Tag: Encouragement

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I Like The Way You Think: Encouraging the Church

think-lightbulbI was eating lunch with Jonothan, our worship leader, yesterday and he mentioned something I thought was pretty cool. So, since Jonothan does not blog and he just tweeted for the first time yesterday, I think I’ll post this myself. I like the way our people at New Passion think…it is scary what God can do through our church, if people will simply step out and follow what he is leading them to do.

Jonothan was talking about some of the books of the Bible he has been reading lately and mentioned that he noticed how Paul would travel to the various churches and would share what was taking place within the other churches, he would send encouragement from the other Christians that he was with at the time to those he was writing letters to. An example can be found Here and Here.

Jonothan mentioned that it would be a great ministry for someone to go around to other churches, spend time with them, and to find out what God is doing in their churches, not to copy them, or to enact their strategies, rather so they could come back to their home church and share the good news with their fellow believers. I believe it would be just as important and powerful to know how to pray for those other churches as well. Someone would not have to physically go to the churches, with Skype, Twitter, email, and phones, we could easily connect with a contact within the church that could speak for their body.

It’s funny. We’ll get on the internet and see what series another church is doing. We’ll go to conferences to see what new strategies and philosophies we can enact. But, if we can, we’ll take it and claim it as our own. I’m not pointing the finger, I’ve done it myself. However, I am trying to do a lot less of it. I want God to do new things through me and through New Passion, so I don’t want to bottleneck us where we are so reliant on doing what everyone else is doing. I think we as a church need to be willing to share what God is doing all over the world, through other churches. If it’s truly not a competition we should be willing to encourage our believers with what God is doing with the believers next door and in the next town.

Anyway, no telling what will ever come of this idea. I think it was a great thought. It’s definitely something new. I don’t know of anyone else who is taking time or giving space to spotlight what God is doing in other churches, but we sure like to brag on ourselves.

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158

After 2 months of hitting a wall…I finally lost a pound.

I was sitting at 159 for a long time, but now I weighed in at 158!

I kind of feel like the person who is standing in front of the Amway seminar talking about all of my success, where as I used to be the one in the audience saying, “Yeah, well that’s you…I could never do that!” Trust me, I am not bragging, but it finally feels good to see results after many years of talking.

People tell me all the time that I need to stop losing weight, but I love fitting into the clothes that I like, even though I have to get new clothes now because about 8 years worth look like tents on me. I would love to not lose weight after about 155 lbs, but how do you stop eating healthy and keeping in shape by playing basketball or working out? (The health book says someone with my build and height should range from 151 to 163) Do I become a couch potato and become lazy? So know this, you may feel you can’t do something, but chances are, you can…this is 33 lbs now that I have lost…

Do you feel like you are sitting in the Amway seminar saying,
“I can’t to something?” What is it?

P.S. I kind of feel like Joel Osteen 🙂

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What Will You Do With The Power?

Join the Conversation…

The first time I heard Francis Chan was at the Thirsty Conference in 2006. He did a talk out of Haggai that blew me away. I have to admit, I stole it, changed it up slightly to make it my own, but I gave him credit for the influence. 🙂

Today in my daily devotional read of My Utmost for His Highest by Oswald Chambers, I was reminded of the message, and wanted to share a few thoughts (I suggest taking the time to read through the 2 short chapters of Haggai HERE after reading this post to get the full idea of what is taking place.)…

(1:12) Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of God’s people began to obey the message from the Lord their God. When they heard the words of the prophet Haggai, whom the Lord their God had sent, the people feared the Lord. Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, gave the people this message from the Lord: “I am with you, says the Lord!”

The basic idea from Chapter 1 of Haggai is that God is not pleased with the people because they have put themselves, their desires and ambitions, before pleasing the Lord and doing the things that He desired. Zerubbabel led the people to obey the Lord and its at that point that the Lord tells them, “I am with you.”

Kind of sounds like the promise in Matthew 28:19-20 when we are commissioned to go into all the world to make disciples, to baptize, and to teach others all that Christ has taught us, basically the things He desires. He ends by saying in the NLT, “And be sure of this: I am with you always…”

Now back to Haggai…
(2:23)”…I will honor you, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, my servant. I will make you like a signet ring on my finger, says the Lord, for I have chosen you.

Zerubbabel obeyed the Lord and did what He desired, so the Lord finishes the chapter out telling Zerubbabel that He is chosen by God and that He has made him like His signet ring. That right there is awesome! Pause and think about it…A signet ring is the King’s Seal, it is used to attest the authority of its bearer, the ring has also been seen as a symbol of his power. So that means, Zerubbabel has been given God’s authority, His power, His advanced say-so to do what needs to be done, He had God’s approval.

Oswald Chambers wrote today about “The Never-Failing God” – and his focus is on His promises to never fail us and to never forsake us. “…I will never fail you. I will never abandon you.” (Hebrew 13:5) – “Neither will I in any way forsake you” – That means that no matter what we do, how bad we mess up, how sinful we are or how selfish we get, the Lord is still there. He has chosen us, He has given us power, He lives with in us, and promises to give us abundant life. Here’s how Chambers closes the devotional:

“We have the idea that God is going to do some exceptional thing, that He is preparing and fitting us for some extraordinary thing by and bye, but as we go on in grace we find that God is glorifying Himself here and now, in the present minute. If we have God’s say-so behind us, the most amazing strength comes, and we learn to sing in the ordinary days and ways.”

So…What have you been waiting for God’s say-so on? Or – What is something in the past that you were holding back on because you were waiting on God’s approval? What will you do with the power God has given you?

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Do

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziOG_GHNVq0]

I’ve been thinking about this commercial for a while now. I have had the privilege of attending some of the greatest conferences in this Country for church leaders, yet it seems that year after year we discuss some of the same issues with ministries in the church and in the Christian culture as if nothing is changing. Research data shows that nothing much has improved. This is in no way to take away from what a lot of churches are doing, trust me, there are a lot of churches who are rocking it for God! However, we as an “unified” body are doing nothing, and it bothers me.

This post or video is not to take away from what I am learning at the Orange Conference. Some of the key words reminded me of this commercial today. “ReThink” “Programs” “Processes” “Innovate” “New Ideas” – All great terms, but meaningless unless there is substance to back them up. There was one breakout that confused me today, but that is not to take away from the conference as a whole, everything will not be 100%, but it seemed that people were sharing a lot of their Ideation, but no solid “hows” to move the Church and Christian culture in a direction to answer these issues that we are focusing on. I think there has to be a time and place to quit discussing and thinking and start doing.

I think it is time that we as the “Church” stop Ideating and start DOING! I am passionate about this, but feel I do not know what I can do to influence people to ‘do,’ except post this on my blog. Will you start doing with me? Maybe if a few of us join together we will see some changes. I heard Rick Warren say this past week that he wants to be a part of starting the 2nd Reformation of the church. The first Reformation was about Creeds (we know what we believe now) so the 2nd Reformation will be about “deeds.” – If your ministry, or if you are doing something personally to “Do” versus “Ideate” please share with me what you are doing…If you are Ideating and not doing, please share with me what you are praying God will use you to do – Then we can do it together…