Sunday, March 19, 2006

Today was a good day, but perhaps a little different a day than we have experienced in a while. To begin, we had two deaths in our extended church family that was fresh on people's minds, and I think that led to a sort of lethargic feeling at times. But what I had to preach on from Ephesians 2:1-3 was a difficult subject - before we knew Christ, we were dead in our trespasses and sins, hopeless and helpless, BUT GOD stepped in - it was sweet to praise the Lord after preaching that message, singing Amazing Grace.

Our attendance today was 120, a little down from last week, and we had many people away. It happens, right? But if you missed, know that you were missed!

A couple of notes about today:

• Bill did another great job with the music - for the first time ever, I did not step in and do anything during the music - I just preached. I love that.
• Corey did a great job on the drums.
• I love what God is doing in our midst as we struggle at times. He shows Himself faithful, and I thank God for those who lend support and strength to others in crisis and need.

Each and every week, I come with anticipation to see what God is going to do next - it is so exciting to me to see the Lord work. In just a short time, The Journey has gone from small and insignificant to a growing force of believers who, while not perfect, truly seek God with their lives and in their hearts.

One further word: there is so much going on in our church body, so much to pray about, so many lives that the Lord is pruning and purifying. Satan would desire to snuff this church out through gossip, malicious talk, rumors, envy, and any other method. Let us refuse to be people who deal in these things - they have no place in this Place, God's PLACE. If you find yourself doing one of these things, things you know you should not, stop, ask God's forgiveness, and refuse to do it again.

God is good.

Sunday, March 12, 2006

Today was a day for dedicating babies here at The Journey, as we dedicated Samantha Johnson, Abigail Hampton, and Rachel Gibson to the Lord. It was a nice little ceremony (no pun intended), and we had 165 combined in our services today! On top of that, we had four people pray with me at the end of the service that they had invited Jesus Christ into their lives for the first time, including an aunt and uncle that were visiting for the baby dedication. I am anxious to follow up on this.

Because of the amount of people that we had, it has caused us to have to look at a 3rd service - which will be difficult but necessary. Even without our baby dedication visitors, we would have still had 150, so this is something that I would covet your prayers on.

Other notes from today:

• Bill did a GREAT job with the music, and I believe he has probably turned a corner (which I am very excited about) in his leadership. He is actually starting to lead worship, which is such a great thing, and I was very happy with the worship overall.
• I finished up my sermons from Ephesians 1, albeit probably a quicker ending than I would have liked to, but it was time to move on.
• Today, later on in the afternoon, I met with our new deacons for the first time, and I am excited about what these men will mean to our church. One of our first orders of business is assessing our financial situation so that we can set ourselves up to investigate clearing land, upgrading our current buildings, and building a newer building.
  

Overall, it was a great day, as we had our highest regular attendance ever! God is good.

Sunday, March 5, 2006

What can I say about our services this past week? Hallelujah, praise the Lord!

I personally entered this Sunday with a little trepidation. My sermon wasn't flowing like I really wanted it to flow, and quite frankly, by the end of the day, I still don't think it flowed like I wanted it to. But then, who am I, right? I preached on "The Domino Theory - Truths that Trigger God's Work in our Lives," and every person received a domino. The dominos represented a truth that we each need to respond to and obey.

By the end of the service at the invitation, many people had come down to the altar and committed to obeying the truth that the Spirit had revealed to them - I was very excited about that. But also, during our first service, we had four people (Jack, Carolyn, Matt, Sarah) who prayed with me to invite Jesus Christ into their lives! Praise the Lord for His victory in this place!

We had several first time visitors with us, including Rick (Kathy Boston's son-in-law); Matt & Sarah; and Carolyn was back for a second week with her husband, Dave (1st time). We also had two ladies whom I did not have the chance to meet, but hopefully will in the upcoming weeks.

Overall, it was a good day at the Journey - the Lord is doing some magnificent things, and we are thrilled to be a part of His expanding kingdom in this area.