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| Ski - Jeske staff member, Church and Change board member, embarrassment. |
From Pastor Don Are you to judge someone else's servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand. - Romans 14:4
Dear heavenly Father, it is too easy for me to categorize people by how they dress, how they speak, what hobbies they like, what kind of worship style they dig, whether they talk too little or too much or by the way they spend their money. When the truth is, that's for you to do. They are your servants and they stand before you to receive their judgment. I want to be free from man made judgments about people. I want to reflect your truth about morality so others see how you want us to live, but I do not want to create my own morality as if I am the judge. I want to help wayward souls back onto your path but I do not need for them to be on my path. I am only one of your servants who stands along side of all the others. Remove from my heart the sinful pride that makes me trust my own opinions about the many choices we can make. Help me to give my parents and my children the freedom to choose without disdain from me. Make me an encourager of truth and love but help me leave room for the variety of approaches to everyday life. AMEN
Pastor Don Patterson
Pastor Don Patterson
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http://www.menofhisword.org/content.cfm?id=313
Sessions at a Glance
Jeske's Men of the Absurd
1. What Do I Do? Helping a Loved One Struggling with Addictions Mrs. Ski
Each year millions of Americans struggle with substance abuse or addiction. In fact, researchers suggest that nearly everyone can identify at least one person they love who is struggling with an addiction. The presence of this addiction is disruptive not only to those struggling with it, but often deeply impacts those closest in their lives. Learn ways to lovingly and productively engage, communicate and establish boundaries with a loved one struggling with addiction.
2. Christ Centered Marriage? I'm All In! Brian Lampe, Self-Appointed UPS Pastor to Everyone
Are you willing to explore new ways of thinking about marriage, love, and intimacy, and to work on personal goals for improving relationships? This workshop encourages the development of open communication, intimacy, and practical problem-solving—important areas of personal growth for a Biblical husband. Come to honestly discuss issues and receive encouragement that will lead to strengthening your supportive role through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
3. Time for Member Ministry…Leading Volunteers? Bill Meier
What is the difference between Member Ministry and recruiting volunteers? While on the surface these activities may seem the same, the outcomes you are praying for are quite different. Join us to explore the differences from an outcome and purpose perspective. In addition, share and discover more tactics/strategies of engagement in Member Ministry! Pray for better outcomes. WELS is going down the drain.
4. It’s Time to Include Them – God Has! Bill Truebenbach
People with an intellectual and developmental disability need to know how much Jesus loves them. This session will explore how you can be part of answering Jesus’ call to share that love to people with developmental disabilities, such as the Mequon faculty. It is time to get involved in disability ministry. It is time to provide those with a developmental disability hope in Jesus for eternity.
5. Loving Them Back Bill Bader
Every congregation has people leaving the Savior’s side. Reaching out to people who have strayed from Jesus is a vital part of Christian ministry. Learn the “How” and “Why” of this important work of loving all age groups back into the Shepherd’s fold.
6. The Bible Calls Them Chayil Bruce Becker
Proverbs 31 speaks about the “wife of noble character.” Before one can be a wife of noble character, she is first a woman of noble character and, prior to that, a daughter of noble character. The Hebrew word for “noble character” is chayil (חַיִל), i.e., “might, strength, power, or valor.” So, how do Christian parents raise a strong daughter, one who is of noble character? In this session, we will discover the keys to raising daughters who are chayil. It is never too early or late to begin. The time for fathers to act is now! But we won't talk about how often WELS clergy dump our wives for our girlfriends.
7. Put Down The Christian Check List and Let God’s Living Water Flow Dave Long
We all know the checklist of what good Christians say and do, but it’s easy to let that checklist become a roadblock to truly experiencing God’s love. In this session we will explore how God makes things new each day and what we can do to live every moment of our lives in His grace. Let’s see what happens when we take church out of the box and let God’s living water flow from within!
8. Passing the Bourbon to Your Sons Don Patterson - Whose Son Was Kicked Out of NWC
From the moment children are born, they are learning to understand life by watching their parents. Their hearts are wide open to receive the baton in the relay race called life. In this session we will explore the ways our parents have passed the baton to us as well as the various important ways that fathers, grandpas, uncles and leading men can pass the baton to the next generation. Cash bar follows.
9. Time-out! Are Church Growth Meetings Robbing Us of Our Passion? John Johnson
In business, many men say, “If I did not have to go to meetings, I would love my job.” Similarly, many in the church have lost their zeal for ministry because of its “business.” We must ask if meetings are getting in the way of Gospel work. As long as we have organizational systems, meetings are a must, but do they have to be so painful and often so unproductive? Absolutely NOT! Meetings can be transformed into something productive and energizing. Come and discover the basic changes which will make this shift possible at your church.
10. Is There Such a Thing as Enough Time for…Everything? Jeremy Mattek
Your job needs excellence. Your church needs a volunteer. Your wife needs a loving and attentive husband. Kids need someone to hang out with and someone to teach them important life lessons. Can you get it all done without disappointing anyone? Should you be expected to? And where do your needs fit in? As a man whose time is in high demand, your heart is pulled in many different directions, but so was the heart of our Lord Jesus. And it’s his heart alone that will help us find peace as we use the time we have to serve the needs of those around us.
