What Happened at First

Latest Episodes:

Stand - Episode 7 Sep 18, 2023

Show notes

This episode will feature:

- By the fall of 2022, by and large, First Baptist was on the other side of the hardships of change with a renewed sense of joy in the church.

- However, cultural developments, especially in the city of Jacksonville, called for the church to take a stand for the truth through FBC’s Statement on Biblical Sexuality.

- How was this statement received both inside and outside the church? And how did First Baptist respond to the attention received?

- If you have any questions or would like more information about what was discussed on this episode, please submit your questions to WhatHappened@fbcjax.com, we would love to hear from you!

Q+A - Episode 6 Sep 15, 2023

Show notes

This episode will include:

- During the hard days, there were a lot of personal attacks on you, some of the most heartbreaking parts of the podcast; however, are when you talk about the impact on your family. One listener wrote in and asked how you and your wife separated the roles of being a pastor and pastor’s wife from the roles of being dad and mom. Can you talk about how you did that?

- Part of the time of transition at First Baptist involved downsizing our staff. You talk about this in episode 5 and reference it again in episode 6. One listener wrote in response to this information and asked about the nuts and bolts of hiring and firing in a church context. Particularly, they asked about the use of NDA's. They wanted to know if it's biblical for Christian churches and organizations to use NDAs and if that’s part of our hiring and firing process at First Baptist.

- One listener wrote in response to all the sinful behavior that occurred toward you and our church during the time of transition. They asked about the role of church discipline at this time. Were any members pursued or disciplined by the church for their divisive behavior?

- In episode 6, you encourage people to not have a consumer mentality with church but then say it is okay for some people to leave when the preferences that brought them to the church in the first place have been radically altered but the core might still be faithful. These two things seem contradictory, could you help me think through more of the details of what you are trying to say?

- You said in the leadership podcast this week about mistakes you made that you should have left because of the weight it was on your family. There are many pastors who are constantly evaluating this in their lives. Can you give some principles on evaluating when this is too much on their family?

- There are people listening to this podcast, who have unrestored relationships but who deeply desire restoration. I know that is part of your story. What encouragement would you give people in a similar position to you?

What Mistakes Did I Make - Bonus Episode 6 Sep 13, 2023

Show notes

This episode will feature:

- In leadership, it is inevitable that your plans will change, and failures will happen around you that are outside of your control. This was true for FBC as COVID hit in the spring of 2020.

- As the external failures increase, your leadership weaknesses will show, and you are going to come up short as a leader.

- Dr. Lambert shares twelve mistakes that he made as a leader and the many lessons he learned the hard way through those tumultuous years.

- If you have any questions or would like more information about what was discussed on this episode, please submit your questions to WhatHappened@fbcjax.com, we would love to hear from you!

Stay - Episode 6 Sep 11, 2023

Show notes

This episode will feature:

- In the spring of 2020, the complex changes at First Baptist were made even more difficult as the global impact of COVID affected all the plans for revitalization.

- Yet while the situation got increasingly tumultuous, Dr. Lambert chose to stay and shares several reasons why you should try to stay at a church going through change, as well as some legitimate reasons why it might be time to leave, and bits of advice on how to leave well.

- First Baptist Church members will testify to the great things that the Lord has done and the blessing they now see on the other side of the trials of change.

- If you have any questions or would like more information about what was discussed on this episode, please submit your questions to WhatHappened@fbcjax.com. We would love to hear from you!

Q+A - Episode 5 Sep 08, 2023

Show notes

Here are the questions asked in this episode:

- How can the narrative be taken control of by a small group of people to spread lies like this?

- One listener wrote in and asked about another rumor they heard about our church. The rumor is that one of the reasons that people were leaving First Baptist was because it started teaching reformed theology. Is that true? How would you respond to that statement?

- If Dr. Brunson wasn’t forced out, why did he leave? What happened?

- You mentioned in this episode that you received a legal letter, and then you sought legal counsel from a law firm in town. One listener wrote in and asked why you did that in light of Paul’s command in 1 Corinthians 6 forbidding believers to take each other to court.

- How do you discern which lies you must respond to as a leader in the church in this day and age?

- It's obvious there are people who are listening to the podcast each week who disagree with you, and so you have an opportunity to talk to them. You have their ear. What do you want to say to them?

