Slow Drain

Recently I've been thinking about the slow drain. It is the thing or things in your life that slowly drain you. These issues are not necessarily the thing that screams or smacks you in the face, but they are more like the fly that lands on you in the middle of the night or the mosquito that continues to "drain" your blood. The slow drain is that 5 lbs you've needed to lose for 5 months, the electronic appliance that needs to be fixed, the drawer that needs to be cleaned, the stack of receipts on your desk, the email inbox that continues to pile, and the list goes on. The slow drain gets worse, ultimately because you get more drained as time goes along until the point where you explode and the drain drives you crazy. Somethings that have been a slow drain for me, my laptop battery has been messed up for four months to where whenever it unplugs it immediately shuts off, i've had piles of receipts with reimbursements (i hate receipts), in addition to this the dsl connection in our house only works in our bedroom. which means the dsl jack in my office is inoperable. half the time i can't get internet reception from my office because it is too far from the bedroom. oh the joys of the slow drain. so yesterday i went through my receipts, called the apartment to come fix the dsl jack, and ordered a new battery. i still need to lose the 5lbs but you get the idea. What is the slow drain in your life? what simple steps can you take to get rid of it. Hebrews says, "let us throw off everything that hinders and run the race with perseverance." What is slowing you down from becoming who God designed you to be?

Getting ahold of God!

This past Monday I had a phone appointment with a mentor and he said something that hit me... He said, "i know a ton of guys who know how grow a church but have no clue how to get a hold of God's heart." That really struck home, because sometimes I can be so focused on what i need to get accomplished in order to connect with more people, that I miss God's heart. to fight this, i am finding my time alone with God each morning to be more in more crucial, especially during this season of my life. Could you imagine how disgusting it would be to finish a life of serving God with never truly knowing the heart of the one you serve? That seems so sick doesn't it? it is like a husband and wife who live together, raise kids, go through difficult times, but when the kids go off to college they don't know each other. the bible says that God is a rewarded of those who diligently seek Him! I want to know how to wrestle with the heart of God, understand his great love, and be infatuated with his majesty. I pray that I would not grow cold only knowing how to do the business of serving God. I want to stay tender in my love towards Him and continue to pursue knowing him with everything i have!

The Potency Factor

I read a book in college called, "Contagious Christianity." The author of the book suggested that if followers of Christ wanted to influence those around them with the message of Christ there are a few ingredients that must be present. He says that "HP+CP+CC=MI" This means high potency plus close proximity plus clear communication equals maximum impact. It is much like the way infection works. I have thinking a lot about this lately in the process of starting our church. I think that many strategies for starting churches are often times very good at focusing on the clear communication side of things. We often times have very good strategies and formulas for success but the potency or the passion of our lives does not represent that of the gospel. Therefore our efforts often fall short even when we do all the formulaic things that are required for progress. When the hunger and fire for Christ consumes our lives people are much more inclined to be interested in what we have to say. When there is a sacrificial kindness towards others and compassion to help those in need, this is when things start to happen. When the love of God consumes us, then we are starting to get it. I want my life to be potent, I want others to see a zealous love for Christ ooze out of me!! Imagine what would happen if in the next 12 months every follower of Christ all over the world become 50% more in love with God and 50% more compassionate towards other? Let's ask God to increase our passion!

South Bay Launch Team

This past Sunday night we had our very first launch team meeting. We shared the vision of the church with people and asked them to be a part of the vision. We had a total of 29 adults and 8 kids present. Archie did a couple of songs on the guitar, we had lasagna for dinner. It was a blast. It is exciting to see this vision become a reality. We are off to great start! Can't wait until our first preview service on Nov. 16, we almost have our meeting location nailed down. As soon as we do I will reveal it! I will post some pictures later!