Ok... so it's been a while since I've posted on my blog. I know... I'm slacking! Sorry. Anyways... today was my official last day @ LBC. It feels good to have the good bye's out of the way! No one likes good bye's. They were good to us, but we are compelled by the Holy Spirit to move on. I am ready to see what God has in store for us next. We are ready for our first day @ Mosaic!!! I really believe that God is going to grow us through this period. I hope that I can be of as much service to Mosaic, as I know Mosaic will be for me.
Pray for us... this Saturday we are going to Pensacola to scout around and pray over potential places to plant Baytown. I'm excited that we are going to start getting the ball rolling. There is definitely a lot of uncertainty in this endeavor to plant a church, but we know that God is going to provide for us beyond any expectations that Joy and I could ever have!!! I know this because God never calls us to things that he hasn't already made provisions for.
Sunday, August 31, 2008
Friday, August 22, 2008
Crazy Week...
This week has been so crazy!!! The new semester just started here at BCF, and I am already working on my third paper this week. Between my job and school I have began to get a little stressed out. OK... I am incredibly stressed out!!! It's amazing how your attitude can change when you are spread too thin. I have to catch myself and make sure that I'm not being a jerk to those around me. It's real easy to do when you justify in your head as to why you have the right to take the day off as a Christ follower. So... don't forget about the people who are watching you. You might be the only opportunity for someone to see Jesus! Let Him exude through you! Be an imitator of Christ as Paul says in Ephesians 5:1. Who knows... God might use you to change someones negative view of the church!?!?
Sunday, August 17, 2008
Bitter Sweet...
Today was a bitter sweet day for me. I announced to Leonia Baptist Church (the church that I have been serving at the last 2 years) that I would be resigning as their Student Minister. I guess you could say that it went about as well as it could go!?!? There were people that were both sad and hurt... but they understood that God was calling my wife and I to be church planters. I told them that there was no bad blood... no one drove me out... and I am not leaving for more money. I am leaving because I am compelled by the Holy Spirit to follow where He leads.
August 31st will be our last day @ LBC, & September 7th will be our first Sunday @ Mosaic Church (www.mosaiccrestview.com) in Crestview, FL. If James, the Lead Pastor @ Mosaic, and I had to give myself a title... I guess you could consider me an Associate Pastor. It will be a temporary position that is preparing my wife and I to plant our own church in Pensacola, FL in August of 2010 (you can check it out @ www.baytownchurch.org). Please pray for me, my wife, Mosaic Church, Baytown Church & the people of Pensacola.
August 31st will be our last day @ LBC, & September 7th will be our first Sunday @ Mosaic Church (www.mosaiccrestview.com) in Crestview, FL. If James, the Lead Pastor @ Mosaic, and I had to give myself a title... I guess you could consider me an Associate Pastor. It will be a temporary position that is preparing my wife and I to plant our own church in Pensacola, FL in August of 2010 (you can check it out @ www.baytownchurch.org). Please pray for me, my wife, Mosaic Church, Baytown Church & the people of Pensacola.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
WOW...
This week has been crazy! It's orientation week at the college... I have been preaching at a Youth Revival since Friday... and my in-laws are in town (realize I do love them immensely). I would like to finish my recap of the Youth Revival @ FBC Defuniak Springs.
Tuesday:
The alters were flooded once again!!! Also... one of the high school guys came up to me after the message to let me know that he also feels called into full-time vocational ministry. He feels called to be a worship leader and currently leads worship for their Student Ministry. AWESOME!!! It doesn't get any better than that! This brings our count to 2 people that have surrendered their life to the ministry!
Wednesday:
It's not a good idea to eat Pizza Hut before teaching! Very rough on the stomach! I had the opportunity counsel with one of the students before the service, and then the same student ended up giving his life to Christ during the invitation! WOOOHOOO!!! He said that he had been wrestling with this for quit some time and was finally ready to give his life to Jesus!!! Once again... it doesn't get any better than that!
Overall it was an amazing week! It was well worth the fact that it added to the craziness of my already busy schedule! I can't wait to see what God is going to do in the lives of these next generation leaders that have surrendered their lives to Christ!!!
Tuesday:
The alters were flooded once again!!! Also... one of the high school guys came up to me after the message to let me know that he also feels called into full-time vocational ministry. He feels called to be a worship leader and currently leads worship for their Student Ministry. AWESOME!!! It doesn't get any better than that! This brings our count to 2 people that have surrendered their life to the ministry!
Wednesday:
It's not a good idea to eat Pizza Hut before teaching! Very rough on the stomach! I had the opportunity counsel with one of the students before the service, and then the same student ended up giving his life to Christ during the invitation! WOOOHOOO!!! He said that he had been wrestling with this for quit some time and was finally ready to give his life to Jesus!!! Once again... it doesn't get any better than that!