- The other group of people are those who – again – are having their relationships get complicated over this episode. They are seeing things on social media, and they are getting stressed by this. They want to know why we are doing this again. What should they do? How do they navigate this?

Why Do People Tell Lies? - Episode 5 Sep 06, 2023

Show notes

- In the trial of Jesus, many people brought numerous false accusations which ultimately led to his crucifixion.

- During the midst of change and transition, there will be those who will seek to destroy ministry leaders through deception and get others to join in the proverbial crucifixion.

- Dr. Lambert will explain three reasons why people lie when it comes to ministry change, as well as provide some guidelines for ministry leaders and ministry members on how to handle falsehood, especially in our digital age.

- If you have any questions or would like more information about what was discussed on this episode, please submit your questions to WhatHappened@fbcjax.com, we would love to hear from you!

Lies - Episode 5 Sep 04, 2023

Show notes

This episode will feature:

- People lied about Jesus during his ministry, and people will lie about the leaders of his church, especially in the midst of change and transition.

- Dr. Lambert will share some of the many lies that were swirling around the church as he and other leaders sought to make the necessary changes at First Baptist.

- While most of the dishonesty was intentionally unaddressed, there was one lie that was so big with far-reaching ramifications that it required a response. What was that lie, and what was the response?

- If you have any questions or would like more information about what was discussed on this episode, please submit your questions to WhatHappened@fbcjax.com, we would love to hear from you!

Q+A - Episode 4 Sep 01, 2023

Show notes

- One of the main themes of this episode is about people leaving our church.

- There are people listening to this podcast who are in churches going through painful change. They are thinking about leaving. Are there good reasons to leave? What are some bad reasons to leave? Talk to those folks.

- There are people who *started* attending our church in the season of pain. They show up, realize that there are hard things going on, and are trying to decide if they should stay. Did that ever happen at First Baptist? How did you handle that? Would you encourage people to go to a church in a painful transition?

- There are pastors listening to this podcast who have had close friends leave the church. What would you say to them after a close friend or even staff member has left over a disagreement? What encouragement would you give them?

- Some of our church members have relationships with folks who *really* don’t like our church and, honestly, you and the change you led. It makes their relationships complicated. Sometimes it’s family members, friends, co-workers, etc. What advice would you give them as this podcast releases and they try to navigate relationships that are important to them?

- A few episodes ago you told us that you made a commitment not to blame anyone for the trouble of a church. But the reality is that whenever you are the new guy who is changing things – you are changing something that someone else created and oversaw. How do you change things that your predecessors oversaw while still honoring them?

- Some pastors get really messed up from this type of pain – how do you keep trusting people and loving people after experiencing this sort of tumult?

- If you have any questions or would like more information about what was discussed on this episode, please submit your questions to WhatHappened@fbcjax.com. We would love to hear from you!

How You Can Prepare Your Church For Pain? - Bonus Episode 4 Aug 30, 2023

Show notes

This episode will feature:

- Change comes with loss and pain, and there are no guarantees that your plans will work.

- There is a need to focus on the long game in a way that looks through the details of logistics to see the recovery of the vision and priorities of the church for a new day.

- Dr. Lambert will discuss the mission of First Baptist, which is to Reach all Jacksonville with all of Jesus for all of life, along with the seven core values and the five faithful activities of all Christians. Focus 2020 series on the mission and core values of FBC: http://whathappenedatfirstbaptist.com.

- Practices and programs will come and go, but faithfulness to biblical truth and a commitment to pointing people to Jesus must never change.

- If you have any questions or would like more information about what was discussed on this episode, please submit your questions to WhatHappened@fbcjax.com, we would love to hear from you!

Pain - Episode 4 Aug 28, 2023

Show notes

This episode will feature:

- Change is necessary, but it is going to hurt.

- First Baptist Jacksonville needed to make some drastic changes or the church was going to die. Yet those changes were made in hopes that on the other side of the pain would be a renewed season of ministry faithfulness and further advancement of the gospel.

- Dr. Lambert will share four different kinds of pain that he and others in the church experienced through the loss of relationships and the fears that came with the uncertainty of the future. September 8 Recap Video http://whathappenedatfirstbaptist.com .

- If you have any questions or would like more information about what was discussed on this episode, please submit your questions to WhatHappened@fbcjax.com, we would love to hear from you!

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