Christmas White

It is the Christmas season. I know I haven't written much lately and it won't get much better until January. However, here is the last Sunday's advent devotion and I will post this Sunday's soon. Thanks for reading.


Christmas White

Isaiah 1:18
18 "Come now, let us reason together," says the LORD. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.

2 Corinthians 5:17

17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
White is often thought of as the color of purity and innocence. These are two of the most fitting words to use in describing Baby Jesus. He was and is pure. He grew up and lived a sinless life. His innocence allowed Him to be the perfect sacrifice for the sin of the world. He did what none of us could ever do. Wipe our own sin away.

The color white reminds us that God thinks we are worth His time. He thinks enough of us to clean up our cluttered hearts and make us pure because He is pure. We are allowed to start all over just like a blank sheet of paper waiting for adventures to be written on its surface.

Sometimes we may be tempted to think of the blankness of the color white. White may seem a little boring and dull but remember it is the background of white that allows the other colors to show up best. When God forgives us we have a new background of life so that all of our experiences may be the best they can be because we are forgiven.

This Christmas let us celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior who makes the color white an exciting part of our walk with Him.

Christmas Green

Isaiah 7:14
Deuteronomy 31:8

The Color Green reminds us of life throughout the Christmas season. The Christmas trees, the holly, mistletoe, and ivy allow us to fill our homes with some of God’s creation, reminding us that He is with us.

The green of Christmas tells us the giver of life himself is here. This season we celebrate the physical birth of Immanuel…God with us. God promises throughout His scriptures that He will never leave us or forsake us.

The fragrance of evergreen permeates each corner of our homes. Imagine the ability of the Holy Spirit to invade every corner of our lives.

As we walk through the Christmas season allow the presence of the color green to remind you of the presence of a loving God who wants to fill you with life and life abundantly.

what was...not what is

The past is a funny thing. It is a beast that can be tamed but when let loose to run wild can be a crippling force in our lives.



Case in point...a few years ago my Granny passed away on Christmas day. She had been sick for quite a while. She was in her 90's. Her death did not catch any of us by surprise but it was still very difficult when it happened. We had a beautiful funeral service for her and celebrated her life with friends and family. However, the next year the thought was how will we celebrate Christmas knowing this is the day the enemy of death had the chance to show its face again. We made the decision that yesterday's sadness will not stop today's celebration. Afterall, this is the day we celebrate the birth of Jesus.



Without Jesus my granny's life would have been a waste. However, she knew Jesus. Jesus knew her and she lived a full and purposeful life. Sometimes we just need to make up our minds and ask ourselves how long are we going to allow something in the past to impede the present or the future.



I can't change the past. The future isn't here yet. Today is the only oppotunity I have to make any decisions.

Brunswick

We just had a great experience in Brunswick, GA this weekend. I was asked to come speak at the AC Church there on Friday night and Sunday morning. Both services were AWESOME! I believe there is a growing excitement there to reach out to those God is putting in their path and that gets me pumped up!

Saturday we took Natalie to the Christmas parade downtown. She kinda got into it but I think she still may be a little too young to truly appreciate it. We had the chance to reconnect with old high school friends all weekend. Most of whom I haven't seen since we graduated. Allison loved that part of the weekend as she continuously tried to get stories out of people about my high school days.

Overall it was a great weekend. Keep praying for the Brunswick AC Church as they continue to seek God's guidance in the direction they should go.

Christmas Red

This year I'm trying something different and a little risky for our Advent Wreath devotions for WJACC. I am writing them myself. The theme this year is "The Colors of Christmas". Here is the first one we used yesterday.

Christmas would not be the same without the color "red". Holly berries, Santa's red suit, Rudolph the Red-nosed reindeer, red-velvet cake, even the "Home Sweet Home" candles from Yankee Candle Company fill the holiday season with brightness and cheer. There is no overlooking the color red. It is bold and it is intense.

Imagine the red in Mary's cheeks when discovering she was chosen to carry the Messiah. The excitement she felt must have been overwhelming. To be the one to carry the Christ child in her womb meant she was also carrying within her God's plan of hope and salvation for the world.

The color red is so often linked with blood and sacrifice. Christmas celebrates the birth of the only one whose sacrifice made a difference for the entire world. The sacrifice of Jesus continues to make a difference today for all who believe.

The color red reminds us of hope. Reminds us of salvation. Reminds us that no matter how intense our sin may be Jesus' sacrifice can and does still cover it with forgiveness and grace.

Let the red of Christmas remind us all of hope and the salvation found in the Son of God.

Good Day

At the moment I am sitting at my in-laws house in West Virginia. The air is cool but not cold. The leaves that remain on the trees are a variety of colors. There are family and friends that are happy to see us and I have just finished a great cup of coffee with "gingerbread" holiday creamer. Today is a good day. It is a chance to take a moment and breathe. A chance to watch Allison and Natalie's Aunt Sarah attempt to take Natalie's holiday picture. A chance to watch some college basketball. A chance to do a little reading. A chance to blog. A chance to just "be". Today is a good day.

Holiday season

It's official...we are in the midst of craziness. The holiday season is here. Mall parking lots are beginning to fill a little more quickly. I can almost smell turkey as I sit here typing...and I haven't blogged for two weeks. For those of you who read my blog regularly I apologize. If you didn't even notice then "welcome back":-)

I had the chance to meet my brother's fiance this week. The two of them seem like a great match for each other. Just the fact that they are both willing to register at Bass Pro Shop says so much. Stacy is a sweetheart and I look forward to calling her "sister".

