Thanksgiving

Dictionary.com defines thanksgiving as

–noun

1.	the act of giving thanks; grateful acknowledgment of benefits or favors, esp. to God.

2.	an expression of thanks, esp. to God.

3.	a public celebration in acknowledgment of divine favor or kindness.

4.

a day set apart for giving thanks to God. As we get ready to consume a weeks worth of food in a 24 hour period and become so consumed with self I pray that we take time out to give thanks.  This year i have come to realize how fortunate I truly am.  God has blessed me with an amazing wife and two wonderful kids.  This weekend I was able to enjoy special time with each one of them.  I finally got a night out with my lady.  We went to a new restaurant and just enjoyed some time together.  Saturday I was able to see my son play his first game of the season.  He had a double-double with 8 steals.  He was amazing.  Daddy's little girl climbed into his lap and let him brush her hair.  I love playing with her hair.  We are excited to spend the holiday with some friends and family. My mind begins to wander into reality at this point.  As i sit there and stuff my face I become oblivious to the fact that there are people all around me suffering.  People all around us sitting alone at a table remembering when the family assembled a feast fit for a king on this day.  Missing those that have passed away leaving them behind to go through life alone.  The single mom whose family has disowned her because she will be a disgrace to the family name.  The young girl who is being raised by her grandparents because her parents are both incarcerated for their crimes.  The young boy, who sits in the midst of his brothers, that feels useless because he will never hear a kind word from his fathers mouth.  We (I) become so self absorbed that we are blind to those around us. As we scrape the excess off our plates and turn our nose up to the leftovers there is a man digging in the dumpster just to try to stumble across enough food to quiet the pains of an empty stomach or the mother that weeps because all she has to offer her children is some cereal and milk, no turkey, no pecan pie.  So while I am thankful as I try to see the world through Christ eyes my heart breaks and tears fill my eyes.  How can I selfishly be thankful for contributing to a self indulgent lifestyle?  How can a part of the body celebrate while other parts suffer? This year don't just give thanks but be a part of a solution.  Invite someone to share your meal,  make a plate for someone and deliver it.  Give thanks and give yourself.  I hope to post a success story on how my family made a difference.   God is Love!

Silent Screams!

I sit here writing this feeling like I have had my heart ripped out of my chest and although it is still beating I lie here watching it beat feeling helpless and out of control. Numb with fear and yet filled with pain. Wanting to stand in the gap but paralyzed in fear. Trying to look for the light at the end of the tunnel but not sure I really want to crawl that far.  Today I faced an attack that was far more painful than even the worst root canal.  

We teach and talk about spiritual warfare as if it is a fairy tail and never really recognizing the battle that is being fought all around us.  We try to wrap our thoughts around it but somehow the image that all to often we come up with is the cartoon angel and the prince of darkness whispering in our ear.  We don't see the struggle of good and evil, the clouded thoughts, confusing voices, empty promises, or the feeling of being trapped.  We don't think of the silent screams of desperation.  We block out all these images because it is painful to think about,  We don't want to be honest.  The truth of the matter is it is real.  There is a battle bigger than you or I .  

Today this battle became very real to me.  Real and unfair.  Today started off as one of those mountain top experiences.  It started yesterday with Chris Tomlin's God of this City repeating over and over on the iPod.  Then through music in youth God was stirring.  Sound went perfect which really helps me focus.  When I was teaching I felt as if I had stepped over the drivers seat and someone else was placing the very words on my lips.  But it continued after the service ended.  People connected.  God was stirring the hearts of the people.  Several people, to which I can take NO credit for, said how what we talked about hit home.  (Remember I said I felt as each and every word was placed on my lips)  My son on the way home showed his appreciation for the message.  He said how it was really good.  Even told me I wasn't like a preacher when I spoke.  This morning he led a prayer group at school.  Daddy was and is extremely proud!  A sixth grader willing to step up and lead.  He was leading this group that rallied behind a cause dedicated to people fighting to make it out of dark desperate and desolate time of their lives. 

I beamed with hope and joy seeing him impact in a passionate way the lives around him.  I well up with tears of admiration and joy as I even think about it.

Too bad the story doesn't come to an abrupt end there.  See that is when the battle began.  How cruel and unfair.  Satan seized and opportunity to  attack.  How would I love to shelter my son and protect him from this viscous attack.  The very core of what he was standing for was attacked.  He was fighting to give a voice to those who feel unloved, untouched, unwanted when thoughts of worthlessness flooded his being.  He was shaken to the core.  As parents we want to shelter our kids, denying God the opportunity of growing them, using them, molding them into the warrior they need to be.  It tore Laura and I apart to be helpless bystanders.  We prayed but never felt that was enough.  Let me take the blows for him.  We read in Romans 8:28 how ALL things work together for the good of those who love Him.  But how?  I know they do but how can you see good in this.

A lesser man would have opted out of the environment but thanks to someone taking time and speaking into his life he was ready to man up and face the world head on.  He couldn't be silenced.  Satan attacked him making him feel alone but because people who are willing to roll up their sleeves and get dirty he saw hope, and the very compassion he was showing was showered lavishly on him.  So next year when he does this again he can speak with authority that love does change lives.  He is a story of hope, promise, compassion, and VICTORY!

Ephesians 4:29

No worries!

Group project for class!  Enjoy!

And the winner is............

You probably expected to see a picture of Obama here or another person ranting and raving about how the United States has damned itself to hell. Sorry to disappoint you. And no I didn't vote for Obama. This election was really hard for me to get excited about. I had issues with both candidates and even more issues with how so many "Christians" viewed God as endorsing either one of the candidates. I have been struggling trying to look at the Bible through a pure heart that doesn't bring any preconceived notions with it. One of the things that I have found intriguing is how God seems to work with governments that are less than desirable. Some of the greatest events in history took place while His people are in bondage. I am not saying we are the new chosen ones but what I am saying is I believe in the sovereignty of God. Not just in the good times but the bad times too. Is God limited by who we vote or don't vote into power? I think not.

