What has happened to me!?

ok ok I know it has been like forever since I have written on this thing but hear me out I have some good excuses.

Since the last time I have:

Become the Connections Pastor, which means Journey Groups, Serving Groups, Set Up and Tear Down on Sunday’s, Assimilation Procedures, Follow Up, & whatever else comes down the pike.

Which means trying to get Journey Groups ready to launch in Feb,

Which means trying to bring a component of JG life to Serving Groups (by the way congrats to Dee Dee and her leaders on doing a most awesome job),

Which means trying to revamp Assimilation strategies (visiting w/First Time Guests, retooling our Next Step Area, Baptism, Fellowship One challenges etc…)

Which mean giving oversight to some really cool people who are our lead volunteers but we are leading at a higher capacity so it is about people and not all about the tasks.

Sooooooo, that means that the urgent things like this blog and the important things like family must be put in there right places.

This is something that I have usually done real well with and I plan to keep it up.

Sooooooo, if you are reading this and you know you should be doing something else then shame on you!  I mean seriously, go hang out with the kids and play.  You know make them laugh, tickle them, ask them about God.  Love your spouse, talk about what you have read with them.  Read your Bible!  Heather and I (as an example of important) have read the Bible together, nightly since before Thanksgiving.  What a blessing that has been to me and my family.  Living without blogging was great!

So I am back.  What does that mean?  Well, it probably means that it won’t be forever because life will get busy again.  But until then I will be hitting this spot a couple of times a week or Josh will get on my case again.  I appreciate you all for stopping by and we’ll catch up more this week.

The Crew that Rocks!

I wanted to share with everyone the email I sent to our guys that make Sunday happen;

Guys, I just wanted to let you know how stinking awesome you are!  I know it was a crazy and hectic day but thank you for hunkering down and getting done in record time.  You are the ones that made this morning possible.  You all have worked hard at learning what you have to do and it paid off today.

Here’s what happened today in case you didn’t hear.  The truck wouldn’t start no matter what we did.  Then, at 0 hours it decided to start, thanks to God, and we put it into high gear. We got everything in and up by 7:35 INCREDIBLE!  Here’s what that translates to – You were empowerd by God, we encountered spiritual warfare, and you kicked Satan in the mouth!  Now, how’s that make you feel!?

Seriously, you all are on the front lines and people’s lives are in the balance.  You are the first line of defense.  I want you remember that when;

*  Ralph and Gerard are rolling around on the frozen ground trying to jump a truck (for over an hour)
*  Rick, Lee, Matt, & Jake take control of the lobby
*  Todd, Jason, Curt, Rich are bustin there humps getting the kid rooms set up
*  Lenny and his boy Lee every week are packing and unpacking the truck and getting  kidventure check-in ready
*  Sean, Wade & Joel are driving around trying to get us going then show up and bust out the adult room

Look, what I am trying to say it is exciting and fun serving with you.  It’s like playing ball again.  We all have a common opponent and it is us against him.  We can’t loose when you understand who is our coach is.  Let’s keep it going and do what we gotta do so people can get from where they are to where God wants them to be!

Discovering God’s Will pt. 1

For the next few blogs we are going to be looking at the topic of Discovering God’s Will for your Life.  A few weeks a go I felt as if this is what God was wanting me to share with some of our cool volunteers at Oak Leaf Church.  I heard back from a few that it was something that they needed to hear.  I think that it is this way with more folks than what we think.  So we are going to take it from the top as in what’s God’s Will for the world and take it all the way down to what does it mean for me.  I think this will be very eye opening for all of us. Because until we get this we have no idea what it is we are suppose to be doing.  Have you felt that way lately?

So saying that, here we go;

How do we know what it is that we are suppose to be doing?  How do we know the discernible will of God?  How do we hear the voice of God?   I don’t mean so much an audible voice.  I have never heard God like that and I don’t think I want to.  Can you imagine that kind of stuff would mess you up for the rest of your life!

But what we are talking about is the Jehovah, a father, God that is concerned with the decisions we are making.  We need to step back for a moment and stop being so wrapped up in our own lives and see that God has a much bigger and grander scheme than what we know about.  He wants you and me to be an integral part of it and He wants to use us.

Take a look at this really cool verse

Proverbs 3:6 …”in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight”. (NIV)

He will make your paths obvious. He will make it all clear.  This is a promise to us from God the father that when we want to get in on the game plan and be a part of the scheme He will let you know what it is your are suppose to be doing.

According to the scriptures there are three different ways that we can describe the will of God.  That is if we took all the times that the will of God is mentioned in the Bible it would be put in of three categories.

The will of God three different ways:

1.    The providential will of God.
2.    The moral will of God.
3.    The personal will of God.

1.     The providential will of God.
It is the stuff that God is going to do.  You do not have to pray for it because it will happen anyway.

Galatians 4:4-5 4 “But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. 5 God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children.” NLT

Rev. 20:11-15 stated that all of us will be judged.  We do not have to request it.  He is just going to do it and nothing will change His mind.  It was the providential will of God that Jesus would return, that He would raise up the Messiah through the nation of Israel.  God is going to do these things whether we like it or not and it is not hinged on our desire or obedience.

