2009 Closing Out...

As 2009 comes to a close, I would be remiss if I didn't share an update as to what is going on...


God has done some remarkable things in my life and this year has been no different. He has blessed me with an ubelieveable wife and family, placed me in a sweet position in a nearby municipality and surrounded me with some good brothers that keep me accountable and digging in to His word.



Here is what has happened in the last 6 months alone:

1) I moved jobs from Corona DWP to the City of Menifee. Instead of managing 35 people for a Water Department, I work for the City Manager and do not supervise anyone. The adjustment has been great - trading a 30 mile one way commute for 7.5 and worrying just about one person - me. My plate is now full with what I must accomplish and get done, instead of working to insure that all of my staff are accomplishing the bits and pieces that make up the bulk of the work. It is a different mind set now, when I look around to see who can assist me to accomplish my goals, the mirror is the only thing I see.

2) I started and have taken three courses - back to back to back - at Rockbridge Seminary and am on my way to a Master's in Ministry Leadership. It has been a good change of pace for me, but also difficult to manage my time between work, school and my first love and ministry: my family. They have been so supportive, mostly because I wait until the kids are in bed and then am up most of the night reading, studying, and writing papers. I am taking a little break from school though with a much needed semester off.

3) The Men's Ministry has expanded to include two weeknight studies of varying degrees. Tuesday night is moving through Books of the Bible, reading and fellowshipping and praying. We even added guitar worship to kick it off each week. Usually a group of 15-20 guys meet each week. Thursday nights is a more in-depth study using the Bible and a companion piece to dig into Scripture. It requires at least 2 hours of "homework" each week and has just finished up a study through Genesis.

4) 1st Saturday of the month Men's Breakfasts have been great...we average 25 guys in attendance and have been focusing on self-discipleship and what that means. Come join us - 7am each 1st Saturday of the month at The Lamb's Fellowship.

5) About 2 months ago Ric McNair came alongside me in ministry and wanted to serve the guys on Tuesday nights by facilitating the study. We worked and connected side by side until I felt God's call to move Ric right in. He will now be hosting and facilitating Tuesday nights - I have new duties at work which conflict on 1st/3rd Tuesdays so it is good to have one guy step in and keep it all together.

What is coming in the new year? A host of new opportunities to engage the men of Lamb's in fellowship and to serve others. I have been working on an idea for quite some time and am soon to be announcing what God has been moving me to do. I am excited and a little unsure, but feel that I must continue to follow what God places on my heart.

I hope and pray that you would be continued to move toward Him and to develop your relationship with Jesus into deeper territory.

Mens Camp Out

Boy, have I been neglecting this blog or what? Check out these sweet pix of our last men's/son's camp out in September!

So much fun - about 40 total guys/sons spent the night at our favorite hang out - the Sheffield's (awesomest hosts ever!) in La Cresta.

For those of you that don't know, we camp at an equestrian center next to their awesome pad and they allow to come over and use their property like a campground....complete with skatepark, basketball court, grass volleyball court (both lighted by the way for late night entertainment) and a shooting platform for clay pigeon shooting... We had an awesome time - special thanks go out to Rob Goodlett, Joe Geddes, Jim & Amber Sheffield, Tom Meyers and Chip Rawlings and to the rest of the gang that hung out and helped clean up the site before heading down the mountain to come home...

If you missed it, we will be doing it again so be on the look out for the next men's campout.

Jesus...its just that easy.

I changed jobs recently and am also attending Rockbridge Seminary furthering my education by obtaining a Masters in Ministry Leadership - along with Dillon playing baseball and McKenna doing Gymnastics Level 3 - we have much going on in our lives right now...

I have been taking a course on evangelism and have noticed some buzz words entering the ministry world like: organic, transparent, missional. It always amazes me that we need to try and put "new" labels on age old ideas. Is it so that we can seem smarter than everyone else or is it so that we can try and put a fresh spin on the Gospel?

It seems to me that if we continue to be disciples of Christ - which in my opinion is different than being or calling oneself a Christian or believer - we will continue to be organic, transparent and missional - because Jesus was the originator of all of these things. Let's keep it simple...

Dillon spotted this shirt the other day and we ended up buying it for him...Jesus, It's just that easy.

Unmerited Favor Explosion

I have shared this with most everyone that I have talked to in the past two weeks, so I thought I would blog it as well. God's unmerited favor, when it strikes, is almost too much to deal with. I mean we already lead such blessed lives and I realize that all I have, from my wife and children to my home and job, is from God. He has taken care of my every need and so much more.

Recently, I have been the recipient of an awesome answer to prayer. What is even better is that it really came out of the blue. I was praying about it and for at least the past 8 months, but I guess I never really expected it to happen. Do you know what I mean? I guess I had been in a prayer rut. You know, asking for the same request over and over, but maybe not believing that it could really happen or that God would deliver it to me.

With God the impossible is possible ... be thinking about how you are praying and what you are expecting God to do with and to your prayer request. Do you really believe that He can meet your needs, even if He doesn't answer your prayer? How are you or will you respond to His unmerited favor?

I found this verse a while ago during a deep struggle and under much stress at my, as of tomorrow, former position:

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers. " Galatians 6:9-10 (NIV)

Stay Strong

Cmon join the twitterati!

Listen up - you guys that are attending the study on Tuesday & Thursday nights need to get hooked up on twitter - this way we can speak encouragement to each other throughout each day. Just go to http://www.twitter.com/ and sign up. It works best if you have an iPhone or blackberry style phone so that you can download free programs to keep in contact with -- so many people. I have been encouraged by following these people:

@jvh74 - Pastor John Hansen

@Rwsharpie - Pastor Ryan Sharp

@pastormjw - Pastor Mike Wilson

@lambstechie - Brian Murray

@thelambsf - The Lambs Fellowship

@ericbeeman - Chorus Church

@betterthanblank - Alex McLean, Rancho Community Church

@fastchurch - awesome info regarding church in america

@donmilleris - Donald Miller, Christian Author

@JohnPiper - DesiringGod.org

@kirkfranklin - dude, its Kirk Franklin, now GO!

@courageouschurch - Pastor Shaun King, Atl

@andystanley

@therealtobymac

@danhendo - Dan Henderson

@walshdc - Danny Walsh - Lambs Life Groups Leader

@edstetzer - President of Lifeway Research

@rickwarren - Lead Pastor Saddleback Community Church

@sabocortez - Rancho Community Church

@sailingtwidget

oh yeah, don't forget me @thatguyrobj!

19

What a blessing...God never ceases to amaze me. First night of Hebrews and God crams 19 guys into a small room - with 6 first timers!

