A question about unity and multiple meetings...

Regularly I receive questions and suggestions from different members of The Journey asking me about issues and topics specifically related to this body. One of these came this past week from a wonderful person in the body. She wrote, "I had an idea that I thought I would share with both of you (Rod and myself). I think that spring/summer is almost here we should think about having church service outside at a park somewhere in the mountains or by the ocean or somewhere else so that all of the congregation can enjoy all that God has created and there wouldn't be the identification of "I'm from first service" or 'I'm from second service.' I think the identification should be 'I'm from The Journey church.' "

Part of our mission here is that we are traveling toward God - we have a safe place to explore faith and faith-related issues, and this suggestion is a great example of someone feeling safe to think "outside of the box." I hope that The Journey grows in this way - a safe place to travel - a safe place to travel in freedom together...you get the idea.

So I thought about this, and while I am not sure how it would work logistically, the desire behind it is for unity. We CAN maintain unity even though we are divided physically (and probably will be divided again with a third service soon - stay tuned for details)? But a way to help this is to meet as a congregation together occasionally, and when we met outside at our birthday celebration last year that it was great. We will plan on doing this a few times during the summer (weather permitting).

Jesus was passionate about unity, and so am I. Even though our circumstances are a little difficult for maintaining unity as a physical expression (an entire congregation), it is not something that we need to struggle with as a body. We CAN be unified in our worship, in our efforts, in our love for each other and for our community. There is more to our unity than being able to congregate as an entire body (although it is a great thing).

All in all, I encourage this church to keep thinking outside the box, and know that we travel toward God together in community to reach our culture. Who knows, maybe God will bless us with a meeting place large enough to house all of us plus many more. Stay tuned...Pastor

A good read...

I just finished reading Tempting Faith: An Inside Story of Political Seduction by David Kuo. I had picked this book up based on an article I had read about two months ago, and finally decided to read it. As someone who is intrigued by politics, I found this book fascinating. Here's the scoop:

David Kuo was a special assistant to the President from 2001 to 2003, deputy director of the White House office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. Kuo's desire was to work with the President on delivering the $8 billion per year promise to faith-based organizations that were helping their communities. As the book points out, this promise was never delivered, nor was it ever taken seriously so much as being a campaign booster and as a way to attain votes in 2000 and 2004. Kuo's revelations of these things isn't so much disturbing to me on a political level as on a personal level. Here's why:

• Politically we need to remember that all men are human, even really good men - or well-intentioned men, like our President. If I take President Bush at his word (and I do), he is a brother in Christ. But he is human and prone to failures and temptations. The higher the leadership, the greater the magnification of these things.
• Personally I am bothered by these things because I have too often been all about "my side" winning and trusting that "my political party" will get things done. As a lifelong Republican, I have to admit (as Kuo did) that Republicans have controlled the White House for 19 of the past 28 years, as well as controlled Congress from 1994-2006 - and are we better off? That is not a Republican slam so much as a personal slam on my looking to politicians when I should be looking elsewhere (starting with the mirror) for the world to improve.
• Spiritually is where I get really distressed - why did the Religious Right/the church become so consumed with politics? When was that ever part of the Great Commission? I agree with Bill Hybels, "The future of the world rests in the hands of local congregations...It's the church or it's lights out. Without churches so filled with the power of God that they can't help but spill goodness and peace and love and joy into the world, depravity will win the day; evil will flood the world. But it doesn't have to be that way. Strong, growing communities of faith can turn the tide of history" (Courageous Leadership, p. 21-22). While the church has made great strides through individuals to better society, its best and most effective work is done when it remembers that God has ordained the church and not the government to do His work.
  
• But spiritually I am alarmed and distressed by church leaders who get too involved in politics - men I have great respect for, but who have erred on the side of over-involvement and who have apparently been duped by politicians to simply becoming vote-getters. I hope that Kuo's book, even though it is from his own point of view, sheds light and perspective so as to avoid politics that is over-promised and under-delivered. If nothing else, I hope that it causes these religious leaders who feel called into the political spectrum to more closely monitor what is being promised versuswhat is being delivered.

One of the other fascinating viewpoints of this book is the historical viewpoint. These include:

• Seeing the formations of a President, before as governor of Texas and then in the early stages of his administration as he began to fit into the role.
  
• Discovering how the White House is the greatest home-field advantage on the earth.
• Viewing different political figures through the lens of a White House aid - figures such as the Clinton family, the Bush family, and other key political figures.
  
• Watching how a new administration begins to unfold through delegations and prioritizing.
• Learning an insider's viewpoint of the events of 9/11.
• Witnessing the mixing of politics and religion.
• Seeing the differences in religious leaders such as Jerry Falwell, James Dobson, and Billy Graham.
  

As Kuo wrapped up his book, I think the suggestion he gives at the end is phenomenal. He recommends that the religious right fast from politics for two years. He doesn't advocate not voting, but rather turning off the talk radio, the TV ads, the campaign rallies - and getting involved in the local church as the agent of church (that last point is probably my viewpoint). But he recommends that we do this so as not to be used for political gain, and that in turn, we take a look at politics from Jesus' standpoint - that we vote from a biblically-guided perspective, and not allow the sway of political jargon be our guiding force. I think this is an excellent and refreshing idea.

