing to know is that it is true. There are going to be greater opportunities on the other side of your struggle.

You can do it.

Al

5 Things I’ve Learned about Team Ministry

Lately I have been getting a lot of questions about team ministry. I have been personally involved in team ministry for over 15 years. I have been on different types of teams, good teams, bad teams, productive teams & unproductive teams. I am still convinced that the team concept prevails in regards to raising an effective church or organization. Here is what I have learned.

1. A team’s motivation comes from a compelling vision. Here is what I have learned. Teams do not respond well to needs and problems. We can leave the needs and problems to a committee for note taking and analysis. Teams are looking to respond to a vision that is life giving and exciting. Needs don’t move a team. Vision moves a team.

2. A team needs an active and exciting leader that has continued to demonstrate success. Here is what I have learned. Successful teams are usually led by a leader who is doing a number of things–learning new concepts, producing results today, having personal victory, etc. The mistakes I see many leaders make is that they stop producing personally. They rest upon past victories, while the war keeps waging. Teams respond to leaders who can demonstrate current and timely results.

3. A an effective team is built for short-term goals that build a long-term vision. What gives a team great confidence? One win at a time. Every team needs a project that has a beginning & a definitive end. I have learned that teams respond best to 90 day goals. Every 90 days we set goals that will help to build our long-term vision.

4. A person cannot be held accountable for unspoken expectations. It amazing to me how many leaders expect their team to read their minds, under the guise of “knowing my heart brother/sister”. To me that is a cop-out for bad communication. As a team leader I cannot expect my team to be accountable for my unspoken desires or the things that I have not communicated directly to them myself. A major mistake leaders make is to assign a personal connector to a team in order to fulfill a vision. I have spent 6 years under one of our world greatest leaders and I have never seen him call someone to call someone.

5. Ask questions. One of the biggest mistakes a team leader can make is to think that they have all of the answers. Believe me when I say, “Nobody is that good.” Information is power to a team. A team sits in circles and not in rows.