It will be an amazing ride through the next 12 weeks as we snap on that chin strap and work our way through this amazing sermon known as Hebrews...thank you Jesus for these brothers.

Stay Strong

Mens Breakfast August 1

Hey Guys!

What an awesome time hanging out with you today...just a bit of recap for those of you that could not make it. I received a very strong message from God this past week and wanted to share it this morning...concerning our Men's Ministry and me personally.



Psalm 1
Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight in in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers. Not so the wicked! They are like chaff that the wind blows away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.





Phew, here are some bullet points from my brief message this morning:

• At work and parts of my life I am walking in the counsel of the wicked -- need to stop, not sure how to do it without leaving my current job - pray as I seek to do that soon - as spending 12 hours a day in that environment is dragging me down.


• I want to delight in the law of the Lord --> need to be in the word daily...not just lip service. Brother Dave hooked me up with Youversion for my iPhone & I immediately added it to my home screen.


• I want to meditate on his word day and night --> again with the being in the word - DAILY


• I want to be like the tree planted by the streams of water: create shade for others, produce fruit and be used to build things for Christ!


• Psalmist talks about two ways with no middle ground: way of the wicked & way of the righteous -- glad to be part of the way of the righteous now need to live daily like I am.


• Wicked will not stand in the judgment as they will not be able to withstand God's wrath - thank you Jesus that you called me to come follow you.


• So, where are you today? Are you going to stand firm in Christ like that tree by the stream of water? Are you going to produce shade and provide comfort, fruit and be used for God's purposes?


• James 1:22-25; 1 John 2:15-17; Galatians 6:9-10

Stay Strong and as Kirk Franklin says - GO!

Rob

New Genesis Study: Thursday, August 6th!

Hey Guys -- check it out, you now have two opportunities to get plugged in to a Men's Study - for us, by us! Small group studies are one of the best ways to get to know other guys at Lamb's and create friendships with other believers. We spend too much time in the world taking in all its junk - we need friends that are believers and are like-minded...come join in.

Starting, Thursday, August 6th at 7pm - Gregg Fosgett will be facilitating a study through Genesis. This study will be at The Lamb's Fellowship in room C6 or C7 - just come ready for some great time of worship through scripture and prayer. If you haven't met him, Gregg is a really neat guy. He was actually the catalyst to the Tuesday night study over a year ago. Gregg, myself, Chris McMurtry and Rich Payne starting meeting on the back porch of Lamb's as an alternative to the Tuesday morning crew. We have kept this thing going for over a year now and it is time to expand. Check your bulletin and this blog for more information about the new studies.

Stay Strong

Tuesday Nights are en fuego!

Wow, we have been soooo blessed at the Tuesday night study....James snaps off some important truths to us right off the bat in Chapter 1 and then goes so much deeper in Chapter 2.

While discussing the intro to James, we talked about the book being:
(1) a "how to" book of / for the Christian life
(2) one of the most practical books of the NT: offers instruction & exhortation to Christians who are experiencing problems.

James speaks of prejudice, improper speech, judging one another, leaving God out of our plans and even bitterness .... already had two great weeks of discussion!

The recipients are the 12 tribes and from Nelson's Compact Commentary this is defined as:

• Jewish / Christians living outside of Palestine
• Most of which seem to have been poor & suffering from oppression by fellow Jews
• Some of them had been imprisoned & deprived of possessions & livelihood
• Under these conditions, they fell into worldliness, fought amongst each other, favored the rich over the poor & lost their original love for one another
• If works = natural result of faith
• If we truly believe, we would act on belief
• We need to get out lives in line with what we believe...

Join on Tuesday night at RJ's Sizzlin Steer (6:45pm)...next week chapter 3

Mens Bfast this Saturday

Hey Guys,
Just wanted to remind you all that we will be having a Men's Breakfast this weekend on July 4th. I will be bringing a message about manly stuff, so you don't want to miss it! We have changed the time to 7 am so that we can all get up a little later...if you have time - come by a little early and help Lance Ladd and me cook up some grub and set up the room!

Many hands make light work...

stay strong
see you soon
Rob

Man ohhhh man...

I haven't put up a post in a while and have really been meaning to get back to it. Here is what is going on in my neck on the woods:

• started masters in ministry leadership program at Rockbridge Seminary


• working like a dog


• watched daughter McKenna take 3 first place ribbons at gymnastics awards


• signed up son Dillon for fall ball


• had a great weekend last week: friday, waterpark; saturday, yard work, nap & the edge; sunday, 3 services trying to sell Storm tix & then the beach


• reading a few good books right now: the making of a leader, J. Robert Clinton; the jesus i never knew, philip yancey; blue like jazz, donald miller; and jesus in the margins, rick mckinley...hopefully i will finish at least one in the near future...

what are you doing?

@thatguyrobj

Storm Night of Fellowship!

Next weekend - June 27, 28 & July 4, 4 will be the only time that you will be able to purchase tickets at Lambs for the upcoming night of fellowship at the Lake Elsinore Storm Game on Friday, July 17...the Storm is playing someone...

I have secured 100 tickets for the game and 100 tickets for the pre-game tailgate party supporting Student Venture. Storm tix are $6 and Tailgate Party tix are $3 = $9 per person for a great night of hotdogs, sodas, chips, philanthropy, baseball, Christian music, fireworks, family fun and fellowship with other believers.

We want to fill the Stadium - so come on out.

I will have a table next weekend and the following weekend, but you must pay up front for your tickets in cash or checks made out to The Lamb's Fellowship (Storm Game in the memo).

randomness...

Random thoughts over the past few weeks:

~how did I get so hung up on twitter?

~do I really need to get the new iphone?

~what if I won the lottery? would I really do all those things that I say I would...

~can I really complete a masters program, work full time, be a husband, dad and men's ministry leader at the same time?

~why can't we just be the men / women we feel called to be?

~does the car you drive really make a statement about you?

~what if you could give all of your money away?

What do you think?

What is God Doing?

It has been a while since I was asked to take over the leadership of the Men's Ministry at Lamb's and I thought it was about time to share with you what God is doing...

With the help of a few brothers, we started a Tuesday Night bible study that has been going strong for over a year now. More than 35 guys have joined in at one time or another and we, mostly me, have been blessed by what we have seen, shared and discovered about ourselves and those guys at Lamb's. We still meet on Tuesday nights at RJ Sizzlin Steer @ 6:45pm. We will be starting another study coming up in August on Thursday nigths as well.

