I have two principles that guide my decisions as father, a husband and a pastor. I learned these two principles from my parents and from many of the mentors I have in my life.

Principle One: Do the right thing, for the right reason, even at my own hurt.

Principle Two: Say what you mean and mean what you say.

These two principles were put to the test this past week as I navigated the media frenzy surrounding the new allegations involving our church. I have told several close friends this week that it is really hurtful to be criticized so strongly for simply doing the right thing. I actually believe it is easier to accept criticism after doing something wrong. If that was the case, I would stand before my family, my church and the media and simply accept the responsibility and the consequences. But when no wrong act has been committed, it hurts to be misunderstood or questioned.

Integrity is something I cherish and protect. It is easily lost and difficult to regain. When my integrity is questioned, I try not to be defensive but I also want truth. In the end, I know God sees my heart and ultimately He is my judge. I trust my reputation into His hands and believe that He will ultimately defend me.

I find it is easier for people to trust again if my words are honest and direct. I try to not speak in codes or double speak. Straightforward communication with sincerity and honesty will normally cut through the fog of misinformation and allow people to make the right judgments. 

These two principles are big leadership ideas that I hope are adopted by everyone in a position of influence or authority. It is a sacred responsibility to lead people and I consider it an honor to be called pastor.

A few hours before the current crisis erupted, I was thumbing through a book and noticed a quote from a Scottish poet. It turns out God can use even Scottish poets to prepare us for difficult days. George McDonald says the burdens of the day will never cripple a person. It is when we add the worries of tomorrow to the burdens of today that we crumble and buckle under the weight.

I shared this insight with our ministry staff at 11am on Thursday. At 3pm Thursday, we are informed a young man has told a local TV station his story of an inappropriate relationship with our former pastor. For the past several days I have been completely consumed with meetings and media interviews. Even today, I have spoken with CNN, Charisma Magazine, and the New York Times, among others.

But something strange is happening in me. I am not worrying about tomorrow and I am carrying the burdens of the day surprisingly well. I am certainly planning for tomorrow and thinking about the future and the challenges that are still in front of me and the church, but I am not worrying about them. Jesus knew the power of this principle when he told to not worry to worry about tomorrow, for it has enough evil of its own.

This truth is important for all of us regardless of the assignment God has given us in life. It is true for home school moms and corporate CEO’s. Worry will not add one measure to our lives, but it most certainly will rob us of the joy of the moment.

Jesus is not a mascot, but sometimes I think He is treated like one. A mascot is defined as a an animal, person, or thing adopted by a group as its representative symbol and supposed to bring good luck. For example, the Air Force Academy’s mascot is a falcon, but I am certain they do not consult a falcon about strategy or for guidance. The falcon is just a symbol, but holds no real authority.

As believers in Christ, we must make sure Jesus has not become just a mascot. He is actually the head of the church, the redeemer of our souls and the Lord of our lives. He becomes a mascot when we move away from His authority and make decisions about life, ministry and the church based on our own ideas, our own desires and and our own motives. The end result is an empty life and a lifeless church. We surround ourselves with Jesus stuff like church buildings, bibles, religious hymns and ministry programs, but we stop asking Jesus for real guidance. This happens slowly and over time.

To prevent this in our lives, we must stop and evaluate everything we are doing in the name of Jesus and make sure we are actually doing what Jesus wants. Let’s stop, pray, study the Scripture, and do only the things Jesus actually told us to do. The list is actually short and simple. We are to love God, love others, make disciples, baptize new believers, share communion and meet together to encourage one another. There is room to debate what else should be on the list, but I am certain the final list would not include many of the things we think are really important.

I was asked by the Gazette to write a column for the Dream City 2020 campaign describing how Colorado Springs could become a better city in the next 20 years. The following column was my response and will be in the paper soon.

I am new to Colorado Springs but already feel like it is my home.  In 20 years, I will be in my early 60’s, nearing the end of my career as a pastor at New Life Church. I have spent a great deal of thought and prayed many prayers for our city trying to discover the untapped potential of our community. I believe the best days are still in front of us, and the challenges that are facing us as a city can be overcome if we make the choice now to stand together, work together and to see the best in each other.

The first challenge is finding common ground within a very diverse population. I have never lived in a community that is woven together from such diverse cultures and perspectives. The mix of military families from around the globe, evangelical leaders and groups, very passionate liberal and conservative political groups that hold fast to their ideology is both an opportunity and a challenge. I love passion and I appreciate people of conviction. That is the strength of our country and certainly the strength of our city. However, we must choose grace over animosity and kindness over accusations. This does not mean we have to compromise our absolute beliefs just to get along, it means we must value relationships as much as being right or winning a debate. Too often, we win the argument but lose friends in the process. I believe both are equally important if we are to have a Dream City. I choose to build bridges instead of burning them because we will need every bridge possible if we are to survive and thrive as a community in the divided 21^st Century. So let’s choose to meet and discuss ideas, not to debate or argue, but to find common ground and build friendships. Let’s be secure in our beliefs and kind in our words toward those who believe differently and diffuse division and strife as aggressively as we defend our ideas.

