Working Smarter Not Harder???

When I first heard the phrase, "Let's work smarter and not harder!" I really liked it.  It concisely expressed the real need for a team to think through it's actions from beginning to end before just blindly pressing forward. Recently I have altered my thinking...  I like this phrase even better... "Work smarter so that you can work harder on the things that matter!"  I get caught up in meaningless tasks that take me away from putting my time into worthy projects.  So when I get into the worthy project I am too worn out to give it the time and attention it deserves.  Nowadays I am training myself to be more attune to managing the insignificant details thus freeing up my time and energy for the more pressing and important assignments of life!  So now the big question is...How does one know the difference?  Alas...that will have to be answered in a different blog...

Some great quotes from Exponential Conference...

Dave Ferguson
"As churches let's measure how many we're sending, not accumulating."

Craig Groeschel
"Being consumed by what people think of you is the fastest way to forget what God thinks of you."

Randy Frazee
"The family needs to be restored as the ultimate small group." 

Chris Hodges
"A man on his face can't fail from that position."

John Burke
"We have to intentionally equip people to follow Jesus and to multiply."

Jo Saxton
"Christ's discipleship was the result of an accessible life."

Jim Putman
"We have to get people out of worship services only and into relationships where they're discipled."

Greg Surratt
"It's hugely important that you regularly sit with a group of people who love you and aren't impressed with you."

Alan Hirsch
"We need to embody our truths in ways that make sense to people."

Being In The World...

Within the pages of the her Bible, Mom wrote the phrase, "Be in the world but not of it."  As believers we've heard this over and over again.  I suppose it's become cliché for us.  We work around it's truth by rationalizing, "I am listening to this music so that I can know what the world finds enjoyable.  We do this with movies, TV shows, and even the places we go.  So what does the phrase mean?  To me its a way of saying to someone to be engaged in the lives of people and to be disengaged from the evil talons of the culture.  Where do you find yourself?  On one hand, sometimes followers of Jesus can be so weird, self-righteous and lofty that folks around can't stand being even around them.  By the way that's not a good thing.  My head is so far in the clouds that I've lost influence with those around me far from God.  The other camp is just as dangerous.  Here's an example.  I actively join folks in drinking in order to be one of them, thinking that I will gain a foothold to influence them to be more like Jesus.  What sort of twisted logic is that?  I say this over and over again to my church.  LOVE and SERVE.  Want to engage folks far from God? LOVE and SERVE.  Be in the world by loving and serving those far from God.  God's Spirit is actively creating the touch points as we are engaging folks far from God.  It really is that simple!

Hidden Treasures...

My mom left me and my sister Laura her Bible when she passed away a seven years ago.  Laura and I mail it back and forth every six months.  Mom battled cancer for 10 years.  Through it she drew very close to Jesus.  Her Bible is full of papers, notes, and lessons that meant a lot to her as she walked in peace through her cancer.  I love just looking through it because I know that her hands held this Bible and the Lord spoke to her through it.  It brings a great sense of joy to me.  While I miss her very much, it is very satisfying to know my Mom is with the Lord.  So the next two or three blogs will have some hidden treasures from my Mom's Bible.

Joy Comes...

Life is sweet!  An 8 year old girl had heard the Gospel on the previous Sunday in kid's church.  Then asked her mom if she could ask some more questions.  So Mom made an appointment with me.  The mother, father, and young girl arrived at my office at 4:00 PM.  After about 20 minutes of talking through all have sinned, the wages of sin is death, but God offers a free gift, It's Jesus, Here's how you get the gift, confess and believe.  Both the mother and the daughter with tears in their eyes said..."YES!" before I could even finish asking them.  Joy comes for us believers when we tap into this opportunity to share our faith...Folks in this world are HUNGRY for truth...and many other them will say YES to Jesus if we just ask!

Does the Boogeyman got your Tougue?

   This is a picture of the Boogeyman from WWE wrestling RAW.  His signature move is dropping worms into the mouth of his opponents when he has them pinned.  The point is to evoke fear into the heart of his challenger.  Pretty lame if you ask me.