Over the past 6 months, God has been changing lives of those men that have stepped out and stepped up to take an active role in the Men's Ministry. We are a small but mighty bunch of guys who, just like you, struggle with stuff on a daily basis. We may be a little different, because we like to talk with other guys that are going through life like we are to make sure that we encourage and provide a bit of cover for our brothers too.

Those guys have joined together to produce a great campout with 20 guys in attendance. We have a golf outing coming up, we have hosted monthly Men's Breakfasts as well. As our community gets bigger, we will have more opportunities to create times for guys to get together with each other.

As the Men's Ministry Leader, God has put on my heart to serve and encourage as many men at Lamb's that need it. I work best when I can encourage a brother to step out in faith and take a challenge that God has put on his heart. I love to see men step up and put their hand in the air to be used by God. We are so fortunate to have a relationship with Christ that we must be counted on to stand up for that relationship, as well as the others that God has entrusted us with.

If you need someone to hang out with and talk to for a while, I love to get me some coffee and would happy to meet with you. If you need some encouragement or prayer, don't hesitate to contact me. If you want to talk about opportunities that we should be or could engaged in - bring it on! There is so much going on at Lamb's that you could feel like the Men's Ministry is not doing anything, but let me tell you - the Men of Lamb's are involved in every ministry at Lamb's...so fear not. God is bonding a solid group of men together on Tuesday nights and at our monthly Saturday breakfasts.

We can stay in touch several ways...
1) you can respond to blog postings
2) you can email me at thatguyrobj@gmail.com
3) you can www.twitter.com me @thatguyrobj
4) you can always call...send me an email and I respond with my phone number...

Stay Strong (Gal. 6:9-10)
Rob

Kris Allen Singing "God of this City" = sweet!

http://vimeo.com/4787116

it's been a while

I haven't blogged in a while...I have to admit, I have become stuck on twitter (@thatguyrobj) and having a lot of fun trying to keep up with everyone. God has been working on me for a while and it has been exciting to see Him create change in me. What was once a desire to be near Him and understand what His will is for me is now becoming an adventurous journey. Things that I have desired in the past, but were too afraid to think about or wonder about are showing themselves to be real possibilities for me - it is an exciting time.

Things I am thinking about:
-How do I know the will of God for my life?
-Practically what does this look like?
-How can I become more actively involved in my relationship with Jesus?
-How has my understanding of who Jesus is changed?

Books currently reading:
-Romans
-1, 2 & 3 John
-The Jesus I Never Knew - Philip Yancey
-Jesus in the Margins - Rick McKinley
-Blue Like Jazz - Donald Miller
-Shadow Boxing - Dr. Henry Malone

What are you doing?

Men's Campout Report

Wow - what a great time...kudos to Rob Goodlett for putting on a great show in putting this overnighter together. A huge thank you goes out to our hosts and totally fantastic couple Jim and Amber Sheffield...it would not have been possible without you!

I arrived on the scene about 3:30pm to see about 8 guys hanging around throwing shoes and hear echoes of shotgun blasts from the platform high above the Sheffield house on the property adjacent to our base camp at the Equestrian Center, owned by Dan Stephenson.

What a perfect day for a camp out...not too hot and not too chilly. THe horseshoe pit was competitive, but it got tighter when I took a walk over to the Sheffield property and stopped to chat with Tony Kestle, who was watching a two on two basketball war.

Just as I sat down to watch the fest, MAN DOWN! At first, we thought it might be just a little fall, but it turned out to be a popped ankle. Not sure if it is broken, but Eric Tomlinson's short day was over. Jim Sheffield, the most awesomest host in the world, drove him back down the hill to seek a real opinion and we prayed that it would be just a sprain. I jumped in to the game as Dave's new partner and ended up winning a very draining game of basketball. Dave has a killer 15 foot jumper by the way...

As I shuffled back to our site, the guys had built a substantial fire and we were ready for some more horseshoes. A few games of shoes and it was time to get our food on. Rob G. manned the BBQ and put out some outstanding Dogs and Burgers and Amber Sheffield delivered some good old fashioned chili -- yep, we had quite a time later!

After dinner, we relaxed by the campfire and got to spend time just hanging out - being guys. We had a great time of worship led by David and a discussion on the Lord's prayer facilitated by Rob G. So cool how a bunch of guys who really didn't know each other we so quickly bonded together by time spent focusing on Jesus.

Around 10pm, 8 of us decided it was time for some volleyball under the lights on the Sheffield's sweet grass volleyball court. A mere 40 some degrees couldn't stop over 2 hours of fun. Amber and Jim broke out some hot chocolate, tea and coffee for us and after one more game, we headed back to our camp fire where some guys headed off to bed - while the firebugs continued into the early hours of the AM.

Thanks to Joe Geddes for letting me and Jeff Hohenstein crash in his rig. I heard it was cold out in the tent, but Joe had the temp just right all night.

By the way, never underestimate the impact of a 24 pack of Ding Dongs, some chili and late night volleyball at a Men's Campout! Thanks for a great time guys, the next one we will be adding our kids.

Again, kudos to Rob Goodlett for making this one happen and to our wonderful hosts the Sheffield's and the Stephenson's.

Camp Out de Men - 4/25 - 4/26

Join us for the first Lamb's Men's Camp Out! We will be posting signs along the way and will be sending out multiple emails this week -- and we will have everything posted on this blog as well. Check back early and often...

Here Rob G. and I are following Jim Sheffield from his property over to the equestrian center that is next to his property - and will be our base camp.

You can arrive any time after Noon on Saturday, April 25th to stake a claim for your overnighter. A large 12 - 15 foot firepit will be the center of our site - so pack some wood if you remember. We will be staying Sunday until about Noon.

Please bring your own food and maybe a little something to share as we hang out at the campfire on Saturday night. If you have a guitar, bring it. I believe that Rob G. has lined up the music, but a jam session would be cool too? eh? Of course!

Here are a few shots of the Sheffield property that we will have access to as well, along with some awesome hiking trails are: basketball court, grass volleyball court, skeet shooting platform, concrete skatepark and a lot of nature to hang out in. Come join the fun...

Mens Bfast Recap

Hey, for all you that missed it, we had an awesome morning last Saturday. We invited a good friend of mine, Eric Beeman, Associate Pastor of Chorus Church in French Valley, to share. Eric presented us a challenge: Take up the sword and get in the battle.

He reminded us that we are in a battle - every day - and that the only way that we can fight is planting God's Word in our hearts and relying on Him to carry us through. He boldly talked about the imagery in Ephesians 6 - the action that is mentioned and how we are to put on the full armour of God. We are not supposed to put all this stuff on and then sit down, but to "stand firm" in Him. The battle gear that God tells us to put on is for protection and most of it is a defense mechanism against the forces of evil. That is right, protection -cause we are in a fight - Lord give us the ability to see those things that are unseen that war against us! Since, we cannot fight with a breastplate or a helmet, but with the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God (Eph 6:17) - we need to pick up that sword and get in the battle.