On a completely different note...
This Sunday morning we are going to look at a topic that is not uncommon for the Sunday before Thanksgiving. *sarcastic grin placed here* We are going to tackle the monster of "FEAR". What are we afraid of and why? Sometimes it's easy to recognize fear in the big things. Death, Divorce, Sickness, Depression, Parenting...etc. But what about the things that sneak up on us? What about fear of expectations (ours or others)? What about fear that someone else will do something wrong? What about fear of disappointing God? What about fear of messing things up?

The more I think about fear the more I can hear Jesus tell me..."My GRACE is bigger than your fear." Wow!!!!

I invite you all to be here at WJACC this Sunday to celebrate the Grace of Jesus.

Monday randomness

We had a good "Homecoming" here at WJACC yesterday. "Calvary's Voice" did a great job with their portion of the service. I don't tend to be much of a southern gospel fan but they were pretty good. If you like southern gospel then you should check them out.

The food yesterday was awesome! I love church pot-luck dinners!

I think the time change this weekend was for everyone but us. Between Natalie and the dogs we really didn't see much of that "extra" hour of sleep Saturday night. Oh well...maybe next year.

Two times this past week I saw two different people make decisions concerning other people that they felt God was leading them in. They didn't necessarily know all of the "why" behind it but they made the decision anyway. Both times God made it very evident that was the right way to go. The fruit of this decernment showed that these individuals are listening to God and what He has to say. These are people who show true leadership. The one most crucial characteristic you must have as a leader is to listen to God.

We have entered the holiday season and I am feeling the anticipation right now. Holidays mean parties and food. These are a few of my favorite things...yeah!!!!

Money and Sex

Yesterday's service went well. Recently it hit me that while couples may fight about sex and money those are two topics we hear so little about at church. I know we tend to address these things in the contexts of other "broader" issues like stewardship, relationships, or something else. However, the question in my head lately is "why". Why not hit these topics head on? What does the B-I-B-L-E say about sex and money? Yesterday we tackled money head on. We not only hit the well known passages like "give to Caesar what is Caesar's...etc" but also passages where Jesus tells the pharisees what He thinks about their tithing but forgetting things like justice and faithfulness. Now I think I've started something with this "head's on" approach. I guess I better get to work on the "sex" sermon next.

Leadership revisited

I want to thank everyone for their responses to my leadership question. Some left comments here on the blog while other called to discuss the question. Either way some productive conversations have spun off this. I want to encourage everyone to continue exploring this issue.
Here are a few bullet points that have crossed my mind lately in this discussion.

• What is the difference between church leadership and ministry leadership?
• Can a ministry leader learn certain techniques and people skills from a business leader? (and vice versa)
• Can a business actually be a ministry? If so, what is the goal of the business?

I hope these things do not muddy the waters any but rather help spur on more thinking.

On a completely different note. Natalie's pictures that were taken at daycare a few weeks ago will be in today and tomorrow. I have not seen them yet but I'm sure one will find its way onto the blog somehow. She's talking more and more every day and recently she has discovered that shrill scream that little kids can project. Isn't life grand. :-)

leadership

Here is a question that has come up recently. What, if any, is the difference between business leadership and ministry leadership? I don't want to influence anyone's response with my own comments at this point. I know what my opinion is but I really would like some feedback from others. Feel free to make a comment here, e-mail me (theodude@juno.com) or just give me a call. I'm looking forward to your responses.

Starbucks Jesus

Do you believe in him? Do you put your life behind your belief? Those are the two questions going through my mind lately. If I say I truly believe in Jesus do my choices reflect that belief? Am I satisfied with simply believing in comfort or am I comfortably uncomfortable following Jesus whereever He is going? Afterall, Jesus is limitless in His creativity. Just when we think He can't surprise us anymore He does. So what does that look like in every day life? I believe it begins with a willingness to ask "what if" type questions. (check out Allison's "what if " entry)http://www.sidestreet-allison.blogspot.com/

As we ask what if questions we begin to see the places where the only thing we have to hold on to is Jesus Himself and we really the discover the work that He is doing in, around, and through you. The work that is performed to impact others.

This Sunday we will explore this a little further in the sermon "Starbucks Jesus".

C3

Yesterday I had the chance to attend the Creative Church Conference led by Ed Young Jr. here in Jacksonville. It was AWESOME! Ed is a great communicator and has really inspired me over the past several years to think more creatively about church, preaching, and ministry as a whole. Here are a few bullet points I took from the day.

• God is all about creativity-He is the Creator.


• Church should be comfortably uncomfortable.


• Leaders take people where they need to be not always where they want to be.


• Don't be afraid to ask hard questions and be ready to listen, listen, listen.


• Surround yourself with the right "T.H.E.Y"-Tough, Honest, Encouraging, Yielded to God.


• My favorite line was....be consistently inconsistent. (As far as methodology...in other words don't be predictable...the gospel never changes)

It was a great experience and I highly recommend the C3 conference for anyone who is considering it.

Eric, exercise, wisdom, etc.

*This weekend we had the chance to see Eric in concert here in FL. Allison and I got to go backstage and visit with him for a few minutes. It was great to catch up with Eric for a little bit. It's always great to see someone realize their dreams. If you like your Country music "rockin" then Eric is your man. Check out his link below to see when he's in concert near you.

*My month of September started out as the "month of exercise". It was quickly derailed by an ear infection and various other ailments. So, I'm going to try to exercise every day for the month of October. Hopefully I will stay well.

