Growing the Team

Here are some pictures from the latest Partnership 201 class. This is the class where we talk about our expectations of those who are interested in becoming part of the family at HOF. It really begins with an understanding that while God wants them all, all may not be a good fit for HOF. We believe that the Holy Spirit is the one who connects hearts to vision so we trust Him to bring to HOF those whose heart agrees with ours. This is where we talk about what we believe, our strategy, and structure. People come from so many diverse backgrounds that range from no church history to a very well defined church culture. We are probably different and we need to come to an agreement. It’s always exciting getting to know the ones who will run with the vision of HOF making it a place to belong with a promise to claim and a purpose to live.

Shooting for the Family

This past Friday several of us from the staff participated in a Skeet Shoot for The Louisiana Family Forum. The shoot was held at The Hunters Run Gun Club in Port Allen. Our 5-man team shot at many different stations and different challenging shots. We each shot 100 times and I have the bruise on my shoulder to prove it. I’m not much of a hunter but I enjoy shooting. One thing about shooting clays is that you have to be able to hit a moving target. The target was always moving either up or down, left or right, and high or low. It reminded me that following the Lord is like trying to hit a moving target. The Spirit of God is always on the move and we have to discern which way and where. I’m glad I had others there to help me when I didn’t get it right, make suggestions and in some cases take a shot while I watched so I could learn. We encouraged each other because we competed as a team. One could do great but if the rest struggled then the whole team score was affected. It’s a lot like living for God in a church. I’ve found that I struggle when I’m doing life on Bayou Self, for those who didn’t hear the sermon from Sept. 30, that means doing life by yourself. I did okay, better than I expected and better than I could have done by myself.

Fruit that remains

The lady pictured with me is named Darnetta and she was an employee of the company which leased the suite where we watched the Saints-Titans game. In getting to know her that evening I found out that she had attended our church when it was called Faith Tabernacle and she also knew Dad very well. She said that she attended when they lived locally and that she visited with Dad about a sickness. He prayed and she never had another problem in that area again. How good is God? She asked about Dad and had great appreciation for him and his ministry. I thought about the lasting fruit that we can have when we sell out to fulfill God’s plan for our lives. My dad wasn’t born here but the plan of God brought him to this place. It was an encouragement to me to be faithful where the Lord has placed me because maybe one day one of my children will speak to someone who God ministered to through Vanessa and me. I encourage you to be faithful right where you have been planted. It has really validated ministry again for me because often the problems of our communities seem endless. Fruit that remains is what God is after. I’m happy to say that she is still serving the Lord after 20+ years and I got to meet her husband as well.