"And pray in the Spirit on all occassions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints."

Thanks to Eric for taking time away from His family and church home to be with us and deliver a great message! Pray for Eric's ministry and family, me and mine, and the brothers and sisters that you are fighting with - let's get in the battle and be ready!

What are you using your Sword to fight?

Good Friday

Wow, what a turn out at the cross walk. It was so refreshing to read the great articles and see the photos - well done Rob and Corey G leading the pack!

Most of yesterday for me was filled with tying up loose ends on my way out to the first week of vacation that I have had in several years. It is amazing what switching jobs can do for you. During and throughout yesterday, I kept reflecting on what that day was like when Jesus walked, stumbled, and tripped his way to Calvary. I was thinking it looked a lot, weather-wise, like yesterday; probably felt a lot like it looked too...cold, gloomy, clouded-over, sun peaking through for moments at a time.

About 3/4 of the day through, I got this message from Matt Klock "Praise God that He sent His son to die for our sins"...what a sweet message indeed.

How was your Good Friday?

Golf Anyone?

From Yahoo.com's frontpage:

The brand-new golf course at the Legends Golf & Safari Resort in South Africa is an amazing stretch of 18 holes designed by 18 different top-flight golfers, including Padraig Harrington, Colin Montgomerie, K.J. Choi, Retief Goosen, Justin Rose, Trevor Immelman and Vijay Singh. And I'm sure each one of those 18 holes is a perfect mini-masterpiece of challenge and reward. Along with, apparently, a lion or two along the way, if we're to believe the brochures.


But that's nothing. Wait until you get to the bonus 19th hole.

The course's so-called "Xtreme 19th" hole is a par 3 -- a par 3 whose tee is atop a cliff on Hanglip Mountain, more than 1,400 feet above a green carved like the continent of Africa. You've got to take a helicopter to get to the tee box, and from there it's more than 630 yards to the pin. Once you tee off, it takes nearly 30 seconds for the ball to hit the ground.

Check it out if you haven't seen this one yet...I would love a shot at this green, how 'bout you?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b3_W_JryhR0

Return of the Sand Toilet

Every time we go to the beach, my son Dillon and daughter McKenna want to build a sand castle. Since I remember doing it with my dad, I have worked with them to come up with a standard format. All of our sand castles pretty much looked the same until a couple of years ago. Dillon, the engineer, decided that it should have a couple of rooms instead of just the front moat and massive blockade wall. So, we went about creating a few different areas in the castle. We always have a living room area, which has a flat screen t.v. and a couch to kick it on - sand style. Then we starting adding on other areas/rooms stairs and whatnot - it was getting a little stale...that was until last summer when we created the sand toilet. It got so much play that it is a stape in our castle now. We have had people come by and take photos of themselves on it or "about" it. McKenna, the interior decorator, roams about finding new "things" to adorn our castle and make it look really upscale.

Not enough time was spent on this one, as we unearthed some huge fishy thing in the sand that made us want to vomit, to place the flat screen t.v., barka-lounger or our sink for the toilet room...also, my engineer and decorator bailed on me - so I quit on this one. We did have a great time destroying it though...

What are some elements to your sand castle?

Excerpt from "Searching for God knows what?" - by Don Miller (http://www.donmilleris.com/)

A Circus of Redemption - why a three-legged man is better than a bearded woman, ch. 11, pg. 177

Don writes:

I would imagine, then, that the repentance we are called to is about choosing one audience over another. Jesus says many times in the gospel that He knows the heart of man, and the heart of man does not have the power to give glory. I think Jesus is saying, look, you guys are running around like monkeys trying to get people to clap, but people are fallen, they are separated from God, so they have no idea what is good or bad, worthy to be judged or set free, beautiful or ugly to begin with. Why not get you glory from God? Why not accept your feelings of redemption because of His pleasure in you, not the fickle and empty favor of man? And only then will you know who you are, and only then will you have true, uninhibited relationships with others.

The more I stop and think and take time to realize who God is and why He chose to have a relationship with me, I just smile. Not a creepy one, but a heart-warming, loving smile...(I know it's still creepy)...but how amazing is our God? My answer is too...what is yours?

thank GOD for weekends!

Brutal as it was, the week that is, the weekend was super! My kids ran in the Cougar Run at E. Hale Curran and did quite awesome. Despite it being one of the hottest days of the year, as usual for the Cougar Run, both of them ran over 2 miles! It was great to see both of them trying their best and coming by for a squirt of the water bottle...I had squirting duties. One of the first people that I ever met at Curran, while we were waiting with our boys on first day of school, Diane Keegan remarked, "I cannot believe that this is our 5th Cougar Run already". We both kind of freaked out that our kids are getting so old, which just makes us older! This is Dillon (far left) with a couple of his buddies from the run...



McKenna played in her second EVER soccer game. During practice she asked if she could be goalie...in a recap of her first game ever - she scored a goal! Now, she thinks she can tackle playing keeper! This girl is nails. In her first game EVER in goal, she stoned the only two shots on goal and pitched a shut out over the second half of the game - not allowing a single goal. Not bad for U8, where some kids score from mid field cause the other team is picking dandelions...



The best part of her playing goalie was that she had to stop her own player from shooting on her during a "one on one" situation - good thing I was screaming at the kid to NOT shoot! The next best thing was when I yelled at her to "get ready" and she immediately bent her knees and put her hands (palms out) in the ready position to block the shot that never came!



Guys, I have come to truly realize that this is what IT is all about...love your wife and kids now -- really hard and for as long as you can - because they are growing up sooooooo fast!

What was your weekend like? Was it super?

Stay Strong!

What a Week...

This has been one crazy week of ups and downs - much like a roller coaster! A few good points this week were:

Tuesday night study

Hanging at The Grind with my buddy Eric

Helping Dillon & McKenna's classes out at the Cougar Run at E. Hale Curran

McKenna playing goalie in soccer for the first time

Helping Dillon complete his Mission story board project

Checking out the Sheffield property with Rob G for our mens campout (April 25 &26)

Rocking out at The Edge on Saturday Night

Sleeping in on Sunday - anything past 5 am is sleeping in

Keep on praying for each other! See you on Tuesday night at RJ's...

Stay Strong

Men's Breakfast = SUPER!

Well done Lance!