*Today was a good day at church. Our Sunday School class is attempting to answer the question "what does God say about wisdom?". Today was a really good discussion that will actually be continued next week. Good stuff. Who knows how long this train of thought will go?

*Since Florida lost yesterday there were a lot of sad people in church today but that's ok. Since FSU won there were also several very happy people as well. It all balances out.

*Tomorrow I'm going to see Ed Young Jr. at the C3 conference here in Jax. It should be awesome.

*Everyone pray for Natalie. She had an allergic reaction to her antibiotics this week. See Allison's blog for pics.

Monday Morning

As I continue through ministry I am more and more convinced that a lot of our frustrations come from poor communication or simply a lack of clarification. People spend a lot of time making wrong assumptions about issues or things said when a simple question could go a long way towards clearing up the confusion. Of course in order to ask clarifying questions one must admit that they did not understand in the first place. No one wants to come across as ignorant. We all what to look smarter than we probably are. Therefore, we do not ask questions...we make assumptions...and continue to live in the ignorance that leads to frustration. Does any of this make sense to you or should I try to clarify further? :-)

realness and unpredictability

So last night I asked some friends a question that I've heard others address several times already. "If you were in charge how would church be different?" The answers were all good, honest responses. As I thought back over the answers later on I realized that 2 major themes came out. 1-a desire for realness in relationships 2-a desire for unpredictability. If God is so unpredictable why should our worship be? Also the need for intentional involvement.
The trick seems to be that even if we say we want these things we don't always recognize how to bring them about...or more to the point...observe God bringing them about. So if we know the "who" of church and worship is the next question...how? Maybe...maybe not. Anyone have further thoughts on this rambling?

Gator Tasor

So many of you have heard the story of the student at the University of Florida who while questioning John Kerry on election procedures was led by police away from the microphone. He was then arrested for disturbing the peace and in the midst of the whole incident was tasored by campus police. Today students are still protesting the actions of the campus police calling the tasoring "unnecessary". This story has brought up many questions this week about free speech, police actions, and other issues. Here is my one question.

Why was John Kerry in Florida in the first place? Just asking. It seems like trouble follows him everywhere.

Worship

Sorry I haven't written in a little while. Last week was an adventure of illness. To get Allison's view point click over to her blog. I am better now and almost up to full strength.

Yesterday we celebrated "Youth Sunday" and the kids did a great job with the service. There was drama, new songs, a great message, and variety in the service. This coming Sunday frightens me. Here is why. I know once some people see the big, monster-sized pulpit back in the middle of the stage they will be relieved. I also know that when we sing more than one hymn in the service some will feel comforted. I also know that when some see the drums off the stage there will be a sense of thankfulness and curiosity as to how long they will be gone.

What frightens me about all of these things is you could change pulpit for drums, hymns for chorus', and again drums for pulpit respectfully and get similar reactions from a whole different group of people.

It really doesn't matter what the object is. The focus is not worship. Some may try to explain that it is about worship but it's not. Worship is more than something tangible. Worship is more than songs. Worship is more than actions. Worship is more than Sunday morning service.

Your worship looks different than mine because your relationship with God is different than mine. Our worship is not dependant on things. Our worship is dependant on our relationship. That is why this Sunday I am going to preach using the monster-sized pulpit that is difficult to use and hard to get around. Even though it's not ideal for me it will not keep me from the whole reason I will be in the church building with the church family on Sunday morning.

WORSHIP.

Treadmills and listening

I did want to check in with everyone about the exercise quest. I have managed to stay with it so far. (By the Grace of God) Last night I got home late from a meeting but still found the motivation to get on the treadmill. I did sleep better last night but it was a short night as I had to calm my system down after the treadmill workout. Tonight we have a softball game so that will definitely count as exercise for the day.

Last night Allison shared an interesting story with me that came from a person she met yesterday. This person was well known for being a good listener. The reason being is this. If you and someone else both have something to say and you listen to that other person then you benefit. You get to walk away knowing what you knew before and what the other person knew. So you get to know twice as much. The other person loses out because they only walk away knowing what they knew before. Fascinating stuff, don't you think?

Night of Joy, Day of Water, Weekend of Praise

We are still recovering from a full experience this past weekend. "Big Splash" was a full retreat which included 3 services, Night of Joy at Disney World, and we wrapped up the weekend with a trip to Wet and Wild water park on Sunday. Today we are back in the office and it's business as usual (whatever that means)...actually what that means is that I get to drink my coffee from my own mug. As I think back over the weekend I am pondering the whole Night of Joy experience. If I were a member of a "christian" band and I was trying to reach the lost with the gospel would I perform at an event that was marketed towards christians? I really don't know the answer to that question but it does make me curious as to the motivation of some artists to play at such an event. I don't mean that in a condescending way. After all, I have no idea what it's like to be a professional musician. My point is simply that I'm curious and should God ever set it up I would love to have a conversation with one of these artists about that topic.

Never the less, the praise team at the conference sounded awesome! Go CSWT! When you shoot for excellence and lead with heart cool things happen.

Another Blogger...exercise..."Golden Corral" churches

We have another blogger in our midst. Sam Warren has started his own blog. You can find the link in my "links" column. I look forward to reading Sam's thoughts on leadership and other issues.

On the exercise front...yesterday was tough. I had to get some push-ups, crunches, and roll outs in before bedtime. It wasn't much but I'm still on track for my 30 days of exercise. This weekend will be the big challenge during "Big Splash" but I'm still going for it.