All in all, this was a great book - a grounding book. It is said that this book which was released in the fall of 2006 was a major reason for the political victories of the Democrats. Maybe, maybe not. But it is a much-needed book for Christians to read so that the church will remember the Great Commission is our objective, not the advancement of a political party.
-Pastor

Sunday, March 25, 2007 - the Ride of Your Life

Today was week 9 of the Heroes series, and it was all about the ride of your life through the power of community. Rod preached and used the analogy of whitewater rafting to demonstrate how community can get us through the rapids of life, and he spoke on Lydia from Acts 16 who pursued community, persisted through difficulties, and re-played the memories of the community in Philippi. At the end of the service, I asked people to commit to community by allowing changes to happen and to embracing the future. Traveling together in community is part of our mission, but we haven't always succeeded at fostering community. The mission is good, but sometime the strategy isn't, and so I just asked the congregation to be patient as we pursued more strategic ways to help foster community. It was good.

The worship service went well, especially in the second service as we reached a good place - but for the time, I would have stayed there a little longer. I am eagerly looking forward to our Night of Worship on Easter Sunday night.

It was a good day at The Journey, with many visitors. I thank God that He continues to bring people our way, and we had our highest attendance of the year at 164. Thank You, Lord.

Sunday, March 18, 2007 - Moving from ME to WE

Week 8 of our Heroes series was one of the more interesting services that we had - we did something that most churches don't typically do - a reverse offering. As we switched the focus today, we talked about how the church as a group of people who have engraved on their hearts "In God WE Trust," just like the average piece of US currency. And as we trust in God, we step forward into areas where God is leading us, and God desires for His church to take on areas of leadership within its community. So we discussed that as a church, for us to lead we must:

1. Evaluate - know what's at stake.
2. Participate - seek to solve problems.
3. Renovate - embrace change.
4. Innovate - keep learning.

I believe God wants the Journey to be a community leader, something that might take years to become. But just because it takes years doesn't mean that we shouldn't start making small impacts now - using the little resources we have to punch holes in the darkness. So we did a reverse offering, handing out $10 to every family that wanted to participate. The goal - give the $10 away as a blessing to someone in our communities. Here were the stipulations:

• You will not pocket the money.
• You won’t give the money to someone you know – family or friends.
• You will use the money locally.
• You will pray that God will show you where you can invest the money back into our community somewhere – if someone needs some groceries or a winter coat or a tank of gas – there are a 100 different ways. Use it for a need – don’t let someone buy a box of cigarettes with it. This is for a need.
• You will only mention the church if someone asks you about it.
• You will write down/record your story and give it to me - or visit www.614project.blogspot.com
• Challenge – I invite you to double it and give it. See what God will do when we start living out “In God WE Trust.”

I am anxious to see what this produces, but I wanted to do this as a step forward as we think outside ourselves. I was inspired to do this while watching a Erwin McManus sermon on the risks involved with visionary leadership.

Beyond the message, the music was good and the spirit of the people was interesting - they seemed unsure about the whole "Reverse offering" concept, but I pray that God uses it to mobilize us. For attendance we had 152...

Sunday, March 11, 2007 - The Growing Pains of Leadership - Part 2

Today was the 2nd part of last week's service as I spoke on The Growing Pains of Leadership - part 2, which is week 7 in our Heroes series. The focus was on Acts 15 and the growth of the churches in Jerusalem and Antioch and the growth of the apostolic leadership. I am so excited to see leaders recognize that in order for growth to happen, we must accept the painful changes that come as we embrace change - and there are three ways to do this:

• Break your box – You aren’t the “end of all knowledge” about how God works. The way God has worked in your life is not the way He works in everyone else’s.

• Reject the romantic – Fall out of love with moments in time, “the way we were” things. While it is nice to remember things as they were, don’t live in the past. The way you found this church when you came is not the way it will remain. Don’t fall in love with moments, fall in love with momentum.
  

• Hang up your hang ups - - Embracing change is painful because we have to release our likes/dislikes.

The last growing pain of leadership is to keep learning - embrace that God's ways are higher than our ways (Isaiah 55:10-11). It was a good message for our aspiring leaders to hear.

But there were other things beyond the message today that greatly excited me - three people raised their hands that they prayed with me to invite Christ into their lives, two of who were first time visitors. I did not receive any info on them, but they were friends of men and women from our church that I will follow up with.

The music was also phenomenal this week - energetic and leading people to experience God. I thank God for the work our praise band does every week in preparation. For attendance, we had 148...

February 11-March 4, 2007 - weeks 3-6 of Heroes series

Every once in a while, I get busy and forget to record on this blog what's happening at church. During these four weeks, I did not record what happened in each service, but here's some facts:

• February 11th - week 3 of Heroes - Using Your Supernatural Eyesight - great word about Ananias seeing Saul through God's eyes and how we need to view people with the eyes of God from Acts 9. We had 128 in attendance - this was a great word.
• February 18th - week 4 of Heroes - The Power of Encouragement - this message began a three week emphasis on Barnabas, showing the power we have to encourage others from the example of Barnabas encouraging Saul and his ministry at the end of Acts 9. We should also calling people to higher levels. We had one salvation (praise God!) this week, and we had 160 in attendance.
• February 25th - week 5 of Heroes - The Power of Mentoring - this message showed the importance of Barnabas influencing John Mark and mentoring Saul/Paul. We had 162 in attendance.
• March 4th - week 6 of Heroes - The Growing Pains of Leadership, part 1 - This message kicked off the first of two message from Acts 15 about how leaders grow by 1) remembering what's at stake and 2) solving problems. We emphasized that "the pathway to leadership is protected by problems." We had 149 in attendance...

