Finding the Gear

I've been up since 4:00 am. I'm not sure if it was the fact that I couldn't breath or that there is so much going on that I just needed an earlier start today.

With just a few months to go before Journey Church goes "public," there are quite a few things that we need to pick up. We are currently in the market for portable church gear. Yes there is such a thing as church in a box. So I will be making out and finalizing our equipment list this week.

Loss >< Gain

Well at this point we all know about the horrible economic downturn that certainly can't be denied. It is sad that we allowed greed and corruption to run our great county head first over this cliff. We have to understand that by nature mankind is flawed. You don't have to teach a man to be a crook. You just have to give him a motive and opportunity. Sadly, the fact of mankind got us to this point - not a political party.
So now that we know what caused this mess. What can fix it? Does it have to be fixed? What if we just leave it alone? Would our loss be greater than our gain? That is the huge question. As far as the ecomony goes, it is like trying to be on the future. But as far as following Jesus goes, it is the most certain investment a person can make.
Many people don't come to Christ because they feel that they will in a sense lose more than they will gain. What a huge misunderstanding this is. It comes from the idea that we are invincible and what we see in this life is what you get. Not true. So what if you gain the whole world and then die...you lose it all. Wow we really need that idea to guide us. Basically - Life with Jesus > Life without Jesus. The scales are really one sided when you take a real look.

Another Busy Sunday

I will be traveling to Duncan, America today to speak at Bethel Church. Thank God for a wonderful mother church that believes in reaching the lost wherever they might be. Our group will meet later today and I am excited to hear how that meeting goes. Man, I hate to miss! But thankfully it will be left to very capable hands.

Surviving Bad News

There is bad news all around us. Doomsday theories are prevelant and broadcast on a daily basis. There are those days when we personally get bad news and our lives change in the moment. Life is measured as life before the bad news and life after the bad news. As I was reading early this morning, I came across a verse that describes how we should deal with bad news. In Psalm 112, the writer describes the life of a righteous man and the results of such a life. In verse 6 he says, "he will have no fear of bad news; his heart is steadfast, trusting in the Lord." So would say, easier said than done but in truth every time bad news comes we have that split second of reacting without hope or being steadfast and trusting God. Later the Psalmist says, "in the end he will look in triumph on his foes." Bad news will never overcome. In Christ we are the victors!

From Backyards to Frontyards

I'm looking out my window at a serious football game. There are about 10 young boys in my front yard getting after it. Shannon is outside looking at the newspaper and visiting with a neighborhood mom. In recent days, we have gone from being a backyard BBQ family to a front yard hang out family. We don't know poeple because we don't avail ourselves to know people. Society has slowly and steadily become more and more isolated because we have caged ourselves within the confines of our own privacy. No one gets in and we don't get out. What a shame. From what I can tell, Jesus was a front yard kind of guy!

Wow time Flies!

I can hardly believe that today my little girl enters double digit numbers. Sydney turned 10 years old today. It just can't be. Shannon and I got nostalgic last night and reminisced about how I changed her first diaper, he curly 2 year old hair, her first day of school...I just can't believe it. Life moves by so fast. Maybe that is why Jesus always seemed to point out the fact that our lives are so brief we not only must enjoy the now but remember that the "forever" will be something to truly behold.

On another note, we had a great team meeting last night. Momentum is building and God is truly working. Journey Church is coming together!

Don't Give Up on Anyone

In 2004 in Dallas I met a guy named Brad. For all intents and purposes, Brad was an athiest. He had so many questions about God he wasn't even sure if there was a God. We gradually became friends and God began to work in our relationship. It was amazing to see God do things in Brad's life that seemed to communicate to him in subtle ways.
I remember telling Brad to never stop seeking becuase the Bible says that if we would seek, and seek with all of our heart, we would eventually find.
Now here is the good part. Several months ago my phone rang and it was Brad. We had had little contact over the past several years and it was great to talk again. Brad was right to the point. He told me that he had made a life changing discovery. He finally got it! He began to declare to me that he believed that God created the earth and he sent his son Jesus to die for our sins and that Jesus rose again on the thrid day. I was thrilled to hear that he had found Christ after years of seeking. He went on to ask me if I would baptize him since I was the person that he felt closest to and who had helped him in his journey to find Jesus. I quickly agreed!
This past Sunday Brad was baptized in my parents backyard pool!!!!
We have to remember that we are the sowers of seed. We water the seed. We tend the soil but it is God who makes things grow!

Energy Independence Day

This makes total sense to me. There is hope for individuals who help themselves and the saying works for nations too.

Friendship vs. Time and Distance

I am in Waxahachie, Texas attending district meetings for the next couple days. I am getting to see a lot of old friends that I am having a great time reconnecting with. If there is one thing that all of us could improve on it is maintaining our relationships that mean so much to us. Sadly, we allow time and distance to suffocate our relationships.
Several years ago I determined to end this habit and keep relationships alive and healthy regardless of time or distance. Leadership guru Steven Covey says that a highly effective person knows the end game before he ever starts up something. I want to be known as a person who really had a lot of friends not just a person who knew a lot of people.