I read an article yesterday about churches that are either Starbucks or Waffle House churches. The author was mostly comparing the different styles of services they have. My thought is as long as they are not "Golden Corral" churches then we're alright. "Golden Corral" churches are ones who in their efforts to please everyone with a vast variety of options allow the quality to go down to the point that only a few hard core patrons are the only satisfied ones. Of course that's because they may not know any different.

Tuesday morning thoughts

This was a good holiday weekend. Yesterday Allison and I took Natalie to the park and then to the pool. Natalie is growing so fast it blows my mind sometimes.

The big news this weekend...APPALACHIAN STATE 34-michigan 32!!!!!!! Just in case anyone would like to know michigan WAS ranked #5 in the nation until Saturday. Just wanted to mention that.

This weekend is "Big Splash". Everyone pray for the weekend as we minister to and with over 200 teenagers. The praise team from Suwannee will be there to lead music. Logan is bringing the Word of God. It should be a great weekend.

Don't forget to check out the new poll question.

Day #3

Ok. Yesterday I did some treadmill work and today I got some pool time in with my girls. I know some of you would not consider family time in the pool as exercise but since today is a holiday and we were pretty active I'm counting it. So that makes 3 straight days of exercise so far. Starting is always the easiest part.

Question

"What do you dream of when you dream about the church?" I found this question on a friend's blog recently and it bothers me...mostly because it is a great question. This question challenges me to step out of the comfort of laziness. As much as I try to encourage others to dream and imagine I hate it when I realize there are things that I should be dreaming of more often. Before I can answer this question I first have to ask if I'm dreaming at all.
Do I even challenge my imagination to grow and think big?
Then, am I dreaming about the church or is the church merely my job?
Do I have dreams about the church or am I too caught up in "fixing" things that I view as wrong?
Do I envision positive realities for the church or am I busy critiquing those who critique me?
Before I can begin to answer this question I have to relearn the ability to dream.
Let me try.

What do I dream about when I dream about the church?
I dream of a coffee cart rolling through the sanctuary during the service.
I dream of every person made to feel like we've been waiting for them to get there whether it's their first time or 378th time.
I dream of every child feeling special and loved.
I dream of every adult feeling special and loved.
I dream of toe tapping music that gets stuck in your head.
I dream of friends not just friendly people.
I dream of unity in the midst of diversity.
I dream of a group of people who are not afraid to say "I don't know."
I dream of a group of people who are not afraid to be wrong.
I dream of a group of people who just want to know Jesus and each other better.
I dream of worship that is from and through the heart.
I dream of realness.
I dream of forgiveness.
I dream of second chances.
I dream of vulnerability that leads to courage.
I dream of noise.
I dream of silence.
I dream of expressive praise.
I dream of muffins.
I dream of smiles.
I dream of laughter.
I dream of tears.
I dream of board meetings that are filled with testimony of what God is doing in, around, and through lives.
I dream of love.
I dream of hard core love.
I dream of "no matter what" love.
I dream of God's love.
Maybe I am learning to dream again.
thanks Megan

Day #1

Today I worked in 20 minutes on the treadmill at an incline. So starts the month of exercise.

September-the month of danger!!!!

I have a goal this month. I am going to attempt 30 straight days of exercise. I'm not limiting myself to a specific exercise. The goal is to basically be in motion. It starts today. Of course I am currently on the computer and not the treadmill but I will get there. I will be updating my progress on the blog as a means of accountability. This is dangerous because no one wants to be held accountable for something that may be tough to do.

The second dangerous thing this month...Big Splash. That's right Allison, Natalie, and I are going with our church to the Big Splash retreat in Orlando. That includes night of joy at Disney. Teenagers in an amusement park always means danger for me. They might ask me to do something wild and strange like...I don't know...ride a ride or something.

I'm sure there are other ways this month will be the month of danger. Natalie's diapers are becoming more and more impressive everyday. She can now reach things she couldn't before and she is already counting to three. What will she do by October?

When is church?

Lately we've been asking when should our Sunday morning service be. Should we keep it at 9:30 or should we move it later to 10:30. After taking a poll of the congregation the results came back almost exactly 50/50. With such a close outcome we decided to just leave things as they are and move on to other things.

Here is my thought about this whole process. I don't think it really matters when the service is. If we are not being the church all week how does it matter when the Sunday morning service is? Sunday is not the only time God speaks. It's not the only time people come to Christ. It's not the only time of worship. It's not the only time of repentance, forgiveness, and most importantly grace. The real question is not when should we have church but rather are we being the church all the time.

Come to Church

What is the most likely way someone will come into a church that they have never been to before? Unless the church has an amazing marketing department I'm guessing the answer is "with someone who already goes there". This is not based on any research or statistics. This is just my personal opinion. But if this is true then how important is it for us to build relationships with those God puts in front of us on a daily basis? Not that coming to church is the real, big deal in and of itself. Jesus is. However, this is a place where we look to experience Jesus together with each other. The power of togetherness is amazing.

Just some random Tuesday morning babbling.

Sunday night mind dump

Today we saw 6 people baptized during our morning worship service!!! Five of those were planned. The 6th one was a man who several had been praying for and during the praise set accepted Christ right then and there. WOW!!!!! God is very cool!!!

This week is quickly turning into a busy one. It will be cool to see what God does with this week.

Did anyone know that if you are sandy from the beach all you have to do is sprinkle baby powder on the sand and it will brush clean off? It's true. It really works.

Assuming is a dangerous sport that most everybody in the world participates in. It is so easy to think you know someone or something better than you do. I think that is one of the reasons why humility is so important and something that can only come from God.

