Wednesday, December 18, 2019


Why Would Anyone Want to Change the Name of the Church?

Dear Friends,

What’s with the name of a church? Well, today there is a significant sector of our church world that is very concerned with the name of their church.  Today many churches are renaming (rebranding) their name. They are jettisoning denominational affiliations like Baptist and Presbyterian and Methodist in favor or what some would suggest are more trendy and marketable names. Within a radius of 75 miles of our church, we find new and different sounding names of churches than we might not be accustomed to. There is Searchlight, Branch, Triumphant Life, Universal Church, Liquid, Elevate, Cornerstone, New Hope  and The Journey Church to name only a few. Take a road trip across the country and you are apt to see strange church ‘signage’ with names like  Door of Hope, The Nest of Love, The Refuge, Burning Hearts, Ignite, Oasis, The Potential Church, Wellspring, and the one I think is most unique: ReThink Life Church. 

According to the National Association of Evangelicals, “63 percent of its member churches do not include any denominational name.” (Taken from the  Internet, “The 9 Worst Kinds of Hilariously Trendy Church Names”). 

Why are churches, especially denominational churches, looking to change their names? For many it is the idea that by dropping their denominational label, they will be able to draw more of the unchurched who might be turned off by past experiences with denominational churches. For many the idea of a denominational church projects thoughts of old fashion, stuffy, uncontemporary and not relevant (hence why you have a whole group of “Relevant Churches” springing up across our country. 

Proponents of renaming churches suggest people today are looking for churches that might be described as informal, casual, and contemporary. The bottom line is they are seeking something different from the typical traditional church setting they grew up in. Some of those supporting name change, would also argue that they are more interested in talking about Christ as a reason for membership than defending or explaining the uniqueness of a particular denomination. 

I found it interesting that there is some research that reveals there are two denominations that don’t carry the baggage that some other denominational churches do, and they are Catholic and, you guessed it or maybe you didn’t, Baptist. This study by Lifeway Research also showed that “half of Americans view denominational labels  favorably, while the other half either feels negatively about them, or don’t care.” The study also concluded that “Eight out of ten unchurched adults do not feel a non-denominational name would make them more likely to consider visiting a particular church.” (Ron Sellers, President of Grey Matter, as quoted from the internet article “The 9 Worst Kinds of Hilariously Trendy Church Names.”

So, what does this all have to do with New Monmouth Baptist Church? In the interest of transparency, I would acknowledge that there have been some leaders in the church, myself included, who have often wondered if the renaming of our church would result in attracting more visitors. I suspect that sooner or later, your leadership, like the leadership in many  other churches across our land, will wrestle with this very question, and if, and when we do, we know that the topic will generate some intense and heated discussion from both sides.

Whether changing the name of a church with 150 years of tradition is a good idea or not, it needs to be thoughtfully and reasonably discussed. There are pros and cons of name change, and the question that must be foremost in our minds is what is the most effective way our church can reach our community for Christ? The name of a church may or may not be important to some people, but it will never be the most important factor in a person’s decision to attend or join a church.  The most important factor will be what takes place inside the church. If there is Christ centered preaching, leadership integrity, friendly people, strong relationships, a heart to see people come to Jesus, and a genuine love and desire to serve the community, it makes little difference what the name of the church might be. What’s inside the church will always trump the name appearing on the signboard outside.

I would be interested in hearing your thoughts on the pros and cons of church name change, but whether you are for or against such a change, let your communication be grace filled and spirit generated.

Yours in faith and fellowship,

Pastor Tom

P.S. And if the church should ever decide to move forward with a name change, I pray that it might never opt for any of the following existing churches like Fishnet Worship Center, Cowboy Church, Fun Church or the Church in the Now.

Thursday, December 12, 2019



Crossing the Home Plate of Discipleship through Small Groups


Dear Friends

If you have seen the movie, “A Few Good Men,” you probably remember the striking three-word question shouted by Colonel Jessup as he sought to defend himself against the charges of malfeasance: "Are we clear?”

Likewise, as a church we need to be asking ourselves the same question. Are we clear when it comes to communicating what we believe should be the goals and direction of our church? Church members deserve to know those goals and the process by which we seek to achieve them.  For example, if one of our goals is to ‘make disciples,’ and I hope we all can concur with this goal, then the question becomes how will we achieve this goal?  If we know the “what”-making disciples, then what is the “how”-the process for making disciples?

To use a baseball analogy, just putting the ball in play is never enough. We need to figure out how we can insure our players cross home plate. If the team is not clear on the “how to” of accomplishing the goal, we may wind up with each player using his own strategy to accomplish the goal, rather than working together in a coordinated effort to achieve that goal.

Your leadership believes that one of the most effective ways of achieving the goal of making disciples is through the formation of small groups. To that end, each of our pastors and elders are unified in their commitment to help form and foster small groups during the coming year.

A lot of discipleship strategies include the dispensing of information-what disciples need to know- largely communicated in the large group context of worship, and yes, knowing what to believe is an important part of the disciple making process. But also, of critical importance is teaching followers the importance of belonging and pointing them to those they “need to be with.” You may need to take a moment to reread this last sentence or you may miss its significance. Often the most effective venue for disciple making is found amid a loving and supportive small group environment comprised of people who are committed to love and care for each other. Following Christ involves believing, but it also means belonging, and these two aspects must never be separated.