They were all great days - I will work to be more diligent in my reporting. Pastor...

Sunday, February 4, 2007 - Facing Your Giants

In what will probably go down as one of the best Sundays of 2007, we had an incredible day! Today is Super Bowl Sunday, and while there wasn't a huge interest in the Super Bowl party because the Pats weren't in (last time we do a SB Party as a church without the Pats being involved), the day was wildly successful.

We were in the 2nd week of Heroes - how ordinary people can live extraordinary lives. The music set the stage and was incredible - we learned the song With You from the movie Facing the Giants. It was a perfect compliment to the day, as we looked at Acts 3 and the hero (the lame man) who defeated the disease that had crippled him since birth, and we related that to how we need to face and defeat the giants in our lives that would try to destroy us. I said a giant was:

• A physical weakness/illness that continually beats you down
• A deep emotional wound from a relationship that still hasn’t healed
• Physical or emotional abuse or neglect that still hurts
• A spiritual battle you lost or in which you failed
• A sexual sin like pornography that pops up at your weak moments
• Substance abuse
• A financial setback like bankruptcy or a bad choice that haunts you, making you doubt every time you want to move forward
• A limitation that you believe you can never get past, a problem you can’t solve

If you did not listen to this message, you owe it to yourself to order it (contact Rod or Pastor through our church website's staff page at www.thejourneynh.com).

But the most incredible part of the day were the three guys who invited Jesus Christ into their lives at the end of the service - Rick, Jason, and Matt. I am excited to see what happens in these men's lives. And we had 150 in attendance...

After the service, in the afternoon we showed the movie Facing the Giants (with site-permission of course) and had about 60 people attend. It was great and very much an exclamation point to the morning message...

Vision Night 2007

Tonight was Vision Night 2007 - a night to celebrate, project, and see what God can do at The Journey in 2007. It is one of the most exciting nights of the year for me as I get to dream with the church about where we can go from here. If you missed tonight, regardless of the reason, you missed an opportunity to dream - I hope you don't make the same mistake next year!

A few notes - all five deacons were voted in with the overwhelming approval of those present. I congratulate Jim Bonneau and Kathy Boston, and welcome them onto our board of Deacons. May God use them to serve this church and advance the kingdom. Also, congratulations to Corey, Kyle, and Ed for being re-elected. May 2007 be doubly effective as we strategize and go forward. Also, the two constitutional ammendments passed without an issue.

Below is from the agenda that was handed out - facts and figures from 2006:

2006 recap:

Spiritual Highlights

• Approx. 25-30 people accepted Christ last year at The Journey.
• Had a high of 167 on our 3rd Birthday – July 30th.
• 3 Baptisms in which we baptized 15 people.
• Conducted two 3 day periods of fasting (April and September)
• Had approx. 275-300 first time visitors.

Other major happenings from 2006

• Ratified our first church constitution on February 18th
• Added three deacons
• Redecorated kid’s room
• Launched the discipleship ministry DA2LJ in February
• Replaced the parsonage roof in June
• Participated in the ACS Relay for Life in June
• Took 35 teenagers to the Super Rally at 6 Flags in June
• Cleared the back lot and put in a back parking area in July & August
• Did a one day VBS program in August and had one child saved
• Manned a booth and handed out fliers at the Rochester Fair in September
• Ran a new water line from the house to the church in October.
• Held our first Trunk or Treat in October
• Helped in the launching of New Heights Community in Haverhill

o Sent a demo crew to help in June

o Sent small groups in November to assist in ministry

• Had two missionaries – Ballingers (Feb) & Liles (Dec) – gave great love offerings to them
• Had Christmas Eve Candlelight Service – well attended
• Put ourselves in position to do background checks for all workers (actual checks began in January 2007)

We continue to grow in attendance – although 2006 was a year when we lost many people – we really felt the effects of losing people (it’s a fact of church life – the enemy is real)

• 2004 – avg. January attendance – 36
• 2005 - avg. January attendance – 73
• 2006 - avg. January attendance – 118
• 2007 – avg. January attendance - 145

So many good things happened in 2006 – we had a good year. But as you can see, there is so much room for growth in every area. Like Paul in Philippians 3:12-14, let our goal in 2007 be that we “press on.”

12 I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.

Vision for 2007 – continue finding ways to fulfill our mission –

What is our mission: Inviting people on the journey toward God, together in community, to reach our culture. I have not emphasized those first few words and I should be – inviting people is where our mission starts.

In 2007, how do we advance our mission?