Have you ever noticed that the term "young adult" is rarely if ever used anywhere other than church? Then each church has a different definition of what that means.

I wander if we have some ice cream in the freezer. Must go check now.

5 gut check questions

Here are five questions that I found on perrynoble.com. I thought they were interesting questions for all believers but especially leaders. Here they are...with some of my own comments.
#1-Am I listening to the Voice of God? (Am I being still enough to hear?)
#2- Am I taking risks? (I might add...risks towards what God is doing.)
#3- Am I understanding how big God is? (Is that understanding always growing?)
#4- Am I surrounding myself with the right people? (right people=people with the same goals and vision)
#5- Am I giving my best? (people in the Bible always sacrificed their best to God...what's the difference today?)

51!!!

I just realized that last post was my 50th post. Yeah!!!!! What a milestone. Ok maybe I'm the only one celebrating but oh well. :-)

Hebrews

So I've been asked to write 3 devotions on Hebrews 11. As I've been reading this chapter one verse has jumped out at me. Verse 3 reads...

"By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible."

So basically faith tells us that something came from nothing. If something came from something then that something could be proven by physical evidence and faith would be unnecessary. After all man can make something from something else. Only God can trully create from nothingness.

This gives me not only faith but hope as well. When things are at their most stressful our creative God can always provide what is needed to accomplish His will. Even if the only option we see is "nothing".

The flesh tries to tell us that nothingness is equal to hopelessness but God says that nothingness is not an obstacle to Him. What a cool God!!!!

Scott D. into blog world

Scott Dombrosky is officially a blogger now. Check out his site. He's listed under my links.

8 random things

OK. So Allison tagged me for 8 random things. Here they are. At the end I realize that not everyone has a blog to do this but I had to come up with names so here they are.

The Rules:
1. I have to post these rules before I give you the facts.
2. Each player starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
3. People who are tagged need to write a post on their own blog (about their eight things) and post these rules. (if you don't have a blog, email me)
4. At the end of your blog, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
5. Don’t forget to leave them a comment telling them they’re tagged, and to read their blog.

My eight random facts - in no particular order of importance:

1. I believe Sunday afternoons were created for naps.
2. Some of my favorite authors include: Brennan Manning, John Ortberg, and Allison (if she will ever write a book:-)
3. Right now at the office sit the following CD's: Barry White, John Coltrane, Bob Dylan, Black Eyed Peas, Third Day, David Crowder Band, and my Motley Crue CD is somewhere...
4. I love to dance with God.
5. I have no one real favorite book of the Bible. They're all great!
6. Stupid drivers bug the mess out of me. (Jacksonville is a struggle.)
7. Customer service goes a looooooooooooooong way with me.
8. I am an official, self-proclaimed, unpaid restaurant critic.

My 8 people to tag are...Padre, Maw, Brock, Logan, Carole, Danny, Robert, and Heat.
Whew! That wore me out!

My girls rock the planet!

Just wanted to share my family with you. Have a great day!

New blog items and Sunday thoughts

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I made some obvious changes to the blog site. I hope everyone enjoys them. Please feel free to answer the new poll question. I will try to keep fresh questions up there. If anyone has any ideas for poll questions on this site just let me know. I'm open for suggestions.

Today our service went well. We welcomed 3 families into the church! Next week we are having a baptism service! That is AWESOME! I'm not even sure how many we are baptizing but even if it were one that would be worth any and all effort.

Here is my random question for a Sunday night before I go to bed...Is there a difference between "praising" God and "worshiping" God? Any thoughts?

"Bash" remembered

The following is a short piece about the bash for the AC News. God is simply amazing!!!

WJACC held its 2nd annual “Back to School Bash” on August 4. This was a completely free outreach for the community. The following is a breakdown of some of the numbers from the “Bash”. We gave out…
680 back packs filled with school supplies.
Over 200 Bibles
700 hamburgers
800 hotdogs
500 bags of clothing
Those are just a few of the numbers. There were sno-cones, cotton candy, popcorn, a petting zoo, and our praise team played 4 sets of praise songs for the crowd. The only thing we asked was for everyone to have a good time and take what they need. As one of our elders told one person, “This is all free just like God’s love.”
We are still seeing many ways in which this event has made an impact on the community. God is amazing in how He can set something up.

Back to School Bash

Tomorrow is the "Back to School Bash" here at WJACC. Last year we saw around 1500 people come through the church grounds and this year we are expecting even more than that! This year we are also seeing several of the larger churches in Jax do their own bash celebrations on the same day. All of this is getting me pumped up!!! Here's a few reasons why...

1) This is a focused outreach into the community to let them know we are here, we care, and we want to serve them with no strings attached! We are not charging anything. Just come, have a good time, take some school supplies, and even take home a new outfit for school.

2) This is an opportunity to pray for members of our neighborhood. We are going to hand out Bibles and offer to pray for anything and anyone that walks through the door. We are even setting things up so that we can take prayer requests anonymously.

3) I am excited to think of other churches doing the same thing. The more people reaching out the more the message of hope in Christ is getting out into a hopeless world. THAT IS AWESOME!!!

If you are around this weekend and want to help come on out Saturday. We'll find you a spot to slip in. The bash starts at 10am and runs 'til 4pm. We'll need help with set up and clean up too. This is huge but God is even bigger. Praise God!!!

