My Business

If you would like to partner with us:

Monday, September 29, 2008

What's Your Status?


Let me tell you about an amazing worship experience I had last night. I visited 'STATUS' a ministry to college students and 20 somethings out of a church called Discovery Church. ( I went to meet up with some former youth who attend there regularly) I was amazed at the amount of students that were present. It was encouraging to see nearly 1,000 students participating in an amazing worship experience. Let me say though, that I felt completely out of touch with youth culture. You see, I have been a youth pastor for the last 14 years...but I think I am still stuck in the 90's. There is this new thing called "Emo" and well, I am not "Emo".
Well, once the music started I thought I was at a 'Coldplay' concert. The band was tight and everything they did was with excellence. I was really impressed. The speaker was Jeannie Stevens who is married to Jared Stevens. This was a treat, because not only is she an excellent communicator but I have had the privilege of serving Jared during an event in Chicago. She spoke about Waiting on God. Boy, have I learned a lot about that. She gave a convincing and encouraging message that would move anyone to Wait on God as He fulfills His purposes in our lives. It was a great reminder to me, that Waiting on God is the BEST place for to be. After her message the band led us in an extended time of worship...WHOA! It was off the chain! (I know, that's not an Emo thing to say...I told you I wasn't cool) We sang, shouted, danced, and sang some more for 30 min and it was awesome. I know that in heaven there will be 24/7 worship of Jesus the King, and I also believe that it will be different that what we think. There will be worship styles of all sorts. All I know is that in heaven, I will be at the Emo stage, a lot! It was great. If you live in the area and would like to check them out, visit their website for more info: www.whatsyourstatus.com

On a side note...I had another chance last night to sit with some old friends from Miami and just catch up. I love it when God orchestrates it in such a way that we are blessed with these kind of friendships.

Thank you Lord for all you do. Thank You Lord for who you are. Thank You Lord for last night.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

It's so early...and I'm so tired!

So it's 4 am on Sunday morning and and we had an eventful evening at The Roots Community last night. I can't sleep and I'm not sure if it's the Ravioli that I had at midnight, or if it's all the stuff on my mind.
Matt Burks (The Roots-Executive Pastor) and I interviewed 2 potential people for the Children's Leader position and it went really well. Simply put, I posted an ad on Craigslist and you wouldn't believe the turnout and response. I had well over 50 people inquire about the position. This was way more than I thought would even care. I feel as if the two candidates are good matches for us, but we can only choose one and that could be difficult. Pray for us.
Also...last night at Roots we had two new visitors. It's interesting because we aren't even advertising yet. But, what happened was...Derrick, Chuck, and Nadine our youth miniistry team were at the local Bookstore and they met this couple. After a conversation with them they were invited to come and visit Roots. They showed up and really enjoyed it (so they said). The really interesting thing is that they both were homeless. This couple had lost their home due to some terrible circumstances and were forced to live in their car. They had some income coming in, which helped to provide them with food and other essentials for living. At the end of the night, we asked them how we could serve them, and immediatly the woman said, "I need a shower". Wow! I was humbled, that her greatest need at that moment was a shower. I truly expected to hear, "Money" or "Food" or "Place to live"...but what they wanted the most from us was the opportunity to take a shower. Well, I knew that we could certainly help them out with that. Within that next hour they were showering at one of the Roots community homes. They were so blessed by that shower, but the real blessing was providing them that shower. This couple was extremely humble, loving, generous, and committed to Jesus. I hope they come back next Saturday night to Roots and I pray that they become connected to the Roots Community. I feel like we can learn alot from them. One last thought: As the story unfolded last night with this couple I was impressed in my spirit with the fact that...these are the people that Jesus would have walked with when he was on earth. Thank you Lord for trusting us with this couple. Thank You for giving us an opportunity to serve them and love them. Thank you for showing us how good we have it, even when we feel that we have nothing. Goodnight, I'm going back to bed!

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Gripped!

It's about 4:30 in the afternoon on a Saturday and I am about to leave to be with my Roots Community. I am Gripped by many things that are stirring in my soul. Are we getting Soul Naked before the Lord and each other? This is where we experience the deepest level of intimacy with one another. Have we developed a Holy Discontent for how many people are lost and missing out on a joyful experience with their creator? These are some of the things that I am wrestling through... with, and for my community. Tonight, I have a chance to preach, have a conversation, say words...that will in return...hopefully...encourage them towards deeper affection with Jesus, passion for the lost, and whatever else God has for us. Pray for me, pray for us, pray for yourself.

Search This Blog