Summer Vacation...A Recap

In June, I took two weeks off for a family vacation and it was pretty awesome. I was very happy to get some time away to decompress and spend time with my family. After getting home a few weeks ago, I have been asked why we decided to take a vacation so early into the summer especially in the middle of season where Storehouse McAllen had started a new sermon series and launching a small initiative.

I haven’t posted on here as regularly as I would have hoped so I thought I’d share what’s been going on behind the scenes with our family life.

THE FALL SEASON

As Rebecca and I looked at our calendar, we realized that we were going to be experiencing one thing after another toward the tail-end of the summer and time away as a family would be a little more difficult. For starters, Chango is starting high school this year! It’s so crazy to see him hammering out summer projects for his freshmen classes and watching him mature in academic discipline is quite a sight. In any case, as an incoming freshmen, he’s got a couple of things coming up in July and August like marching camp for band and then a week long writing workshop.

Secondly, Rebecca and I have been monitoring some areas of concern on the health side of things and we had scheduled a doctor’s appointment where the results were going to impact a couple of changes in our family dynamics in order to stay healthy so we needed to prioritize that by simply being home.

Thirdly, our step-daughter is pregnant with our second grandkid. WHAT THE CRAP. I don’t think I have mentioned that I’m a grandfather, have I? That’s another post. Well, while Savanna (who I call “Flaca”) is doing her preggo thing, I’ll be taking care of our granddaughter, Delilah, and she just has my heart so if it’s watching 2348 hours of the same movie, then that’s what we’re doing; maybe taking a walk from time to time too. Savanna’s baby is due the week Chango goes back to school so that’ll be a tight schedule.

And finally, I’ll be guest preaching at other churches in Texas for friends in the month of August so I’ll be doing a little bit of traveling and driving. Needless to say, August will be pretty nuts and this is, in a nutshell, why we took time off as soon as Chango was out of school.

WHAT DID YOU DO ON VACATION?

We drove. We drove a lot.

Our vacation started off with the bouncing around of a few cities and it was all great. It was just a lot of driving. Rebecca and I started our time by driving to Ft. Worth, TX where we had to participate in an assessment with Acts 29 where pastors along with their wives come in and check in on how we’re doing and ask a bunch of questions to assess our spiritual and emotional health. Overall, it was a great experience and I’m very thankful for Acts 29.

Following our time in Ft. Worth, we made a pit-stop in Denton, TX to visit with friends over some drinks to celebrate the end of a season, the assessment, and the time away that we were about to embark on. After cocktails (and then coffee), we drove back down to Austin where we met up with Rebecca’s mom to pick up Chango and spend a night in Austin as we prepped to head to Albuquerque, New Mexico.

We made some stops along the way, like hanging out at Yellow House Coffee in Lubbock which is always a great place for coffee. It was good to stretch the legs and play cards over really good coffee. Once we got to Albuquerque, all I wanted to do was sit in the quiet. We were able to get an AIRBNB near the Sandia mountains and all I wanted to do was listen to the wind and not talk for a few days and my wife is so awesome that she gave me that time as soon as we got in.

Rebecca works a couple of days out of the week and she wanted to get some more intentional one on one time with Chango so they hung out with friends, ate together, and visited a bunch of local places in the city while I sat outside in silence. It was great. I really dig Albuquerque because it’s quiet for a big city, not too different from Valley culture, and I love the mountains and better weather (no humidity). We stayed in Albuquerque for about 10 days and it was well spent; whether sitting outside in silence or learning more about Dungeons and Dragons with Chango or having a family dinner out in the city, it was perfect.

Once we left Albuquerque, we traveled back down to San Antonio. I got another day of silence while Rebecca and Chango hung out with Flaca and Delilah. We all grabbed dinner, made plans to attend our friend’s church (The Well Community Church), and make one last trip to IKEA and finally head back to the Valley.

Obviously, I’ve left out a ton, but it was a great time away and it was certainly needed because to be honest, I am not the most faithful at taking intentional time off. It’s something that was addressed during the assessment, but also something that my staff frequently reminds me of. I’ll talk more about the path to pursuing spiritual and emotional health later, but I hope this settles some of the questions we’ve been getting. And thank you so much for praying for me and my family while we were gone.

I am also extremely grateful to my staff at Storehouse McAllen who held the fort and especially Nano who did some amazing work in preaching the word of God to the people of God while I was out! If you haven’t listened to his sermons, you need to. i hope this is the first of many posts as the summer moves along and I hope that you’re enjoying your summer too!

RECOMMENDED READING

• The Emotionally Healthy Leader: How Transforming Your Inner Life Will Deeply Transform Your Church, Team, and the World by Peter Scazzero

Summer 2019 Reading List

The summer months are right around the corner and one of the things our staff team has been really trying to push is getting some extra time in this season to disconnect and invest a little more time in areas or hobbies we enjoy. For me, that’s certainly a reading list. Over these next two weeks, my family and I are taking a vacation and I’m looking forward to spending some time in a couple of books.

