Happy Birthday, Journey - July 30, 2006

The 3rd birthday of The Journey...wow. To think, three years ago, almost no one knew this place was around, and now, well, many more people know about the Journey and God has used us to change MANY lives.

Today (as you will see from the pictures soon to be posted) was a GREAT day. To begin, the weather was beautiful - it was cool (in the 70's) and the humidity was dropping. Thank You, Lord, for that.

On top of that, the entire setup went pretty smooth, outside of a few glitches on Sunday morning (I would have liked maybe an extra 30 minutes for a sound check), but we had to work within the time frame we had (we'll fix that next time). THANK YOU to everyone who helped in the setup - and who let us borrow equipment and staging - and who helped in organization - and who worked - you all made that possible. I was so proud to see our church come together from many people - the church of God at work. Good stuff.

The service was great from start to finish. The Broken Road video in the beginning was moving, as we saw face after face of men and women who have had their lives changed by The Journey. The music was great, as the praise team sounded good and the congregation was in a praising mood. John Bolduc did a fantastic job with the special music, even when the music suddenly stopped during Voice of Truth - THAT was a God moment there, as John invited everyone to join him and the congregation just rang out together - wow. This congregation is tackling giants, walking on water - and getting ready to do some more.

The congratulatory video by Pastor Anthony and Pastor Steve from GSBC was great, especially since only one person decided to take up Pastor Anthony's charge to smash cake in my face (and I will get even with you, Chelsea!).

My message was brief, just focusing on finding our place within the story of Rochester, and moving forward together to accomplish something great here. I thank God for those of you who stood with me to dedicate this ground and our church as holy ground during the commitment time at the end - we have decided to follow Jesus - no turning back.

The baptism was the capping off of a great day, as we baptized six (Ginny, Raquel, Christina, Devin, Ellen, and Bob) - I love watching people take that step of faith and obedience, and it was a great day to baptize outside, under the Son - God was pleased.

This was probably my favorite birthday celebration of all so far as the church service. This was the first year we did something different for the church service on our birthday, so it was nice. I look forward to sometime soon celebrating in our new facility.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE JOURNEY FAMILY! MAY OUR 4TH YEAR BE A DECLARATION OF GOD'S MOVEMENT IN THIS AREA AS WE WORK WITH OTHER CHURCHES IN BRINGING ABOUT GOD'S DREAM FOR ROCHESTER AND THE SURROUNDING AREA. WE PLEDGE OURSELVES TO THIS. AMEN.

Sunday, July 23, 2006 - Recognizing the Season...

Today was a great day at The Journey. Simply put, I felt like so many things were running on all cylinders, and it was a great thing to experience. But maybe the thing that was hitting on all cylinders was that I personally felt in tune with the Spirit, from the beginning moments of the praise band's early morning practice time (7:45) right up through the end when I was just sitting around, talking and sharing with Jon and Lauren - the Lord was there, and I hesitated to leave...

But it was good. There was an excitement and passion for the worship today - from "You, You are God" all the way to "We Fall Down." Bill did a fantastic job on the electric guitar solo in "We Fall Down," and everything just flowed. I thank God for days like today.

The word was the word - we talked about recognizing the season in your life that you are going through, and knowing when to fight - taken from 2 Samuel 5. I will be using email this week to expand on this message, promoting conversation and more looking into this passage - I pray that it continues to expand the word in our hearts like water into a sponge.

We had several visitors with us today - my sister in law Rochelle and her two boys (Brandon and Nathan), along with David Goodwin's parents. It was nice to talk with them after church. We had 149 in church, and I think we are building steam towards a great fall season. God is GOOD!

Sunday, July 16, 2006 - Authenticity

Today was a good but longer day at The Journey, as we had good worship in both services, and a good word. But what is good worship? Good worship is when people in our congregation come ready to worship, and not have to be pumped up to worship. Good worship is when people expect something to happen, when there is an expectancy that God eagerly desires to meet with His people in that place, and the people desire it. Good worship is when everyone decides that there is nothing that will hinder their praise to God. I long for good worship, for better worship, for the best worship.

That said, the word was good, but it was a little on the long side, and it was detailed. But I wanted to show how God does not hold us hostage to our background or our family background, and how we can live authentically, not hiding from God because of our background. We can be people after God's own heart by living authentically.

