Your Secret To Significance

What would it feel like to lay your head on your pillow at night and say, "You know what I did today? I teamed up with God to change the world?" The desire to be a world changer is planted in the heart of every human being, and that desire comes directly from the heart of God. We can suffocate that desire in selfishness, silence it with the chatter of competing demands, or bypass it on the fast track to personal achievement. But it's still there. Whevever we wonder if the daily eight - to - five grind or our round clock parenting tasks are all there is to life, that divine desire nudges us. Whenever we feel restless and unsatisfied, the desire whispers in our soul. Whenever we wonder what a life of real purpose would fell like, the desire calls us to something more.

This Is Worth Your Time!

I like this,

Loving, beautiful, challenging, misunderstood, giving, lazy, authoritative, caring, understanding, honorable, respectful at times, stressed at times, cautious, introverted one minute and extroverted the next, prayerful, grateful, needy, taker, skeletons in the closet, stories to tell, aged like a fine wine, blessed, cheerful, spirit-filled, defender of the Faith, Christian Man, these words run the gamut don’t they? I am wondering if you can figure out who I am talking about today? I will let you think about for a minute. Still not sure? Well, I am talking about She. Still confused?That’s right, she! No No No, not my wife, even though I thought of her when I came up with the descriptive words for she. Let me give you another clue, Jesus is talking to Peter in Matthew 16:18 and Jesus says, “and on this rock I will build her, and the gates of hell will not prevail against her.”(*Sidenote question: What did Jesus call Peter?) One of the words I did not use up at the top to describe she would be mysterious. Think about it. From thousands of years ago, through oppression, depression, inquisition, and even through some of our present day Christian cable TV. She has survived. She is global, she is universal, she is expanding and she is indestructible. She is a power that cannot seem to be matched. No worldly ruler will ever be able to bring her down. When she is on, she is on. And when she is off, it seems like no one wants to be around her. She upsets or offends people. She can have a loud opinionated mouth. Or she can have the loving soul of a mother for her new born baby. And this time of year she loves her newborn. She was created to serve, to connect people to God, to let others see there is a way that is beyond human invention.You and I in 2008 need to work on loving her just a little bit more. Care for her just a little bit more. We need to strengthen her just a little bit more. Bring her closer to God just a little bit more. She is the church.

Hey Real Quick

I was at a meeting held at the school. It was put on by the "mental health" team at the local middle school. I was really excited when I left because of the great questions they brought to the table. It is great to see the middle school invite some of the local leaders in to discuss how to make the student environment better. I loved to see the passion of those leaders for the students. We have a group of people out there that are truely concerned for our teens. It's great to see, Thanks to all the local leaders that showed up and shared your hearts!

L.I.F.E.

I love L.I.F.E.

The first letter to L.I.F.E. is (L) - "L" is for LIVING! We only have one life to live. We only have one chance to breathe the air we are breathing right now. We have one opportunity to make the right decisions. There is NO Second Life on this earth. So don't wast time doing things that have no lasting value.
(James 4:14) - Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

The second letter to L.I.F.E. is (I) - "I" is for INTENTIONAL! There is a huge difference between (intentional) and (non - intentional). For instance, if I walk by you in the mall and bump you going by, that was for the most part (non - intentional), but if I walk by you in the mall stop, and BLAST you in the FACE with my FIST that was totally intentional. Intentional means "done with intention or on purpose." When you do something intentional you plane it. You set out to do something from the time you wake up until the time you go to bed. You will do whatever it takes to see to it that what you are setting out to do gets done.

We need some people who are going to intentionally decide to do some things differnt in life so that Jesus Christ be lifted high, like it was intended to be from the beginning of time.

(John 9:4) As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is comming when no one can work.

The third letter in L.I.F.E. is (F) - "F" is for FOR! "FOR" by definition, means intended to belong to or to be used in connection with. We must stay connected to Jesus Christ because He is where we all belong. Jesus longs for us to reach out to Him and take hold of him, and be used in connection with Him. Be a "FOR" person Hold tightly to Jesus Christ for the long haul.

