Computer Crash

So here it is.......I am preparing my sermon on the mind and I am comparing the mind to a computer. Our relationship with our computers can be a love/hate relationship. Now my sermon was already done when on Saturday my computer decides to crash. (By the way, this is the second time!) Now I love using real life illustrations but this is a little ridiculous. I don't know if God is trying to teach me patience or if I should cast out the demons in my computer. Oh well, you have to have a sense of humor in times like these because if you don't, the little things can definitely drive you crazy.

All in the Mind!

This Sunday I am preaching on "It's all the mind." I want to take a few weeks to talk about mindsets and re-thinking our thinking. We may or may not realize that our thinking has a lot to do with the way we live each day. God wants to challenge our thoughts and get us to start thinking according to His Word. Looking forward to the next few weeks.

Work Nights have begun

Those coming to church this Sunday will notice that our men have been working hard all week. We are in the process of putting a sidewalk between the two buildings that we own. Found out we really needed one a few Sunday's ago when our toilets went out during Sunday service. (By the way, you ever noticed that when things go out they choose to go out on Sunday! What's up with that!) We had some elderly people who had a hard time walking on the rock to get to the other building to use the restroom so a sidewalk is definitely needed. For those who want to know where we are currently at on the new building- We are a little over $14,000 in our match fund. Our goal is $20,000 by the end of the year, we are way on our way.

Last Sunday

Wanted to blog real quickly about last Sunday. We finished our series on God at the Grand Ole Opry. I had a blast the last three weeks playing some familar country songs and talking about the spiritual meaning of them. This past Sunday we talked about the Three Wooden Crosses by Randy Travis. I believe that God has called each of us to live the way of the cross. Remember that Jesus taught the cross and lived the cross before He ever went to the cross. It's the lifestyle He has called us to. I enjoyed sharing the video of the reunion of my sister and nephew. What an example of forgiveness. As many of you know, my sister and her son Josh hadn't seen each other in almost 20 years. But because of Nashville Star, my sister got to be reunited with her son. Josh is now touring all over the United States. His song "Rock and Roll in Pensacola" should be on the Hawk Country station this January. I got to see Josh last Sunday and had a good time catching up. Every time I see him it reminds me of God's grace and forgiveness. Let us all remember to live the way of the cross.

E2 Conference

Just got back late last night from this years E2 conference in Des Moines. Man was it AWESOME! This years speaker was Mark Batterson from National Community Church in Washington D.C. Mark is one of those pioneers in church planting and re-thinking church. I got the chance to hang out with him for just a bit yesterday and he really motivated me to do some big things for God. I want to encourage everyone to check out his blog at markbatterson.com and his church on the web at theaterchurch.com. He also has a book out called "In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day." It's a great read for anyone who wants to step out of their comfort zones and do something great for the kingdom.

As I reflect with my time at the conference and my time with Mark, God put a few things on my heart. First of all I never want our church to be in defense mode but rather offense mode. Jesus played offense. It can be easy for us to say we have enough people and we like the church the way it is but this is how churches die. Defense mode is when a church is constantly fixing problems and they get stuck in the way things are. We must be constantly looking at ways that we can reach more people and expand God's kingdom. That means that things may look differently then they did let's say six months to a year ago. Let's not get comfortable in our church. Let us not be the church that says, "We've always done it this way!" Let's keep investing and let us keep inviting those that need to hear about God's love. There are many people in our community and county that have yet heard the true gospel. Let's play offense and expand the kingdom!

Last Church Planting Meeting

Last Thursday I spent the day in Iowa City for our last church planters meeting. Starting next month the District is changing the structure of our small groups. I will definately miss meeting together with this group of guys. I've always took something away from our meetings together. I thought I would share with you the topic of our last discussion.

Attractive Attitudes and Atmospheres in the church

1. Serve with humility
2. Endorse God's plan for abundant life
3. Place a high value on individuals
4. Set an example of excellence- From worship, preaching and facilities.
5. Proclaim that God is faithful
6. Communicate the life giving nature of God

These are attitudes and atmospheres that people are attracted too. I've been in a lot of churches where people come in and leave feeling beat up by the preacher. My goal is that CH will be a place where people can be encouraged and know that with God's help they can have the victory. That's the type of church I want to be a part of.