But now here is the interesting point; God uses men and women to fulfill His providential will. (E.g. Mary mother of Jesus, Abraham father of the Israelites, Apostle Paul preacher to the Gentiles, etc…)  As believers the more we recognize the providential will of God the more we can identify and discern His will for our lives.  And the only way to find out His will is to read the scriptures.

We’ll talk about step two next time.

The Servant Church

Parable of the Dinner – Luke 14

16 But He said to him, “A man was giving a big dinner, and he invited many; 17 and at the dinner hour he sent his slave to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come; for everything is ready now.’ 18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first one said to him, ‘I have bought a piece of land and I need to go out and look at it; please consider me excused.’ 19 “Another one said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I am going to try them out; please consider me excused.’ 20 “Another one said, ‘I have married a wife, and for that reason I cannot come.’ 21 “And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ 22 “And the slave said, ‘Master, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23 “And the master said to the slave, ‘Go out into the highways and along the hedges, and compel them to come in, so that my house may be filled.

24 ‘For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste of my dinner.’”

I was reading this story, that Jesus told, the other day and something stuck out to me.  You see, most would agree that this is a parable that teaches that Jesus came for the Jews first and when they didn’t care the good news it would be shared with the Gentiles, that’s everyone else and that’s good news for us.

But what I noticed is what the servant was doing for his master.  To me, and I say this is totally from my head and should not be taken as some type of commentary note, the role of the servant is what caught my eye.  He was the go between, the one that got the message out.

The servant, I took it was now the church, let’s say Oak Leaf.  Here’s what I think should be going on.

• We’re suppose to be the interceder between the world and God.
• The message is for everyone not just those of our preferences.
• We should already know the mind of God and be about doing His will before He even asks us to do something.

It is a tough role to be the servant.  Are you up for the challenge?

Let’s get more!

It is a great time of year at Oak Leaf.  I just wanted to share with you one of the reasons why it is.

JOURNEY GROUPS…

I have been hearing some cool stories coming out of Journey Groups but let me tell you of this underneath theme that is running through many of them right now.

We have groups that come in all sizes.  Will Goodwin is leading the way with having like 29 people on his roster.  All of this is cool but let me tell you what I love to hear.  I had a group leader tell me last week that they did not have a great turn out so I immediately was trying to get them plugged into another group and here was the response., “No, we want to give it more time we have a new couple coming so we want to keep trying.”

I was pleasantly surprised by this person’s willingness to allow God to use them.  You see I believe God wants to do great things through us but many times we have to be patient.  Many of us are seeing and sensing this right now because of our economy.  This is when God decides to work because He wants to show Himself.  It, and here’s a churchy word, ‘glorifies’ Him and HE gets the credit.  Then everyone knows He’s in charge.

For those in groups and you are worried about numbers hang tough and above all KEEP INVITING!  It could be that God wants to see how much you are in this thing by seeing your passion for inviting others.

By the way when you ask Will how he got that many people he will tell you, “I just asked”.

Always be Aware!

Apostasy…Now that is strong word.  I mean, it is basically being a false teacher, leading people away from God instead of to Him.  As a pastor/teacher I am held to a higher responsibility than most.  That concerns me a lot.  No one wants to be accused of leading others astray.  And no one wants to have to face a God that is going to hold you responsible and accountable for it.

When I first became a pastor I was coming out of an age of self-discovery and of redefining who I am.  The greatest experience I had during this time, besides marrying my awesome wife, was getting a degree in Mental Health Counseling.  At that time I thought this was my way of helping people and I was good at it.  I actually had an act for it but now at the other end of the road I think it was as much for me as it was for others.  It helped me take a good look at myself and know who I am.

I am a sinner.  I am out for myself.  I like pleasing me.  I am just like everyone else…

Because of being able to see this more clearly I now can watch out for it all the more.  Which brings me back to that Apostasy word.

Everything I do now in ministry is tainted with questions; “What does it do for me?”, “How does it make me feel?”  “Who is this for?”

When I ask these questions it helps me weigh my motives and sets the path for decision making.  It also helps in talking with others because I am wondering about their motives as well.

If you are one of the cool people I work with let’s always be aware of our motives. If you are a leader be especially careful because we are also responsible for others.  Because at Oak Leaf you know what our call is; “Leading people from where they are to where God wants them to be.”  God wants them closer to Him and if we get in the way there will be consequences.

Journey Group Leaders Rising to the Occasion

It was a cool site to see. There was a sea of black and white Journey Group T-shirts encircling the room.  There was excitement in the air and I must say that there was a sense of camaraderie among our leaders.  I felt like for the first time that they could see each other and they actually knew they were in this thing together with a bunch of other people just like themselves.  We are preparing for a fight here in Cartersville and we will go after those that need to be in a Journey Group.

We had about 50 cards turned in today which I thought was a real good number.  This was just the first day for sign ups and it is going to take a while for our folks to get use to seeing us out there and feel comfortable seeing us.  I suspect that we will have even a greater turn out over the next couple of weeks.  For about a third of our attenders the last month has been there first experience with Oak Leaf, so they are still trying to figure things out.