To Kill or Not to Kill That is the Question

This seems like an off the wall subject but in light of some discussion among friends I thought I would pass on some thoughts about capital punishment. It is amazing to see how many people in conservative circles have a pro stance on this issue. If a criminal is convicted of an especially haneous crime then bust out the needle. It is kind of ironic that I am moving to the state with the highest rate of capital punishment cases.

In the middle fo the argument I tried to put some Biblical clothes on it and get over the logical and rant of the two polar positions. The pro-cp side fiercely defends the rights of the victim and the anti-cp group fiercely defends the right of the criminal. What is funny is that when it comes to abortion, most of the people in the two groups swap the sides whom they defend.

So what is the value of a human life? Is it worth less the older that it gets? Is it worth less after it has committed a crime? Is that the way God sees it?

To often we defend our rights and forget about the words of Jesus to pray for our enemies and forgive those who sin against us. Somehow, that doesn't apply when we are the victims but it totally applies when we are the criminals. Do we really believe that there isn't a sin that is to great to be forgiven? If not for mercy, would any of us be alive? And speaking of mercy it is the cornerstone of the Christian faith. I do understand that we are instructed to follow the law (Rom. 13:1-4) but are we citizens of Christ's Kingdom first and then citizens of this world second?

Just something to think about. Thank you God for giving me a second chance....and a third....and a fourth...and

Indiana Jones is our Church Greeter

We are finalizing the negotiations with the Cinemark theater that we are planning on using to start Journey Church. This is an incredible location and we all know the three most important words when it comes to real estate...location, location, location.

It will take some creativity but I think this will be an awesome venue for us!

Jesus was a Carpenter too?

Shannon and I have spent the last several months getting our house ready for sale. This carpentry work is tough. I have worked like a sled dog getting things painted and fixed up and now we are trusting God with the rest.

I know that where God calls he provides. We are just praying for God to provide a buyer for our incredible home. Next step....packing up......wow that is tougher than carpentry!

Spirit vs Engineering

I've gotten away from the blog for a while simply because of the busy-ness of life. I'm sure that everyone knows what that is. But something has been rolling over and over in my heart and I want to share it.
Learning is part of the process in starting a church. I need all the input I can for Journey Church to be successful. However I have come to the conclusion that mechanics alone cannot change the heart of man. That can only be done by the Spirit of God. If we could somehow engineer a way to fix people and make the gospel paletable for everyone, then we wouldn't need the gospel at all. God would be useless to us and therefore we would be our own God's. We have to be careful that we don't engineer the role of God in the process of salvation. As Oswald Chambers says, "salvation is God's thought, not man's."
We will never get fancy enoughy nor creative enough nor high-tech enough nor smooth enough nor skillful enough to save anyone. That is a work of his Spirit not our engineering!

Pacing Ourselves to Follow

Since January 1, Shannon and I have been anticipating our move to Denton. Words can’t describe how excited we are to see what God is going to do in our lives as we move onto our new place of mission. Our prayer has been that the Lord would prepare the way before us. Our nature is to run out ahead and do things in our own strength. We have reminded ourselves that we are being "led" by the Spirit and not "pushed" by the Spirit. As we have been patient, we have seen the Lord make our path plain by bringing people into our lives that carry the same passion that we have: to give people every reason to want to follow Jesus.

Isaiah 45:2-3 has been a foundational scripture for us and I want to share it. It says, "I will go before you and will level the mountains; I will break down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. I will give you the treasures of darkness, riches stored in secret places, so that you may know that I am the LORD, the God of Israel, who summons you by name."

It gives us great comfort to know that the Lord is going in front of us, clearing a path for us. Knowing that he is in front gives great encouragment to me as I blaze down a new path in life's journey!

Tyranny of the Urgent

Every felt like you check off one of your to-do's just to add two more to the list? Most of our lives are lived according to the urgent things that have to be done NOW. I have to admit that I have been that way for the past several weeks. It is easy to get lost in the now and not see the tomorrow. There are a few things that I am going to do to try to save myself from this tyranical taskmaster:

1. Remind myself that God is near. Whenver we feel overwhelmed we also feel isolated and alone. It is important to remember that the Lord is with us in this life, calm seas or category 5 hurricanes.
2. Attack the weakest link. We see the shows on the Discovery Channel and Animal Planet where a lion observes a hurd of cape buffalo and looks to identify the weakest animal in the herd. The weakest link becomes his mark. By attacking the task that is least challenging to us we can eliminate it from our to-do list and feel a sense of accomplishment. The sense of accomplishment is what helps us to be motivated to attack the next task.
3. Pace myself. It won't all get done today but I know that it will get done. Consistency is the mark of champions.

A Transformer Birthday

Yesterday was my youngest son's birthday. It was a Transformers birthday. He was wired all day long when he realized that the day was all about him. It is amazing how different we act when we realize that we are the center of all the attention. Our moods change. We get a sudden burst energy and everything in the world seems as light as a feather. It is truly life transforming. If only we could realize that we are the apple of His eye (Prov. 17:8) how it would change the way we live out our daily lives.