The Wild Goose

By Chris Percival

The Wild Goose contains biblical principles learned by coach-turned-pastor Chris Percival. His experiences are weaved through the Bible stories of Jacob, Paul, Simon Peter, and Solomon. Through a discovery that the church is just as sinful on the inside as the world is on the outside, Coach Percival surrendered to the Gospel of Grace, and discov

• Language: English
• Publisher: Chris Percival
• Release date: Apr 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9781633086395

Book preview

cover-apple.jpg

The Wild Goose

Copyright © 2021 Chris Percival. All rights reserved.

No rights claimed for public domain material, all rights reserved. No parts of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the author. Violations may be subject to civil or criminal penalties.

Unless stated otherwise, all Scriptures are taken from the King James Version of the Holy Bible © 1984 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.

All Scriptures marked

amp

are taken from the Amplified® Bible © 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.

ISBN: 978-1-63308-638-8 Paperback

978-1-63308-639-5 Ebook

Interior and Cover Design by R’tor John D. Maghuyop

1028 S Bishop Avenue, Dept. 178

Rolla, MO 65401

Printed in United States of America

To my wife Tonya:

Thank you encouraging my efforts, protecting my quiet times, and understanding my desire to carve a different path that heads to Wild Places amongst Wild People.

To My Lord, Savior, and Friend Jesus Christ: Thanks for heading into Wild Places to rescue a sinner like me. May the rest of my ministry be an outpouring of the love You have demonstrated for me on the cross.

To Kaylee and Bennett: May this book serve as a lifelong legacy of the radical nature of God's love for you. Never give up on the Church that Christ died for.

Chapter 1

The Wild Goose

Enid, Oklahoma has the best high school baseball field in the country. It hosts the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) II Baseball World Series, the Connie Mack State Tournament. The field named after a young man that loved baseball, but whose life ended early, has a romantic feel with historic charm. The field has soul. The town of Enid takes great pride in their ballpark and they love their team. It is the best baseball town anywhere. Bill Mayberry is the official head of baseball operations, and he and his team of workers host close to 300 games a year at the ballpark. It is not unusual for a little league game to break out before a summer major's game that contains as many as nine Division I players on the field. The players are accustomed to their pictures on a huge video board while having their names announced by a professional announcer as they walk up to the plate to their very own theme song. KJRC radio announces the games and players, and coaches are featured for stories and interviews from an ESPN affiliate station.

Enid’s junior high team plays on the field about ten times a year. It is a special day for a 13-year-old to play in such a unique and special setting. When those Lil fellers play, they get amped up. One spring afternoon, the players organized a pre-game prayer in left field. As an official public-school employee, I stood at a distance and listened as the players chanted the Lord's Prayer. The Leader would say, Our Father, and the team would say, Our Father. They went through the prayer with vigor, excitement, and a monk-like rhythm. When they got to the end, the leader was supposed to say, For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever, Amen. But the player who was leading the prayer messed up and forgot the ending. He paused for a few seconds and ended the prayer with, And the Holy Spirit, Amen.

I’m pretty sure it’s heresy to change The Lord’s Prayer. As an ordained Baptist preacher, I should have corrected the mistake and had the team start over for fear of God’s wrath, but I didn’t. I chuckled and praised God. When eighteen junior high baseball players bow to God on their aspirations and declare glory to God, I celebrate. When they choose to rewrite The Lord's Prayer and end with The Holy Spirit, I rejoice. The Holy Spirit is like a wild goose. It shows up whenever and wherever it pleases. It even shows up on a high school baseball field to eighteen junior high boys who don't even know all the words to The Lord's Prayer. God is The Wild Goose; He goes to whoever and whenever He pleases.

One morning when my kids were still younger, I got up early and retreated to the garage to find some much-needed time with God. I planned to read, pray, and get ready for the day. When my toddler son came into the garage and ignored my quiet time, I admit that I was irritated. I wanted to say to him, Just wait Son; God comes first. I stayed silent as he disappeared into the house. He came back with his Bible, pulled up a lawn chair, and started his quiet time. I missed my quiet time that morning, but The Wild Goose showed up and reminded me of Who God Loves and When God Loves.

Saturday mornings in the ministry often consist of getting the baptistery ready for Sunday morning. It is a tedious process to pray over, and tinker with archaic Baptist plumbing and get the water heater to work. In the middle of my frustration one morning my kids asked me, Dad can we swim and get baptized?

I said, Sure!

Their swimming excursion in the baptistery was another reminder that The Wild Goose shows up whenever and wherever it pleases.

My son was saved on the side of the road in Marlow, Oklahoma in a 2003 Chevy pickup that smelled like Taco Bell and dirty baseball clothes. What we didn't know at the time is that my Granddaddy Charley Percival was born in Marlow. The Wild Goose shows up whenever and wherever it pleases.

A few years ago, my daughter performed her ballet solo to a song called Rise Up. She had selected the song and started the dance nine months before me seeing the final and finished product for the first time. Following a very hard year in the Percival household that included my mom's death, loss of a job, a church split, a move two and a half hours away, etc., she performed Rise Up. I know Baptist’s don’t dance, but my Baptist daughter crushed it. Her dance told me that everything was going to be okay, God was still on His throne, and that our family would Rise Up from the ashes. The Wild Goose shows up whenever and wherever it pleases.

Little City, Oklahoma 2006: A former oil executive was battling terminal brain cancer. He and his wife chose to attend our church on a Sunday morning. His visit began a relationship with our church that saw him receive Jesus, get baptized, and become a devoted follower of Christ. His road to Heaven went through the small town of Little City. The Wild Goose shows up in small places and uses small-town people to make a Big Time Impact.

