10 Reasons I am Pumped about Meadowland Church

#1 – Jesus said that HE would build His church! That is a promise! (Matthew 16:18)

#2 – Jesus said that HIS Word would not fail to produce a harvest. If we continue to be  faithful in declaring HIS Word, something GREAT  will take place!  (See Isaiah 55:8-13)

#3 – We have seen 60 people SURRENDER their lives to Jesus and 13 people be baptized! God is working in and through the lives of the people who are Meadowland Church, and I believe there is more to come!

#4 – I am so thankful for our LEADERS and VOLUNTEERS!  God is raising up leader, ones that comprehend the meaning of Ephesians 4:11-16.  I am PUMPED to be a part of a Church where more people are IN THE GAME than there are sitting on the sidelines!!

#5 – God started  Meadowland Church, Jesus is our Senior Pastor and HE’S NOT FINISHED WITH US YET!  (Philippians 1:6)

#6 – The church is STILL God’s PLAN A to bring the Gospel to the WORLD.  He has NOT changed His mind, there is NO PLAN B.  Jesus said not even the gates of hell could overcome the Church (Matthew 16:18).

#7 – God has provided for Meadowland Church in AMAZING ways this year.  I believe HE has PROVIDED for Us because he wants US to do MORE ministry and Reach MORE  PEOPLE!!  (Luke 12:48)

#8-  God has blessed Meadowland with an incredible Staff.  I am so thankful for the team of people I get to serve with!

#9-  I believe the things that have happened this year is just the beginning of what God wants to do in and through Meadowland Church. There are More people to be Reached, More opportunities to Serve, and I BELIEVE God has GREATER things in store for us both as individuals and as the Church!   (John 1:50)

#10 – I am PUMPED for the new Series we are beginning on Sunday called “Game On”.  If you have ever wondered what the VISION of Meadowland Church is, or where we are going as a Church, you will not want to miss the next four weeks at Meadowland.  (BTW as we kick off the series this Sunday (9.5.10) we are encouraging everyone to wear their favorite sports team apparel, and show their favorite team some love!!)

Sunday Rewind 8.22.10

- On Sunday we saw many people SURRENDER their lives to Jesus!! That NEVER gets OLD!!

- Singing the song, “I Surrender All” on Sunday got me!  I daily want to be able to say with 100% integrity, “Jesus, everything I have, all of me, I surrender to you”.

- Every single one of us has rough spots, things we are working on, baggage from our past, and things we need to overcome- The Good News is, Jesus never said you needed to be PERFECT!

- Yes, than means the church is full of messed up, imperfect people, who fail, mess up, and do not have it all figured out…..and there is always room for one more!

- At Meadowland Church,We are more interested in WHO you are than WHAT  you wear,  we care more about your HEART than we do your tattoos and piercings, WE care more about your FUTURE than we do your PAST, and if you have ever been told you are not good enough or need to make some changes before attending a different Church, WELCOME HOME – you are among friends!!

- Jesus is always after our hearts! He cares more about your heart than how you appear to others, or how righteous we appear on the outside!  (Matthew 23:25-28)

-Because we are concerned about image, we are hesitant and even fearful to open up to people about the Garbage we are dealing with in our lives, because we are more concerned with the SUPERFICIAL APPEARANCE OF HOLINESS than we are CHRIST CENTRERED WORSHIP AND REPENTANCE!!

- The consequences of CONCEALING our sin and struggles will DESTROY US!  CONFESSION and REPENTANCE lead us to healing and forgiveness!! (James 5:16).

- God Loves Us, Pursues Us, and Desires all of our Hearts!

- One of the ways God PURSUES US, is by CALLING OUT the IDOLS in our life (Ezekial 14:1-5)!   As your Pastor, I am not smart enough and clever enough to consistently teach messages where you think “He is talking to me this morning”.  THAT IS JESUS!!

- I think we as Christ Followers live with these tension of DAILY ASKING ,”Will I SURRENDER MY ALL OF MY LIFE TO JESUS TODAY!”  I think we have fully submitted TO JESUS, when we HEAR WHAT HE SAYS, and theN DO WHAT HE SAYS!! When what HE SAYS IS DIFFICULT, we NEED to be HONEST about it, WRESTLE with it, and TAKE  the next steps through obedience!!

-Sunday Evening we had the Baptism Service and Church Picnic.  We had the opportunity to see six people take the next step on their Spiritual Journey through Baptism.  IT WAS AMAZING!!

- The Church Picnic was a blast.  There were a TON of people I had never met before at the picnic.  It was a blast to connect and hear peoples’s stories and make new friends on Sunday Evening!!

- A HUGE THANK YOU, to everyone who helped out!  The Baptism Service/Picnic was AWESOME, we could not have done it without you!!

Meadowland Church, I LOVE YOU and I am PUMPED about what God is up to in the hearts and lives of HIS CHURCH.  I believe God is about to do something BIG!  Continue to follow Jesus, Daily SURRENDER your lives, and when God speaks to you,  DO NOT HARDEN YOUR HEARTS (Hebrews 3:7-8).

If you have not signed up yet, we are still looking for some people to help with the WATER BOTTLE HAND OUT, THIS Saturday, August 28th from Noon to 2:00 pm. Instead of asking our community FOR SOMETHING, we would like to GIVE SOMETHING to the people in our community for FREE!

We believe that “Small Things Done with Great Love Can Change the World”. We are going to go out and bless our community by reaching out and giving away free stuff while planting seeds of hope, acceptance, and true freedom.

If you are available from Noon to 2:00 pm on Saturday, August 28th and would like to be a part of the team handing out water bottles, please contact the church office, or fill out this REGISTRATION FORM.