Overall it was an amazing week! It was well worth the fact that it added to the craziness of my already busy schedule! I can't wait to see what God is going to do in the lives of these next generation leaders that have surrendered their lives to Christ!!!
Monday, August 11, 2008
Never Ceasing to Amaze...
Sorry for my absence in the blogging world lately... I do have a good excuse though. I have had the priviledge of speaking at a Youth Revival @ FBC Defuniak Springs in the panhandle of FL. I would just like to say that the youth there are amazing. They are a cool group of kids that seem to love Jesus A LOT!!! Let me just give you a recap of last night and tonight.
Sunday night:
There were more adults than youth there, and it was obvious that some of the adults were not into the "concert" style of worship... but they survived and from the response I got afterwards, they were happy to see the kids jumping up and down worshiping Jesus (I was too)!!!
Monday night:
WOW... I was so pumped to get to teach on the subject of "Answering The Call". It was like I was a shaken up bottle of soda ready to explode... and I did!!! At the end the alters were flooded with students (nothing beats moments like that)!!! After all... this is the next generation of leaders! At the end I asked for anyone who felt called to full time vocational ministry to come down... (I really felt like there was someone there that needed to step out). That's when a 12 year old middle school girl came down and shared with me that she feels called to be a full time missionary to France!!! I couldn't even tell you what the back of my hand looked like at 12! She is already learning the books of the Bible in French... and plans to start learning the language soon. She will be going on a mission trip to Peru next year and needs our prayers! How cool is that!!! After hanging out with the students afterwards... I realized that they really seem to be grasping a lot from the past couple of nights. Very cool!!!
I am excited to see what God has in store for the last two nights of the Youth Revival. Please pray that God has his way... both with myself, and the students. By the way... I love the song "God of the City"! It has been our theme song for the week and has really ministered to me!
Sunday night:
There were more adults than youth there, and it was obvious that some of the adults were not into the "concert" style of worship... but they survived and from the response I got afterwards, they were happy to see the kids jumping up and down worshiping Jesus (I was too)!!!
Monday night:
WOW... I was so pumped to get to teach on the subject of "Answering The Call". It was like I was a shaken up bottle of soda ready to explode... and I did!!! At the end the alters were flooded with students (nothing beats moments like that)!!! After all... this is the next generation of leaders! At the end I asked for anyone who felt called to full time vocational ministry to come down... (I really felt like there was someone there that needed to step out). That's when a 12 year old middle school girl came down and shared with me that she feels called to be a full time missionary to France!!! I couldn't even tell you what the back of my hand looked like at 12! She is already learning the books of the Bible in French... and plans to start learning the language soon. She will be going on a mission trip to Peru next year and needs our prayers! How cool is that!!! After hanging out with the students afterwards... I realized that they really seem to be grasping a lot from the past couple of nights. Very cool!!!
I am excited to see what God has in store for the last two nights of the Youth Revival. Please pray that God has his way... both with myself, and the students. By the way... I love the song "God of the City"! It has been our theme song for the week and has really ministered to me!
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
What's your excuse???
What's your excuse for not getting in the game??? How long will it take before you run out of excuses as to why your not serving others at the church you attend??? How long before you decide that you want to make a difference in somone else's life??? How long before you decide to love the unlovable???
etc, etc, etc,....................................
How long before you run out of excuses???
etc, etc, etc,....................................
How long before you run out of excuses???
Visitors...
This is a pretty cool blog that I read today by Seth Godin, a marketing wiz. This blog is very applicable to the church. Don't ignore the new people, but at the same time... don't dumb down what you're doing to the point that there is no longer any cost to following Christ. Make it easy for people to ask questions. They won't have any questions unless there is some substance to what it is you are talking about. Churches ought to create environments that cause people to ask questions... and where the environment is safe enough that they feel comfortable enough to ask those questions that may arise. (Many churches are comprised with people who are so pompous and arrogant that new people don't feel comfortable asking them). There is a link to Seth's blog under the "blogs i read" section if you want o check it out.
Should you ignore the n00bs?
In the old days, a common DOS warning ended with, "...press any key."
And yes, there were plenty of tech support calls that asked, "where is the ANY key?"
Every interaction with your public runs the risk that some people just won't get it. They won't understand the protocol at your jazz club, or figure out how they use that new thing you just built. They won't get your verbal shorthand or they'll be frustrated by your presumption that they're insiders.
One approach is to n00b-proof your offerings. To create products and services so simple and so well-explained that every single person will get it. Big warnings, extra paragraphs of copy, limited features... make it idiot-proof.
