Ed Stetzer Last Service Video from Ed Stetzer on Vimeo.

Here is a video that my church showed last Sunday to look back over the last two years. My kids loved it. And, to be honest, it got to me as well. Thanks, Chad Conger, for the hours it took to put it together.

Some of the references include "inside jokes," like the "Cheese It" reference in my Financial Freedom series.

The "Cheese It" illustration was based on the idea that my daughter, Jaclyn, was convinced that there was a limited amount of Cheese Its, but as her father, I owned the Cheese Its on a thousand hills. We often think that God can't meet our needs, so we fear and hoard. When you think about your "stuff" all day, it takes over (watch for the big box) and is eventually a prison (watch for the Cheese It prison).

By the way, you can get that Financial Freedom series for free. Click here for more information.

The "weight loss" vignette was pretty neat to watch and inspired me to take the next step and run a half marathon. More information about my weight loss journey is here.

I am thinking about writing an article about "Things I Learned While Preaching at a Traditional Megachurch." I learned much. And, I will miss being there. As a contemporary church planter and pastor, I was a little anxious at the beginning, but they welcomed me and l think we learned a lot together.

I don't own a suit anymore. It is way too big. So, I only have a blazer and an untucked shirt left. But, that's seemed to be OK as long as we studied the Word and focused on the Lord!

I shared this message July 5th at my church (weekly audio is here). This was the week before the church considered a new pastor. (He preached on Sunday and I will share his name in a few days.)

My focus was helping the church to consider both the qualifications and call of a pastor. That certainly could take weeks, but I wanted to share an overview that I hoped would be helpful at this crucial time in the church's life.

Here is the video:

What's a Pastor to Do? from Ed Stetzer on Vimeo.

Here are my notes:

Recently I have the privilege of speaking at the Innovate Conference, sponsored by Thomas Road and hosted by my friend Jonathan Falwell. I shared a message that was a modified version of a message I gave at my church. Since this was to pastors and church leaders, it is written and communicated that way.

The video and notes are below. If it is helpful to you, feel free to use it in any way that advances the work of the Kingdom.

"Secret Sin and Spiritual Power" from Ed Stetzer on Vimeo.

My outline:

This week, the pastor search committee of my church announced that they have a candidate. Assuming that goes ahead, I will be finishing up as "interim Teaching Pastor" there in early August. It is a great church and I will miss delivering my messages there. But, I am, after all, an "interim" and eventually that comes to an end.

Here are some pics of the church from a recent blog post (see that post here).

So, that leaves me one message before the new pastor comes "in view of a call."

I should probably explain what "in view of a call" means. It is a common expression in low church evangelical circles where churches vote on the man who may serve as their pastor. For some of you, this will make you a little nervous. You want some elders to make that appointment-- after all, they know better.

Well, let me explain how it works in low church evangelicalism.

First, before the church really starts looking for a pastor they establish a Pastor Search Committee. (At this church it is called a "Pastor Selection Committee," a term that makes it a little confusing since they don't actually "select" but rather "nominate.") The Pastor Search Committee is elected by the church and does the hard work of finding a pastoral candidate whose gifts and personality will best serve the body.

Second, the PSC starts working by consulting other leaders and pastors, listening to on-line messages, listening to the church family through surveys and listening sessions, visiting churches, and contacting potential pastors. In a church like ours (with about 8000 members) that takes a while. For example, the PSC had over 50 listening sessions with church members.

Third, the PSC prays a lot and seeks to discern whom to ask to be considered. Once they are in agreement they approach that person.

Fourth, that person, after much prayer and examining the church, eventually agrees to be nominated by the PSC to the church (which happened this week).

Fifth, If the church votes "yes," the pastor then comes "in view of a call." In other words, they come to preach with the intent ("in view of") being called as the pastor.

But, for you non-congregationalists out there (who need Bibles, grin), the church actually votes to call the pastor. After the vote (which usually has to be 75%) the candidate is then informed of the results and agrees to come (or not). Then, the nominee is no longer a nominee and informs his church that he is leaving to pastor another church.

Then, the interim packs up his books and gets out of the way. ;-)

That will leave me with three or four messages after he accepts that call but before he comes and starts as pastor. I need time to pack up those books, after all. ;-)

So, my question for you is this: what should I preach on for this Sunday and then for the next several? Any suggestions? I can work through a text or share a series of texts, but I am very open to suggestions and believe that in many counselors there is wisdom.

First, what should I speak on NEXT week, July 5-- the week before he comes in view of a call. (I am out on July 12th and my friend and co-author Philip Nation is speaking that day.)

Second, what should I preach on after (and assuming) the church calls and he accepts on July 19th. The congregation votes that evening and, assuming the vote is positive, he is then to start his transition and i will bring several more messages. So, what can I preach on pointing to the new pastor.

Jump into the comments and share your thoughts.

As I mentioned yesterday, we are adding more video here at the blog. Here is my last message from my church. I working through Ephesians 4:17-32 with a particular emphasis on the difference between the gospel and moralism:

Living Life - Ed Stetzer from Ed Stetzer on Vimeo.

If you are interested in listening to my weekly messages, you can do so here and they are also at iTunes.