· Advance our mission by inviting people…

o If every person at the Journey committed to inviting one person to church – is that possible? At least one person…

· Advance our mission by moving toward God

o A huge focus of our church centers around bringing people into relationships with Jesus Christ and helping them grow:

§ New believers goal for 2007 – 50

· But we need to invite them to church.

· Know that I consistently give an invitation to help people make a decision

§ People discipled in 2007 – 30

§ People baptized in 2007 - 25

o Another focus is giving our members opportunities to grow in their relationships with the Lord.

§ Emphasis on growth in 2007

· In our teens – camp

· In our children – extended VBS

· In our adults

o Provide extra opportunities outside of small group for more learning and growth

· Advance our mission by moving together in community

o Explore and promote ways to bring us closer together as a church community

§ Small groups – looking for new and consistent ways to integrate church members and new members into small groups

§ Large group events – picnics, advancement of men’s and women’s ministry events – (retreats, conferences)

§ Special events – such as Facing the Giants Sunday

· Advance our mission by reaching our culture

o One of the reasons I am really excited about the addition of Kathy Boston is here connection into our community so that we can reach out – this is one way

o We want to discover ways to reach our culture – not just reach them, but then invite them in

§ Commercials

§ Website upgrade that will appeal to our culture

· Pod-casting

o What are we willing to do to reach our culture for Christ?

Along with these goals revolving around our mission, here are some others that work in conjunction with our mission:

· Strengthen our current ministries

o I will be working with our leaders to help them become better leaders – trimming responsibilities while equipping them to grow.

o Improve areas (see below for building upgrades).

o Add space.

· Add new ministries

o Precepts – a Bible study based on Kay Arthur’s writings that is an extension of our women’s ministry taught by Pearl Goodwin begins Friday, February 9th

o Men’s Ministry – JOURNEYMEN – begins next Saturday Feb. 10 – this will be led by David Goodwin – we want to get our men growing together.

· Strengthen our financial standing.

o Cut spending, save more, while taking care of ministry obligations.

o We were in the black by about $8,100 with another $8,000 in our savings account in ’06 – improving on that.

o Preparing for additional expenses – building, additional staff

· Complete necessary building upgrades

o Fix auditorium lighting.

o Solve auditorium heating problem

o Put tile down in children’s area.

o Put accountability window between nursery and pre-school rooms

o Remove closet in nursery to give a little more space

· Expand our building facilities.

o We will be going to three services near Easter to keep up with our attendance increase.

o We did explore options for renting while we prepared to build, but at the time it wasn’t feasible – let’s see how 3 services works.

o Survey work to be done in February/March (been approved)so that we can develop a site plan for what we intend to do

§ Once completed, we will know what we can/cannot do with our property

· Determine financial abilities through bank

· Determine type of building to build

· Get plans drawn up

· Prepare teams to oversee projects

· Conduct a church-wide campaign in April-May to promote and prepare church

· No turning back!

It was a good night - a good night to look back, and a great night to press on and go forward. I look forward to what comes next...

Sunday, January 28, 2007 - The Power of Invisibility

Heroes - ordinary people living extraordinary lives began today - a sermon series showing how regular people can use their strengths and abilities to serve God in great ways. Today I preached on Unleashing the Power of Invisibility, a look at the first deacons in Acts 6 who contributed to the spread of the gospel through their service in the early church. It was a great start to this series, as many understood that being behind the scenes doesn't mean being unimportant.

On top of the great response by the church, the end of each service saw one person raising their hand for salvation, which is a wonderful thing - one was Ken and the other was Michaela. I pray that God uses this church to grow these two young people.

From start to finish, this was a great day. The music was good, the message was good, the attendance was good (152). We had 7 visitors with us, including a young family I hope to see back with us again who live in the area.

Thank you Lord for an excellent start to Heroes and a great day to be in Your place.

Further notes from Lee's Message

From vss.1-5: I outlined these verses in the margin of my Bible this way:

• Sacrifice – The Macedonian believers gave sacrificially
• Sharing – They understood the “Koinonia” principal God desires for His church
• Surrender – They gave themselves first to God
• Submission – They understood Biblical authority and submitted themselves to it.

They were not a bunch of “Maverick” Christians. I think the

application for us is the local church, i.e. The Journey. Each one of

us needs to submit to and commit to The Journey and its leadership

and to the vision God gives them. God is into the local church!

From vss. 6-9: We, the church of America…and yes, The Journey… excel in so many ways. We are very gifted! Let us “excel also in this gracious ministry of giving.” Let us, as individuals be very “koinonikos” (free in giving). Let us, as a church be “koinonikos”.

We talk about loving each other, and other believers, and those who are yet lost; and of course, we talk of loving the Lord. Talk proves nothing. If our love is real, it must be manifest by what do…how we give. We have as an example the Lord Jesus Christ. He didn’t just talk of loving us. He proved it by impoverishing Himself for our sakes. Will we prove our love by impoverishing ourselves for the Lord…for His church…for the Journey and the vision of reaching our culture?

From vss. 10-15: Here’s my fear…for myself and for our church. I am afraid that we would be moved by this message, that we would begin to talk about altering our lifestyles in order to have our share in this gift of generosity, and that we might even begin to do something about it; but that in the process of time, the excitement, the enthusiasm, and the zeal might fade; and that we might end up not following through until we can truly say “Mission accomplished!”…until we have reached our culture and God’s Kingdom is established. What can we do to ensure that this fear does not come to fruition?

