Dissertation Topic Selected...I Hope

This stack of books is small compared to the amount I'll be reading for my course work and dissertation research. Oh, by the way, I think I finally have a dissertation topic of great interest to me. The 3 Chapter Dissertation Proposal entails heavy research utilizing at least 50 sources and the writing of about 100 pages by March. So, needless to say, it should be in an area of great interest to me and something that will prove to be helpful in my ministry and in the ministry of my pastoral colleagues.

My topic will be on the authenticity, also known as ethos, of the preacher. What I want to research, prove, and apply is my hypothesis that more important to Postmodern listeners than the eloquence of the sermon is the ethos of the preacher. I hope to utilize surveys and interviews to get a "view from the pew" and show that people who hear sermons look for ethos as much as or more than eloquence. So many preachers like me spend so much time enhancing our preaching technique that we often neglect the cultivation of our character. I am already praying that God will use this topic to inspire me and my pastoral colleagues to not only preach our best but to actually be our best for the glory of God.

This topic has not been officially approved by the Doctor of Ministry Office yet, so it may get modified a bit. At any rate, I wanted my church, family and friends to know what direction I am heading in so that you can be in prayer with me. Love and thanks to you and yours.

Beeson Families Growing Together

The Beeson Pastor families have been spending lots of time together. This is not a hardship since we genuinely enjoy each other's company. Most of the pictures below show last Friday's cookout, which we're calling Grill-Apalooza. This tradition was started by last year's Beeson Pastor Class and we're contuining it...with the addition of a little testosterone driven bocci ball!

Last Saturday we Beeson Pastors went to the Asbury College Challenge Course to conquer our fears and learn to work together as a team to solve problems. We enjoyed (and I use the term loosely) leaping from a tree stand at about 30 feet above ground and zip-lining 300 feet toward an immovable tree. Call us crazy, but we had a great time.

Today we begin the Spirituality of Leadership Class with Dr. Jessen. Please pray that God would cultivate in each of us something deeper than a mere understanding of leadership theory and technique. Pray that God would inspire and challenge us to lead as Jesus did, out of a deep, intimate relationship with Father God. Enjoy the pics.

The Eagle Has Landed...In Kentucky!

Hello Friends and Family:

We have, by God's grace, safely arrived in Wilmore, KY. The other pastoral families in the Beeson Pastor Program have arrived safely as well. It has been a great joy to begin the journey with these families, knowing it will likely be a rigorous year of study and travel. Amy and I are praying that as a result of this year our heart capacity for God would increase, our heart capacity for people would increase and our skills for ministry would increase. We believe these are prayers that God is determined to answer. Please enjoy the pictures below and note that the caption is under each picture.

Here is our 2 1/2 year old, half naked princess, Lia in front of her new townhouse home.

The entire Luchetti tribe posing in front of our residence.

Here I am heading off to my first day of orientation with the Beeson Pastors...this, by the way, is just before I was to be overwhelmed by the amount of work that will be entailed this year and just before I received another 40 or so books to read for my course work.

Samuel at 11 months old enjoying our new home.

4 year old Zachary showing off his new kitchen counter stool...his "big boy" seat!

The Luchetti 5 (sounds like a boy band) hanging all over a life sized statue of John Wesley... I believe he was only 5'2" which makes me feel like I'm standing next to one of my short Italian uncles.

Here is our entire Beeson Pastor Class: (top left to right) Robert (New Mexico), Dave (Buffalo, NY), Paul (Idaho), Richard (New Zealand), Mitch (Kansas), Me (Northeastern PA); (bottom left to right) David (Cleveland, Ohio), Ian (Scotland...but no relation to Braveheart Sir William Wallace- though just as cool and thankfully not as violent), Spencer (Atlanta, GA), and Dave (New Jersey).

This pic includes our Dean Randy Jessen (top far right) who has been a phenomenal pastor to us pastors. He and his wife, Sue, recently had all of our families (which includes about 25 kids!) to their home for a Fourth of July cookout. Either they are really hospitable or a bit crazy. I think most of us will agree the former characterizes who they are.