It saddens me to see how excited and hateful we Christians got during this political season. We serve a risen King and should barely be able to contain our excitement to worship this King but instead we settle for singing a few songs and hearing a message. We should be both excited and humbled by this thought. Scripture tells us that the world will know us by our love for each other. Well what does the world know about us now. The internet is so full of Christians insulting each other because of which side of the fence we have camped on. Where is the love?

As i said before I have been really trying to connect in a way that I haven't been able to before because of all the baggage I had brought to the table with me. I have realized I serve one God, one King, one president if you will, and have no room to serve any other. Some may call this lunacy but I call it LOVE. Love for the risen Savior. I may not agree with everything the President does or thinks but I want to encourage you to pray for him. Pray for him as a human being who has an incredible amount of responsibility on his shoulders. Pray for him because he too is created in God's image, rather we agree with him or not.

Election Eve!

I sit here on the eve of the Presidential election and find myself being a skeptic. I see people saying they are praying for the election to go the "right" way. I have noticed on facebook numerous people expressing their concern over the election by dedicating their status to the candidate of their choice. I sit here and wonder if maybe we have missed the point. I understand the importance of voting. Blah blah blah! I just think that maybe we should be concerned about our leader more than once every four years. Maybe we should pray for them on a regular basis. Not because he is President but because he is a man created in God's own image. I have heard all sorts of people saying I don't understand how important this election is, and this could be the most important election I might ever be involved in. I have heard people from both sides trying to convince me who to vote for. I love how Christians try to use issues saying this man is God's man. (As if He needs a man to do His will) One side tells me how Obama is worried about social justice so he has to be endorsed by God. The other side tells me McCain is the way to vote because he is antiabortion! I have so many other issues with both of these candidates and I haven't seen ANY evidence of God endorsing either party. I have even been told that if the wrong man is in the White House we could one day lose our right to worship?!? I do understand both sides of the argument but my views on worship have absolutely no connection to any form of government. I am thankful to live in a free country and appreciate each and every drop of blood that was shed to allow me to write openly and freely like this, however those drops of blood did not do near as much for mankind as one man's blood 2000 years ago.

So I encourage you to dedicate your loyalty to the one that matters. The one who four years from now will still be in charge. Go ahead and vote but remember our focus is not on man. No one can take away your ability to worship or serve God. Look throughout history. When Christianity is not easy it seems to rise to the occasion. If you feel the need to dedicate your status I encourage you to dedicate it to the King of Kings!

Looking at life through stained glass windows.

I am currently taking the most thought provoking class of my academic career. The class is called the Life of Christ. Yea I know, should have been an easy class for a guy who has been in church for the majority of his life. How much more is there to really learn that hasn't been covered in Sunday School or a sermon. This class has challenged me to strip away the preconceived thoughts that I had about Christ and how he lived while on earth. In other words to throw out all the baggage we bring with us. The effects are troubling. We no longer can hide in the pews and feel safe. Thankfully this journey had started a few years earlier for me but others have had their cages rattled.

We have pretty much put the ways we do things under the microscope of scrutiny to see how our value system lines up with Christ. We have examined the way Christ lived, who He walked with, and how He taught those around. One of the most recent questions we had to ask ourselves was "how does the life of Christ and the values He clearly held and taught inform the way we engage culture? contextualize?" After going over this question in my mind I wrote this response. "We have done all these things to bring the world to us. We set up programs, fall festivals, Christmas plays, and the list goes on. We do all these community outreach events at our church with a come and see attitude expecting them to flood our services but fail to engage them where they are. I do not see a biblical example of this anywhere. I believe it tells us to GO. What if instead of planning our own events we were to be involved with their events? You know be Jesus to them where they are? Instead of creating our own culture embrace the culture we are already a part of. Stupid things such as handing out water at a local art show may actually allow us to teach in a much more profound way then having a hayride at our members only church meetings!" I am not saying these events don't serve a purpose but they can not take place of living a life of love. Living a life where we are called to LOVE. If we are to be the salt of the earth don't we have to be alive on this earth. It does not tell us to be the salt of the church. We have withdrawn to our churches and look out through stain glass windows at a world going to hell. It looks pretty as we view it through the colored glass that distorts the image of the single mom who struggles to put food on the table. Everything we see is bright and vibrant. We are so comfortable sitting in our pews and voting on a committee to recommend how we will help those with needs. We make ourselves feel better because we recognize a need. All the while afraid to get dirty. One student, Richard wrote a quote that we may not even begin to understand the truth of. "The problem however is that there are too many christian eunuch's that are either too afraid or unwilling to engage the culture." How true. We are so afraid of the culture we create our own. One that if we don't leave we feel safe.

What a weekend!

We went to lakeland this weekend for our second annual trip to the Mirror Lake car show. The weather was warmer than it was supposed to be but much cooler than the previous weekend. We had a bunch of housework to do but sometimes you just need a break. Enjoy the pictures.






We then returned to Orlando for MelissaFest! It was amazing how many people turned out to support her and her family. She looked great and seemed to be handling the situation well. Her and her family are truly inspirations.

Dow drops and frankly I DON"T CARE!

I got up early to hear the news at 5:30 a.m. predicting the Dow would fall 300 points upon opening today. They had financial analyst all over the place. Should we sell? Should we buy? Gold? Silver? How do we invest for the future? Are we headed to another depression? Who will bail us out? Obama? McCain? Should the government try and throw more money at it to try to disguise the problem? These were just a small sampling of the whirlwind of questions being shot around.