“If you are really eager to give, it isn’t important how much you give.” Don’t let this be an excuse for not giving liberally and sacrificially. A good cross reference to get a good perspective is Mark 12:41-44. Would you be willing to give “the widow’s mite” (all you have)?

The “body” principal is brought out here. If one part of the body is lacking, the whole body suffers. Remember “koinonia”? I can’t emphasize this enough! God built the koinonia principal into His creation; and it is His design for the church!

It’s interesting that Paul would quote from Exodus 16:18 here. Go back and look at this verse in its context; then think about this: If we are greedy and hoard our wealth and possessions for ourselves, could it be that it will rot away and become a stench. For me, this puts a different perspective on my finances, my possessions, my time, my talents and abilities, etc.

From vss.8:16-9:4: I won’t comment too much on these verses except to say that they have to do with good stewardship and accountability with the money brought into the church. We, the church, need to be “up front” with every penny we receive. This is very important. This is just one reason that I think we should give primarily to and through our local church. “We are careful to be honorable before the Lord, but we also want everyone else to know we are honorable.” (8:21)

From vss.9:5-10: Why do many of us struggle with this idea of generous giving? Why do we so often get our hackles up when someone speaks on this topic, or when someone makes us aware of a need with the intention that we should respond by giving? Well, perhaps it is because of a misunderstanding or unbelief as to what giving is all about and/or the “koinonia” principal. Some of us, I think, view giving as sort of “paying our dues”. When the topic comes up, it comes across to us like “God has done so much for you. The least you can do is give back to Him a portion of what you have received.” While that may be true, that is not what this rich gift of generosity is about at all. God doesn’t need us or our money. And what He has given us is a gift. Don’t insult God by trying to pay for it. The rich gift of generosity is a gift He has offered to us. Its part of our inheritance! So don’t ever feel pressured to give. Understand that God has offered you the wonderful privilege of partnering with Him and His church…the universal church and The Journey…in what He is doing. And here’s the thing: The more you give, the greater you receive! No, I’m not talking about “give to get” because Paul wasn’t talking about that. A farmer who doesn’t sow all of his seed or does not fill all of his fields with seed, for fear of adverse weather conditions or for whatever reason, will have a limited harvest. We not only reap what we sow, we reap according to how much we sow. I want everything God has for me, don’t you? So I’m planting all of my seed. First I give myself to God…all of me…everything I am, and everything I have. (Remember 8:5) Then I give myself to our church and its leadership…all of me…everything I am and everything I have. If this Kingdom stuff is fallacy…if I’m wrong about this idea of partnering with God in what He is doing to restore His creation…or if God should fail in this (as if He could), I am bankrupt…belly up! For me, its Christ or bust! I’m throwing everything in! How about you? Are you in?

Each one of us needs to make up our own mind as to how much we give. “Don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure.”

How could the Macedonian believers (and how can we) give more than they (or we) could afford? They understood the source of everything they had. God is the “Fount of every blessing”. I encourage you to give generously and sacrificially because “God will generously provide everything you need. Then you will always have everything you need and plenty left over to share…For God is the one who gives seed to the farmer and then bread to eat.”

From vss. 9:11-14: Maybe this is the best part of all! If we do this…if we choose to partner with God and give generously and sacrificially, two things are going to happen. Needs are going to be met and God is going to receive glory! Friends…Partners, that is why we were created; and that is why God chose us to be His partners; and that is why He has blessed us…to be a blessing to others and to glorify Him! We do our part and thanksgiving and praise to God will break out because people will understand that God is everything He claims to be. That, for me, is worth living for? Are you in?

From 9:15: I don’t think Paul is speaking of Jesus here, although Jesus is indeed a gift too wonderful for words. The NLT says “Thank God for His Son…” Other versions speak only of an “inexpressible gift”. I believe the gift Paul is talking about is this rich gift of generosity…this opportunity to partner with God. Imagine that! Koinonia with God! Are you in?

Sunday, January 21, 2007

Sorry for the delay in posting these things - I was out of town until today and didn't have the chance...

Today was a good day here at The Journey. The music was good, although I realized after we began that it was a little too mundane - not enough variety, which might have impacted the response. I will try to do better in perceiving that beforehand, creating a music set that invites more participation and variety. You can take that for whatever it's worth - it's just a worship leader's note. :)

We did intro a new song, Meet With Me, which was received ok - the verdict is out, but I pray that people will receive the invitational spirit behind it and make it a beginning prayer for each service - I'm here to meet with You - come and meet with me. I'm here to find You - reveal Yourself to me. Lord, as we get together, may the Journey be a place that You continually inhabit!

Lee preached today, talking about the importance of our fellowship together, and giving ourselves to the mission of the church. The head microphone was out during the first service, which made it a little difficult to hear, but it was working during the second. I thank God for the message Lee brought, and I thank God for the men of this church who fill the pulpit while I'm gone.

I will post Lee's further comments below so that you can see some of the things he had to skip - take some time and review them for your own personal study. Today was a good day - we had 154 in attendance, and God continues to bless this body.