It was a good day, and I look forward to continuing the series "Becoming a Person after God's Own Heart" this next weekend. We had a good attendance 133 and a good Spirit.

STEPS TO WAITING ON THE LORD

We have been talking about waiting on the Lord – have you done some waiting this week, just being quiet and listening for the voice of God to guide and lead you? Keep going. I was going to preach this, but because of time, I have copied and pasted this part of my message for you to print out and have for yourself. I want to give you some practical steps to take to make your waiting more effective, and you can discuss these with me or one of our leaders more in depth.

How do I wait on the Lord:

1) Confess sin and repent – Psalm 52

2) Focus on God.

a. His goodness - what He has already given me. There is a reason we should do this first. When you come before God, let your thoughts focus on the great things He has done for you – what has He done for you? The cross, His blood being shed, sins completely forgiven – and then on top of that, as we learned in Ephesians, we are blessed with every spiritual blessing. Focusing on God’s goodness helps me pray in gratefulness, and it helps me hear God clearly. Have you ever had a clogged pipe or toilet or drain? You needed some Liquid Draino or a plunger, right? Prayer is our pipeline to God – both us talking and Him talking. If I don’t thank God and I become ungrateful or angry or bitter, then that pipeline is clogged. Some of you, your prayer life is clogged because you are angry and bitter and upset - being thankful and focusing on God’s goodness in your life can be a "plunger."

When I wait, and I start with confession and then focus on God’s goodness, it frees me to listen. You can read Psalm 40 for how David begins waiting on the Lord by expressing gratitude for what God had done – he says, “He lifted me out of the pit of despair…He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. 3He has given me a new song to sing…”

b. His greatness – focus on God Himself – Psalm 29 is a magnificent Psalm of David focusing on God’s greatness “1Give honor to the LORD, you angels; give honor to the LORD for his glory and strength. 2Give honor to the LORD for the glory of his name. Worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness.”

- Allow God to strengthen me as I do this – Psalm 42:5 “Why am I discouraged? Why so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again--my Savior and my God!

3) Listen to what God reveals – through His word, Spirit to your heart.

a. Direction/instruction/encouragement.

b. A few words of caution:

i. Pray over it and ponder it.

ii. Make sure that it is not contrary to the Bible – Psalm 119:105

iii. Consult with trusted leadership – Proverbs 11:14; 15:22; 24:6

Too many people are quick to say that God has spoken to them ("laid it on my heart," "I KNOW the Lord spoke to me," etc.), but they have never tested what they heard, nor have they ever asked for counsel or checked the Bible. “God told me to leave my spouse!” – no, He didn’t. "God told me to not go to church" - again, no, He didn't. But if you act that way, don’t blame God for the results that happen because you didn’t test what you say you received. The Devil can plant thoughts in your mind (read John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress), and these can be damaging if we don't exercise discernment.

Some people claim to get something from God almost every day, but all too often, these things are just self-inspiration. But when you receive something from the Lord, it will have power and authority to it – it will change your life when you encounter God in this way. Over and over, David demonstrated that he was a man after God’s own heart because he waited on the Lord.

4) Praise God when I receive from Him – Psalm 68:35 “God is awesome in his sanctuary. The God of Israel gives power and strength to his people. Praise be to God!”

These are steps to waiting, but you might have some others. You might need to add “find a quiet place,” or “sing praises for 20 minutes” – the key to waiting on the Lord lies in humbly listening and submitting yourself to God – these are steps that are not hard and fast, but they will guide you in the way as you seek to know God more. We need to wait on the Lord.

Sunday, July 9, 2006 - Wait on the Lord

It's summer - a time of relaxing, refreshing, and releasing anxieties by sipping lemonade, resting by the lake, and slowing down to spend some much needed time with the family. Summer also holds an important ingredient for our Christian lives - quietness and rest with God. This is called waiting on the Lord, and it was the focus of our Sunday conversation.

Waiting on the Lord is actively listening and submitting to the Holy Spirit as He speaks and leads. It is the other side of prayer. Prayer is connected to us talking to God, while waiting on the Lord is connected to God talking to us. But it's not just God speaking, it is important that I listen, and when I listen, I must be ready to submit to what is said. And the benefits of waiting are multiple:

1) Waiting builds my faith.
Psalm 5:3, “…Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.”

