Apology

Dear fellow readers

I apologize for the long absence on my blog.  When my wife and I got back from our anniversary trip to Cancun at the end of May, we were greeted by a letter from our church's board, which along with other items, told me that I was to refrain from blogging for thirty days.  Over the next several weeks, our board and i wrestled with a number of issues—the end result being that I had to resign from our church (a church which I planted sixteen years ago).  Obviously, I've learned a lot through this process, but for the sake of those involved and for the health of our church I'll refrain from blogging on those lessons for some time.

As for me, in case you're curious, I'm planning on pursuing my Ph.D at Regent University in Organizational Leadership (so I have no intention of stopping my blog just because I'm no longer employed at Seneca Creek).  In fact, one of the reasons I want to pursue my Ph.D. in Organizational Leadership is because I firmly believe that the greatest hindrance to the advancement of the kingdom of God (apart from spiritual issues) is the lack of leadership capacity from those leading the church.  So, I now want to devote a significant amount of my time left on planet earth to the study of and the  development of the intellectual capital and resources necessary for the church to fulfill the great commission in this generation.

In addition, since I do have to pay the bills, I'll be pursuing motivational speaking, pulpit supply (10-12 maximum engagements per year), consulting, resource development and writing (both books and articles).  So, while I never would have planned on ending my sixteen years at Seneca Creek the I had to, I am excited about this next leg of the journey.  God has been so incredibly gracious throughout this whole process that I can only stand back and give Him praise and thanksgiving.

Note: If you'd like to read my resignation letter to my congregation, you can download a pdf version of it on the left hand side of my blog.

Finally, the other reason I don't want to give up blogging is because of you.  One of the greatest joys of this year for me has been the responses so many of you have shared with me concerning my blog.  However, because of the situation at my former church (and a few anonymous commentators), I have had to turn off comments on my blog.  So, from now on, if you want to make comments, just send me an e-mail.