Back Azimuth Ministries

I have reached a point in my ministry where I am absolutely open to whatever the Lord's wants of me. I've been involved in pastoral ministry now for almost twenty years. If the Lord wills and I live another forty years, that means that I'm a little more than a third through my "active" ministry years. I've served Him as a music director, worship leader, associate pastor, assistant pastor, senior pastor, missions pastor, missionary and now a campus pastor. I've seen so many different sides of the ministry. I've been given a bird's eye view of the proverbial good, the bad and the ugly of it.

I'm simply at a place in which my planner is open for God to write in it anything He wants to. Right now, I'm teaching at the CCBC Peru and I really do enjoy it. I love being able to minister into the lives of these young people. I also love it here in Peru because the Lord has given my boys a place where they can serve, be loved and challenged in their spiritual walks. The Lord has surrounded them with people who are "truly" Christians. I couldn't help but put "truly" in quotes because I've seen so many claim to be so even though the fruit coming out of their lives smells absolutely atrocious.

I do believe that the Lord has given me the ministries of evangelism, edification and encouragement. However, I also believe that he has placed a tremendous burden in my heart for the church. She is a church that is beautiful on her best days and horrid on her worst. She is the church that Christ died, established and will return for. She is also a church that is constantly being challenged from within and without. It seems that bad doctrine is flowing like water between her pews totally unabated.

I had a student who made the observation that years ago, counsels were held when even the slightest hint of heresy was in the air. I.e. Jerusalem, Trent, Nicaea, etc... And yet today, for the most part, nothing is done about it. Our "tolerance" has spilled over into our religion.

That brings me to the new ministry that I believe that Lord is calling me to launch: Back Azimuth Ministries. Back Azimuth is a term that is used in orienteering. One of the reasons that it is used is to determine where you came from or your original point of origin or departure. It is used to see if you have gotten off course. All you need to do is take the current azimuth (bearing) that you are following, add 180 to it, and arrive at your back azimuth. That gives you the exact direction you came from so that your course can be adjusted if necessary.

I believe that the church needs to shoot a back azimuth from time to time to see if they've gotten off course. Thus, I believe that God has called me to supply the compass. I.e the Word of God through Back Azimuth Ministries. Please pray that He'll show me how to precede.