From Tuesday to Thursday this week, we will be gathering with our regional leadership team for their annual retreat. C.J. Mahaney and Jeff Purswell will be joining us for part of the retreat this year. The men on that team all live and do ministry in different areas of the USA and abroad, so this retreat is one of the most strategic opportunities of the year to pray and talk about the ministry, enjoy fellowship, and build together relationally.

The regional leadership team’s role is to help Sovereign Grace Ministries facilitate church planting and church care, as well as international ministry, so those are the areas of our ministry that we’ll be looking at together. And because we’ll all be together, the retreat will also provide a context for the regional team to give invaluable counsel and feedback to C.J., Jeff, and me.

If you think of it, would you please pray that God would enrich our time together, giving us wisdom and faith to know and do his will? Here are some of the things we’ll be talking about and need God’s help in:

• What have we learned in the past year about pastoral ministry and church planting that we can pass on to all the churches?
• How can we better equip more churches to advance the Great Commission?
• Where can we grow in supporting and strengthening pastoral teams in our local churches?

As an aside, I’m also going to present some follow-up material to the message on “Durable Partnerships” that I presented at last year’s Pastors Conference. I hope to share some of that material here on the blog after the retreat, so stay tuned. And thanks for praying for us!

Likewise, your elders at Oasis Church will be getting away for a couple days next week (June 23-25) for planning and preparation for the next ministry year. Your prayers during this time are asked for, that God would give us clarity  and direction as we look back and look ahead. Thank you!

Proverbs 30:8-9 - “… give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’ or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God.”

Wow, what a prayer. Have you ever prayed this? I have not. But I’m going to start.

“God, I don’t want either riches or poverty. If I’m rich, I will be tempted to forget you. If I’m poor, I’ll be tempted to steal. Give me food for today, and let me be completely satisfied in you.”

Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. -Psalm 90:14