Sunday, December 31, 2006

If I could title this past Sunday's services, it would be The Tale of Two Services. Allow me to explain...

The first service was a good crowd and the music was good, but there seemed to be a holding back from engaging, as the congregation seemed largely unresponsive. I don't know why this was, but I recognized that as I would ask questions that there wasn't much response and that the words I was saying seemed to just fall flat. I know this might sound judgmental, and it is certainly not meant to be, and I know that there were several people who were with me. But overall, I felt myself getting frustrated that the receptiveness didn't seem to be there.

As a matter of fact, I said something at the end of the service that I would like to correct, as I am sure it did not come across like I wanted it to. I talked about the fact that there are people who don't attend church with us on Sundays and yet will call me during the week to get counsel. I said that rather than call me, they should come to church, where so many answers can be found in the spoken word. And that's all fine, but I almost made it sound like, "If you don't come to church, don't call me." That's not what I meant. I just meant to say that so much counseling can be done from the pulpit, and furthermore, there is such healing in relationships with others...

And then there was the 2nd service, in which we had wonderful worship and there was a flow to the word. I don't know what the exact difference was, except that there was a spirit of receptiveness and openness to what was happening, and God really worked in the word and in the worship.

Regardless of which service you were in, I invite you every week to just be ready for and be looking to encounter God at The Journey - prepare yourself before you come, and just seek out God with all your heart every time you are here. God wants to be sought, and He has made Himself accessible. May we experience GOD and the power of His Spirit every week without fail in 2007!

I spoke today from Ephesians 4:1-13 on "A Community Effort in the New Year," and focusing on our unity as a congregation. We had 117...

Christmas Eve Candlelight Service 2006

Last night we held our 3rd Christmas Eve Candlelight Service (we have done one every year except last year), and we had about 110 people attend - it was good. You know, I never know exactly how those kinds of events will come off, but it came off well. I was reminded in a very touching way how incredibly evangelistic and Christ-filled Christmas is, and why the world fights it so much.

Maybe that sounds like a "duh" statement coming from a minister, but the traditional Christmas carols are inundated with the Gospel message - Hark the Herald Angels, O Holy Night, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, etc. Fitting songs such as these fit into our praise and worship fairly easily, although they take work since we only sing them during one season of the year. But it is no wonder than anti-Christian people would find Christmas so offensive as it is so powerfully evangelistic - talking about Immanuel - God with us - and receiving Him.

And as we had many visitors in the service last night, I had the strangest thought for just a moment - that maybe I had designed the service to be a little too Christian - I thought maybe the non-Christian visitors would be slightly uncomfortable. And then I came to my senses, as I thought to myself, "You know what? We can go anywhere else and not get the message right! We can go to school productions, theater events, movies, TV and get the watered-down or wrong messages about Christmas. As the pastor of a growing, vibrant church, I had better get the message right!" - and so that passing thought was gone - "I don't receive that!"

And when we lit the candles near the end of the service and sang How Great is Our God - it was phenomenal! The lyrics say, He wraps Himself in light and darkness tries to hide and trembles at His voice...it was amazing to be part of a crowd of worshippers singing this as we held our lights, knowing that He is the Light of the world that pushes away the darkness of sin and death, and we are His lights, bringing the good news of peace to everyone.

There were a few times last night when we sang a cappella (without instruments) on Joy to the World and O Come All Ye Faithful, and the congregational singing was incredible! It was like directing a large choir, as harmonies rang out and I was overjoyed to hear such an incredible voice of people praising God.

After everyone had gone, as I shut off the lights in the building, I thought back to 2003 and our first Candlelight Service - small, intimate (30 people?), and not planning to have to read without the lights on (I read by candelight at one point, and quoted from memory at another point) - and as I stood in the darkened sanctuary for a minute, I thanked God for how far He has brought us in just three short years.

And so today, Christmas Day, as I have had the chance to sit back and ponder last night, and open gifts from so many wonderful church members, I just thank God for the Gift of His Son, a Gift too wonderful for words, and thank God for the wonderful people that I have the joy of ministering to and serving God with...

Sunday December 24, 2006 - Christmas Eve

OK - I have to admit - I was really unsure what our attendance would be like today, as we had many people out of town, and this being the day before Christmas. My wife and I had talked earlier this week about the fact that maybe we should have just scheduled one service for this morning - but wouldn't you know, we had 146 today, which was a great surprise! We had some guests, and overall, it was a good day at The Journey.

I preached on receiving the gifts of Advent at Christmas - joy, hope, peace, and love - and letting them into our lives. It was a very evangelistic sermon as well, as I wanted to give visitors the chance to receive the greatest gift of all - Jesus Christ. Two people in our second service raised their hands that they prayed with me and invited God into their lives, starting a new relationship with Him - it was awesome!

The music was rough in a couple of spots - that was my doing mostly - but it was good nonetheless, specifically Sharon Gaudet's "Babe in a Manger" - I would love for her to record that song...

Tonight is our Candlelight Service, which is just a chance to worship together as we celebrate Christmas with our extended church family. May the Lord ignite our hearts and make us into the lights that our community needs us to be.

Thank God for the gift of His Son, a Gift too wonderful for words...