The second challenge is taking care of the poor and needy in our city. This is a real burden to me as a pastor, but I am convinced that partnerships between government, social and religious teams can do more together than when separated. We have the resources to radically change neglected neighborhoods, equip struggling schools and to house, feed and clothe every person in our city. When we combine our monies and the human capital of ideas and innovation there will be no limits to our ability to meet the most desperate needs of our time. Our church is willing to partner with people with better ideas and to give our resources to meet the urgent needs that are facing all of us. Let’s come to the table, agree on effective strategy, and then work together without a need for personal or group recognition. Let’s do the right thing for our city for the right reasons. This past November, state government, local non-profits and the church community partnered together to begin a campaign we are calling, “Wait No More” that is designed to find families for the more than 700 orphans in our state foster system. This kind of partnership can happen on many different fronts to address the long list of issues we are facing.

Colorado Springs is a great city that is destined to become greater and I am grateful to be a small part of the discussion, but I am even more grateful for the opportunity to walk alongside each of you to make Colorado Springs a Dream City.  God bless Colorado Springs and God bless our unity as we move forward.

In the next few weeks, you may hear and read a great deal of media reports concerning an upcoming HBO documentary featuring Ted and Gayle Haggard.  The documentary chronicles their life in Arizona and their return to Colorado Springs. In the documentary, Ted and Gayle express their hurt and disappointment in the way they were treated by New Life.

In the past month, I have had two lengthy meetings with both Ted and Gayle hoping to bring some healing and perspective to the hurt they experienced and the hurt that New Life experienced. I believe we have made progress and I am hopeful the relationships that were so badly damaged can be redeemed and restored.

I was not here in November 2006, but I do know the men and women who were called upon to make very critical decisions for Ted and Gayle and for New Life after the scandal.  While it is easy now for some people to look in the rear view mirror and see decisions that could have been made differently, very few of us understand the enormous pressure these wonderful people were facing. I know for certain that the motives behind every decision were pure and the decisions were made after much prayer.

Desiring only to be gracious and generous, the overseers, trustees, elders and pastoral team of New Life committed over $300,000 to the Haggard family that included 13 months of salary for Ted and Gayle, a pickup truck, extensive counseling, health insurance for the entire family, moving expenses, and care for Jonathan Haggard, their special needs son.

Not only were they generous with finances, they placed Ted under the care of some of the most trusted pastors of our generation for restoration.

The generosity and concern for the Haggard family and the New Life family is to be commended and I am very grateful that God established these leaders for such a critical time in our church’s history.

I also believe New Life is one of the most forgiving congregations I have ever met. Our recent history is one of tragedy, but also of tremendous forgiveness and grace. You have always chosen love over hate and forgiveness over bitterness. This is one of the many reasons I am proud of you and love you so dearly.

I hope this helps you with perspective should you choose to watch the HBO documentary. Please continue to pray for Ted and Gayle and their family and for the leaders of New Life.

We are launching a renewed emphasis on prayer at New Life Church this week. While there has always been constant prayer at the church, we have not met together very often as a congregation to focus our prayer efforts. That will change this week. Revival Town is a multi-generational prayer gathering led by David Perkins and Jon Egan that meets every Tuesday night at the World Prayer Center at 6:30. I will lead a men’s prayer gathering every Thursday morning at the World Prayer Center at 6:30am.  We do not have a cool name but we are open to your ideas.

What are the components that make these times of prayer so effective? Of course, I have three because I am a preacher!

1.      Prayer should be easy.

Prayer was never meant to be complicated. That’s why Jesus used only 56 words in the Lord’s Prayer. I do believe you become better at praying as you mature as a believer, but that does not mean it gets more complicated. In fact, the easiest way to be effective is to simply pray the promises in Scripture. In other words, let the Bible do the talking.

2.      Prayer should be exhilarating.

Some of my best memories as a believer is praying with other believers. There is a real energy from heaven in a room of praying Christ followers. It seems all of our faith, when combined, helps us pray more passionately, more fervently, and with greater intensity. A cord of three strands is not easily broken and believers who pray together are not easily discouraged.

3.      Prayer should be powerful.

We are the temple of the Holy Spirit and the power of the Holy Spirit is released best when we pray and worship. In fact, the success of the prayer gathering is not based solely on our prayers being answered. Many times, the success of these meetings is found in the personal growth of those who participate. Spiritual exercise produces strong spiritual people. These meetings are an opportunity to exercise the spiritual gifts we have been given and to see them grow strong.