Thanks to Tim Coe for his mastery of the biscuits, gravy and link sausage... and to Bill Wolter for bringing an awesome message! Thanks also to all who assisted with set up, tear down and clean up...you ARE appreciated.

About 30 men came, ate and were blessed by Bill's message.

Home Made...

Pastor John kicked off his Home Made message this week by telling us what a woman wants...it brought back some memories of a very funny movie that Mel Gibson did in 2000 (What Women Want) with Helen Hunt and Marisa Tomei...for those of you that saw it -- remember when he got in touch with his "feminine" side? Yep, the waxing, the pantyhose, the nose strip -- too funny.

However, I am not sure that was John's point - so after chuckling a little bit - I did take some notes..and I found that I need to do the following:

1. step up as the leader
2. bring out the best in my wife
3. make time for talk - by listening, sharing & praising
4. step up as the lover and increase the care factor (nurturing, cherishing & romancing)

A few items I picked up on that I need to start praying for my wife:

• that I would be used to able to bring out the best in her
• that I would focus on her needs instead of mine
• that I would spend more time in communication with her
• that she would be bold in her faith
• that I would love her as Christ loves the church

Quite a list ... this guy has a lot of work to do...

Stay Strong

Reasons Exploring Truth & Deep Questions

Hey Guys,

Larry Henson slipped me a note on an upcoming study that one of his buddies is putting on. It is called Reasons: Exploring Truth & Deep Questions and will be on Thursday nights from 6:30 - 8:30pm. The focus will be on questions relating to life, God & oppositions to God with Chad Dulaney leading the interactive study.

You can find more information here: reasons@post.com or visit the ministry's blogspot here:

http://reasonsministry.blogspot.com/

Hey Ryan, What's The Big Deal?

Whoa, did you get a load of what Pastor Ryan laid down tonight at the Edge? I mean, what is THAT all about? How in the world am I supposed to react to that kind of a message?

Oh sure, let's just lay down and allow those people in our lives that have hurt us, to now kick us and demean us, as we continue to pour out our lives to make sure that they are ok ... that sounds like loads of fun! Hey, isn't that job description only reserved for Pastors? I mean where does he come off putting me in that catergory? Ohhhh, right right right - I am a follower of the One who first showed me that this was what He did for me. If I am a believer in the One who came - I must become like Him and less like me. Ergo, I need to get in the game to be used. This game is a tough game, with a lot of big hits and it involves those two big points that Ryan laid out tonight: (1) The Blessing: God has given us other people; and (2) The Challenge: God has given us other people.

Actually, most of what I heard hit me square between the eyes as I think I have come to realize why God gave me two eyes, two ears and one tongue. He wants me to see through His eyes, hear with His ears and use His tongue to speak - I am finding it most difficult at times.

You know, I used to believe that being a Christian was about keeping to the good things like not swearing, never lying, speaking nice about people -- you know do unto others as you would like done to you. Now I have come to realize that being a Christian is not about trying to follow some lame rules that I made up about what being a Christian is - it is all about Love. It is putting myself aside and "getting over myself" and letting Jesus rule my relationships through me. I continually ask for a short memory so that I am not reminded how badly I get treated by people or how hurt I can get when something doesn't go my way - you know lower my expectations so that they are met instead of unmet -- is that what Ryan said?

When I came to realize the immense depth of the Love that God has for me through Christ - I realized that He has this for all people, not just me, the saved or those that come to Him -- but all people. As I begin to understand His love in my own life - I realized that my life is not my own. It doesn't mean that I don't get caught up in those bitter feelings about others from time to time, but I try to remember how I act toward others and what messages I send to them. When I continue to pray for others to be changed and not myself - I am only posing in front of them and Christ.

Way to lay it down tonight, my brother and Pastor -- well done, that is a big deal!

Stay Strong
Rob

onemilloncan.com

Check this out...

Sunday, February 22nd, 2009
Half-Way To Amazing!

All we hear in the news is the gloom and doom of the collapse of the financial markets worldwide, and the imminent erosion of the banking, housing, retail and manufacturing markets that will plunge us into the greatest depression we have ever known. While I don’t doubt the severity of this crisis, or the probability that we really do not yet fully understand the scope of the mess we have gotten ourselves into, I still believe in the sovereignty of God, and the reality that He is impervious to financial downturns. In other words, He is not wringing His hands.
So I guess it wasn’t good timing when we launched onemillioncan.com last August while on tour in Johannesburg, SA. After all, how, in the midst of a massive recession, are people going to give to the causes of others when they, themselves, are struggling to make it through the month. Again, I say this not to make light of the situation many find themselves in, rather to wonder how those with true needs, those living in the worst of conditions, will have a hopeful outcome when those of us who have lived in abundance have leveraged ourselves beyond our means and now seek assistance to maintain financial footing that was, on our worst day, miles ahead of the vast majority of humans in the world.
But, then again, I am not one to count God out, nor will I ever underestimate the potential that resides in this generation of worshipers of Jesus Christ. So, during tough times, here comes onemillioncan.com, the answer to the question, “What can one million dollars do to touch the last and least of these in Jesus’ name?”
For us, that million bucks can fully fund seven objectives around the globe, helping to provide clean water, freedom for sex slaves, Bibles for those who have never seen one on their language, homes for former child soldiers, villages for refugees, solar powered scripture players for Muslim peoples and life-altering operations for children. The campaign rolled out in earnest in the fall and has been a focal point of Chris Tomlin’s Hello Love Tour this winter. And the results have defied logic and the climate of the day.
As of this post, you have responded to the cause of wedding worship and action and we have passed the half-way point in reaching our million dollar goal!! The current total, $503, 253, reflects the promise of a God who does not discount the plight of the poor and draws near to the brokenhearted. The money given to date is already on it’s way to our partner causes, working to bring change right now.
Thank you so much for helping us get to this point and carrying the vision forward as we invite others to join us on the journey. While most cannot do it all, all of us can do something to make a huge difference in the lives of people around the world. We’re half way to amazing, but in truth, it’s pretty amazing already!
Because everyone of us matters to God,
Louie

Gotta Love That MTV!

Found this article at www.worldnetdaily.com - wow, how far this country and its media are falling!