Does this scare you? Should it scare you? NOT ME! Maybe it is because I don't have a single dime invested into the markets? I am so sick and tired of hearing about the people who have invested thousands in the market only to lose big. I am equally disgusted with the people who refuse to get a job because they can't find anything that fulfills them. Or I have too much going on to get a full time job. I don't like my job. Quit your whining, make the best out of it. We, as americans have become a bunch of spoiled rotten, whining, babies. Easy for me to say right? I have a job, house, two kids, and only been married once! Well you know why I have those things and I am satisfied. It is easy. I have realized I am not in charge. Everything I have and am is dependent on my relationship with Christ. We still struggle but we don't stress. We worry but we do not let it consume us. I am at a job I absolutely hate, haven't got a raise in 5 years, when 10 weeks without a paycheck. I feel your pain. BUT I do not conform to your I deserve better than this attitude.

We have this idea, a perverted one at that, telling us we deserve to be taken care of. We whine when we get off schedule and eat lunch and hour late. We are envious of the new house that has more square footage than ours. We are not satisfied with a car we desire a Lexus. Not you? Look in your closet (mine too) several outfits? How about the shoes you are wearing, only pair? Just maybe they are, Praise GOD for them. That is one more pair than many third world kids have. We sit and watch the market fall and commiserate with people losing thousands as a mother holds her starving baby in her hands waiting for them to take their last breathe.















I am daily trying to understand what these verses look like when they are lived out...

Matthew 6:19 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal:
20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.







We are also reminded that God takes care of the Sparrows so how much more does he care for us. No matter how bad the economy gets, no matter how financially strapped we are God is Good! If we focus on the kingdom the things of this earth seem to matter a little less!

It's gonna be a lovely day!

What a difference a few days can make! This week has been like a roller-coaster ride for me. I happen to enjoy thrill rides but I wouldn't mind a break every now and then. I am currently studying the book of James and I am learning to find joy through trials.

I look forward to bumping into the person from my previous post and telling them I love them. Yea, I a hurt BUT i have forgiven them. They have not asked for it and probably do not even know that I know they did it. Doesn't matter. I am striving to learn to love unconditionally so God has placed this person in my life to be loved. It is my jagged little pill to swallow. It stings all the way down but because Christ loved me I can learn to love. After all, how many times could He have called me a backstabber?

You know who you are!

You're sorry
You said it yourself and we believe you
(no we really do!)
Now no one is going to save you now!
Backstabber! Backstabber!
When you're in disguise

You're laughing
Cause they laugh at you
Then you scream out to all the empty pews
And No one is going to save you now!

Backstabber! Backstabber!
When you're in disguise

Now go and pray to your God inside!
Cause if you never knew, little boy it's you.
You can't use me! You won't use me!

Backstabber! Backstabber!
When you're in disguise

Lyrics to Backstabber by Jonezetta




You know who you are! It tears you a part to see someone else succeed as you fall flat on your face. You hate the fact that it comes so naturally. You try to become something you are not just to try to fit in. You preach with hollow words. You try to connect but find yourself all alone. You try so hard to become something they will like, but do you even like yourself. You look me in the face and wish me luck only to shove the knife in my back as I turn around. You aren't happy leaving well enough alone. You are on a mission to TRY and seek and destroy. You see me as a threat to your own future.

Well as you lay flat on your face look up and watch me as I continue to move forward. I move effortlessly unaffected by your attempts. I continue to be true to myself, something you don't understand. I teach without words. I am connected with love. I am accepted for who I am not when I pretend. I pull the knife out and hand it back. You are your own demise. I am on a mission to seek and feed. You were the controller of your own future.


You see you were so worried about what I was doing you lost sight of your own life. As you spend time in the car may these words ring over and over. Learn from your own mistakes. You were more worried about the dust in my eye and were blinded by the tree in yours. Realize who the enemy is and whose team you are on. Their is no room for lone rangers in this business.

Disturbed!

The longer I am in church work the more I understand two things. I see why the average time for a pastor to stay at a church is less than two years. The second is I now see why our churches are not growing. In the short 9 months I have been in my current position has been some of the most exhausting time of my life. It is amazing how much you come under attack from Satan. Just when you think you can come up for a breather the attacks start again in full fury.

So many pastors can't stay at a church for more than two years because of their need to protect their families. The attacks that pastors and staff have to endure take their toll. From taking time from the family to the family actually having to weather the attacks it can become too much to bare sometimes.

Free Gift!

This was just too funny not to write about. I was doing homework and the doorbell rang. We were not expecting company so we knew it had to be door to door salesman. The Mormon's seem to jump over our house every time.(Maybe that is due in part to me sharing my faith with them last time they knocked?) So my wife and I played rock, paper, scissors to see who would answer the door. I picked paper, she had scissors so you know what that means. I lost. I went to answer the doors and was greeted by two overly perky, sweaty, salespeople. I say people because it was a man and woman and they both looked like they had been doing this for most of the day. They introduced themselves and told me they were from the brand new vacuum cleaner store. They handed me a free air freshener. Sweet. I told them I didn't need a vacuum cleaner. I resisted the urge to tell them the one we had sucks. Once realizing that I was not a potential customer they asked for their $.97 air freshener and off they went leaving me empty handed at the door.

Moral of the story...There is only one free gift in life!

WHY ME?

I got home from church and got an update that I had once again ticked someone off. I figured that I offended someone with challenging them to have some "huevos" and stand up for what they believe. Or possibly my slip and instead of saying PSP I said PCP. These would have been expected, but that is not what I found. I had ticked someone off because I was doing too much for the church. They were tired of having to share me with other people. This caught me slightly off guard. It honestly troubled me most of the day. I was still spending more time with the very group that was complaining. I am sometimes there when none of them show up. I am continually inviting people to that group (something I don't do for the others). Some people may find this quite flattering, after al,l we all want to be liked. We all like to be needed. It reminds me of a classic middle school fight with the girl being competed for by all the guys in the class. It has disturbed me. What have I done? I am trying to point everything I do to a relationship with Jesus. Not me! I am a screw up. I will let you down. I fail. I am not worth your loyalty. It is important that I try to connect with every person I come in contact with but I feel like I have left them empty still searching not connecting to God. I hope they see through this mess of a man and see Jesus!