(Hebrews 3:12, 14) So watch your step friends. Make sure ther's no eveil unbelief lying around that will trip you up and throw you off course, diverting you from the living God. Verse 14. If we can only keep our grip on the sure thing we started out with, we;re in this with Christ for the long haul.

The fourth letter in L.I.F.E. is (E) - "E" is for ETERNITY! Eternity is the last thing we all experience, because when we die, our life is ended on this earth, but then there is another step. We take our place in eternity and start a brand new adventure. The concern is "where do you spend eternity?"

(2 Peter 3:10-13) But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar, the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be?" You out to live holy and Godly lives.

So when we break down L.I.F.E. it brings more purpose to our life to LIVE INTENTIONALLY FOR ETERNITY. Let's make an impact while we have breath!

The Taste Of Coffee

Well, normally I don't spend my time blogging about coffee. The first reason is that I don't want people to think I am getting old and actually enjoy drinking coffee. The second reason is because I don't want people to know what the secret is to "my energy." But today I am blogging about coffee, and here's the reason: I woke up this morning to a house that was flowing with the fragrance of FRESHLY brewed coffee. To me, that is a smell that all coffee drinkers love. It made me think about the "day." Every day we have the option of starting fresh, and enjoying the aroma of that day. It can be a day where brand new things begin to come into your life that make you happy, excited, and expectant. Quick Question? When was the last time you had a day full of these things? Is today that day? Are you enjoying the aroma of your days? Remember, life is short, but lived right, it's AWESOME!

A Place To Commit

Yeah so here’s an interesting story for ya’ll. My youth group planned an all nighter out in the middle of a cow pasture. It was literally acres and acres of Cow Poop, Bad Smells, and Cows, which are such a stupid animal anyways. The best thing that pasture had going for it was an incredible game of ghost in the graveyard! I mean there were very little boundaries to this game and none of us new how this pasture was laid out. We had no clue which way was up, down, left or right. All we knew was that we were not going to get tagged.
So me and one of my buddys took off across this field just as fast as we could. Not knowing what was in front of us we just kept it at full speed!

The first thing we hit was a small river with mud, at that point my friend lost his balance and fell face first into the mud, (It was hilarious) he got up and looked like a Morphed Hershey Kiss.
Then It happened. I will never be able to forget this. There was a barbed wire fence that was coming fast. The coolest thing about this was the fact that the base (safe place) was dead ahead, and if we could clear this fence we would be home free in our “safe place!” So my friend was a little ahead of me and he hurdled the fence and continued running at full speed. I figured, “Hey if he can do it I bet I can do it too!” Forgetting that his legs were a Foot In A Half Taller than mine, I jumped.

And the barbed wire fence won! I was caught in the middle straddling this fence tangled in barbed wire. Face Cut, Body Sliced, and All Hopes Of Tasting Freedom Gone! All I had was a hurting body.

It’s time to stop straddling the fence of life and begin making decisions that your life is counting on you to make. It’s not easy, in fact it is one of the toughest parts of life, and in order to stop straddling, it is going to take COMMITMENT!

Romans 12:10
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves.
Let's be commited to one another and stay commited to one another. We have an incredible life to live, so let's live it commited.

A Place To Serve

Remember the first time you jumped off a diving board? How scared you were. How nervous. Am I going to like this? Will it be fun? You stood on the end and wondered if you would die if you took the plunge. But eventually if you were like me you jumped in and it was awesome. You spent the rest of the day, just jumping in.

You know what?
I believe ministering in the church for the first time, is kind of like that first diving board experience. Until you jump in and serve, you just don’t know how great it can be. You don’t know if you will like it. You don’t know if it is really safe. You hope it is fun and enjoyable but it might be miserable, but you never really know till you jump in.