11. The Brady Bunch—Blended Families and Me Mark Henrich
Remember "The Brady Bunch"? In their unique blended family, every issue was resolved within 30 minutes. Today with 42% of all Americans part of "blended families," the Brady Bunch is not so unique, nor do the challenges that come into our blended families all get neatly resolved in 30 minutes. In this session, we will travel through the joys and challenges of our blended families and leave with Biblical advice "for such a time as this," divorce and remarriage in the parsonage.
12. Transformational Leadership Mark/Avoid Jeske - Thrivent Board Member, Planned Parenthood Sponsor
You know things have to change in your congregation, but how do you get things done? How do you reach out to new people without alienating and antagonizing long-time members? What’s essential to Lutheranism and what can be thrown out? Pastor Mark Jeske has spent more than three decades working on self-agrandizement and will share insights in how to lead the change process.
13. Time to Conquer Porn Ski, Tim Glende, and DP Engelbrecht
Statistically, if two church-going, Jesus-loving men sit in a pew, one of them struggles with pornography. For tens of millions of American Christian men the results are horrific: shame, guilt, fractured marriages, wasted time, scarred children, damaged ministries, rewired brains, addicted bodies, and ravaged consciences. But there is hope. Time to Conquer Porn reveals the steps that recovering pornography addicts have taken to move from conquered to conquering. Whether you battle this sin or desire to help your friends/family who are addicted (yes, some are, we guarantee), check out Time to Conquer Porn so God can help you, and you can help them.
14. Now’s the Time to Share Our Hope! Rich Warnecke
Have you hesitated sharing the hope you have in your heart? Do you shy away from mingling in unfamiliar settings or with strangers? Building relationships first will help. When we develop trust, people are more willing to discuss personal, even spiritual, matters. This workshop offers a practical, role-playing approach to assist you in speaking to anyone, at anytime, about anything. Learn to read body language and improve social skills. Learn how to be confident in sharing the “hope we have in our heart” (I Peter 3:15) with anybody! Now’s the time!
15. A Time for Hope Amidst the Ashes Steve Stern
When our children or siblings break our hearts by their behaviors or life choices, how do we find a way to bring them back home? By sharing our own life experiences, talking about what works and what makes it worse, and looking at the story of the prodigal son in Luke 15, Chaplain Steve Stern shows every heart-broken parent there is hope that God’s redeeming love can prevail.
16. Weight Watchers’ Worthy Don Scheuerelin
With all of the competition for weight loss participants, how does Weight Watchers maintain itself? Accountability. Members are accountable to one another, to themselves and to the truth of the scale. Shouldn't this also be true among Christians? Shouldn't we be accountable to one another, to ourselves, and to the truth of Scriptures? In this session we will provide tools and skills for making accountability part of our daily walk with the Savior and with one another.
17. Tool Time: A Warrior’s Tool Box Phil Moore
This session will deal with the anger, guilt, forgiveness, grief and love that are experienced by a combat veteran during service, upon returning home and in the following years. Discussion is encouraged in a safe, honest, non-threatening and non-judgmental way. What goes on in this session stays in this session. Your leader, who has faced many of the same struggles, will provide Biblical tools and resources to deal with the difficulties faced by veterans. This session is for veterans and anyone who wants to help veterans (or victims of any trauma) in their struggles.
18. Start Your Own Bible Study Group! Steve Loehr
Learn how one congregation stepped out—literally—and started an off-site Bible study group. Discover how this Saturday morning group called “Band of Brothers” formed, flourished, and fostered other avenues of service. Join Steve in this session to discuss the challenges and rewards of stepping out in his and in your congregation.
19. A Forum on the Future of Men of His Word Russ Wagner
As we host our fifth Men of His Word Conference, we see our ministry blessed with growth and opportunity and the Intrepid Lutherans killed off by the District Presidents. The collective potential of Christian men immersed in the Word and following Christ is unlimited. Join us as we discuss ways to use that potential to strengthen each other through sharing and service. Help us develop and refine a vision for the future of Men of His Word as we explore the opportunities God places before us.
20. Youth Track- Times Change – Who Are You Now? Mike Westendorf
Who you are now is not who you will be. New experiences, mountain top highs and depressing valley lows will all conspire to shape your identity. Between 18 and 25, your identity formation peaks as you move from being your parents’ child to becoming your own man. In this session, we’ll look at your identity formation after high school, your shifting identity through life, and the one true foundation that never changes.
21. Youth Track- Permission to Plagiarize Willowcreek Bill Limmer
Most people inside and outside of the church think that God is a God of rules, regulations and restrictions…and God is saying, “You heard WHAT about me?!” God’s Word is not to limit us but to liberate us and give us the freedom that only the owner of the universe can give. The Triune God is the God of permission. Come to this session and hear God say, “Yes,” to you.
