Today was awesome for several reasons: #1 – the weather is amazing! It’s been kind of hot the last few days, but yesterday and today were amazing. The weather was about 70 with a nice breeze. Great long sleeve shirt weather. #2 – Church rocked! – The place was packed! The vibe was great! I taught from Numbers 20 and shared a lot of my own story. It was harder than I thought it would be, but I got an incredible amount of feedback. Tons of people were crying and were really moved by it. I didn’t really expect that. … Read More

This is a really cool site that my wife found. I’m going to do something with this. I haven’t figured out what, but I’m going to do something with it! Check it out!

Yesterday I walked in to the office and I noticed that the carpet was a darker blue than normal. Then I saw 2 guys carrying in these huge fans… That’s when I said it: “Not again!” Yes, the water main exploded and water has been pouring in from every place you can imagine! This morning it only got worse. They brought machines in to clean the carpets and the noise is unbearable! I can’t even hear myself think! What does this mean? Powerbook? – check! A couple of books? – check! Starbucks? – I’m Gone!

I had an amazing meeting with our elders and deacons last night. I wish I could tell you that I have championed the cause of developing our leaders, but unfortunately I have not…until now. Last night we charted a course that involved intentional discipleship and development of current and future leaders. The truth is, in any growing church, the Pastor has to stop only ministering to people and has to begin ministering through people. This requires time on my part, but I am looking forward to the challenge. We have an amazing group of leaders and last night I remembered … Read More

Those that know me, know that I’m a huge Erwin McManus fan.  I’ve read each of his books at least twice!  But today I signed up for the Origins conference in LA in May.  I’m really excited about seeing what they are doing there, getting some great ideas, and of course hanging in Los Angeles for a couple of days isn’t bad either! 

This weekend we’re kicking off a series that’s going to take us to the week before Easter. It’s called, “Monsters”. As kids we thought there were monsters living under the bed or in the closet. But we got older and learned that the monsters weren’t behind the furniture, they were inside of us. How do we fight off these monsters that creep into our lives and try to swallow us? How do we get free from these tendencies that seek to devour us? We’re going to be looking at the children of Israel as they travel in the wilderness and … Read More

One of the things we have not done well is assimilation. We are seeking to correct that problem. We’re blessed because in spite of our lack of organization in this area, we’ve never had a problem getting to visit or come back. Yet there are still people who fall through the cracks. I used to think of assimilation (We call it integration – assimilation says, “You will become like us.” Integration says, “Adding you will change us.” – Huge difference) as a church growth tool. Today I think of it as the stewardship of people. God leads people (both Christian … Read More

A couple of guys from our staff and I attended an assimilation conference today put on by Nelson Searcy from the Journey in New York City. Great stuff! We walked away with a lot of practical advice from a church planter that’s really doing it! You can order the seminar here. Nelson gave me a lot to think about, especially because I believe this is one area that we are NOT good at. But I was really challenged that this isn’t rocket science. There are simple steps that make people feel wanted and welcomed! I’ve listened to a lot of … Read More

Dave has a great post today about how to keep sanity in your schedule as a Pastor.  It’s definitely worth a read and some consideration…

After getting this question a bunch of times over the last month and reading Mark’s post I decided to post my basic schedule.  It does drive me crazy when people say, "So what do you do all week?"  But I can’t get too crazy over it because I remember being a young christian and thinking that my Pastor only worked on Sunday and Wednesday!  Maybe that’s why I’m in ministry now. It’s God’s way of showing me that this isn’t the case!  So here goes… Monday – OFF (I know most Pastors don’t take Mondays off.  I do.  I’m so … Read More