Today’s services went great! Christmas is such a weird time in Miami with people leaving the country for the entire month of December and Noche Buena (Latins celebrate Christmas Eve, not Christmas Day – Yes, it’s odd, but it’s our way). The only odd thing that happened was in our first service as I was giving an invitation for people to begin their journey with Jesus. Our keyboardist was trying to get my attention and I didn’t hear her. But afterward, she told me that while I was praying there was a huge roach that was running around the stage … Read More
Soul Cravings Book Review
Erwin McManus never disappoints when there’s a book with his name on it and Soul Cravings is no exception! This book is absolutely phenomenal. I don’t know what it is about Erwin’s writings that just connect with me. I always have this sad feeling when I finish one of Erwin’s books – I can never read it again for the first time. It’s the same feeling I get when I see an amazing movie like Crash, The Usual Suspects, The Matrix, or Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. You’ll never have the feeling of experiencing it and not know … Read More
Birthing Class #2
Carey and I had our second birthing class on Monday night. It was good. My favorite part is hearing Mark groan when they show gross stuff in the videos 🙂 I don’t care if it’s natural, it’s still not fun to look at. I got to learn about all the drugs that are available to women during labor. The only part I didn’t like so much was when the teacher asked the men to lay back, put their legs up and push like they’re giving birth. This was to help us appreciate what our wives are doing. I pushed twice… … Read More
Mia Preview
Here’s a couple of “Preview” pictures of my daughter Mia. Mia’s official arrival isn’t until February 9th, but here’s what she looks like today.
People of Passion
Carey and I took our first birthing class on Monday night. Quite an experience. The videos they showed were a little more explicit than necessary, but we got through it. But here’s what I can’t get out of my mind: the nurse who taught the class has been doing this for 20 years, so this is nothing new to her. Yet when she talked about the joy of holding your baby for the first time after the pain of labor, she had tears in her eyes. I was amazed! She’s still passionate about her message after all this time and … Read More
The Pastor John Award
I just got an email from a friend who told me about a church up the street from us that is just getting started. They had a Christmas party last night and they gave out an award called the “Pastor John Award” in honor of those who make their services happen and run with excellence. It’s called the “Pastor John Award” because of John Solaroli, one of our Pastors who is in charge of transforming our rented facilities into worship environments. This is a humbling thing that other churches are honoring their servants based on one of our own. (By … Read More
Life in 4-D
Carey and I saw our daughter Mia today in 4-D through the wonders of technology. We did this 4-D ultrasound and got to see how she’s developing, but we got to what she looks like. Let me say (as only a dad can), that she is absolutely beautiful! She looks just like her mom (thankfully). I’ll post some pictures in a couple of days, but I was blown away by seeing my little girl for the first time (even if it was just a preview). Carey and I have waited for almost 10 years to have a child and now … Read More
Jesus in the Margins Book Review
I just finished Jesus in the Margins by Rick McKinley. I enjoyed it. It’s a great book for those that feel marginalized in life or have had some traumatic experience and don’t feel like God can relate to them. The stories were fantastic. He seems to have a powerful ministry in Portland where they are reaching people just like those he mentions in the book. The book is a very easy read. I would recommend this book to anyone who doesn’t feel they can connect with God because of something that’s happened in their lives. We need books like this.
Retro Christmas
Starting this weekend…
The Media Notices Momentum
I did an interview with Salem Radio News today about our Momentum Conference. These guys do news for over 1,100 stations in the US. They were very interested in the idea of portable churches. I’m looking forward to hearing the interview when it airs. The truth is, in many parts of the country, being portable is just a reality that a lot of churches just have to deal with long term. The question is, how do we do this well and transform the environment to something that meets the needs of those in the community? That’s what the conference is … Read More