So, for summer 2019, here are the books I’m reading:

The Tech-Wise Family by Andy Crouch
I’m really looking forward to this read. I have listened to a few podcasts review and reference this book. Crouch, from what I understand, does a great job in supplying the reader with hard data along with how he and his family operate when it comes to screen freedoms. As Chango (my son) gets older, Rebecca and I are looking to hook him up with a phone, but we want to digest a couple of practices or rhythms that we may not even be applying.

Rhythms of Grace by Mike Cosper
This is another book I’ve heard referenced a great deal in recent podcast listens. One of the ongoing conversations I’ve been having with staff and other friends has been on the depth and study of liturgy. I think the central piece of a Sunday gathering is and should be the Word of God and I personally believe that our services should be better shaped by the Word of God for the people of God. I love liturgy saturated in scripture, but I wish to better learn how that shapes what we do on Sunday mornings at Storehouse McAllen.

Holiness by J.C. Ryle
I have read Holiness once before and it’s one of those books that should be read multiple times by Christians. I believe it’s that impactful. Bishop Ryle’s classic, Holiness is, in my opinion, the best book on the pursuit of personal holiness. He is both convicting and comforting; challenging and pastoral. Ryle essentially challenges his readers in the practice of holiness as it is formed out of our understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Throw by Ruben Degollado
My very good friend and brother published this book earlier this year and the reviews are astounding. I’m very excited to read this book that takes place in the 80’s here in the Valley. I meant to read it earlier this year, but wanted to give it my undivided attention as he provides so many cultural references like la llorna that I wish to enjoy it at a pace. If you don’t follow Ruben, you should.

The Apostle’s Creed by Al Mohler
We’re kicking off a new series later this summer on the Apostle’s Creed and I’ve been diving into some study over the past few months, but Al Mohler’s new book was just released so I couldn’t help myself to check it out. I’m really excited about this series as the Apostle’s Creed is not only a great and historical creed held by many evangelical church, it’s also a cultural value in the Valley. Also, our graphic designer/production guru, Everett, has done a phenomenal job with the graphic:

That’s all I have for this summer. I’d love to hear what you’re reading. What do you suggest for additional reads this summer?

Staff Culture and Values

On occasion, I get asked by friends in ministry about the culture of our staff at Storehouse McAllen and I often get pretty excited talking about this topic because our staff are super-star theological ninjas.

I have been a part of ministry teams and staff in the past and this is probably the healthiest team that I have had the privilege of serving alongside of. And while it may sound a little obvious, health is incredibly vital to the well-being of a team because if you cannot trust one another or are not compatible as co-workers, you’re going to have a serious problem in your church organizationally and philosophically.

Personally, I love working on a team because that’s how I am best wired. It’s not only that a lot of things can get accomplished, but on a team there’s a lot more than just tasks that happen. In a healthy staff culture, you’re going to have people who get work done, but are also involved in one another’s lives and earnestly want the best for you because more than anything, at least on our team, we want to grow in the image and likeness of Christ. And I understand that a lot of this may sound too clean, but it really isn’t. We’ve had big disagreements, long discussions, tear filled confessions, and difficult seasons to walk through together.

Every staff will have those seasons to walk through, but if our desire for one another is our personal sanctification then walking through those seasons help to draw us closer to the Lord, repent of sin, and grow relationally. In all of this, here are a few things that I highly recommend for a healthy staff culture. I’m sure there are more and even better reasons, but, for me, I know these rank highly on my list of values.

1. Like Minded

While we may have differences on second-handed issues, our team stands firm on our theological foundations and convictions at Storehouse McAllen. This is incredibly important because not only does it place us on the same page as a team, but it sets the tone for the direction we’re headed and how we do ministry at our church.

2. Meaningful Friendships

I love that our team in on the same page theologically and missionally, but I also love that we’re friends. I love that we give each other a hard time and hang out outside of ministry related tasks. I love that our team likes to get work done, but I also really love that we enjoying having fun together.

I love that we celebrate personal wins and grieve seasons of difficulty with one another. More than that, I appreciate the love and care for one another because it translates into a culture of discipleship; pointing one another to Jesus in encouraging and confronting scenarios.

3. Making Disciples

When I say that we’re on the same page missionally, I don’t simply mean that we’re only in agreement with the missional partnerships that we’re apart of, but that we understand and embrace the mission God has set before us and that is to make and mature disciples. Discipleship is the central mission of the church regardless of how many partnerships or ministries we have. If we’re not making disciples, something needs to change.

What does making and maturing disciples look like? Check the post out here.

I love our team because we enjoy one another, get work done, and share life together. We also understand that in the middle of all of those things, we’re going to have struggles and disagreements and being aware of that helps us to fight for one another instead of fighting with one another.

What kind of things do you value on your team?

Books: Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy (Review)

A couple of weeks ago, my staff and I were hanging out at the local pub, Roosevelt’s, and for some reason we thought it’d be entertaining if we took a personality test. I’m not really a fan of personality tests and assessments, but I figured it’d be interesting to see where we all would land. We took the Myers Briggs personality test and one of the sections in the test had to deal with the difference between feelers and thinkers. Surprisingly, feelers are more emotive while thinkers think. I am the only thinker on our team.