Final Sunday At SWC Before Sabbatical

This morning I preached my final message as Senior Pastor of Stroudsburg Wesleyan Church before leaving for my one year study sabbatical to pursue a Doctor of Ministry Degree through Asbury Seminary's Beeson Pastor Program. Although it was an emotionally draining day saying goodbye, it's a relief to know that I have the honor and privilege of coming back to continue to serve this church that has literally become a family to me, Amy and the kids. The church provided a fabulous meal to say farewell to us until next May and to welcome Pastor Jason Argo, who is beginning his service as Family Life Pastor, and his wife Nicole. I am confident that the church is in the best of hands with Pastor Jason and Pastor Tim Gilbertsen, our Assistant Pastor. Below are pictures of our church family from both the 9:00 and 10:45 services this morning, as well as a Luchetti family photo taken today.

The picture above is of our son, Zachary, when he was nearly one year old. He is now nearly four. When Zach was 20 weeks in utero, we were told that he had choroid plexus cysts on his brain. The doctor told us at week 20 of the pregnancy that the cysts could be a sign of Down's Syndrome or some other brain abnormality. Well, while our little boy would have been beautiful, Down's Syndrome or not, we were extremely grateful he was born without any apparent abnormality.

About one year into his life, however, Zach was not saying as many words as our pediatrician told us he should have been saying. We were somewhat anxious that perhaps those cysts in his brain had come back to haunt us. He was saying the basic words like mom, dad, cat, dog, car and ball, but that was pretty much it. We were concerned, to say the least.

Then one day, out of no where, Zach piped up and said the word, "Jesus." I did a double take because I couldn't believe my ears. Zach said it again, "Jesus" and he kept repeating it sort of like a charismatic preacher, "Jesus Jesus Jesus." Me and Amy were laughing and crying all at the same time. It was a spectacular moment we will never forget. It seemed that after Zach learned to say the word, "Jesus," his vocabulary began to flow quickly and impressively. Once he got "Jesus," his entire vocabulary began to flow and come together.

This is really the story of our lives. Once we get "Jesus," everything else in life seems to flow. Jesus put it this way, "seek first God's kingdom and righteousness and everything else will be added to you as well." I'm learning that when I get "Jesus" in the right place, the central place, that I'm better in every other realtionship and responsibuility of my life. The adverse is also true. When Jesus is not finding the most prominent place on the plate of life's priorities, all other "words" stop flowing.

What Self Are We Feeding?

As I prepare to study for the Doctor of Ministry degree through Asbury Seminary's Beeson Pastor Program beginning this July, I have many assigned text books to read before arriving. For the Spirituality of Leadership class, I have been asked to read one of the works of Thomas Merton, a Catholic monk who wrote extensively in the mid Twentieth Century. I am by no means a Merton expert, but I'll attempt to summarize what I know of one of his major themes.

Merton differentiates between the false self and the true self. He suggests that too many of us live with masks on that cause us to live in the bondage of the false self. The false self is always busy, always buying, always bullying, always focused on the exterior non-realities of life. The true self is realized when we go beyond the exterior and discover the interior of who we are in so far as we are able to experience through contemplative reflection the Ultimate Reality who is God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Let's be honest, too many of us Christ-followers are living lives focused more on developing the exterior, mask-wearing false self than the interior, mask-shedding true self. I know this because many of my Christian friends (as well as yours truly) expend more energy on false self development than true self development. For example, many of us, like the Pharisees of Jesus' day, put forth elaborate spiritual displays when people are looking on. We pray eloquent public prayers, quote Scriptural admonitions to others, and sing with passion while gathered with the sacred Sunday assembly. Yet, when no one but God is looking on we fall asleep during prayer, neglect bible reading for days on end, and fail to deeply connect with the God of the universe because we're not willing to invest the needed time and energy for such connection.

Some sobering questions begin to surface for our reflection that help us discern whether we're developing the false self or the true self: If I continue to live as I have lived these past three days, will I feed the false self or the true self God has made me to be? Am I more concerned with what I do outwardly or who I am inwardly? Do I constantly need the approval and affirmation of others or is my contentment found through pleasing God alone?

Piety or Poverty?

As I grow older it becomes even clearer to me that I need God. Sometimes I allow my education, position, relationships or possessions to hide my need for God. But the fact is that I am as needy for God as a newborn is for milk, a poet is for inspiration, and an Italian is for pasta. I'm beginning to believe that the key to a developing and deepening friendship with Christ comes not from the awareness of my piety but my poverty without Him. Jesus would agree as He preached, "blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

I welcome your thoughts...do you agree that growth in the Christian journey has as much to do with an awareness of our need for God as anything else?