Homosexual Marriage

I picked up a Des Monies Register yesterday and found an article on the debate of homosexual marriage in Iowa. As you know, a couple weeks ago a judge ruled that it was unconstitutional for the state of Iowa to prohibit homosexual marriages. I thought I would share with you all a statement made by Tom Jacobs who is our new superintendent for the Assemblies of God. Here is the statement he made concerning these events:

Last week a "marriage" between two homosexual males made the headlines in Iowa and throughout the nation. As a spiritual leader, you will be asked to make a statement about this development. We need to work together to make sure we are prepared for such opportunities. The following is information that I sent out to our credentialed ministers in Iowa. Hope it's helpful.

You have undoubtedly heard about the egregious action by a local judge in the Des Moines area, finding the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) passed by the Iowa legislature several years ago, as unconstitutional. In light of his judgment and the “homosexual marriage” which took place I its aftermath, I wanted to attempt to equip you with some tools you might find helpful.
First, if you are asked to make a statement before the media, you may find these “talking points” helpful (I used them yesterday when I spoke with our local NBC affiliate). These statements came from the Alliance Defense Fund and the Iowa Family Policy Center, located here in Des Moines.

Special interest groups should not trump what’s in the best interest of Iowa families and children. Who’s more important: our children or special interest groups?
Last week’s decision is an example of why marriage in Iowa must be protected by a state marriage amendment.The opponents of marriage are not trying to redefine marriage, they’re trying to eliminate it.

Nine years ago, Iowa voters clearly expressed their desire to protect marriage in the state through their elected and accountable representatives.

Now, some of those elected representatives have thwarted the will of the people to constitutionally protect marriage between one man and one woman.

The will of the people should not be trumped by a special interest group bent on using the courts to destroy marriage.

We’re all in trouble if special interests become more important than strong families.

Second, some time ago, the Executive Board of Administration issued a statement supporting the Federal Marriage Amendment which was before Congress. This statement clearly addresses the stance of the Assemblies of God on the issue of homosexual marriage. You may find it helpful:

Homosexual Marriage Statement
The Assemblies of God is deeply concerned about the attack on biblical, moral values in our nation, especially the aggressive attempt of the pro-homosexual lobby to redefine marriage. The Bible teaches marriage is God-ordained and is to be a life-long commitment between one man and one woman. (Matthew 19:4-5).
God’s design for marriage goes back to mankind’s beginning. The family, as God’s means of propagating His creation, grows out of this primary human relationship. The consistent sexual ideal of the Bible is abstinence for those outside of monogamous heterosexual marriage and faithfulness for those inside such a marriage. There is absolutely no affirmation of homosexual activity found anywhere in Scripture. However, there is abundant evidence that homosexual behavior, along with illicit heterosexual behavior, is immoral and comes under the judgment of God.
The church believes, in the light of biblical teaching, that the growing cultural acceptance of homosexual identity and behavior is symptomatic of a broader spiritual disorder that threatens the family, the government and the church.
Third, you may want to access more information and tools from the Iowa Family Policy Center at www.ifpc.org.

Bless the Broken Road

Looking forward to this Sunday as we continue our series on God and the Grand Ole Opry. I thought the band did a great job last Sunday on "Jesus take the Wheel." This week we will be exploring the song "Bless the Broken Road" by Rascal Flatts. We will be looking into the life of Joseph and how God was able to bless his broken road and how God can bless our broken roads as well. See you Sunday and invite someone you know!

Great Weekend

What a great weekend we had at Community Hope. To start things off we had our annual Softball game on Saturday night. Sad to say that we lost our first game which meant we lost the trophy from last year. Oh well, still had a blast and came back and won our second game. We kicked off the Fall with our Round Up Sunday and went back to two services. We had 143 in attendance which is a great start to the Fall. Sunday Night was the picnic and probably the greatest memory of the picnic is showed in this picture. Tammy Winburn lost her Mothers Ring in a volleyball match. We had what seemed to be at least 15 or more people looking for the ring. We were all on our hands and knees at one point looking through the grass. The award went to Cassidy Hubbard for finding the ring. Way to go Cassidy! All in all it was great weekend and I'm loooking forward to what God is going to do this Fall at CH!