2) Waiting gives me courage to make a stand.
Psalm 27:14, “Wait patiently for the LORD. Be brave and courageous…”

3) Waiting frees me from worry.
Psalm 37:7 – “Be still in the presence of the LORD, and wait patiently for him to act. Don't worry…”

4) Waiting gets God’s attention.
Psalm 40:1 – “I waited patiently for the LORD to help me, and he turned to me and heard my cry.”

5) Waiting produces rescue from the enemy.
Psalm 59:9, “You are my strength; I wait for you to rescue me, for you, O God, are my place of safety.”

6) Waiting helps me cope with pain.
Psalm 69:3 – “…My eyes are swollen with weeping, waiting for my God to help me.”

Waiting is so important, and the second part of this message will be on Sunday, July 16th.

The worship in the first service was great today, as we took to heart that we could sing of your love forever. The second service lacked some engagement. I can't be too critical, as I do not see people's hearts. But there was an expectancy in the first service that many in the second service did not have.

Overall, it was a great day as we had 123, even though it is the middle of summer. It is good, and the Lord continues to bring new people into our path, as we had several new faces - Christina's husband Doug, and the Tullis's friends (whose names I can't remember at the moment). Good day at The Journey!

Zander and Silas battle it out - Silas won hands down. 

Kate plugs her ears during the fireworks. 

Sharon watches as Cary makes a call to describe the action going on at the picnic. 

The girls watch in disbelief! 

It appears that Rod is getting ready to suck down some egg yoke!  

Chris explains the rules to Rod (green) as he gets ready to battle Bill (blue). 

Kay gets ready to swallow more egg in this losing battle. 

"Lungs of Steel" Lee blew that egg OUT as I bore the brunt - at this point, I am lodging my tongue in the tube to avoid getting more egg on me! 

This doesn't even look like a fair match between Josh (left) and Dylan (right).

One of our guests takes on Michael as the crowd looks on. 

Sam gets egg all over his face. 

Sam and Kay were the first to play the egg-blowing game...

Kyle prepares to launch fireworks. 

Kelly swims in the kiddie pool. 

Ginny draws while Kate and Carolyn share a moment. 

Sitting around enjoying the weather - Dave, Ron & and Anne.

Sunday, July 2, 2006 - Say It Anyway!

I love some of the things that I see happening at church lately. There is a renewed excitement for people as they bring in new friends and family members. Some stay, some leave - and people continue to come into a relationship with Jesus Christ. More about that in a moment.

I LOVED the worship today. Not that it was anything necessarily out of the ordinary so far as song selection, but we were together, we were encouraging each other, and it was good - both services. Thank you for your preparedness when we get together to praise and worship.

The word today was good too. I started a mini-series called Becoming a Person after God's Own Heart, a message that I heard originally by Bishop Joseph Garlington. It is so good that I decided to preach it to my people, and it went well. We talked about the first ingredient, which is waiting on the Lord. Waiting includes 5 things:

1. Watching my spiritual backside.
2. Waiting for God's timing.
3. Not telling God how to handle my problems.
4. Seeking God's presence in worship.
5. Abandoning my plan.

Perhaps the most significant part of the message was the end where I talked about forgiving ourselves, Here's what I said:

^{If you came her wondering “why did I make that mistake?” – God is wondering, “Can’t you forgive yourself?” At some point, you have done, are doing, or will do something stupid – something you said you never would. You can stand there in that place for the rest of your life and ask “why? Or you can forgive yourself – you can say, “I was baptized, and that stuff was buried. Why should I carry this with me – I am letting this die, I’m killing this. I forgive myself.” (say that with me). The devil would like to keep you locked in that place in your past, because if he can, he will keep you from your place in the present and your destiny in the future. You can’t hold onto the past and get the right future – you have to let it go. Your pride would make you think that we would never sin or mess up like we did – do you have a glorified body that you shouldn’t mess up – like we are too mature to mess up - once God has forgiven you, forgive yourself. Say, “I forgive myself.”}

It was a powerful moment as people who realized that they had never forgiven themselves desperately needed to do so, that it would hinder God's work within them. Because of this, I was able to lead a woman to the Lord after the service was over - what a powerful experience!

Overall we had 140 in attendance, and it was good.

Tonight we had the church picnic at the Weststrates - it was so much fun interacting with the Spanish foreign exchange students, with members from our local community, and also the egg-blowing game (see pictures to follow!).