Deep fried baby Jesus

Check out Allison's blog titled "Deep fried baby Jesus". She hits a home run with this one. My wife rocks!!!
www.sidestreet-allison.blogspot.com

Eric Church

September 14, 2007! Eric Church is going to be in Jacksonville, FL! If you like country music you will like Eric. If you do not like country music there is a good chance you will still like Eric. I've known Eric since we were at ASU together and he rocks! If you get the chance check out his stuff. http://www.ericchurch.com

Sunday night thoughts

Today was a good day. I was dragging into church this morning. I didn't sleep good last night and was hurting to find the energy to preach. Then I got a phone call from a friend telling me that God set him up this weekend to share the gospel with a 13 year old girl and she accepted Christ this weekend. That was all I need. I was PUMPED UP! One more in the kingdom. That is AWESOME!

Allison and I had the chance to eat dinner with friends tonight. We had some great conversation and again I got pumped up. I am excited to think that God is up to something in our city and we just might be able to be a part of what HE is doing! WOW! That is nuts.

water walkers

Last Sunday Logan wrapped up his sermon with a reference to Jesus and Peter walking on the water. He talked about Peter's willingness to get out of the boat while the others stayed in the boat where things were more familiar.

This Sunday we are going to look at some common characteristics of "water walkers". What risky step is God calling each of us towards today? The more we step out in faith the clearer vision we tend to have of our Savior and Lord. Take a step towards Him today and just see what happens.

home again

Today I am back at the office and into my normal routine. (whatever that it) Camp last week was great! We saw God do some cool things last week. The way He set up the music and the messages without us getting in the way was an amazing thing to watch.

Pray for Logan and the kids that are going to Honduras this week. Most of them were all at camp last week and have not had much of a chance to rest so keep them in prayer this week.

Natalie has her one year check up tomorrow...that means more shots...pray for all of us tomorrow.

Until next time...

camp

Today is Thursday. We are over half way through this week of Senior Camp at Suwannee. It has been a good week. This has been a great group of campers over all this week. I am always amazed at the creativity and brutal honesty that can come from teenagers. It's also refreshing to see the cravings for God's presence in their lives. Tonight I am speaking on our identity in Christ. Please pray for God's continued work in the lives of the campers and the staff here at camp. Also, pray for Logan. He will be preaching this Sunday at WJACC and after a full week of directing camp he's going to be worn out.

ps. We have had one major tragedy this week. Powell's "ALF" doll has been kidnapped and we are awaiting ransom demands. poor, poor, alf

Strip and get naked

That's the title of this Sunday's message. Strip away the thought that says if you don't act like a christian then you are not one. Let your heart get naked before God and let Him clean you up. Then the things we do will have real meaning and power. We don't do things to make ourselves right. Jesus makes us right and then we get to do the right things. If we get this backwards then we are just asking for trouble, frustration, depression, and burnout just to name a few.

2 weddings and a funeral

So Allison, Natalie, and I got home at about 1am last night. Today I am wiped but glad to be home. We had a great time in Iowa this weekend. It was crammed packed. 2 weddings...2 birthday parties for Natalie...church service in the city park...one funeral...and a whole lot of food...

It was good to visit but I'm glad to be back in my own bed. We are still slam jammin' this week. Tomorrow night we are eating and praising God here at the church @ 6pm. If it is raining we will move inside. Everyone come out and bring a friend. We are going to celebrate the 4th by worshiping GOD! That's a celebration!

Everyone keep in mind who God is putting in your path today!

Iowa and VBS

So tomorrow morning Allison, Natalie, and I are flying to Iowa. While we are there we will go to or be a part of two weddings, a funeral, and the first of several birthday parties for Natalie. It will be fun to see everyone again but we are going to be slam jammin' all weekend. Please pray for us through this weekend. Summer is here and the summer schedule is packed!

Keep praying for VBS this week at WJACC. These kids have been awesome and the week has just started.

intentional encouragement

Yesterday God used Logan to bring a message that touched several people. We have some in our church that are hurting and struggling with different situations in their lives. The key is you were never meant to hurt alone. As we open up about our struggles then we can lift each other up and support each other through these struggles. God intentionally places people in our paths for a reason. Who is God putting in your path today that you can encourage?

Softball and Psalm 24

So last night our softball game was canceled due to weather. That makes 3 out of 4 scheduled games that have been canceled so far this season. Everyone keeps saying that Florida is in a drought but it has done nothing but rain since we've been here. Friday we have a double header scheduled so I hope everyone can come out to support the team.

Tonight at WJACC we will be looking at Psalm 24. We are very familiar with Psalm 23 but how often have we looked at the next chapter? Tonight we are going to dive into this chapter and see what God has planned for us.

Hope to see you there.

Monday morning

Yesterday was Father's Day. It was awesome seeing so many dads in church with their families. Please keep praying for all of our families. It seems like there are more and more things trying to tear down families these days and it was very cool to see so many families worshiping together yesterday.

I do want to take a second to thank the praise team for allowing me to join them yesterday. I hope I didn't mess them up too much.

If you are reading this and are a member of WJACC then you must have noticed the address in the bulletin. I will try my best to keep this blog updated with personal and church stuff so feel free to make comments from time to time. I appreciate your feedback.

Keep praying about how you can make an impact with the "Back to School Bash" coming up later this summer. It is going to be AWESOME!

Have a great day and keep dreaming!

Father's Day

I am pumped about this weekend. This is my first Father's day with Natalie face to face and I am jazzed about that. The sermon this week is focused on when hope seems to be fading out Jesus always shines bright. There is ALWAYS hope when Jesus is involved. That is AWESOME!!! I hope you all have a worshipful weekend. If you get the chance check out Allison's blog titled "Natalie versus the tornado"...