I'm in the middle of TD Jakes book called "Reposition Yourself" This a great read for anyone who is looking to advance themselves spiritually, financially and as a leader. Jakes writes a lot differently then he preaches. I am amazed on how intelligent the guy is. I was really moved last night by his chapter on "Launching Yourself Toward Your Highest Goals." Jakes uses an illustration of a bow an arrow and quotes the scripture in Psalms 127:3-5. He talks about the three stages we must go through in order to reach our goals. Here they are:

1. Reservation- Before the arrows are even put in the bow, they are in reservation. Reservation is the process of waiting and the process of preparation before your goals can be accomplished. Many times, we are not ready or manage the future God has for us and so we must be in preparation for the future. Reservation can be difficult because we usually want thing and want them now. But God says, "Wait and Get Ready!"

2. Retraction- In order for an arrow to be released, the bow must be retracted as far back as possible. The further you pull back the farther the arrow goes. Retraction is the stage of bending and even going backwards before you move forward. Setbacks are not always a bad thing, affliction is not always a bad thing. Sometimes we must be pulled back to the point of breaking before God can release and use us. God can use our troubles for His good. Think of Martin Luther King Jr or Nelson Mandela. These great men went through their fair share of trouble but God used their trouble to turn two nations around and to think a different way. Think of the story of Joseph. Through Joseph's affliction, he was used by God to be second in command of all of Egypt and he was able to feed the people of God. Let us look at our troubles in a different light and let God use them for His good.

3. Release- This is the stage that God releases us to reach the goals and dreams He had in mind for us. This is the victory that God has in mind for all of us.

This three things were very encouraging to me and I hope an encouragement to you also! Next time you see a bow and arrow, remember these three stages that we must go through to achieve what God has in mind.

Compass for Discipleship

This Sunday we kick off our new Sunday School year and I'm more excited then ever about the great classes we have to offer. Here's the list and make sure you find a class for you!

Marriage and Parenting

Come discover with other what it means to have a great marriage and how to raise godly children!

Current Events and Prophecy

Discussion on the current events of today and how they apply to scripture

Adult Bible Class

This semester we will be talking about Abraham the great man of faith and also taking a look at women in the Bible!

Make sure you check these great classes out and remember Sunday School starts at 9:30 a.m! We will also be utilizing the new building for many of our classes.

Looking forward to our new series on September 9th called "God @ the Grand Ole Opry. We will be taking a look at three popular country music songs such as "Jesus take the Wheel" by Carrie Underwood and "Bless the Broken Road" by Rascal Flatts and discussing the spiritual meaning of the songs. This a great opportunity to invite those that may not attend church. I heard a staggering statistic that said 60% of Americans get their theology about God from music and movies. Most of the time, the church preaches against these things but I believe it is time that we start speaking to our culture in ways that they understand. There are thousands of Americans that has heard "Jesus take the Wheel" yet they have never set foot in a church. My prayer is that people will really understand what Jesus take the Wheel means. Let us use this opportunity and sermon series to reach out to those that need to hear this the most.

Keeping Under the Chuppah

We had a great Sunday yesterday as God's presence was so incredibly strong. I talked about the parallels of the Jewish Wedding to God's relationship to man according to Exodus 19 and 20. I think we miss so much sometimes in the scriptures not really understand the Jewish context. We tend to think Western but the Jews were great at using illustrations to get their point across. The Jewish Wedding is a great example. The Jewish bride and groom are married under the chuppah. The chuppah represents the glory of God that rests upon the marriage. The chuppah is there when they recite their vows and it is then moved over the bed when the bride and groom consummate the marriage. The point being that God rests above the marriage. Marriage is a representation of God to the world. It is interesting how our culture has tried to take marriage out of the chuppah. Satan has attacked the marriage and has brought something counterfeit. Satan is constantly trying to break up marriages and get people to settle for less. Satan has also taken sex which is supposed to be holy and pure and has made it dirty and has plastered it all over for everyone to see. It is our job to protect what God has made holy. Whether your single or married we all can take a stand and say, "I will not settle for the counterfeit but I will stay under the chuppah, God's plan for relationships."