Since, I have been thinking (shocking) about that test and began to assess how I approach my prayer life. I often think and desire to want to have a thriving and robust life in prayer, but after thinking (again) I concluded that I often approach prayer a little too strategically and a little too analytically while not allowing myself to sit in my emotions.

After reading Mark Vroegop’s new book Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy I have felt more and thought less. Mark’s book is on the subject of lament and he writes that “to cry is human, to lament is Christian.” This book has been good for my soul in countless ways beginning with the understanding of what lament really is AND being bold enough to approach God completely broken.

Lament isn’t something that is regularly taught or spoken about in the church. I know it’s not something I’ve talked about before and part of that is because I didn’t know what to say about lament. I think I viewed lament like accessory movements in strength training; sure they’re important and you should learn them, but what for? Next thing you know, you’ve torn your hamstring and all you want, need, and are capable of doing is accessory work. I digress.

While Vroegop provides several working definitions for what lament actually is, it is one of his first comments about lament that struck me:

Lament is the honest cry of a hurting heart wrestling with the paradox of pain and the promise of God’s goodness.

If you have found yourself in a a difficult season(s), know someone who is wrestling with the truth about God, or simply wish to dive in a deeper appreciation of prayer and communion with the Lord, then I highly recommend purchasing this book.

CULTURE AND PRAYER

Culturally, suffering and lament seems to be something that is taboo. We have become accustomed, in many ways, to work our way out of suffering and lament in order to feel better about ourselves and our circumstances, but the Bible teaches us that suffering is inevitable for the Christian as we follow Christ; we are going to be rejected and life, at times, is going to suck. That’s a hard truth to swallow in a culture that says you don’t deserve to suffer and that if you do happen to find yourself in a difficult circumstance, it’s up to you to get yourself out as quickly as possible.

The truth about lament is that it stands in between the pain of life and the promise of God. And to me, that is incredibly encouraging! Lament is a beautiful grace that teaches me there is a space in my communion with the Lord where I can be totally and utterly honest, broken, and vulnerable.

It reminds me of a conversation I recently had with my son. After confessing sin, he began to weep and his vulnerability led him to feel like he needed to hold back. I assured my son that this was the time for him to lay it all out on the table; I wasn’t there to get mad at him or discipline him, but to listen to him and be present as he wept. Once I said that, the flood gates of tears opened up and he was able to be totally vulnerable and broken in our time together. I think that’s what lament feels like with God. It’s a space where He draws us to Himself, with snot and tears, to be totally and completely vulnerable before Him affording us an opportunity to ask some bold things with confidence and trust Him because He is good.

Vroegop does a phenomenal job of walking the reader through the three parts of his book (Psalms of Lament, Lamentations, and personal and community application). This book has been a great resource for reflection and teaching and I highly recommend it.

FAVORITE QUOTES

To pray in pain, even with its messy struggle and tough questions, is an act of faith where we open up our hearts to God. Prayerful lament is better than silence. However, I’ve found that many people are afraid of lament. They find it too honest, too open, or too risky. But there’s something far worse: silent despair. Giving God the silent treatment is the ultimate manifestation of unbelief.

You need to know that lament does not always lead to an immediate solution. It does not always bring a quick or timely answer. Grief is not tame. Lament is not a simplistic formula. Instead, lament is the song you sing believing that one day God will answer and restore. Lament invites us to pray through our struggle with a lift that is far from perfect.

Lament is the language of a people who believe in God’s sovereignty but live in a world with tragedy.

In my study of lament, I’ve come to love the word yet. It marks the place in the journey where pain and belief coexist. It is how we gain the confidence to ask boldly, despite the sorrow and grief we feel. Yet mean that I chose to keep asking God for help, to cry out to him for my needs, even when the pain of life is raw. Yet reminds us that sorrow doesn’t have to yield before we ask God for help. Part of the grace of lament is the way it invites us to pray boldly even when we are bruised badly.

Trust is believing what you know to be true even though the facts of suffering might call that belief into question. Lament keeps us turning toward trust by giving us language to step into the wilderness between our painful reality and our hopeful longings.

But whatever you do, don’t stop making this turn toward trust. Learn to live in the tension of pain beyond belief and divine sovereignty beyond comprehension by stepping into trust. Choose to place your confidence in God. Learning to lament is a journey as we discover how lament can provide mercy when dark clouds loom. Lament is how you live between a hard life and God’s promises. It is how we learn to sin and worship when suffering comes our way.

RECOMMENDED READING

• Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy: Discovering The Grace of Lament by Mark Vroegop

Easter and The Nicene Creed (video)

I’m so freakin’ pumped for this Sunday as we remember and look to the resurrection of Jesus! Further, this video on the Nicene Creed is incredibly captivating; gets me every time.

If you don’t have a church or are looking to attend a church this Easter Sunday, I would be honored if you joined us for worship this Sunday (4/21) at 10:30 a.m. at the Mcallen Creative Incubator (601 N. Main Street)!