Sunday, December 17, 2006

As I record the information about each service through this blog every week, I am sometimes at a loss for words. You see, I want to be factual in what I say, and yet at the same time, I want to write from my perspective of how I felt the service went, understanding that my feelings are not always what everyone else felt. So forgive me if sometimes my feelings do not reflect your own - feel free to add your own thoughts in the comments below.

For me, Sunday morning began as a struggle. I was dealing with some personal conflict that had me up at 5am and at the church by 6am. I was struggling with some tough feelings, but I was actively giving them to God, and even during the praise team practice and before church I was frustrated and conflicted.

Yet, when the music began at 9am for the worship, it lifted. There is something about worship that frees us, that refocuses us, and that allows us to put our problems in perspective. So once the church started singing, my spirit immediately lifted, and what I thought would be a tough day of preaching for me (yes, I have those kinds of days) turned into a good day as we focused on the JOY of serving God from John 4 - after all, it was the third week of Advent, and JOY was our focus.

But as I delivered the message, when it came time at the end, so many people raised their hands that they wanted to "find the nourishment that comes from DOING the will of God," I was excited. I desire to see our church body step forward TOGETHER in planting and harvesting, every one knowing his/her role and doing his/her part. When this working together happens, there is "much joy waiting" for us and for God.

It was a good day at The Journey, even though for me it started out as a struggle. I am so grateful for the people who come ready to worship, and who are ready to enter into God's presence, because by inviting God's presence, I, for one, experienced JOY - thank you so much for your consistency in being ready to take the congregation into the presence of God.

The attendance today was lower (Christmas shopping, parties, and events are drawing people away - just don't forget to come back!) as we had 130, but if you missed it, there is always next week.

Sunday, December 10, 2006

A good day here at The Journey - a really good day - as we celebrated the 2nd week of Advent. Debra Carnevale and her granddaughter, Kayla, lit the Advent candle in the first service while the Bonneas and their grandson Aaron lit the candle in the second service.

Today was a good day for several reasons - the worship was good, the word was good, we continue to celebrate Advent, and we had a guest missionary with us - Jon Liles, missionary to Italy. Jon not only presented his field and sang, but he was a living example of our theme from Isaiah 52:7 - "How beautiful on the mountain are the feet of the messenger who brings good news, the good news of peace and salvation..." Jon and his family surrendered to go to Italy, and from God's perspective, He loves their feet!

We also had a special celebrity Bible reader, Linus, as he read the shepherd story from Luke 2. And the worship, especially in the 2nd service, was great as we sang "Hark the Herald Angels Sing," "Angels We Have Heard on High," and "O Holy Night," which almost blew the doors off of the place.

Our attendance was the lowest it's been in months - since May - we had 114 - but it was great day, and the Spirit of God was among us. If you missed today, I look forward to seeing you next week as we enter into our third week of Advent and focus on the theme of JOY.

Sunday, December 3, 2006

This Sunday was the first Sunday of Advent as I spoke on being Fueled by Hope. I was very excited about this message, as it was birthed out of struggling with the topic and allowing God to speak into my life on what hope is, how it differs from faith, and what practically it means to us. I preached on the fact that hope makes me stronger in 4 ways:
1) Hope motivates me to keep looking forward-expectantly.
2) Hope encourages me with the fact that God isn't done working yet.
3) Hope frees me from always trying to make things happen.
4) Hope forces me to honestly evaluate my walk.

We had a great day as we also celebrated communion in the middle of the message and read from Isaiah 52-53 before we took of the bread and juice. We also sang a few Advent songs (Come Thou Long Expected Jesus and O Come O Come Emmanuel).

Our attendance has been steadily in the 140's and 150's over the past two months, and we had 148 today. We have had some wonderful new people that have either joined us or are seriously thinking about it, including Jennifer Ryan and Veronica (last name?), Matthew Reed, Jon & Kim Lash, Brent Williams, Jamie, Kevin, and Hope. It is a wonderful thing to see people grow in their relationship with the Lord, and then in relationships with others.

May God continue to grow us into the church He wants us to be.

An addendum to last week's message...

This past weekend I preached on "How can I claim my inheritance?" and just like so many sermons, I realized that I cannot preach every thought I have about a subject. So I wanted to give you a small portion of the message that I did not include in the sermon, and allow you to think about this and ask questions - here goes...

"...the inheritance you have isn’t solely received by you demonstrating faith only when it is beneficial. You see, our trust and obedience needs to go far beyond receiving only the good things that God has for us. What about trust and obedience – FAITH – that is required in situations that aren’t beneficial to me – like when God tells me to stop sinning – saying, doing, watching, listening to the wrongs? Next week we will discuss this in detail when we answer the question, “what does God want from me?” but I want you to know that God’s blessing, the inheritance, is contingent upon our obedience in every facet of our lives. Don’t try to claim inheritance when you aren’t willing to walk in obedience. – Paul warns us about this kind of thing in Galatians 6:7-8:

Don't be misled: No one makes a fool of God. What a person plants, he will harvest. The person who plants selfishness, ignoring the needs of others—ignoring God!—harvests a crop of weeds. All he'll have to show for his life is weeds! But the one who plants in response to God, letting God's Spirit do the growth work in him, harvests a crop of real life, eternal life. (The Message)

You don’t claim an inheritance from God while walking in disobedience. You can fool a lot of people about your walk, but God’s not fooled. If you seek your inheritance while knowingly harboring sin or bitterness or deception, you won’t find your inheritance until you have exercised faith in those areas of your life."