   Here is something that evokes fear in Christians.  When asked, more Christians place in the top three fears as a believer, having sharing their faith with someone.  Seriously, HAVING to share faith in Jesus?  Instead of it being a wonderful privilege and a great joy, folks get sick and even ill thinking about it.  So attach yourself to this truth...I Peter 3:14b-15 “Do not fear…do not be frightened. But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord.   Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…” 

  May our tribe at LifePoint be motivated to share our faith in Jesus with passion and joy!

Francis Chan at Passion 2013

The evil one is on the prowl right now in many of the lives of folk in our church.  Several of us are fighting off sickness in our families.  A few of us have a couple of serious issues at home to work through.  So I thought I'd pass this on to you...

 

The following link is Francis Chan at Passion 2013. 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z2VZEPC4iKA

 

He gives an amazing message about God's faithfulness...I hope it encourages you!

It's His to build

In just a few short months God planted a life-giving church in Catalina, Arizona called LifePoint.  This weekend I am working on the new series THINK NEXT NOW as a lead up to our 2nd anniversary as a church.  For three weeks we will lay out a plan of what God wants us to reach for this year.  Lord lead your people...  "If the Lord doesn't lay the foundation, then we labor in vain!" Ps 127:1.  Make sure to join us on Sunday, March 3rd for the 2nd anniversary Sunday!

Choking down patience

This weekend my eyes were acting weird so I made an appointment Monday to get them checked. Saw a great eye doctor. Very well accomplished. Yet the saleswoman in the eye glass department was a nightmare to work with. As we looked through different glasses, she constantly got distracted. She showed me the same pair of glasses several times. As we were fitting them she kept interacting with other employees about social stuff. I am thinking as she has to refocus on entering my prescription in the computer , I hope she is accurate. Then she had a very hard time explaining the prices. Ugh! I kept relying on Galatians 5:22. Patience Lord give me Patience as a spiritual gift! Ever had a salesman like that?

A 'Focus Cubed' Life!

Thoughts on John 5:1-8. How can we obey or follow Jesus? Answer -- FOCUS CUBED! FOCUS on the Water or on your baptism. Why? Because it begins the process of sanctification. It's our roots of who we are as believers. Second FOCUS on His Blood or the Cross. Why? Because it's because of the cross we have life. And finally FOCUS on His Spirit. Why? Because His Spirit is His daily gift to us, giving direction and purpose.

Fearless Living...

   As I was prepping for the message last week on being fearless, I came across an interesting bit of insight about Stalin who ruthlessly reigned with brut force in Russia for almost 30 years.  He was responsible for starving and slaughtering more than 60 million people.  If power could deliver us from fear, then Joseph Stalin should have been fearless. Instead, this infamous Russian premier was afraid to go to bed. He had seven different bedrooms. Each could be locked as tightly as a safe. In order to foil any would-be assassins, he slept in a different one each night. Five chauffeur-driven limousines transported him wherever he went, each with curtains closed so no one would know which contained Stalin. So deep-seated were his apprehensions that he employed a servant whose sole task was to monitor and protect his tea bags.  In contrast being fearless as followers of Jesus is summed up by I Timothy 1:5 -- "The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith."  So have no fear this week!

Stats of LifePoint...

This morning I was crunching numbers.  And more numbers...  I want to get a good snapshot of how LifePoint is doing.  We are just a couple of years old.  Like a two year old we think we can do anything we want, yet we are still only two.  Not even really thinking about it, over 15,000 people have passed through the front double glass doors on Sunday morning since October 2011.  (I can't find any attendance records beyond that...yikes!)  At current we are averaging 203 people per week with 5 new people visiting per Sunday.  Considering what we've been through the last couple of years that seems pretty good.  Our staff is a great bunch of folks and I feel like they are ready to take on the next challenge of implementing a new and improved Web-based Data Management System.  There is so much to do and so little energy inside me.  Lord give me the strength to overcome my shortcomings and lead LifePoint with great zeal, passion, and vision!