More questions than answers

I keep trying to find a way to start this and can't come up with anything clever so I am just going to ramble. DEATH. Today I couldn't seem to escape it. I started off the day doing work at Hospice of West Volusia where I saw people clinging onto the last days of their lives. Two families were mourning the loss of a loved one. They were recounting stories and laughter would occasionally break up the tears. It is weird but when a death occurs it brings out some of the fondest memories but the worse character traits out of a person.

Next I had to work in two nursing homes. One of them is the Ritz Carlton of homes, the other one not so much. But they both had the same thing in common, people will spend the last days, years of their lives here. I have always hated going to these places because I didn't know what to say or how to treat them. Today was different. I was actually wondering what it would be like to work there. I was really intrigued by the thought of working at Hospice. I don't want to be the guy changing diapers and bed pans (if you know me you know that this is not even a possibility with my wimpy stomach). I thought about what it would be like to be the guy who consoles the family. The guy who gets to hear about the joy the deceased brought into this world. I also wonder what it would be like to be the one who held the hand of so many as they enter eternity?

So a day that had so much going on stirred my thoughts. I have no ambition of quitting my day job (though I dream of it) to pursue it but who knows the doors that God may open!

Breaking News!

Your Vote will be appreciated!

I Ruined Christmas!

I may have ruined Christmas for a lot of people this year. I have been on a journey recently and now that I am taking a class entitled "Life of Christ" I have went deeper into this path that I have been on. It all began for me just thinking about how we use the Bible as a Nursery Rhyme book for our children. If we really read and understand this story we would understand the scene was terrifying. As the water began to rise people would be banging on the door to get in. They begin having to tread water as it rises higher and higher, they climb trees hoping the water will quit rising but it doesn't. As the trees disappear you may still be able to hear a couple of people who found something to float with screaming for their lives. Not the same story that we are use to.

Fast forward>> We re-enter the scene with a teenage girl who is engaged. She is pregnant. The law calls for her to be stoned. How scared must she have been. The young girl was in fear of her life. Fast Forward again. She gives birth to this child in a dirty stable. Our Christmas cards make it look more like a Marriott than a place where dirty animals were kept. She gave birth during a time when her country was occupied by the enemy. Not the best time to give birth to a Savior but it happened. Then by time the child is two there is a command to kill all males under the age of two so they must flee and go into hiding.

We celebrate Christmas with our pretty cards and extravagant gifts and distance ourselves from the true story. We have flannel board Jesus images so ingrained into our minds that is the way it must have been. We forget that he came during a brutal time of history. We skip over the verses we don't understand or that become uncomfortable for us. We say we don't understand because we are afraid we might actually understand. We have taken Easter and have a happy little bunny hopping around in order not to remember the brutality of the Roman form of the death penalty. We view the cross as an object of beauty when in reality it was one of the most cruel torture devices ever created. My intentions are not to ruin a holiday but to cause us to focus on the purpose of the holiday! Make us appreciate the sacrifice even more.

Don't think they ever expected for us to see the cross like this!

Shiny red ball!

Today was amazing! Our new pastor did a short Children's message and then dismissed us. I really liked this because the children felt important but it also forced the church to notice these guys. It seems that every week our children's service gets a little better. Every week things flow better and the children seem to respond better. Today we talked about how God would never leave us. Some of these guys have nothing stable in their life. Some bounce between parents and others between parents and grandparents like a giant shiny red rubber ball with no course or direction. We talked about how Christ leads us through the good and bad days of life. How he will be with us all through life. The children seemed eager to grab on to some form of stability in their lives.

Youth and college were great! God is continuing to bless both groups. Numbers are up as well as the total vibe of the group. God is good.

Just passing by!

I have never been the most popular person in the world and have a good amount of people I would call friends but very few that I would say were "good" friends. Many times we pass through each others life and as time passes so do the days between our conversations. This is not a pre-planned move but life just happens. I hate how busy life keeps us sometimes. Between work, school, and church I get so occupied that I have no time to develop and maintain relationships. It takes all I have to nurture my relationship with my family.

I am trying to change that. Through media like facebook, twitter, and myspace it has become much easier to keep in touch. God has placed people around me that I want to have as lifelong friends. I want to continue to grow closer with these people. I enjoy when we laugh together, joke with each other, or have good conversations. I look forward to being amazed by what God will do in their futures. I anticipate conversations about how God is using us in various areas.

I may not ever win a popularity contest but I have some of the coolest people anywhere in my life!

Quality not quantity!

Life of Christ!

I really wanted to drop this class because I hate group projects. I even went to school with every intention of dropping the class. Well obviously I didn't. The teacher said the magic words for me. He wanted this class to stretch us and make us think. He had me from that point. I have been in this quest to dump all the things I have been taught that may not have come from the Bible but somehow filtered their way into my theology through Church. I am not some arrogant fool who thinks I have it all figured out or that there is some new better Gospel. I just have come to find out that unfortunately I have allowed some persons interpetation of Scripture influence my belief system.

I grew up in a traditional Southern Baptist church (that I still dearly love) but had some great teachers who mixed in their personal beliefs in with their lesson. Difference is I don't blame them. I have the same Bible they do but do to my own failures I was not doing my part in studying scripture. Anyway, I have struggled for the last year with issues such as the death penalty, war, and our inability to love the lost.