Tonight

Tonight is our second night on the story of Lazarus. What amazes me about this story is the community that Jesus uses to accomplish this miracle. He has others roll the stone away. He has others help untangle Lazarus from his grave clothes. There is no doubt that Jesus performs the miracle of resurrection but He does allow others to play a part in that miracle. It does make me wonder what role Jesus will allow us to play at WJACC in the miracle of salvation for others. Whatever it looks like we'll do it together.

Dreaming Big

Last night we had our first "Dream/Vision Meeting" here at West Jax. It was fascinating to hear some of the dreams for ministry that folks had and have here. We talked about everything from BBQ's to Young Adult ministry and everything in between. I have absolutely no idea where God is going to lead us as we dream but I know it's going to be exciting. God is building His kingdom through saving the lost and growing the Jesus follower. That's the kind of ministry I want to be a part of. I want to ride in the car that God's driving and see where He takes us.

Jesus said, "What is impossible with men is possible with God." (Luke 18:27) That ROCKS my world!"

Lazarus

OK. Long story short. Lazarus dies. Jesus comes and raises him again. Everybody moves on...or do they? JOhn 12:9-10 tells us that the chief priests were looking to kill Lazarus as part of their efforts to take down Jesus.

I wonder how this made Lazarus feel. I'm guessing that he made one of two choices. 1) "Oh no! Theyr'e after me! What am I going to do?! I better hide or stay out of the way or just lay low for a while.

The other option may look something like this...2) You want to do what to me? Kill me? Sorry...been there done that. If that's all you've got then...Bring IT! I would rather die in full confidence in Jesus than to live scared the rest of my life. So until that time I'm going to let people know what Jesus did for me.

I wonder which approach people will choose today. I ask for your prayers for this Sunday. I am preaching on the "God of the Impossible" then later in the day we are having a Dream/Vision meeting for the church. It's going to be a full Sunday.

Keep dreaming in grace,
chris

Feelin' the flow

This week we are in full swing. Allison and Natalie went with Uncle Robert, Joene, and Kaitlyn yesterday to see Raymond. He was pretty taken with Natalie. Apparently he was even willing to share his hat with her. Of course, nothing could distract him from his Mountain Dew. They had a great time. I was here in the office as Logan is in NC for a few days helping with summer ministries training. We still have a few things to do to get completely settled but things are moving right along. Natalie is starting to sleep 'til at least 6am and that is a good thing. Hopefully she will continue that trend. Until next time...

...and so the adventure begins...

We are in Florida!!! Even our stuff is here. That was one of THE craziest experiences I've ever had. I'll have to share the details in person with any who want to know but suffice to say Nationwide Relocators are not our best friends.

In any case, we are here and excited about what God has in store next. The people of West Jax have been soooo gracious towards us all ready and we are soooo thankful. They have made the transition a great deal smoother than it could have been. Thank you WJACC!

I'm back online at the office and will try to keep updating my blog. We do not have internet at the house yet so Allison is not able to keep her blog updated as of yet...hopefully soon.

Grace to all...

Fans

Fans make participating in sports worthwhile. Even if you are having a tough time getting a hit, making a shot, or scoring a touchdown a true fan will still cheer you on. A fans job is to cheer, encourage, and let you know that they are behind you 100%. Fans can be your biggest weapon against your opponent. They are your biggest ally against an enemy. Fans can help change the momentum of a game in your favor. Without fans the game doesn't always seem winnable. Without fans motivation tends to run low. Fans give that little bit of energy when you didn't think you had any left. Fans give you that spark that enables the game to be won. This week I want to be a fan. I want to cheer. I want to encourage. So here it goes...

GO VIRGINIA TECH!!! YOU CAN DO IT!!!! WE'RE ALL BEHIND YOU!!!! LET'S GO HOKIES...LET'S GO HOKIES...LET'S GO V TECH!!!!!!!!

We're cheering for you. The game is winnable.

Now I lay me down to sleep...

Babies are amazing. At least mine is. We go through the same bed time routine every night. We start with cereal. Then bath time. Story time comes next. Then one last bottle and then… to bed, to bed you sleepy head. Yet every night she reacts differently when we lay her down. Sometimes she goes right out. Some nights she cries herself to sleep. Some nights she's just mad that she has to go to bed. Isn't that the way it always goes. Even though we don't like things to change when they stay the same for too long we start finding something to do differently. Cry, laugh, scream, sleep...etc.

Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. He is our ultimate source of consistency. Even when we do things differently His love, grace, mercy, faithfulness, friendship, lordship, and holiness is still the same. Thank goodness that even though the times they are a changing…Jesus never does.

James Dobson-Seriously????

Some of you may have heard the recent news that Dr. James Dobson of "Focus on the Family" and other evangelical leaders have called for the resignation of the VP of the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE). Their reasoning is he focuses too much on "global warming" and not as much on other hot button issues (ie. abortion, gay marriage, etc.) Dr. Dobson even went so far as to call the VP's views "demoralizing".

I have really tried to keep my thoughts and opinions neutral in this situation. While I'm not totally sure where Dr. Dobson is coming from I can see that if you are the VP you should probably promote the views of the organization you represent. Then I read something interesting today.

Dr. Dobson is NOT even a member of the NAE!!!!!!!!!

Then keep your nose out of it!

Don't get me wrong...I have a lot of respect for Dr. Dobson and the work he has done in the field of family and children...however, this does not make sense. Why go so far as to ask for the resignation of someone from an organization you don't even belong to?????