By the way, if you missed it, CD's are available for this message.

To Sir with love...

I read yesterday in an MSNBC article that Sir Elton John said in a newspaper magazine that "religion encourages hatred and produces hateful lemmings," and that he would "ban organized religion completely." Admittedly, as I read what he had to say, it didn't exactly help me be more loving and accepting. It wreaks of Karl Marx's "religion is opium for the masses" statement, indicating that outside of providing some emotional high to deal with everyday issues, religion is useless.

So my immediate reaction was, "How dare he! How dare Sir Elton John would say these things..." To go along with his words, Rosie O'Donnell in October made comments on her new show The View in which she said, "Radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam in a country like the United States." And again, my thoughts immediately were, "How could she say that?! How dare she!"

But before I went and picketed and boycotted and wrote to every major Christian organization to ban the listening and viewing of these entertainers, the Voice of the Spirit within had to remind me of a few things:

• Jesus told His followers, "If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first."
• Hebrews reminds us like the old song, "This world is not our home."
• And Paul encourages us in Romans 12 to "not let evil conquer you, but conquer evil by doing good."

We can get mad at the comments - they were ignorant and just as bigoted as a racial slur. They reflect intolerance (a Christian could NEVER say anything like these things and get away with it) and do nothing but spread hatred. The very thing they condemn is what they promote.

BUT we are to not curse them, but love and bless them (Romans 12:14) and show them just how untrue their statements are by the very ways we react to them. If we are people of faith (who trust in and act on what God says...that sounds familiar), then when we are openly scorned, ridiculed, and spoken evil against, we respond by demonstrating love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness to those who do so. Paul calls love a "more excellent way," and it ought to be our defining characteristic.

I'd love any thoughts if you have any...Pastor.

Save the dance...

I have been reading Fresh Faith by Jim Cymbala, a great book that corresponds well with our current fall campaign of Discovering the Possibilities of Faith. The book is wonderful (a definite recommendation), but there is a phrase in the book that I have begun using - Jim says, in reference to kidding or fooling ourselves, "Let's not dance with ourselves."

The call to live a life of faith and the life of a Christian is a call to honesty that begins with telling the truth about ourselves, includes recognizing the truth that God tells us, and includes recognizing the lies of the devil. Each one of these "honesty" checks is difficult, but the one that Christians are simply awful at is telling the truth about themselves. As a pastor, when trying to help someone become extricated from a sinful pattern, if that person refuses to acknowledge the pain they are causing to God, themselves, and others, and if that person fails to recognize the ugliness of their sin, than victory is impossible. They are too busy "dancing with themselves."

I even see this with non-sinful issues. For example, for years I would lie to myself about what I could consume and not consume, and how ultimately, I could control my health if I had to. Until I realized that my habits were controlling me - it wasn't that I couldn't stop behaving in unhealthy manners, but it is that I refused to be truthful and recognize just how weak I really was. For me, if there is candy at my desk or chocolate in the cupboard, I was going to eat it, regardless of my "will (or Willis) power." I had to take that stuff away completely so that I wouldn't "dance with myself" and keep adding pounds and bad health.

I believe this extends into our church life as well. Too often, we are a church that "dances with ourselves." EVERYONE knows that EVERYONE has problems (if you've seen our sign - we're "the perfect church if you aren't") and EVERYONE struggles and has issues - R.E.M. reminded us that "everybody hurts sometimes." But our hurts and struggles, rather than being what distances us away from each other, should be the one thing that draws us closer together. If I can find healing for a hurt or a solution for a problem or encouragement for my life mission through others, than why don't I seek that? I think the problem is that we "dance with ourselves" and we don't want to acknowledge that in our church body - from leaders to laypeople - are sin, problems, and struggles. We would rather gloss over that because, in doing so, we can gloss over our own. It becomes a Clinton-like "don't ask, don't tell" policy - and the praise music we play every Sunday becomes just another opportunity not to dance with the Father but to dance with ourselves.

I read this morning on Jesus Creed that the Ted Haggard scandal has really exposed some weaknesses in the way we as the church relate in community, especially when it comes to dealing with our sin and weakness - Journey, something has to change, from pastor to deacon to leader to teacher to layperson; from fathers to mothers, husbands to wives, parents to children, children to friends - all the way down - something has to change in our community for us to really understand what COMMUNITY is all about...

Church - The Journey, if we really are going to be a church that travels "together in community," then let's stop dancing with ourselves and let's start dancing with each other! Let's dance in selfless, engaging, encouraging, inviting, growing, instructing, and relational community - putting away bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander and instead putting on kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness, clothing ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience! Save the dance for your brothers and sisters in Christ, and for the God who rejoices and sings over us.

No more dancing with ourselves and grieving the Holy Spirit. Let's start dancing with each other and letting the fulness of the Spirit dwell in our midst...