Seriously….It’s Free

Every year various groups and organizations stand at the intersection of Johnsburg Rd, Chapel Hill Rd and St. Johns Road in downtown Johnsburg and ask the community to make donations to their organization or cause.

Instead of asking our community FOR SOMETHING, we would like to GIVE SOMETHING to the people in our community for FREE!

On Saturday, August 28th from Noon to 2:00 pm we will be handing out free water bottles!  Yep, it is that simple!

We believe that “Small Things Done with Great Love Can Change the World”. We are going to go out and bless our community by reaching out and giving away free stuff while planting seeds of hope, acceptance, and true freedom.

If you are available from Noon to 2:00 pm on Saturday, August 28th and would like to be a part of the team handing out water bottles, please contact the church office, or fill out this REGISTRATION FORM.

Sunday Rewind 8.15.10

- I can’t believe that we are already in week 6 of our “You Asked For It” Series.  We have covered a lot of ground and have seen God working in and through peoples’ lives in HUGE ways!!

- In September we are starting a new series called “Radical”.  I have been looking forward to this series for the last few weeks.  Seriously, if you want to know the vision of Meadowland Church and what God has laid on our heart for the future, you DO NOT WANT TO MISS THIS!!

- As we talked about Parenting, I shared  4 things I believe about your Children:

1. I believe that our children were masterfully and wonderfully created by God.
2. I believe our children were created for a Purpose.
3. I believe our children have the potential to change the world
4. I believe God will use the next generation to take the Church to places it has never been before!!

- Seriously, when I look at the generations to come, I cannot help but to be PUMPED about what God is currently doing in them and the potential they have!!

- I believe as parents we are called primarily to Disciple our Children and bring all areas of their lives to maturity in Christ (Duet 6: 4:9).

- Parenting is HARD, but you do not have to go at it alone!  Our desire as a Church is to walk alongside you.  We want to encourage you, support you and help you in anyway we can!!

- The only perfect parent is the person who HAS NOT had any kids yet. As parents, we are not called to be PERFECT, we are called to set the examples, and raise our children in a way that they can grow up to know who Jesus is and Worship HIM!

- Mom and Dad, you are to be the biggest INFLUENCE in your children’s life!   Don’t loose your voice and input in your Children’s life – BE INTENTIONAL!!

- I believe every Parent should read Ephesian 4:25-32 and memorize it!

- Men – you are the spiritual leader of your home!  Step up and LEAD!!

- On Sunday I told the story about Shane taking his first Train Ride at the fair and he had to go all by himself.  Yes, I did yell at the top of my lungs in encouragement and praise the entire time.  Yes, people did think I was a FREAK, but Shane KNEW how much I LOVE D HIM and How PROUD I was of him!  I will look like a fool any day if it means encouraging and supporting my children!!

Here is a picture of Shane on his first train ride.  Love his nervous, yet excited smile!!

Meadowland Church, I love you and am excited about what God is doing in and through the people that make up Meadowland Church.  Let’s be intentional about how we raise up our kids and lets partner together to raise up a generation of kids who know who God is and worship Him with all of their hearts, minds, and strength!

Sunday Rewind 8.9.10

I am so PUMPED about what God is doing IN and THROUGH the people who are Meadowland Church.  Here are a couple thoughts on a great day:

- The weather was dark and grey on Sunday, but the atmosphere inside was ELECTRIC on Sunday.  I heard from multiple people on Sunday that they experienced God working in their lives in very personal, very real ways!!

- I say this every week, but SERIOUSLY our worship team always does an amazing job of leading us into the presence of Jesus and focusing our hearts and minds on HIM.

- I had the opportunity to get to meet a whole bunch of people for the first time on Sunday.  I love getting to know people and making new friends!

- This week we studying the book of Job as we answered the question: “Why do bad things happen to good people”?

- Yes, the story about the lady in Wisconsin passing me on the left while I was making a left hand turn is true.  After she passed me, she was pulled over and given a ticket by a Wisconsin State Trooper – IT WAS AWESOME! because I was right and she was wrong.  A few months ago, I got pulled over and it was NOT awesome, because I was in the wrong.   The problem with the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people?”, is we will ALWAYS put OURSELVES in the position of GOOD!!

- Job’s question in Job 2:10 ROCKED my World!  Are willing to accept everything that God has in store for us or are we only willing to accept what WE think is good?  Ponder that one for a while.

- One of the biggest comforts I find in the book of Job is that God is Sovereign!  God is ALL POWERFUL, in CONTROL, has all WISDOM, is fully AWARE and actively WORKING in our moments of pain and suffering!!  While that does not necessarily take away the pain, it DOES give us HOPE!

- As a Christ Follower, you have the HOPE AND ASSURANCE that no matter what you are going through in your life, if God LEAD You to it, He will walk you THROUGH it, DELIVER you from it, or TAKE you instantly into His arms in heaven!!

- We we begin to understand the Sovereignty of God, we can begin to live out 2 Corinthians 4:7-10 in our lives!!

- We had a “Meet Meadowland Lunch” after the Second Service on Sunday and it was AWESOME.  We had around 25 people so up for lunch, we got to know one another and talking about what Jesus is doing in and through Meadowland Church. If you were unable to attend this one, we have another “Meet Meadowland scheduled for October 10th!!

-Don’t forget the Baptism Service/ Church Picnic is on August 22nd.  If you are interested in taking the next step on your journey through baptism – SIGN  UP HERE.  If you are interested in singing up for the Picnic- SIGN UP HERE.

I LOVE Meadowland Church and am so PUMPED about what God is doing IN and THROUGH the people who are Meadowland Church!