That makes as much sense as having people on the board of the church that are not even church members. I've got one word for that....STUPID!

If this offends anyone I apologize...NOT for what I said but for how I may have said it.

Every one have a great day and try to watch some of the NCAA tournament today.

UNC

Just in case anyone was wondering...tomorrow the NCAA men's basketball tournament starts!!!!! I filled in five free brackets on ESPN.com and had UNC going all the way in 4 of them. Georgetown was the pick for the 5th bracket. I know what some of you are thinking...aren't you moving to Jacksonville soon?...shouldn't you throw U of Florida a bone? The answer...

Nope. Not in basketball. I'm sorry. I might feel different when it comes to football or any other sport but basketball is a whole other story. I know they are the defending champs but I mean come on...how long can they last? :-)

Home Buying

One of the greatest books ever published is "Home Buying for Dummies"! We have looked at several houses in Jacksonville via the internet. It always makes me giggle a little when homes in Florida have fireplaces. Especially after living in Iowa for five and a half years.

This book has guided us through several steps that we were clueless about before. Allison and I both knew enough to be dangerous. We knew enough to get ourselves into trouble. However, after reading this book we have side-stepped several land mines that were waiting for naive people like us. It is amazing how much one book can change your present reality.

Anyone read the BIBLE today? Talk about changing your present reality...

she asked me...

So Allison asked me..."How long will it take to dig the car out?"...I stared...that's it just stared.

March article

The following is an article I wrote for our March church news letter. Enjoy!

Eight months! It has only been eight months since Natalie was born. Today she has two teeth showing, she is crawling none stop, she can pull herself up to a standing position, she is waving bye-bye, and the other day she actually said “Bye-Bye”. In eight month she has accomplished all of this and so much more. We have discovered that she is not a big fan of thunder and lightning. However, as soon as Mommy or Daddy picks her up she calms down and is able to sleep again.
How long have you known Jesus? How far has He brought you in that time? What are you able to do now that you were not able to do before knowing Jesus? In all that time there may be things that still spook you and make you shudder and the very thought of. Hopefully in the time you have known Jesus you have also learned that whenever the thunder roars and the lightning flashes you can climb into his arms and fall asleep again in the safety of His embrace.
How many storms has Jesus brought us all through? How many sunny days has Jesus helped us celebrate? How many more adventures does He have ahead of all of us? I’m not sure but I do know it will be exciting. We serve a Savior that refuses to be boring. Let us look with anticipation at what He has ahead for each and every one of us.
God Bless,
pastor chris

Sunday night thoughts

Today's Sunday School class led to a discussion about expectations. The question came up..."What does God expect of us?"...Several answers came up including...
1) Love God/Love People
2) To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Then one quiet lady in the class said..."God expects us to be human."

The more I've thought about this the more I agree with her. If you look up the word "expect" one definition you will find is "regard as likely to happen". Likely? There is absolutely no security in "likely". God is always sure. God knows everything. If He was expecting something then there would be a chance that He did not know what was going to happen. Which brings us back to that last answer.

As God expects us to be human He provides the sureness and security that only He can give. We have know idea how we will respond to different stimuli tomorrow but God does. So in saying all of this would it be fair to say that God truly expects "nothing" of us because He already knows?

reminders

I do want to remind readers that anyone can feel free to make comments on my blog. I know I haven't been the best at updates lately but I'm working on it so feel free to make comments and I'll do my best to reply also. Thanks for taking time to be interested in my blog. You are awesome 'cause God created you for a purpose. Have a great day!

day of the dead

This has been some week. Monday I had a funeral for a 61 year old man who was a strong family man but did not have much to do with the church. However, his obituary stated that he was a lifelong member of our church having been baptized and married in the church building. Tuesday I had another funeral for a man who left his wife years ago for another woman who he lived with for 30 years without even the thought of marriage. (side note-the ex-wife and the "significant other" were sitting across from each other during the service...interesting)

Yesterday Allison and I attended a conference in Des Moines on Grief and Grieving. It was interesting and offered some practical helps for both of us. Then on our way home Allison got a call telling her that the husband of one of her clients had died and the funeral would be today. So Allison is going to that service this afternoon.

After all of that the lead story on the "Today" show this morning was the death of Anna Nicole Smith. Granted her death does not impact us directly but after a week like we have it seemed appropriate that the morning news would start off with a story about someone dying.

Such is the life of a pastor and social worker. Seeing as these have all been very diverse settings I have caught myself saying "Well, we do know that God knows exactly where ________ is." I wish people would get it out of their heads that people are in heaven or hell or somewhere else right away...I'm just not finding that in the Bible. Oh well...

Dedication pics

This is the WHOLE gang at Natalie's dedication.
Below=Allison, Me, and of course Natalie.
This picture is a four generation picture we took on the same day.

New Year

The holidays have been good and my belly is showing just how good they were. We spent two weeks in North Carolina and West Virginia. It was great to be able to breathe without the assistance of allergy medicine. We had Natalie's dedication on Christmas Eve. All four of Natalie's grandparents and all four of her living great-grandparents were able to be there in addition to several other friends and relatives. It was a great Sunday.

Now it's a new year and I'm trying to get my back into the swing of things. We have our church annual meeting on the 17th. I'm excited as I see different people in the church become more and more involved in things. I'm excited to know that more people will fall in love with Jesus this year. I'm excited to think that I could be a part of that. I'm excited to see people grow in their daily walk with Jesus. I'm excited to know that Jesus never fails even when we do.

I'm excited to see what Jesus has in store this year. HAPPY NEW YEAR!