- You were created for ministry:
Ephesians 2:10
For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. NIV

- You were saved for ministry:
2 Tim 1:9
It is he who saved us and chose us for his holy work not because we deserved it but because that was his plan long before the world began…TLB

- You were chosen for ministry:
1 Peter 2:9-10
But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. NIV

- You were gifted for ministry
1 Peter 4:10
Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. NIV

- You were commanded to minister
Matthew 20:26-28
Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave- 28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." NIV

- The purpose of church is to prepare you for ministry
Ephesians 4:11-12
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up NIV

I just wanted to share these thoughts with you. You all are awesome!

A Place To Give

Wow what a great Concept! The Church being a place to give! We have had many monumental people throught history demonstrate Giving -

Martin Luther King Jr - Giving his TIME to ending racial segregation, and he became the most influential leader of the American Civil Rights Movement

John Templeton - Founder of the John Templeton Foundation grants more 60 million dollars a year for research into the sciences and religioin. Time magazine placed him in their top 12 "Power Givers."

Paul the Apostle - gave his TALENT for making tents and was able to support himself as he started churches and spread the gospel of Jesus Christ throughout the land.

JESUS CHRIST! - Gave his life so that we all could experience freedom from sin and in turn give our TIME, TALENTS, and TITHE toward the advancement of the Truth in God's Word.

Let's make sure that we take our TIME, take our TALENTS, and TAKE our giving to another level this year. I believe that if we remain open, God will use us for things that go beyond our own thinking.

John 9:4 Says - "As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work." (NIV)

Let's use day to take those opportunities to GIVE of our TIME, TALENTS, and TITHE (Financial Giving).

A Place To Grow

They Make Pills For –

- Headaches
- Body aches
- Nose running
- Nose not running
- Sneezing
- Cramps
- ADD (or what we call LOD) Lack of Discipline
- ADHD, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (or what I call “Overcaffinated” and Enjoying It!)
- They even make pills for losing weight

But the on thing that has no miracle pill is our lives. There is no pill that we can take that will automatically make our lives better. This is why it is time for us to Grow!

1 Peter 2:5
you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house…

God is building everyone of us who want to grow. In fact he wills and wishes us to grow.

2 Peter 3:18
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (NIV)

Let's use this year to be open to being stretched and willing to grow. It will no always be an easily accepted thing, but this year is your year and I believe that if we endure and keep our minds open to growth, we will all be stronger and more useful to those around us!

A Place To Connect!!

I am excited about this Wednesday!! We are on the second week into our new series called
"A PLACE" This week we are going to be looking closer at "A Place To Connect." I am going to be challenging people to take a Bold Step every day and build their connections.

• Spongebob has Patrick
• Ryan Secrest has Randy, Paula, and Simon
• Homer has Bart
• Mary Kate has Ashley
• And After Brittany Spears Performance on this years MTV'S Music Video Awards she has no one.

And that is a sad place to be in life!

Proverbs 18:24 says "A man who has friends must himself be friendy

As people who represent our local churches, let's be friendly to some people this week and show that there is power in connection. I hope you all can join me on Wednesday Night for this powerful teaching!

A Place To Belong

So on Sunday we started a series entitled "A Place." The first part of the the series is "A Place To Belong." We are running it both Sunday and Wednesdays with a little different flare and spin. It is so important that we remain people who are approachable, foundationally sturdy, and understand that we need people around us and people need us around them. The bible says in Jeremiah 29:11 "I know the plans I have for you declares the lord, plans to prosper you and not harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. This is for all people, and it is a promise that God holds true to. As leaders and people who care about others, let's keep in mind that we have the responsibility to always present a place of belonging to those we come into contact with on a daily basis. Don't allow your frustration to be someone elses, don't allow your fear to become someone elses fear, and don't allow your insecurities to become someone elses. Always put your best foot forward and present yourself with the idea in mind that God really does have a great plan for your life.
This week remember that the Church is a place to belong!!!