So here’s how we can help them.

I need the Journey Group Leaders to remember the first rule of ‘Reach’…Invite.   It is about you introducing yourselves to these people, getting to know names, finding things in common, and then asking them to your group.  It is that easy.  Your groups will grow as you begin to pray that God will put you in touch with those that need to be in your group then begin to look for those encounters.  Stop to say good morning when you walk by that face you don’t recognize.  These folks are waiting to see if we are the real deal.  They are waiting to see if we are going to be the church and not just play at church.

I am stoked about what is happening around here and I want to hear your stories about your encounters with these folks so make sure you send me your stories.

Josh Proctor and Mike Jenkins, thanks for jumping in this week and helping out at the House of Rock and for tearing down this week.  Your dedication shows in all you do.

Mike Mills, besides doing coffee all day thank you for stepping up and helping at the tables all day this Sunday, you are inspiring.

Coaches thanks for being there all day and hanging out with your leaders.

I would not want to be any where else than besides serving with you right here and now!

A New Theme in my Life?

Sometimes in  my life when God is getting me ready for a move, things seem to line up a little more.  I doubt seriously that it is just coincidence  and I am not one of those guys that looks for a hidden meaning in everything.

About a year before we moved up here to Georgia I was preparing for a sermon on Discovering God’s will.  At the same time we were anticipating on becoming the next campus for LifeChurch.tv.  So I started reading Craig Groeschel books trying to figure out where this guy is coming from and I read a book called Chazown.  This is a book about figuring out God’s will for your life.  It was during this time in my life that God began to show me what I was passionate about.  I knew at that time that LifeChurch.tv was the next step for me but it was definitely not the last one.

A year later it brings me to hear, Oak Leaf.  Coincidence?

Now lately I have had this thing for delving into the topic of truth.  I am reading a new book by John Macarthur called, The Truth War.  It is a defense against our postmodern era.  I am also preparing Journey Group Material for our TXT series which deals with the inherent Truth of the Bible.  I will also be preaching one week on why we can trust the Bible (because it its True).  Lastly, elections are not far off (where is the Truth?)  Coincidence?

We will have to find out.  Stay tuned for the results on this one…

Sunday…tying up loose ends

Besides being the Journey Group pastor at Oak Leaf I am currently the Campus Pastor at Carmike theaters where we meet on Sunday mornings.  Along with this comes all the great volunteers I have the opportunity serving with as well as all the free coffee I can drink .  This position requires us to begin the whole process of taking Oak Leaf from a one campus run church to a two campus functioning church.  There all sorts of unique challenges in doing this because we want to be one church in multiple locations.  Here are some of the things that we could use your help in if you are ready to take the challenge and serve with us here at Oak Leaf:

*  Crew folks – These are the people behind the scenes putting stuff together in the morning and tearing it all down in the afternoon.  They are responsible for all our Kidventure areas, lobby, stage, and anything technical.  You can contact me if you want to be a part of the front lines on Sunday morning.

*Kidventure volunteers – This is a group of people that are crazy about kids and are trying to make sure that they have a great time on Sunday morning as well as learn something about God.  There are opportunities available during all three hours of our Sunday morning.  You can contact Jonathan, our family pastor, if this sounds like you.

* Faces of Oak Leaf – I really don’t know another name that suits these guys because this is exactly what they are.  If you like to smile and are friendly then this is the place for you.  You can try your hand at being a greeter, check-in specialist, usher, security, information representative, and my favorite coffee person.  You can contact Mitch, our connections pastor, if this sounds like a fit for you.

The key here is don’t wait for us to ask because there is always a need for new volunteers.  This is not because we have a big turn over rate but it is a philosophy we have.  By serving, you are connecting to a place that is doing some amazing things in Cartersville.  This is the way to get to know others quickly and many rewarding relationships are built during this time.  If you have been thinking about it then here is your invite.

Come help us, “Lead people from where they are to where God wants them to be”.

Oh, What a Night!

WOW, so it’s like been forever since I have updated this thing.  The last three weeks have been crazy!  Part of the reason for this is because of moving back to the theater early and the preparation for our Journey Group Vision Night.

I am stoked about the  buzz of relaunching  Journey Groups this year at Oak Leaf Church! I believe that God brought together some amazing people this year that will be the core of the church because of their desire to, “Lead people from where they are to where God wants them to be.”  It was a great night and here is why:

*  Even though we had a problem getting in at first we were able to pull it all together and be ready on time.

*  I got to see our Journey Group Coaches in action as in their help that night and in meeting with their          leaders.

* The desserts were awesome, thanks Tiffany Nash.

*  Makaila Hite, my assistant, was very instrumental on how well the evening went and was a huge help.

*  I only messed up on the Key Note presentation 3 times before someone took it over for me.  This allowed me to concentrate more on the discussion. (I planned it that way )

*  Here’s the big one, Everyone there that night said they were interested in being a Journey Group Leader.  This means that we have the possibility of having over 25 groups this fall.  That is amazing!

Thank you all for giving of your time and for being available to begin this neat episode in our Church’s life.

I look forward to serving with you all and for all of those from home and who are friends thank you so much for your prayers.