Whirlwind

Well, I'm officially back from vacation and it has been a crazy week. I haven't had much time to blog with all that is going on. My uncle passed away on Monday so we had to drive to Des Moines to do the funeral. God keeps using me to speak to my family. Many of them do not know the Lord so I thank God for every time I get to speak into their lives.

On a positive note, I also have a wedding this week as well. The wedding is a Hawaiian theme so this is the first wedding that I've done that I get to wear a Hawaiian shirt and lei! What is really cool is the unity candle is Toucan Sam ( The parrot from Fruit Loops!) I love it!

Fishing Trip

Well, here it is. A whole week in Canada and yes Jen caught more fish then me. I only caught one fish the whole time. Oh well, it was beautiful there and we had a good time on the water. Jen caught a 33 inch Northern in the picture. With her is her Uncle from Olkahoma. Jen didn't wan't to touch the fish so he had to help her.

Vacation

Jen and I will be gone this Sunday as we will be headed to Canada with her Aunt and Uncle to do some fishing. I'm not a very good fisherman so I'm hoping my luck will change in another country. Pastor Keaton will be preaching Sunday so make sure you give him all your support.

God Moment

Sunday was one of those God-Moments. I was preaching in Revelations 2 where Jesus talks to the church about loosing its first love. The church has all the right head knowledge but their hearts had went a drift. Christ was calling them back to their first love which was Him. I used the illustration of Mount Everest and how only 1-8 people actually make it trying to climb the mountain. What is interesting is that most of the people that have died, have died climbing down the mountain instead of up. The illustration and point was that we have to be very careful when we get in a spiritually low place. There are some serious dangers in our spiritual lives if we drift from the things that are so important.

After the service, I had a woman come up to me in tears. She was visiting from Youngstown, OH (Which I'm very familiar of since we used to live in Cleveland.) She had family and friends at the Lake and decided to come to church that morning. In tears, she opened up her Bible to Revelations chapter 2. There in Revelation 2 was two obituaries of two young men. She went on to explain that these two men had died trying to climb Mount Everest and she was very close to them both. She has kept their obituaries in her Bible ever since and they were bookmarked in the passage I read that Sunday morning. WOW!

I'm not for sure what God was trying to say to this woman, but I know that God was trying to say something to her. I believe it wasn't coincidence that she happened to come to Montezuma, IA all the way from Ohio to hear about the First Love and the illustration of the mountain. God was obviously trying to say something. This was definitely one of those God-Moments that makes you say Wow!

Bait of Satan

Last night we started our video series on the "Bait of Satan." This curriculum is so important for any church to go through. So many people find themselves in offenses in the church and some people even leave the church because of offense. Jesus said that in the last days, many will be offended. I have seen this countless of times in my ministry. John Bevere lays it out so well on what our response should be in dealing with offense. I want to encourage anyone and everyone to attend this important teaching. We are meeting at 6 p.m. every Sunday Night.

10 YEARS

Today is Jen and I's 10th anniversary! Hard to believe its been 10 years since we've been married. We will be leaving tomorrow and headed to Des Moines for a little anniversary trip. Looking forward to getting away and spending some quality time together.

Reflections

This past Sunday it was two years since Jennifer and I accepted the position to be the new lead pastors of Community Hope. It is hard to believe that two years is already gone. When I think of the two years I think of the great times we have had to share with one another. This past week I was told of two pastor acquaintances that I know who have resigned from their pastorate to take other churches. These pastors started about the same time we came to Community Hope. As I reflected on that, my heart was stirred even more to stay and reach the community of Montezuma and the county of Powesheik. I stand on the dream that I know that God spoke in my heart over a year ago that Community Hope would a church that would reach the lost and be an example for other rural areas. I stand on these principles that I will not waiver on:

1. We will be Kingdom Focused
2. We will be Missions Minded
3. Reach every generation
4. Relevant to our culture
5. Every person can minister

These five essentials are so important for us as a church to move forward. I look forward to the years ahead serving this great church.