What a week it has been. The theme this week for my life has been "keep going" "press on," and "persevere!!" These statements are statements that give us hope when we are running low. They give us commitment when we want to begin to bail, and they give us reality of life that sometimes we try to ignore. I want to thank all of you who keep these statements at the top of your memory bank on a consistant basis. You are my hero's of the week!! God Bless all of ya!

Exploring Christianity Update

Just wanted to post an update on the small group sessoin "Exploring Christianity" we had on Wednesday Night at 6:00. It was so great to see all of the interaction. I can honestly say that the people there are so excited to see God move in their lives and the lives of those around them. The questions, the answers, the laughs and the serious moments all painted an awesome picture of healthy Christian Fellowship. As a body of Christ let's try to make more opportunity to have this kind of interaction be a normal part of our week. Thank you to all who attended the "Exploring Christianity" Small Group session!

The Gallup Poll Says...

76.5% (159 million) of Americans identify themselves as Christian. This is a major slide from 86.2% in 1990. Identification with Christianity has suffered a loss of 9.7 percentage points in 11 years - - about 0.9 percentage points per year. This decline is identical to that observed in Canada between 1981 and 2001. If this trend has continued, then:

At the present time (2007 May), only 71% of American adults consider themselves Christians.
The percentage will dip below 70% in 2008
By the year 2042, non Christians will outnumber the Christians in the U.S.

(I thought this was interesting what do you think?)

Exploring Christianity

I am so excited about "Exploring Christianity." This is the new small group session that we are going to be looking at, Wednesday August 22nd. With so many different opinions of Christianity today, I believe it is important for us to take a closer look at what kind of outline Jesus gave us for being a biblical Christian. With teens believing that Truth is relative, and Families facing all sorts of "split" situations I believe there is a greater need for "Christians" to rise up.

The Scary Walk

I have been thinking recently about relationships. There are so many different angles about this topic, but I want to share just a quick thought about forming brand new relationships. I was thinking about attending a new function for the first time and there are people all around you don't know. The question is, "Do I Wait For Them To Engage Me?" Or "Do I Engage Them First?" Now I know that there are all kinds of people from all walks of life and some people would not feel "comfortable" to make the first step. However I also believe that there is something amazing about some one who is not afraid to take that "Scary" first step toward people they do not know. I believe that in doing this it shows that there is something to be offered, that there is something to be gained, and that purpose is in our very step. Let's not be people who are always waiting for someone to come to us. Let's get out there and take the first step with purpose and mission.

Our Awesome Teens!!

I was thinking about the people in the area that are in between the ages of 13 & 21. What an amazing age where everything in life seems to be shifting, spinning, and flying at the speed of light. I am just honored to be able to do life with all these incredible people. There seems to be no fear in trying new things, and taking risks is just apart of the daily routine. I believe that Jesus also didn't have fear of trying something new. He turned water into wine, healed people on the sabbath (that was considered illegal) and he was not afraid to embrace anyone - rich, poor, young, or old. Jesus took risks that people often didn't understand. Thank you for taking risks and embracing those with need. You are absolutley increbible and I love you all so much!!
-Kevin

"Watch Your Mouth"

This last Sunday we Continued on the series "Watch Your Mouth." It is all about raising encouragement and lowering critisizm and gossip. I am a firm believer that critisizm and gossip runs rampid in our communities. If we can become people who eliminate our own critisizms and gossip levels, we will be able to demonstrate a different kind of people who are trustworthy and dependable. Now that to me sounds pretty exciting. Remember to glance at your bracelet before you speak, try to keep that thing on your right wrist as long as possible! God Bless
-

THE FINAL DAY OF ROCK HOUSE!