The problem with this approach is that you can never be simple enough. And of course, the bigger problem: Once you dumb it down so every single person gets it, you bake out the magic and the mystery and the elegance. Simple example: it's not obvious how to use an iPhone, not obvious what to do when you walk into a church for the first time, not clear what to do when you visit Facebook for the first time either. At the symphony, should there be big applause signs so that people don't clap at the wrong time?
Great design is intuitive. Great design eliminates confusion. But not for everyone, not all the time. The words and interactions you use often have a sophistication that will confuse some portion of your audience.
Why not consider making it easy for the confused to ask for help? And treat them with respect when they do. If you don't create a little confusion, it's unlikely you've built something remarkable.
And to go one step further: sometimes it's okay to lose the n00bs. Not in an arrogant way (except for some brands) but in a way that says, "this might just not be for you..."
Should you ignore the n00bs?
In the old days, a common DOS warning ended with, "...press any key."
And yes, there were plenty of tech support calls that asked, "where is the ANY key?"
Every interaction with your public runs the risk that some people just won't get it. They won't understand the protocol at your jazz club, or figure out how they use that new thing you just built. They won't get your verbal shorthand or they'll be frustrated by your presumption that they're insiders.
One approach is to n00b-proof your offerings. To create products and services so simple and so well-explained that every single person will get it. Big warnings, extra paragraphs of copy, limited features... make it idiot-proof.
The problem with this approach is that you can never be simple enough. And of course, the bigger problem: Once you dumb it down so every single person gets it, you bake out the magic and the mystery and the elegance. Simple example: it's not obvious how to use an iPhone, not obvious what to do when you walk into a church for the first time, not clear what to do when you visit Facebook for the first time either. At the symphony, should there be big applause signs so that people don't clap at the wrong time?
Great design is intuitive. Great design eliminates confusion. But not for everyone, not all the time. The words and interactions you use often have a sophistication that will confuse some portion of your audience.
Why not consider making it easy for the confused to ask for help? And treat them with respect when they do. If you don't create a little confusion, it's unlikely you've built something remarkable.
And to go one step further: sometimes it's okay to lose the n00bs. Not in an arrogant way (except for some brands) but in a way that says, "this might just not be for you..."
Monday, August 4, 2008
Putting Pharisees in check...
I thought that this was a pretty bold message from Steven Furtick, lead pastor @ Elevation Church in Charlotte, NC. (http://www.elevationchurch.org/) It is about time somebody stood up to man-made religiosity! I liked it and just thought that I would share it with everyone. Hope you like it... let me know what you think???
"Kris Kross will make you jump..."
I think that many of us remember the young rap group that inspired all of us to wear our clothes backwards in the early 90's (if you aren't old enough to remember them... please don't comment... you'll make me feel old). They went by the name Kris Kross... and in one of their songs, (their biggest... actually their only hit), they said, "Kris Kross will make you JUMP, JUMP".
If Kris Kross could make us jump, (& don't lie... you know you jumped every time that song came on), then what is God capable of doing??? Well... I'm glad you asked! Kris Kross may have made you jump... but God requires believers to LEAP. There are times in life where God calls you and I to a leap of faith. The difference is... it was easy (& fun) to jump when Kris Kross' song came on, but it's not easy to leap when God calls us to. See when God calls you and I to take a leap of faith... He is asking you and I to step out of our comfort zones and trust Him with all we have.
Jesus' 12 disciples know this first hand because that's what they had to do in Matthew 4: 18-22. Jesus asked them to drop their nets... aka their lively hood... and follow Him. Guess what... they did. Was it easy??? I would venture to say that it wasn't all that easy. Was it worth it??? I guarantee they would say "HECK YEAH!!!" People go out of there way all the time in life for things with a lot less eternal significance than following Jesus... So why not take that leap of faith and obey God's calling on your life!?!?!?!? What's God asking you to relinquish for the sake of following Him??? I guarantee you it will be worth it!
If Kris Kross could make us jump, (& don't lie... you know you jumped every time that song came on), then what is God capable of doing??? Well... I'm glad you asked! Kris Kross may have made you jump... but God requires believers to LEAP. There are times in life where God calls you and I to a leap of faith. The difference is... it was easy (& fun) to jump when Kris Kross' song came on, but it's not easy to leap when God calls us to. See when God calls you and I to take a leap of faith... He is asking you and I to step out of our comfort zones and trust Him with all we have.
Jesus' 12 disciples know this first hand because that's what they had to do in Matthew 4: 18-22. Jesus asked them to drop their nets... aka their lively hood... and follow Him. Guess what... they did. Was it easy??? I would venture to say that it wasn't all that easy. Was it worth it??? I guarantee they would say "HECK YEAH!!!" People go out of there way all the time in life for things with a lot less eternal significance than following Jesus... So why not take that leap of faith and obey God's calling on your life!?!?!?!? What's God asking you to relinquish for the sake of following Him??? I guarantee you it will be worth it!
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