I hope all of you join us on this journey of prayer at New Life. We are returning to our heritage as a church that prays together for our city, our nation and our world while, at the same time, finding our own unique identity for the 21^st Century.

Each December, I pray about dedicating the first days or weeks of the New Year to a time of fasting and prayer. I believe in giving the first and best of my year the same as I believe in giving the first and best of my resources. This year, I feel New Life is to do something out of the ordinary because we are living in extraordinary times. Therefore, the 90-day challenge is beginning at New Life on January 1st and will continue through the end of March.

The 90-day Challenge is meant to help all of us do four things:

* Be even more thankful for all God is doing in our lives.

* Set aside a percentage of our income and give it away.

* Live below our means by following a budget.

* Look for every opportunity to serve others.

For the next 90 days, I am hoping all New Lifers will join me on this journey. For many of us, this challenge will be far more difficult than any previous time of fasting food, sweets, or television. Our finances and our attitudes are usually the last parts of our lives that we give to God. Living for others, giving sacrificially, being thankful and controlling our spending appetites will produce an amazing amount of spiritual fruit.  In fact, all of the very mature believers I know live this type of lifestyle and are generally not affected by greed and selfishness. 

The reason the challenge will last to the end of March is simple. It takes time to break old harmful habits and establish healthy new ones. Let’s all stay committed to encouraging one another on this journey and let’s be diligent to share our stories of God’s goodness and faithfulness. These stories are guaranteed for everyone who finishes the challlenge. In fact, I truly believe that people will be so changed by these spiritual principles that they will choose to live like this for the rest of their lives.

I discussed the “T” word this Sunday at New Life.  Tithing is a topic that is certainly biblical, but many people question the motives of any pastor who brings up the topic of money. I believe the poor reputation has been earned by pastors and it will take time to regain the respect and credibility of our churches. I believe the church has to prove to people that it will follow the Acts 2 and Acts 4 recipe of local church. People have to trust that church leaders care more about the poor, the widows and the orphans than living excessive lifestyles or building personal church empires. Once church leaders get serious about the ministry of Jesus on the earth, resources will always be available.

The church is the body of Christ and its members are His bride. No good husband would withhold resources from His bride and neither will Christ. In our staff meeting this week, we discussed the economic realities we are facing as a church right now. We are cutting our budgets to make ends meet, but we are not in a panic. We have decided to use this time to really evaluate what we are doing as a church and to make sure we are being wise stewards. We are convinced that our integrous handling of money will earn people’s trust and release heaven’s resources.

So, I will continue to teach on finances and discuss tithing even though it is awkward for some. Primarily, though, I will do all I can to keep my own heart pure and lead our church toward wise stewardship. In the end, I pray that everyone at New Life catches the revelation of generous giving and compassionate serving because both are expressions of true Christ followers.

I am amazed at how well the human body can heal itself. The wound above my left eye is returning to normal, leaving only a few bruises and a small, one-inch scar. After tripping and hitting my head on the fireplace last week, it seemed it would take forever for the bruising and cut to heal.

The same is true when we experience trauma to our emotions. This time last year, a young man came on our campus at New Life and took the lives of Stephanie and Rachel Works, injuring others before taking his own life. It was one of the darkest days we have ever experienced at New Life and it seemed we would never heal. The wound was just too deep and the bruises too intense. A year later, we still hurt and there are definitely scars that need constant attention and care, but, we are healing and it is a miracle. We have grieved, mourned and rallied around one another and it has made us stronger. The days and weeks ahead will get better and the pain will not always define us. There will be scars, but the scars will only serve to remind us of God’s healing in our lives.

One of my favorite movie scenes is from the movie “Jaws” Three men are sitting in a boat telling the stories of how they got all their scars. Two of the men have scars from battling killer sharks and defending themselves from barracuda attacks, but Roy Schneider only has a scar from having his appendix removed. Life produces scars and every scar has a story.

I have a new scar this morning. Last night I tripped over something in the living room floor and hit my head on the fireplace. My friend and neighbor, Garvin, took me to the emergency room and 15 stitches later, I was as good as new.  But, I will have a scar. Sadly, the ER doctor told me my dreams for a modeling career are over! The scar is about an inch long above my left eye and I look worse than normal this morning. My forehead looks like a war zone and my head is throbbing. But, I do have a story. Unfortunately, my scar story seems as silly as Roy Schneiders. I did not get my scar because of some heroic deed. I just tripped and fell and I feel a bit silly.

I try to learn from all my silly mistakes. I learned that light is better than dark when navigating the living room. I learned that good neighbors are important in a crisis. I learned that the human body will heal itself, but it does leave a scar to remind us of the stories.