Well it's all done... The last day of Rock House VBS and we are going to miss all the kids that came out and experienced a VBS like no other. We are so excited about all the things that happened over the last weak. People laughing people jumping and people not wanting the week to end. These kids were such a blessing, all the smiles and passion that they showed us over the last week was priceless. We are in the process of planning some larger events quarterly for the kids of our community. Stay in prayer as we move forward with the children ministries and anticipate amazing things to happen in their lives!! We are going to miss all those kids this next week, but we are excited to see what the future is going to bring.
-Kevin

ROCK HOUSE DAY 4

Today was Day 4 of The ROCK HOUSE Vacation Bible School. I have been consistantly updating you on how things are going, today I am excited to say that TODAY WAS AMAZING! We had 108 kids!!! Praise God!! This week really goes to show that God loves to use peopel to reach other people. What an honor it is to be used by the almighty God!! And what an honor it is to watch as these little kids gain excitement and enthusiasm for Jesus Christ! Thank you to all of the people who have given their time to making this years ROCK HOUSE a HUGE SUCCESS!! God Bless & Get Excited for One More Day With These KIDS!!
-Kevin

The ROCK HOUSE Day 3

I know that I say this alot, but I am going to keep saying it, "TODAY WAS AWESOME!" We are in the third day of THE ROCK HOUSE, "Supernatural God" and let me tell you the Kids get more excited every day. I wish that we could have it every day for them. There is nothing greater than watching Children get excited about Jesus Christ. Today we spoke on Jesus healing the blind man by spitting in His hands and rubbing mud on the blind mans eyes. The kids were laughing so hard because Pastor Tim took mud (brown plato) and rubbed it onto my eyes. I was led over to a garbage can where I fell in head first with my legs straight up into the air flailing like a drowning man! They are loving our illustrated messages!!

Another exciting tool we used today was a 100 foot slip n slide that was drenched with water and soap. We had the kids go the slip n slide on tubes!! It was so fun because it was down hill and they flew so fast!! Again, their faces were priceless!!

Let's keep the children of our community in our prayers!! They are so precious and have so much to offer this world. I can't help but think these kids really could change the world and do things for God that only we could dream of. They are passionate and fun loving, and I believe that with those two traits they will excel and move forward if we are willing to invest our lives into them.

ROCK HOUSE Day 2!!

WOW!! If you have never seen Kids Jumping All Around, Running Like Crazy People, and Screaming At The Top Of Their Lungs, You Are Missing Out!! We are in day 2 of our Rockhouse Vacation Bible School. Today was Crazy!!! 75 Kids Showed up on our second day!! That is Phenomenal!! Today I talked about Jesus feeding the 4,000. The Kids faces lit up when they saw the basket that had only a few pieces of bread in it all of the sudden fill up!!! I love to watch as creative minds come together and find a way to immulate what Jesus' Miracles may have actually looked like. We have been so blessed to have people who are willing to brainstorm and make this RockHouse the best it has ever been. With a theme like "Supernatural" It has required many hours, so I want to say thank you for all of you who have helped us, You are TRUELY AMAZING!! We have 3 days left, so make sure to tune into the blog as we keep you updated!!

-PK

The "ROCK HOUSE"

Today was our first day of VBS For 2007, and let me tell ya, it was absolutely incredible. We had 60 kids registered and more on the way. This years theme is "Supernatural God!" Pastor Tim Wilson started off the week with the teaching "Jesus Turned Water Into Juice!" He did a phenomonal job. The Kids were amazed when the water actually turned into Grape Juice. The day was opened with some great praise and worship, and was closed in the same way. The Kids were jumping all over the room. I am excited to see what the rest of the week is going to bring. Stay tuned into the blog to get the latest Info God Bless!!
-Kevin

Go The Extra Smile & Give Props

Over the past two weeks we have been talking about "Go The Extra Smile" & "Giving PROPS"

This series of messages has been interesting because as you put it to the test in every day life you will find how "Going The Extra Smile" will light up a room, and giving encouragement (PROPS) will bring hope to those around you, and place you in a position of making a difference in their lives.

I think it's amazing that these two simple principles will actually re - define our days, and bring alot more substance to our lives. Let's make sure that we pick a few days where we put "Going The Extra Smile" & "Giving Props" to the test. Watch as people gravitate towards you and don't forget to enjoy making a difference in our community.