I had been taught to be for the death penalty. They were getting what they deserved. Then this crazy guy Paul says in Romans that the wages of sin is death. Of course he was only referring to big sins, right? But even before that the whore at the well, Jesus had to go and mess up my theology and spare her life. According to Jewish law it was required for her to be stoned. So if we are told to love as Christ loved us how can I consciously say that the death penalty is God's way of dealing with crime?

War. Touchy subject I know but here it goes. I have friends over there right now and I support them and pray a hedge of protection around them. I don't know if I can say I am for the war though. I am not some peace sign wearing hippie but Christ was born into a time when Israel was under Roman rule. They were prisoners in their own land. Did he lead a rebellion? Did he pick up weapons and make a stand. He was quite the opposite. So much so that as he was riding the donkey into town they laid palm branches (a symbol of peace) down for him to enter town.I think we can say he wasn't all about war.

The church has suppose to have been the tool used to draw in the lost. Listen to this and tell me if you would come to church. I was recently involved in a conversation where a group was deciding to grant membership to a person. She was refused because she was currently living with her boyfriend. She was honest and disclosed the information but if she would have LIED and hid it she would be welcome. We accept those who will only sin in private or do the micro sins. No wonder our churches are falling apart. Good thing Jesus doesn't break off fellowship with us for sinning.

If we are gonna call ourselves Christians let us at least know what Christ did!

Take the blame!!!

We as leaders in our churches are quick to blame the people for being shallow. I believe that we must shoulder some of the blame for their lack of spiritual depth. We don't have the guts to speak out and say what needs to be said because we are afraid to be honest. We throw out crap for our messages and expect depth. We spend little or no time nurturing relationships with those around us. Then we whine because the people are shallow. We do not model our lives in a way that compels people to follow Christ.

Sorry for a short post but had to get that off my chest!

God is still love!

Tonight has been a heck of a night for me. As a minister there are some things I don't think I will ever be ready to handle. I am already an emotional guy. Actually, I am a big cry baby at times. For crying out loud, every time I hear "Here I Am To Worship" I get a lump in my throat and tears in my eyes. So obviously there are some things that tear me apart.

My wife got the call that a former student who we became fairly close to and grew close to her parents was in a very serious car accident. I new what we needed to do but dreaded the very thought of it. Unfortunately I have had to deal with this before. I remember like yesterday getting the call about my best friend and his wife getting killed in a car accident. I remember all the emotions that flooded through me. I can remember being in Maitland when I got the call that Monica had fallen off a golf cart and was in ICU in bad shape. I remember walking right into ICU like I knew what I was doing in order to see her. I remember getting the call again that Monica was in a horrible accident again years later. This time God was calling her home. I remember looking at her as she lay their. So young and so much to live for. I remember asking Why God? God you have screwed up. I remember when I received the call that Dr. Stephens passed away. God what the heck are you doing? I still wonder but who do I think I am to question God. I can't even make a good cup of coffee and I am going to question God.

Tonight as Melissa clings to life, fighting to breath on her own I no longer question God I turn it all over to him. I don't know His ways, I don't see the big picture but I understand that I serve a powerful, loving, sovereign God. I pray yes for a miracle but I also pray for His will. I do not pray selfishly, but out of hope. I pray for the family to be Comforted.

The Wait Is Over!

Well the church I have been serving at has been without a pastor for about 9 months and I personally have been without a pastor for over 2 years. I know the the pastor is not responsible for our spiritual lives but as a ministry student it is nice to have someone to turn to for advice. I personally am not a huge fan of how the process of finding a new pastor is done in the Baptist world. I, however, do not know of a better way to do it and understand I serve a sovereign God. Being on staff this is a scary time. Let's be honest there is a lot that can go wrong. It is not at all uncommon for pastors to bring their own team with them. What if our personalities clash? What if he wants to take the church down a different path? What if our theology differs? What if?

What if, you have the same vision, want the same thing for the church, have the same theology? I am so excited to work with this man. I was nervous because I had only been able to speak with him for a grand total of 10 minutes before he was voted in. I have just begun what I pray is a long ministry at this church that has stolen my heart when it could all be over before it got started. Sure I heard his speeches and even a sermon but how much can you know about a guy from those. Sunday night after the youth service I was finally able to go to dinner with him and his family.

I can not wait for him to get back. Our theology matches. Our views on how to do ministry match. The direction he wants to go with our church is on the same path I have been trampling. He loves the younger generation but doesn't do it at the expense of the current church. He even wants to participate in youth events! I am so excited. We talked about everything and I honestly believe we got one heck of a man for our little country church. When we were both considering Lockhart one keyword stuck out in our conversations with the church. CHANGE! We are both excited and confident about the chance to help a church break new ground.

Be ready for BIG things in the future of this little country church!

Mac

I just got my Mac last month and can't get the darn thing to turn on. I have an appointment on Thursday for the Genius Bar to fix it. It is under warranty so I am not to worried I just want it back!

The youth group is still at camp and I am missing them greatly but look forward to having the college guys together tomorrow night.

Long day!

Well my youth group left today for camp. I should be with them but I just got the job 2 weeks ago and couldn't get the time off to go with them. They have only been gone for 18 hours and I already miss them. No myspace or facebook chats with them! No text! This is going to be a long week.

I pray that this week will be a life changing experience for them. I pray that they will come back fired up and ready to make a difference. I pray for their safe and speedy return!

Free Ride

I want to vomit! I am so sick of people thinking they deserve a free ride in life. People reading this will automatically assume I am talking about the poor but I am not. I learned a valuable lesson while working with the poor. Many of them are more unselfish than the average middle class suburbia family. I am referring to people who expect something because they ask for it. I am a Christian and have a need and you are a Christian and can meet that need so it is your spiritual duty to meet that need. BULL CRAP!!!! You are not owed a darn thing. First of all most of our needs are nothing more than selfish want. Many more times we live in a society that says if you want it you will get it. We have forgotten the concept of having to work for what we want. During Christ earthly ministry he walked around loving on people not with his American Express card in his wallet.