My mother was good. She fed, clothed, housed, and took care of me. Her gravy was the best in the country, and she supported me in my athletic aspirations. What I didn't know growing up was that Mom had bipolar disorder. One day she would be the most loving, caring, and supportive person on the earth, and the next day she would be meaner than an Oklahoma fan after a loss to Texas. She alienated every person she knew on her bad days but made up for it and reconciled with those folks on her good days. It was a constant up and down high and low bipolar life. Because of her illness, we didn’t go to church much, and our outward behavior and lifestyle didn’t portray the classic American Christian family.

I preached my mom's funeral on February 13, 2016. Contained in her Bible were randomly placed notes. She listened regularly to Charles Stanley. For example, in March of 2001, she wrote, I can say I have read every word of the Bible. I have started many things in my life, but I can say I finished the most important. Other quotes included, Because I asked for forgiveness for my sins through Jesus Christ…Our Lord shed His blood for anyone who asks…I must make a choice in Jesus Christ for peace. Below this quote, she put in capital letters TRUSTED.

Many Christians snubbed their theological noses at my mom for her bi-polar fits and lack of church attendance. It’s probably good she didn’t attend regularly. She would have caused a riot on her bad days. But on her good days, she would have brought in the lost to get saved and made quilts for the homeless. How does one explain my mother's faith combined with her struggles? The Wild Goose goes to people and places that no man goes. I’m thankful for Who God Loves and When God Loves.

When I pastored Western Heights Baptist Church in Duncan, Oklahoma, I led the church to dismiss a staff member. It had to be done. I did it as gracefully, lovingly, and generously as I knew how. This decision caused a major church dispute that culminated in a meeting of 150 people (three times larger than our average attendance on Sunday mornings). These church people came to fire the pastor because of the phone calls and views of a deacon who was related to the staff member. My family was kicked out of the church.

When we got home, we were greeted by about thirty friends. There were kids and there were ladies in their 80s. I will never forget the hugs, encouragement, and support on that day. We were kicked out of the traditional church where I had pastored, but the real church was waiting on us to love, encourage, and display to the community that Jesus loves outlaws, outcasts, outsiders, and sinners. The Wild Goose goes to whoever and whenever it pleases.

Out of this group of friends came our emotional and financial support for six months. Fellow pastors in the area promised support, but none came. The official Baptist association promised support, but none came. Our very lives were sustained and supported by these outsiders, outlaws, and outcasts. To this day, I'm absolutely in love with those that don't quite fit in with church culture but are loved and discipled by Jesus. The Wild Goose goes to who it pleases and when it pleases.

When I was called as a pastor while teaching and coaching in Edmond, Oklahoma, it was a complete shock. I had just earned a Master of Education degree and was working in the best school system in Oklahoma. Our house had equity. Our kids had friends. My wife had a great job. Although I felt the constant call of God to preach the Gospel, I was certain that a dumb coach like me was unworthy and unqualified to take on a pastoral role. I remember going into my pastor Hance Dilbeck’s office. I told him of all of my past transgressions and waited to be denied. He reminded me that Paul had been a murderer, Jacob a deceiver, and Matthew a tax collector. He said, God calls guys like you every day. I finally surrendered to the call and began my pastoral service two hours away, from one of the largest towns in Oklahoma to one of the smallest towns in Oklahoma - a place called Little City. The Wild Goose goes to whoever it pleases and whenever it pleases.

This book has been written to launch Wild Goose Ministry. This will be a ministry that goes inside the walls of churches, and outside the walls of churches. This will be a ministry that recognizes God's work inside of public schools, and outside in the oil fields of Oklahoma. This will be a ministry that seeks to recognize who God is chasing wherever and whenever He pleases. Wild Goose Ministries will be an interdenominational and Biblical entity that supports pastors who have been kicked out of their churches and seeks to love those ostracized by so-called Christian communities. It will be an organization that celebrates salvation as life's most important decision, yet will continue to nurture, disciple, and teach those who are in Christ until they are ushered into heaven. This ministry recognizes the importance of church membership, but does not give in to the tame, organized, and visionless workings of the local church. God is wild, free, and works in and through the oddest outcasts the world has ever seen. He works through murderers, liars, adulterers, fighters, fishermen, failures, and fanatics to advance His Word and grace-filled message to a hurting world because the Wild Goose goes to whoever and wherever it pleases.

Chapter 2

Why God Loves Bad Christians

I'm thankful that God loves bad Christians. For me that is my only hope. Even though I've been following the Lord for over twenty years, been called to preach, and have a seminary degree on my wall, I'm still not very good at the Christian life. At times my time with the Lord is dry or even nonexistent. I have days in the car when I'm an angry driver, and when I stub my toe on the bed, I wish I could tell you that I say something appropriate for the Andy Griffith show. It's also worth noting that I think the poor and homeless are stupid and lazy sometimes, and I've been known to be appalled at certain church members who are smothering, manipulating, controlling, and at times downright evil. I could go on. The bottom line is that I’m not that good of a Christian. At times, I’m very bad.

Before you join up with your small group and start praying for me (although I certainly need it), how is your Christian life? Are you spending consistent time with the Lord in prayer and study? Are you ministering to the poor? Are you using your gifts to edify the body of Christ? If you evaluate your walk with the Lord, is there room for improvement? Are there days when you kick the dog, pick your nose, and go slow in the fast lane just to make someone mad?

If you are