Ministries:
Adult | Teens | Children

Pastor's Pen's:
2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 | 2003 | 2002 | 2001

Sermon Series:
Following Jesus
Earthly Cross
His Name Is
Apostles Creed
Dealing with Feelings
Jonah
Get Real
Promised Land Living

Grace Church
257 Kendall Street
Burlington, WI 53105

(262) 763-3021

Email:
Pastor Scott Carson

Secretary Patti Hall

PASTOR'S PENS 2005

Grace Church of Burlington May 29, 2005 “Everything continues in a state of rest unless it is compelled  to change by forces impressed upon it.”     Issac Newton             Picture a scene from the Old West, sometime in the 1870s. Weary cowboys in dusty Levi’s gather around a blazing campfire after a day on the open range. The lonely howl of a coyote counterpoints the notes of a guitar as the moon floats serenely overhead. Suddenly a bellow of pain shatters the night, as a cowpoke leaps away from the fire, dancing in agony. Hot-Rivet Syndrome has claimed another victim. In those days, Levi’s were made, as they had been from the first days of Levi Strauss, with copper rivets at stress points to provide extra strength. On these original Levi’s—model 501—the crotch rivet was the critical one: when cowboys crouched too long beside the campfire, the rivet grew uncomfortably hot. For years the brave men of the West suffered this curious occupational hazard.             But then, in 1933, Walter Haas, Sr., president of Levi Strauss, went camping in his Levi 501’s. He was crouched by a crackling campfire in the High Sierras, drinking in the pure mountain air, when he fell prey to Hot-Rivet Syndrome. He consulted with professional wranglers in his party. Had they suffered the same mishap? An impassioned YES was the reply. Walter Haas vowed that the offending rivet must go, and at their next meeting the board of directors voted it into extinction.             Most change is brought about as a result of pain at some level. Children often will not go to bed unless there is the threat of the loss of privileges. A teenager is failing a class because they are not doing their homework. The pain of not getting their driver’s license, or the loss of other privileges is often what it takes to motivate them. An adult is fast and loose with their credit cards. It is only when the bank threatens to repossess their car that they get serious about a spending diet. A couple has ongoing marital issues and knows that they need help. Too often it takes a crisis to motivate them to seek outside assistance.             The greatest problem with pain as the motivator for change is that too frequently the change comes too late. Either there is serious damage that requires a tremendous amount of repair, or the damage is so serious that it is irreparable.             At Grace we are committed to continually adjusting and changing. Our culture is constant motion. What was effective and worked yesterday is often ineffective and irrelevant today.                         Yet most of us resist change. We get comfortable. We like the way that things are. As a result, most churches do not change until they are very weak or worse, dying.             Right now our church is at a crossroads. If we do not buy land very soon, we will find that some of the best locations are either unavailable or unaffordable. Our current situation must be temporary. On top of that we are very limited in our current ministry situation.             We need a change. If there is not a change in our giving, we will miss the immediate opportunity. What makes this extremely difficult for me as your pastor is that we do not even need sacrificial giving to make a major change. If everyone in the Grace Church family just tithed (gave 10%), we would not only meet our budget but have a surplus for purchasing land.             To be candid, I’m not sure what it will take. Everyone in our church acknowledges the need, everyone sees that we have to move forward but it’s not reflecting in the giving. And sadly, talk is cheap.             Everything that we have has been given to us by God. We are not owners but merely stewards. Sadly, based on our giving, it is apparent that too many in our church family are poor stewards. And not only does that hurt the cause of Christ, not only does it hurt our church family, it hurts them. They miss out on God’s blessing on their lives because they are being disobedient.             Change frequently comes as a result of pain. It’s so much better, though, when it comes as a result of wisdom and obedience. Does there need to be a change in your giving? Friend, please start being a faithful, obedient steward today!