The fall is perhaps the busiest time of year for me (as I’m sure it is for many) personally and in ministry, which always adds a lull to the blogging.

A great deal of my time is invested in my local church ministry in a number of areas.

Preaching and Teaching: I preach every Sunday evening and since June, I have been preaching out of the book of Romans. I also teach each Sunday morning in a small group study with young adults. Currently we are doing and inductive study in 1 Corinthians. Tomorrow we will begin chapter 14 and the controversial subject of speaking in tongues. I also teach two classes on Wednesday evening. One on Spiritual Disciplines and another on how to teach the Bible in a small group setting.

Internship: This past October, our church officially launched our first internship ministry with one student: Jaron. Jaron is a part of a special Bachelor of Applied Theology (BAT) program at California Baptist University (CBU), which focuses upon preparing men for pastoral ministry. Our internship seeks to provide the practical training for these students. So, since October, Jaron and I have been meeting for two hours a week (and a lot of phone calls and off-the-cuff meeetings) to discuss expository preaching. Jaron will be preaching his first sermon this Sunday evening. What a joyful time this has been to see Jaron’s growth and zeal for the ministry of the Word.

Doctor of Ministry. This past week I finished my final DMin seminar work and I will now begin to focus completely upon my DMin project. Our internship ministry is directly linked to my project and hopefully in January or February, we will begin the practical implementation of my project of teaching a BAT student from CBU in the area of expository preaching. This student will have had three or four years of classroom instruction under his belt and will work intentionally on developing his skills as a preacher in the context of our local church. As a matter of fact, I will be meeting with a potential student for this project tomorrow at church. I did receive initial approval of my project from the seminary and have begun working on the next chapters.

Christmas Concert: One my responsibilities on the pastoral team I serve with is to lead our church choir. Each year we have two large Adult outreach services: Christmas and Easter Concerts. So, since September, I have been meeting weekly and sometimes twice a week in rehearsals with our choir. Our concert is December 17 and due to the overflow last year, we have two performances this year. The next two weeks will be full of extra rehearsals, singing at a retirement mobile home park and then the concert itself.

Fellowships: The holiday season brings on a number of extra opportunities for fellowship. We had a special Thanksgiving Eve Lord’s Supper service last week (not to mention a Sunday School class Thanksgiving fellowship). Yesterday our church hosted a Christmas luncheon for the widows and widowers in our congregation. Kelly and I will be hosting a new member reception in our home tomorrow evening. Our Sunday School class will have their Christmas fellowship at our home on Friday. I am singing at a Senior Adult Christmas fellowship next week, teaching at a special Christmas service at a nursing home in two weeks, and I’ll be a part of a special church-wide Christmas fellowship and Question and Answer session with the pastors in two weeks.

Personal Life. Yes, I do have one. Kelly and I celebrated five years of marriage in September and promptly looked at one another and said, “See you at Christmas,” knowing how busy we would be. Here’s a few of the fun things we’ve been pursuing over the past few months:

Adoption and Foster parenting: September 11, we signed on the dotted line with a private organization that will help us navigate the county system in becoming foster parents and perhaps one day adoptive parents. The Lord has yet to give us children and in praying and thinking through this step, we understand that He still has not given us children of our own. What He may allow us to do is be a blessing to some tremendously hurting children, and if in His providence He sees fit, we may eventually be able to adopt a child. As a matter of fact Kelly and I attended our last training session today. After a few more locks on a few more cabinets and some other small items, we will be ready for the final approval. We anticipate being certified and able to begin having children in our home by the first of the year. We are very excited about the potential.

Holiday time spent with family: We were able to see several from Kelly’s family for Thanksgiving and had a great time with them. Kelly and I are planning to spend Christmas in Amarillo, Texas, this year (it’s been about four years since we’ve been back for Christmas). But first, many from her family will be joining us in our home for a pre-Christmas get-together. We are anticipating a great time with family and friends this Christmas.

Well, all of that makes me very tired just rehearsing it, but very thankful for God’s amazing privileges and blessings. Kelly and I have much for which to be thankful and we also have much to anticipate under God’s good and sovereign hand.