 As much as I enjoy gathering together for worship in a large community setting like worship, I recognize that some of the deepest spiritual truths I have learned have come within a small group setting where I was challenged, exhorted, encouraged, and yes even rebuked in the interest of disciple making.

 In the future you will hear more and more about the initiation and implementation of our small group ministry, and when you do, my hope will be that you will choose to become involved.

In closing, I remind you that while Christ intended for our relationship with Him to be personal, He never intended it to be private. We need each other. I hope each one of you will consider being part of a small group when the opportunity is presented in January.

Yours in faith and fellowship,

Pastor Tom

Thursday, December 5, 2019

What 3 Senior Saints Taught Me About Ministry This Week

Dear Friends,

One of the most satisfying aspects of ministry is the opportunity to be around God’s children on a regular basis. On this past Tuesday I was blessed with a spiritual trifecta.

A personal visit and two phone calls left me with so much gratitude that I could hardly sleep that night.

I visited one of our senior saints-Ethel Halvorsen-who is in her 90’s- in a Rehabilitation Care Center in Wall. Esther used to come in every Tuesday during my first interim here at New Monmouth (yes, I was here before, and believe it or not they invited me to come back again), and she faithfully ran off audio tapes of the Sunday messages. Precise and detailed, she was a perfect fit for the position. 

This past Tuesday I walked into her room, and she was resting in bed while receiving oxygen. She was having some trouble breathing, but despite her oxygen challenge, she was in good spirits while wearing a smile on her face and sporting a twinkle in her eye. Hopefully her demeanor was an indication of her pleasure in seeing me. 

We had a wonderful time swapping personal stories, and then she changed the direction of our conversation and spoke to me about a therapy dog that had recently visited her, and so we wound up talking about our dog experiences. While I didn’t know she loved dogs the way I did, she told me about “Sockeye,” a Terrier that used to roam the rugs of her home. And then she surprised me by commenting on her aversion to dogs that had a habit of kissing their owners. We continued our conversation for a while and when I had prayed and was ready to say goodbye, something within caused me to awkwardly blurt out, “Ethel, I know you what you said about kissing dogs, but how do you feel about kissing pastors?” I was mortified as I listened to those words that just slipped from my mouth, and embarrassed by them I just stood there waiting and wondering how in the world she was going to respond to my ill-chosen question. While hugging comes naturally to me, I don’t normally go around asking people if they mind me kissing them, especially those in the hospital, so don’t worry if you ever see me slipping into your room at Riverview, kissing patients is not a part of my normal visitation protocol if you know what I mean. 

Ethel initially acted a little taken back by my question and then smiling at me she said yes, I would love a kiss, and so I bent over and kissed her on her cheek, and as I did I felt her arms tighten around my back as she hugged me in a kind of embrace that I don’t think I will ever forget. It was at that moment that I recognized that in loving her, even if doing it awkwardly, she was loving me back. As I walked out of that room, I couldn’t help but feel that she had made a significant difference in my life as I hoped I had made in hers. 

That evening I decided to call a couple of our past pastors just to let them know that I was thinking of them. I wasn’t prepared for the wonderful fellowship I would enjoy. Jonathan Bosse, who touched many lives in the years he was at New Monmouth and who always fostered’ jealousy’ within me when I would hear the stories of his legendary ability to walk into a room of 20 people and within minutes be able to recall their every name. During his pastorate with us in the 90’s, he touched many lives with his preaching gifts, and he raised up a significant number of young people who entered full time service as a result of his influence.  We shared information about our ministries and our families, and we agreed to not let so many years pass (it had been seven) since we last talked.

After talking with Jonathan, I felt the urge to call Pastor Bruce Seymour who served with us during the early part of this century and whose vision  and leadership were responsible for the erection of the Family Ministry Center. While I had previously thanked him in writing for the part he played in the construction of this magnificent ministry resource, I had never personally expressed my thanks to him. Bruce has been physically impacted by his struggle with Parkinson disease and has had to retire from his teaching position to take an administrative role within  his seminary. He had little idea of the magnitude of the ministry he left us, through the completion of the Family Ministry Center, and I was so happy to relate the impact of his leadership: Upward Basketball, Rhythm Gymnastics, Middletown Helps Its Own, Home School activities, Men’s Basketball, Fall Fest, Family Fellowship Hours, and Sandy Relief  to name a few of the programs that commemorate his legacy. I immediately could sense the pleasure he felt as I related how his vision and leadership had contributed to so many church outreach opportunities.

As I laid my head on the pillow that past Tuesday night, I could hardly contain my gratitude, as I thought to myself how blessed I am to “get” to do this kind of ministry without ever feeling I have “got” to do it,  and what a difference the two perspectives make.

Ethel, Jonathan, Bruce, thanks for all you have done to make all our lives richer, and fuller and for your service that has brought much joy to your Savior.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Pastor Tom