I hate History!

My wife is a teacher and I actually love history in that sense. I love seeing how we can learn about where we came from. I like learning about ancient civilizations. That is not what I am referring to.

Why do we feel the need to live in the past when it relates to our churches or our spiritual lives. Most the time when someone is ranting and raving about this they are referring to an addict and his/her inability to let the addiction go. I am referring to people who feel the need to hang on to the glory days. This is how we have done it in the past, or I remember when. Let it GO and move forward. If we have already reached our pinnacle then lets shut the doors! Why do we even try if we feel the best is behind us? Love where we have been but love where we are going. Paul fought this same battle asking the early church why they would want to go back to the old way.

There is a saying that some things never change. Maybe that is because we get in the way of change!

Falling!

Today was an awesome day! I woke up to find 2 deer in the front yard. I was able to stand and watch them for quite some time. I love being out in the middle of nowhere and enjoying nature.

We went to Anna Ruby falls today. What a great park.The trail up to the falls was a well mantained paved walkway. It is a 1/2 mile hike but well worth it when you make it to the top. It is simply breathtaking. We saw rainbow trout in the river on the way up. I am pretty sure there are a good number of snakes living in the area. They had several signs along the trail warning you. When we first arrived I found this couple and soon a crowd grew to watch and interrupted them. We saw several species of butterflies that were fairly cooperative and posed for some pictures.

After leaving the park we stopped by Fred's Peanut Stand.It has been there for over 30 years and you can sample a ton of local foods. They have frozen peach cider which hit the spot after the hike.

Tomorrow we plan on tubing down the Chatahoochee River, mining for rubies and riding horses.

Beautiful Day!

We got to our cabin yesterday after we stopped and had lunch with an old friend. We ate at Cracker Barrel so the food was great. It was really nice to catch up with him. He has started a new church in Douglasville.


It was great to hear stories of his church and how they are reaching so many people who have never been to church before. I hope some day to be able to be a part of a church plant and enjoyed hearing all the blessings and struggles first hand.

We got to our cabin and wow. It is amazing. Laura did a great job finding such a great deal. It was much cheaper than a hotel and simply beautiful. Today we are going into town and seeing the penalty for not vacating the premises when our rental agreement is up. We are hoping it takes at least 30 days to evict.(J/K) But it is that nice.




We ate at the Helen House. It is a brand new restaraunt in downtown. The food was better than anything seen on Food Network. The owner came out and apologized because he only had two of the three meats. (It was family style dining so they just bring you out a ton of everything) He said he would give us our meal at half price! SCORE!!! They were out of the yellowtail catfish. Some people eating at another table offered us one of their filets. It was very good. This would never happen back home in Florida. People are so much nicer up here.

We made our way back home with enough time to enjoy a soak in the hot tub before listening to a thunderstoerm as we went to bed!

Ouch!!!!!

Well I haven't been skating for quite some time. I went for the first time in what seems like an eternity on Saturday night. It is sort of like riding a bike. Once you learn you won't forget. The only part is that doesn't guarantee you won't fall. You guessed it. I busted my rear. Actually I was trying to show off. Yes me, show off and do something stupid. I decided to use my body to slow down Mr. I Own My Own Blades and Mr. I Have My Own Personal Locker. I never took into consideration these two over zealous show offs could hurdle a body thrown in front of them that was suppose to act like a human speed bump. I went down and he went over. It was fun at the time but now I have a bruise on my knee and a hole in my ego.





It was a great night. I met some great people. (Anastasia was by far the coolest). I got to know some of the girls better.(Faith & Marae) Watched Corley keep Corinna out of trouble. (not really) The best guys in the world. Joe and Tyler are the fearless duo. They are always there to lend a hand. Jimmy kept me updated on the race (except the last 8 laps). Brian is gonna teach me how to bowl. Mike was out there getting numbers from older guys. Steven rolled around there showing us he could be a good friend. Morgan drug her mom around the rink and always had a smile. Connor made sure someone requested some decent music. Then we had the cheer squad made up of the adults that would rather laugh at everyone falling then fall themselves.

It was a great night and I hope everyone had a blast and I can't wait until we do it again.

What a week!

This week the youth/children's pastor at the church where I am the college and young adult pastor resigned. I have been helping with these two groups since my first day (and was the VBS director) so I volunteered to fill in. Since then I was told I would be more than filling in. I would also now lead these two areas. I am so fortunate.




If you know me at all you know in the last couple years I have really seen the need for serving/loving others. Well I wasted no time. The first thing we did was to wash our churches bus. I know this isn't the same as feeding the starving children of a third world country but it is still service. 14 of the best kids in the world showed up to clean our bus. This is amazing since I never told them what they were doing. I told them to bring a dirty rag and plan on getting wet. Of course, we couldn't just wash the bus. We had a slip-n-slide as well as a messy relay race.



This was a great evening. I look forward to many more outings with these guys. God is going to change the look of our youth group in big ways.

180

How a few hours can change your outlook on life. I will just leave it at that. Shortest post ever!

Taking a break!

I was going to try to be on here a little more often, but some situations that I have unfortunately been involved in lately have caused me to not have the desire to blog. I will not use this as my forum to vent so if I have nothing good to say I won't say anything. Everytime I sit down to write I am full of disgust! I do not understand how people can call themselves Christians, but live like the devil himself. We, as Christians, are called to set ourselves apart, but far too many times no one can tell the difference between us and the world. We say we want the world to know about our relationship with our Savior so we put on a front and show them while we are in public, but behind closed doors we live like someone on the highway to hell. We act so surprised that the world sees through this. Then, as Christians, when we see this cycle we don't have the balls to confront the issue. We twist scripture and say it is not our place to judge, even though Matthew tells us to confront the issue and eventually commands us to break fellowship with these people. I am all for restoration of a repenting believer, but without repentance there is no restoration.