MTV Goes Hunting for Teenage Wiccans for Reality-Show Clash

By Tim Graham (Bio Archive)February 21, 2009 - 22:58 ET

The pagans blogging at The Wild Hunt report that the MTV program True Life is looking for a few good teenaged Wiccans. They’re concerned that "Far too often naive (or greedy) Pagans have been exploited in this sensationalist and bottom-feeding genre, providing snarky laughs to a growingly cynical audience." But MTV is hardly a convention of religious broadcasters who would scorn the pagans. It’s more likely they’d enjoy watching a few Christian parents blow a gasket while they film it. Here's a snippet of the request for subjects:

…we are casting for an upcoming episode of the award-winning series True Life. For this episode, we are looking for people who are in the process of converting to Wicca, or who have recently converted. We are focusing on how parents deal with these changes, and how it affects relationships. People should email their situations to Parents@mtvnmix.com with their name, age, location, phone number, and recent photo of themselves I would really appreciate it.
MTV’s working on an upcoming episode called "I’m Clashing With My Parents." Isn’t that what MTV is all about widening up the generation gap with a crowbar?

Clashes are great "reality show" grist, and MTV’s appetite is never-ending:
Are you clashing with your parents? Going against their wishes? Defying them even? Are you an Americanized teen growing up in a household with immigrant parents whose conservative cultural values are at odds with your modern viewpoints and lifestyle? Perhaps your religious beliefs are setting you and your parents at odds. Are you abandoning the beliefs they instilled in you as a child? Or is your deepening passion for faith and religion concerning your more secular-leaning parents? Maybe the conflict between you and your parents is a classic old disagreement over the guy or girl you’re dating. If you’re personally living through any of these scenarios, or an equally compelling conflict with your mother & father, we’d like to hear from you. MTV is working on a new episode of "True Life" that will explore the impact on young adults, and their families, when grown children challenge their upbringing and defy their parents.

It would be fascinating if MTV truly turned the usual tables around and found a religious teen horrifying his secular parents. But I wouldn't count on it.
—Tim Graham is Director of Media Analysis at the Media Research Center

Mens Ministry Happenings!

I have been blessed with the opportunity to lead a small group of men, who are sold out for Jesus and yet - still working on our relationships. Every day we come in contact with so many people that Jesus died for -- like everyone - and we are faced with tough decisions in our interactions with each other. If we have made a decision to follow Christ and have branded ourselves with the term "Christian" - we are meant to "love" all. This is so difficult! We need to band together and sharpen each others skills in this area.

Why do we continue to give our best to everyone and yet sometimes forget that our wives, kids and families deserve our best too? I know - man is it difficult or what? If you are like me, I mess up quite a bit in this area and know that Jesus wants me to have a better relationship with HIM, my wife, kids and family - as well as other people too.

I have asked several men to come alongside me to create a fellowship of men throughout our church that will lead to lasting friendships and I hope a deeper connection with my family and with Christ. Currently, we are working together to develop more opportunities for men to come together and share the same goals.

Over the next two weeks, we will be getting together to discuss what this will look like, who will join us in this and how we can drop it down so that others can come aboard. I am looking at several areas that need a focus:

1. men's get togethers: weekly men's groups that will be facilitated by someone who is willing to step up and be used by God to create an atmosphere that we can relate to. These are much like the successful Life Groups that Lamb's has developed.

2. men's breakfasts: Lance Ladd has agreed to continue to develop this program, but we need some guys to step up and come alongside him. These are the first saturday of each month and are designed to provide FOOD, FELLOWSHIP & A MESSAGE.

3. men's outings: whether it is pole position night, golf, running club, mtn. biking excursions, bowling, fishing, hiking, camping -- or something else, we need to get together and have some fun as well!

4. the book shelf: there are so many awesome books out right now that dig deep into what we are all feeling - where is the "abundant life" in Christ. This is not to discount all the Bible has to offer, but may be relatable to a certain situation that we are in. A few that I have read lately that have made a huge impact on me are: Crazy Love, Francis Chan (http://www.crazylovebook.com/) and Searching for God Knows What, Donald Miller (http://www.donaldmillerwords.com/searching.php). We need to share these with each other so that we can get away from the things that are negatively affecting our walk and focus on Christ and His Word.

We will be working on this blog, our mens ministry area on the website, launching more men's groups, outings and fellowship opportunities with possible family outings that we will host! The Lamb's family is growing and we need to get connected with each other.

If the statistics about church attendance are correct - about 35 - 40% of church is attended by men and if our weekly service attendance is 500+, this means that there are over 200 men at Lambs. With our two mens groups (~25 men attend each week) + the monthly mens breakfast (30 men attend on average) are not cutting it. We need to offer more opportunities for men to come together.

Keep your eyes pealed and Stay Strong!

Romans 1 Recap

Besides the fact that it was a very cold night, the intro and Chapter 1 of Romans discussion was awesome. It is great getting together with guys to discuss how God's word affects our daily lives. I was overcome by the simple fact that everyone knows that God exists. I spent much time on this and was thankful to be able to bounce it off the group. While we have differences about what we should do with our knowledge of Christ and how it should be done, I was stoked to hear all of the guys expressing each's desire to share Christ with others.

One of the freaky parts is the same area, where God says that he has given us/them over to the desires of their hearts - burning lust and whatnot for things that are not of him. This put me in check a bit, as I learn to keep myself free from too many things that keep me from him. It is a good reminder that our God is a jealous God - he does not want me to put things in front of my desire to be with him, have a relationship with him and look to him for my everything.

Stay strong

How Fresh is That? Ephesians Fresh!

Wow, God's word is pretty fresh. Not just April or downy fresh, but hip hop fresh -- so relevant, all the time. When we began studying Ephesians in the Tuesday night group at the Grind, I had not felt God's calling on my heart like this in quite some time. God's plan is all about love. Not only the miraculous love that he gave / gives / showers on us daily, but of our response in love to him and to all those others that he laid his life down for. You see, I often forget that God sent his son to die for me and you and that guy, that gal, that dude, his brother, sister, aunt, uncle, dad, cousin, mom and so on and so on and so on. I get so wrapped up in my own garbage that I forget about love.

Studying God's word delivered through Paul to the Ephesians and us, brought that back to me. Here are some hightlights of the last 6 weeks through Ephesians.

Jesus reconciled Jews and Gentiles to the Church and to himself so that we can be one body. When God looks at us (believers) he sees a portion of his body, like his arm or leg or hand and foot. Brings a new meaning to a hands and feet ministry. We as the body - together - are to be examples to the heavenly realms of His power, might, authority, love and grace!

Not only that, we are to be rooted in love! We are to mature in our faith and be pure for his purposes. And as such, we are to put on the full armor of God. Not just on the job or when we need him, but each and every day all the time.

We had some great discussions surrounding the fact that God gives us an unmeasurable amount of grace, not so much that we cannot know it, but enough that we cannot measure how much it truly is...amazing, no? YES.

We, as men, are to be to our wives as Christ is the to the church. When we defile our body, we are actually treating our wives in that way, as well as Christ. This is heavy stuff to contemplate, maybe make some changes? eh? I know, it is hard. But what is so cool about the whole thing is that God has already done the work. We need to stop working for it, cause we can't get it (lest no one should boast) and let him do the work - especially since he is the only good work in me!

Hope to see you for Romans on Tuesday nights. Look for some other studies that will be starting soon!

Stay Strong...

The Gway Rides Again...

So a few weeks ago, my computer crashed. Some time in the middle of the night, it had "updated" and then crashed or crashed during some kind of update. You never realize how much you rely on your computer - for just about everything - until it is gone. Of course, I am such a geek that I backup my whole system every night, so it was so easy to replace everything. Yeah, right. We lost everything!

It took a few weeks, but I finally found another harddrive to replace the old 80gb EIDE I had - and even upgraded to 160gb HD for about $80. In trying to recover any information off my old HD, I purchased one of those shells to plug in my old HD to my newly configured computer. After struggling to dismantle and reconnect the old HD to the device, it didn't work. All info had been wiped out. The reason it took a few weeks for me to get the right HD was the fact that I had to order a recovery system from Gateway to restore all my original programs on the new hard drive -- it was either that or go buy a new computer.

While waiting for my data disk to be sent from Gateway, I went searching for a new laptop. I thought that since it had been a few years, I should upgrade. After searching for a few days and walking away from several purchases, I decided that cheaper was better since I don't need all the bells and whistles. I settled on a decent purchase from Best Buy and a Compaq laptop for about $600, including 2 year extended warranty.

As soon as I got home and set the thing up - I got sick to my stomach. Here I was sitting in front of a machine that I didn't need...feeling sick of spending the money instead of waiting to fix my old one. I hate it when I know that I have done the wrong thing and then I sit stewing about it, trying to rationalize the purchase. My wife is awesome. She knew the other one blew up and was trusting that I knew what I was doing to make it work for us. What she didn't know is that we both hated the new purchase and that I felt horrible for making it.

Everything came together Friday night and Saturday morning. I put in the new $80 160gb HD and ran the recovery CD. I added the home version of microsoft office 2003 and the old Gateway was humming like new. I knew what must be done. I ripped through the Compaq and quickly transfered everyting that had been installed on it to the new Gway system, packed up the Compaq, grabbed my reciept and headed out to Best Buy. I had the computer for a week and realized that the store might not take it back, but I had to give it a shot.

Thank God, seriously, Best Buy took the computer back and for a low price of a restocking fee $67, and I had my $600 back (well $533)! Basically, I rented a new computer for a week for the fee.

The morale of this long tail is this: In the past, I would have ran right out and bought the top of the line whatever to replace what had broken. This time, I shopped around for a decent replacement and still felt horrible at spending the money. I also ended up returning the device instead of saying "oh well" at dropping the cash. I paid a small (relative to the price) fee to return the item and have never felt better about fixing and making do with the "old" one.

Sometimes I think that God is done working on me, but now I see the little things that he is doing in my life to make big changes in my attitude, character and stewardship.

What is HE doing with you?

God Rocks!

Well, I just spent the night on the edge at the Edge. What a great worship set tonight. The bass was thumping, the rhythm was right on, the vocals were tight and the opportunity to enter into worshipping Jesus was AWEsome. Thanks to Tyler and the crew for a hot time in worship - they really set the stage for Pastor Ryan to drop some Colossians on us -- for real.

How many times do you actually listen the message being delivered and really let it sink in? If you are like me, I am all over the place during the message. I am constantly connecting information presented to what happened to me during the week, the worship songs that we just sang are dancing in my mind, and then I start flipping through the Bible trying to connect the dots. That is me, most of the time in church. Sometimes I think that I suffer from adult ADD, because it doesn't seem like I can focus.

Tonight, the focus for me was so much more than the fact that I owe everything to Jesus, that his grace is sufficient for me and to me, that I am only complete by the fact that he completes me - from start to finish without my help, that I owe him far more than I could ever repay - even though that is not possible and not asked of me...I know that was quite the run-on sentence, but God has been laying some heavy stuff on me of late.

Some say that I am beating myself up over the fact that I know that God wants more from me. Not just for me to say that I want to be more for him, give more back to him, to serve him and others - he really does want and deserves a far greater response from me than I am giving based on the unmerited favor and grace that he has placed on my life. Yup, I know that it was / is a free gift - I am not trying to boast about, just respond to it. I know that I can't earn anything to get it, it is already done. Maybe it is a call that is driving to the core of who I am, but what I do (for pay) and what he wants from me, do not seem to jive.

I thought I might be having a mid-life crisis, but Pastor Ryan thinks I am having a mid-life Christus - which sounds much more fun, but somehow much more scary too. So to sum all of this up -- worship at the edge, great; message by Pastor Ryan, great; following the lead of Jesus, scary; pray for me, thank you.

Stay Strong

Ode to Its A Grind

First, my apologies for the lack of posting this week -- it has been a killer one! Second, did you hear the one about Its A Grind closing down, like tomorrow! What a drag. This place has been home to our "Grind Crew" for over 8 months now and I am totally bummed out. We have had so many great times hanging out here that I am really going to miss it, not to mention that I need to find a new home for our Tuesday Night @ the Grind sessions.

We will still meet at the location, but we will be outside this in the courtyard this week. Bring a jacket, maybe some gloves -- I will bring the coffee to keep us warm.

See you Tuesday night - 6:45pm at the Its A Grind (formerly) courtyard!

What is This All About?

How is love shown? Think for a moment about the devastation of God's heart when He sent His son to die on the cross, knowing there was no other way to bridge the gap between fallen man and Him. His perfect design had taken on so much sin that He had every right to wipe it out and start all over again. He didn't. I know, He is God and He can handle anything. But if we are created in His image, with a heart like His - to feel all emotions, like Jesus did, it must still be difficult for Him to fathom the sacrifice He made for us - and yet we continue in our own sin.

If we could just understand what love is. If we would stop ourselves in the midst of our confusion, frustration, anger, disappointment, bitterness, anger, rage, disillusionment -- in effect "get over ourselves" -- could we realize what love is? Sound too girly for you? Then I think you haven't spent enough time trying to digest who God is and how He could LOVE us so much. It is actually ridiculous.

Some of us want to push it all away. We think that we are not worthy and can never be, but He has made a way for us. He has put that way in our path. If we truly seek Him, He will show us the way and that way is Jesus. We all need to stop running from the fact that Jesus is the Way, Truth and the Life; stop the lip service and get active! Dig a little deeper would you? Put all that "stuff" from life away and sit alone and ponder -- really think and digest God's love.