How much different and safer would our churches be if we had a few more people with enough balls or who cared enough to stand up for what is right instead of what is easy? They are in our churches, but we have quieted them or paid them no attention.

Stronger Than Hell!!!!!!!!!!!

Last night I finally got to see one of - if not my favotite - bands...finally. It was amazing. Being over-anxious, Connor and I got theire earlier than we needed to so we went and hung out at Virgin Megastore. Much to our surprise most of the bands were in there wandering around the aisles looking for some more music to listen to on the bus. Respecting their right to be normal people we decided not to be star struck. (We would save that for later.) We decided it was time to get in line. This is a well-planned maneuver. You can't be the first gut in line because you are labeled a dork, nor do you want to be too far back and not make it through the first group let in. (Who wants to stand in the heat longer than you have to?) Then the skies let loose. We ran for cover. After a short storm we went to reclaim our position in line. We planned it perfectly. We were the last people in the first wave to be allowed in. The same rules do not apply to the merch tables. (They probably do ,but I don't care. I was getting a shirt whether I would be labeled a dork or not.)



I was exposed to a new band, The Advent. Their set was clean but what impressed me most was their willingness to share their faith from the stage. If you know me, you know that I am a sucker for lyrics. Their lyrics are solid and his testimony was amazing. I found this refreshing when there are so many bands who would rather sell albums than share their faith. Connor wanted to meet the band so we went to their merch table and the lead singer took the time to talk to him and talk about the songs on their album and share his faith more. I was so impressed I bought their album and a t-shirt for Connor. He signed the album for Connor, wrote a verse on it and encouraged Connor to look it up.

I will skip the other bands except for the mention that Living Sacrifice was amazing. I anticipate their new album coming out in early 09.

Demon Hunter was amazing. Their set was flawless. They opened with Storm The Gates of Hell. The pit was intense and grew feverishly as they belted out song after song. My son decided to make dad proud and shoved his way through the crowd to make his way into the pit. As they separated getting ready for the "wall of death" I pulled him away. They sound as good live as they do on their album. Bruce from Living Sacrifice came out for the song Sixteen. AMAZING!!! In an attempt to keep this post from dragging on I will wrap this up by saying after show the band came out to hang with fans. They posed for pictures, signed autographs and just hung out. I had an amazing time.

Enjoy life's Garbage!

I have been having to deal with things that have cost me a lot of sleep and headaches. These have been some of the biggest decisions in my life so far. They have not been easy. They have been quite painful. Sometimes doing the right thing can be very costly. Sometimes monetarily, sometimes emotionally, sometimes both. Sometimes life's garbage affect a lot of people differently.

I was doing some studying of the book of James and God taught me something HUGE. We have all heard we grow through the tough times. We all have seen this within our own lives. But in verse two it says to consider it joy when this garbage is dumped in our lives. Webster defines joy as: the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires. So we are supposed to delight in lifes trials. WOW!!!

Stepping back and looking at this from a new perspective I can thank God for the oppurtunity to go through this. To be able to have the opportunity to help someone if they are willing to reach out. To draw close to God and pray. To have been given the chance to be in this experience that will have a positive outcome in His timing. To surround myself with Godly people to encourage me. I still can't say I will be able to embrace trials when they arrive, but I will try to meet them with a knowledge that God is using them to His glory.

When life gives you lemons dont just make lemonade. Enjoy the sweet smell of fresh juice as you squeeze the lemon. Allow yourself to enjoy the moment!

Bittersweet Memories

VBS is finally over! This is a bittersweet time for me. I was exhausted from the countless hours that have been put in, but I am going to miss the time with the children. I have nightmares of Jeff Slaughter leading worship at my church, but miss seeing the kids enjoying worship. I am tired of wearing tacky shirts, but enjoyed the shorts and flip-flops. Won't miss the six foot tall pineapple staring at me, but the atmosphere and the excitement cannot be manufactured. So, yes, I am enjoying the breath of fresh air, but miss the refreshing sound of kids praising God.

What a job God did with VBS! I cannot take any of the credit. I had no idea what I was doing or even what I would say to the kids some nights until it was coming out. I was fortunate to have the most awesome helpers ever. Not too many, not too few. God gave us every piece to the puzzle and they fit together to paint the most beautiful picture. Kids made decisions, parents were reminded of our responsibilities and workers grew through their own studies.

On a roll!

Three nights in a row! Tonight was yes another VBS night. I thank God for using me and giving me the ability to connect with these precious children. So many of us look back at our childhoods as a very formative time in our life. I am blessed to know that I am playing a part in forming some principles in the children's lives that will always be dear to them.

Most of us made our decisions early on in life about our direction to accept the idea of God or reject it. So many times we made these decisions at a camp or a VBS or some other function at a church. Sure our theology has changed but we hold onto the early truths we were taught. I am in a small church who doesn't have all the bright lights and fancy sets but we have done good. Realize the kids put a lot less stock in those items than we do. The kids want to be loved on and know it.

As I strive to be more Christlike I find myself falling more in love with the children of our church. You know the ones who climb over the pews or talk in the prayer. Yes they need to learn things but when they do they are so authentic. They don't sing loud so the lady two rows in front of them will admire their voice. They don't look around to see who is watching them place the money in the offering plate when it is passed. They do it because they are being obedient to Scripture. They are obeying Scripture out of a love for God. Not a distorted love of God but because they truly understand what it means to love God.

Day Two!