We have a thirst for knowledge, so most of us dig into God's word for understanding. We want that knowledge of scripture so that we can know more, feel more confident in what God's word says - then we will know how to be that perfect Christian, yah right. If only I spent more time alone with my Bible in my "daily" quiet time, I would be a better man, husband, father, friend, businessperson, relative, etc., etc., etc. We are missing the point.

The way to become more like Christ is to let Him control the change of our hearts. Love is a condition of the heart, not of the mind. It is the fact that love conquers all. It heals all. The example of God putting aside His desire for us to become more like Him through a set of laws and sending Himself, as Jesus, to be our primary focus for life here so that we can have everylasting life with Him -- is astounding. The end result should be that we put ourselves aside and become more like the One who He sent to us. If we are so willing to set everything aside for knowledge of His scripture, but do not let it affect our hearts and mold us into becoming more like Him, we have missed the mark. We need to let go and allow Jesus to take over.

I know, it is very easy to say this stuff and very hard at times to focus on this, but this is what is required of us as believers. We need to allow scripture, the life of Jesus and our prayers to shape us into people who are unselfish - people who would put others before us. We are to be an example as a people (you and me) and a church to the rulers and authorities in the heavely realms of God's manifold wisdom, according to his eternal purpose which he accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord (my paraphrasing of Eph. 4:10-11). It is hard and we cannot always do what is required of us - I get that, but we need to get over ouselves and get out of the way, because through Christ we can.

If you have received Christ, you have accepted that God sent His son to die, not only for you, but for everyone who still might not believe, as well as our fellow brothers and sisters. In Acts 15:8-9, Peter addressed the Apostles and elders as they met to consider the idea that those who are uncircumcized cannot be saved and said this:

"God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith."

That includes all those who call on the name of Jesus to be saved, regardless of whether we 'like' them or not. Just because someone doesn't believe the way that I do, or has a slightly different interpretation of scripture than I do, or dresses differently, or has a different income, or better hair, or background or whatever. Jesus died for them too! When we were baptized, we showed an outward symbol of an inward belief to all who would witness our submission, our heart was purified by faith in Jesus. The purification of our heart should provide us with the ability to love...everyone, as Christ loves us. Shoot, sometimes I cannot believe that God loves me, but I know by the grace of Him, who sent His son to die for me - that he has given me an unmeasureable amount of grace.

I believe that the grace given to me demands a response. The only response I believe that it demands is to love Him. However, if I love Him and not anyone else, I have failed. Remember the words of James?

"With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God's likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be (James 3:10-11 - emphasis mine).

Yes, I struggle with this. Yes, I want to be more like Christ and I am asking that he change this in me. This is real stuff about how a real God, through His real Son that came and died for us ALL, can help this guy continue to learn to love. The love comes when I let Jesus reign and not Rob.

This is what we should be fighting for, this is what real men who are seeking God's heart should be actively pursuing. So when we study scripture and gain all that knowledge about how we can be a better Christian - let the words sink into our heart - so that He can continue to make the change to produce a people worthy of our calling. I am still working on getting over myself, because what I want is really not that important...but what Jesus wants is for me to love.

Stay Strong

Ephesians Chapter 4 Recap

It is so awesome to see God's plan laid out in plain sight for me. I can't tell you how many times that I have read the book of Ephesians, but to study it is a whole "nutha" deal. I used to think the best part of Ephesians was the whole putting on the armor of God aspect. Don't get me wrong that is completely cool, but I am seeing the journey that we must take to get to that point - for the first time.

In Chapter 4, Paul shows us how God made provision for those in the church to live and work together in unity and to grow together into maturity. This is about us -- you and me! We need to grow into maturity together.

Ephesians is more like a journey. A walk through some sort of purification process so that we, as believers in Christ, can be ready to put on the full armor of God. We can't just walk up and put it on -- we must be ready. Are you ready? Sometimes I believe that I am, but if I am honest with myself as well as with those who really know (as God does)me, I am not sure that I am. I do know one thing - I will be obedient.

Get this, Paul helps us out by defining how we can become mature in our walk with Christ. It's really pretty simple, we just need to:

• stop stealing and work
• stop our unwholesome talk
• get rid of our bitterness, rage, anger, slander & every form of malice
• be kind to one another
• forgive each other as in Christ, God forgave us

Not that hard now is it?

Later, I've got some work to do!

Stay Strong

crash and burn part deaux

So your computer probably has a lot of cool stuff on it doesn't it? Stuff from way back when to now depending on how old it is. Well, my trusty Gateway, circa 2006, had plenty on it. Found out today from a variety of sources that there is an 80% chance that it is all gone! What in the world is a "harddrive" good for if it cannot withstand whatever happened to mine?

From tech support geeks to customer service help from some other middle eastern country - can no one save my computer? Apparently not! Gotta go buy a new harddrive and some external application to see if I can save anything from the current harddrive, but I must wait for the recovery CD that I had to order to install on the new HD -- probably 2 weeks away.

Isn't it amazing how dependent we have become on technology. My whole daily routine is out of whack now!

I couldn't resist this one, but didn't want to pay for it!

Stay strong my brothers!

See you Tuesday Night at the Grind for Ephesians Chapter 4...

crashed it and want to light it on fire so it will burn...

Never had this happen to me before...now I have. I went to check my email this morning and found my laptop had performed an automatic update and during the reboot process - sometime in the middle of the night most likely - crashed! So that is me using my universal tool to "fix" it. Sweet shoes, I know!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdMS19god0g

So as I sit here at about 10pm using my old Sony Vaio, circa 2004, seething from the fact that I cannot find my computer guide to restart my gateway from some other dimension in time (recovery system something or other feature), I am still fired up about The Edge tonight!

Take what we talked about in Ephesians 3 - drop in some Colossians and a great message from Pastor John - and God is really speaking to me about how our lives should reflect that fact that we should be tapping in to how wide & deep & high & long is his love! We, as his church, should be standing tall and reaching out and taking a stand for his purposes. When God looks at us - he is looking down at a part of his body, an arm or a leg or hand or foot, perhaps! What a great illustration John made tonight.

The other thing that has been bothering me of late is the fact that we (all of us) celebrate to extreme, at times, when something great happens to us or when we are watching our favorite sports team. What kind of reaction do you have when your team scores a touchdown, your favorite baseball player gets a game winning hit or the reliever strikes out the side for the save? How much more should we be celebrating every single day that we know that the heavenly host the God of Abraham and Isaac and David and Jesus - has saved us from eternal damnation? Can I get an AMEN or at least a WHAT WHAT? I mean we have already won the lottery.

Staying in the pocket of his presence my friends...