Two days in a row! This hasn't happened forever. I had a blast tonight. Everything clicked. I found out this morning I was taking over Children's church! BIG changes are in store. I am so excited and I hope the kids are ready for a change. After finding this out it made the evening that much sweeter. I absolutely love working with the children. There are always those couple of kids that try your patience but tonight my goal was to get them to connect. They did. The cool kid who normally refuses to participate actually did. I was able to have time to sit down and share with these guys. My teachers have been amazing. I hate that we are already halfway through.

More tomorrow..............

VBS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I figured once I was done with school I would be on here a lot more. I was gravely mistaken. This summer has been ridiculously busy. From falling off ladders to running a VBS (never having worked one before) I have had no time to breathe much less compose anything worth reading.

The first night is over and we may not have set any attendance records but we had two families who were new to the area. With the lack of advertising we did I am pleased with the turnout. There is something so refreshing seeing innocent children worship. They know nothing of the politics of the church (nor do they care). They aren't concerned about the version of Bible read to them or what denomination they are. They want to worship God for who He is not because of who they are or who is watching. They truly want there friends to enjoy this with them and will invite whomever to experience Christ with them. Then unfortunately some of them will grow content and remain in the same church never to share Christ with a soul.

Me and my BIG mouth!

I have always been told my mouth would get me in trouble. Back in elementary school I was the kid that had a question for everything. I believe that every report card said I was a good kid but just couldn't keep quiet. Well I did it this time.

I have told way too many people that I want God to open and close doors in my life but I wanted them thrown off the hinges or slammed shut so there would be no mistaking my selfish desires for His will. Crap! I think he was in on one of these conversations.

I have been convicted on the need to share not only my faith but in encouraging others to share theirs. Well I have been toying around with the thought of trying to teach people on how to be more comfortable in doing this. Hold up! This is not a push for E.E. or F.A.I.T.H. or any other SBC form of Tuesday night door to door evangelizing. (I still do not know why Tuesday has become the official night). I grew up with this mentality and have never been able to embrace it. I have always felt like a salesperson who should carrying a briefcase with a plethora of tracts and asking which one would you like. I have a Jesus tract for the single mom or one for the grumpy teenager. I always felt so much pressure to "close the deal". We would always meet back at the church and see who had the "best response" and who was insulted the most.




I have been given statistic after statistic saying how the church isn't growing because the church isn't reaching out. I was turned on to a newer form of evangelism only to find out it has been around for some 2000 years. It even predates E.E. and the life/death tract. It has recently been labeled relational evangelism or lifestyle evangelism. One man has even coined it as BBQ evangelism. Well, I have been trying to figure out a way to introduce this to my church and if God didn't set me up. During our informal staff meeting Wednesday night I was approached to lead my church in this area. There is a door that was completely thrown off the hinges! I had not shared this burden with anyone and yet God had shared it.

I was upfront and said I was not a fan of door to door Jesus marketing and that if I do it I want to have a class showing people they have opportunities in front of them everyday. I have all but officially accepted this added position and have begun to get extremely excited. I am hoping to get a small group together and go through Contagious Christianity with them and start a shift in the way we go about our lives together. I want to empower them and show them through scripture how this is an effective means and that we have been given the power to do this.

Few and Far Between!

I have really been trying to get on here more often but life has been busy lately and will remain this way for some time to come. Thank God vacation is in early July. Good news is school is out for the summer and I must brag a little. I earned a 100 on my apologetics final. I stressed about this class endlessly because I do not always see things the way everyone else does.

I am in a very traditional Southern Baptist Church. Yes that is where God has led me and I am for the most part extremely happy to be there. I always hoped to be at a super contemporary-post modern church that was pushing the envelope but God in His infinite wisdom or because He has a sense of humor sent me to a church that is a textbook example of your grandmothers church. I am so thankful for this because I know it is God who has placed me here. I have had so many oppurtunities to share new ways of thinking and doing things. The college group is amazing. I love these guys. We have done things that no one in the church's history has even attempted. I have asked them to come out of their comfort zone and experience what Christ meant by loving others. They are great.

It is easy to see the complacency among our church. Not just in one area but across the board. The great news is my guys have felt comfortable bringing their unchurched friends to our midweek group. Then it happened. Someone came in and stirred the pot. I love these people. Really I do. Someone felt these people were to lost to be at church and in our typical self righteous Christian ego we make them feel uncomfortable only to have them left with the bitter taste in their mouth that they will always associate with Christ. I pray that these people will be back and bring swarms of their friends with them. Bring all their lost, worldly, broken friends so we can show them Christ unconditional love rather they accept Him or not!

What an AWESOME day!!!!!!!!!!!

I have been so busy lately I couldn't come up for air. Between church, school, and family I have been running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Well everything got better today. I still have all the same commitments but was rewarded greatly today for all the hard work I have been putting in.

I don't like to brag but I am going to for a minute. School is tough for me to juggle. Since my family sacrifices to put me through school I have tried to maintain a high GPA but found that very unfulfilling. I was just memorizing junk and regurgitating it for test. Easy A's but what was the point if I was not bettering myself through what was being taught. I still try to maintain the high average (and have been able to maintain it)but decided to focus on learning and not memorising. Today I got the results for two of my exams. I freaking got a 100 on the one I thought was the toughest. This was an all essay exam so I didn't just memorize and spit it back out! This semester I also received a 99 on a paper about church conflict. Some may say no big deal but I pride myself on understanding the subject and being able to apply portions of it to everyday life.

So now that I have tooted my own horn let me toot my wife's. For the first time in her teaching career someone has appreciated her hard work and willingness to go above and beyond. How nice that is after seeing people abuse her good nature and tear her down. It is a nice change to see her appreciated instead of abused. It is amazing how things work out when you consistently surrender to God. You stand up for what is right no matter who is wrong and sometimes God allows you to see justice here on earth. Good job baby!