Sunday in Review 9.27.09

- Fall officially showed up on Sunday.  We had some beautiful weather!

- Today we wrapped up our 3 week series called “On  Location”. For the last 3 weeks we have been learning what it means to be the Salt and Light On Our Location while studying Matthew 5:13-16.

- Our worship team is AMAZING.  For the last 3 weeks we have been singing the song God of this City, and I cannot get it out of my head!  Love It!

- Our Worship Team also covered “City on a Hill” originally performed by 3rd Day. I liked our team’s version better, what can I say – THEY ROCKED IT!

- There are times in worship when it feels like we as a Church are thinking the same thing, have the same heart beat, and the presence of God  is undeniable – that happened on Sunday.  I did not want our cooperate  worship to end!!

- After Service on Sunday I had the opportunity to listen to people share bits of their stories and God Only Moments!  I cannot get enough of these!  Jesus is Alive and at work in people’s lives!

- Even if you feel random, you are not!  God has strategically placed you right where you are to be the Salt and Light!

- Purpose is important!  Sooner or later we will all ask the question: “Why?”.  On that day, my prayer is that you have embraced God’s purpose for your life!!

- Sunday evening we made a trip out to my mom’s house (Nana) and hung out for awhile.  We got to spend some time with family and went to a pizza place I had not been to since High School.  We had a blast!!

- Da Bears had another Nail Biter of a game, but they pull off the Win!  I love football season!

- As we drove back from my mom’s house we were in a lighting storm.  It was AWESOME!  Another reminder that a little bit of light always makes a difference!!

- Next week we kick off a 6 week series called ‘Betrayal” as we study the life of Joseph! You will not want to miss this!

Sweat the Small Stuff

If you are like me, you were probably taught at some point in life that the Big Decisions of your life have the greatest impact on your life and therefore matter most.

I think the small decisions in life in reality have a larger impact on us than the big one-time decisions do.

2 Examples from the Bible:

David :

In 2 Samuel 11:1-4 we find the retelling of the story of David, a man after God’s own heart and King making a fatal error.  While standing on the rooftop, David sees Bathsheba bathing, falls victim to lust, which leads to an adulterous affair.

You may be tempted as you read this passage to think David’s first mistake was not to look away, close the blinds, or as king send over some of the royal builders to build this woman an outside bathroom with privacy walls…..but you would be wrong.

According to 2 Samuel 11:1, where is David supposed to be at war. So here is the deal, David could have avoided all of this, if he would have just been where we was suppose to be – At war alongside his men!!

Lot:

In Genesis 13:8-13 we find out that Abram and Lot are so wealthy and had so many cattle they needed to split ways because the land was not able to support all their livestock.  Genesis 13:9 says that Abram gave Lot first pick of where he wants to go.

According to Genesis 13:10-13, where did Lot chooses to go down to the fertile valley near Sodom because the land would support his cattle and the lush area would make his life a bit easier.  Not too long after this “strategic move” Sodom and everyone in it was destroyed, Lot was a widow, and his daughters lost their future husbands.

You will face large decisions in your life and they are important!  But don’t forget about the small stuff, sometimes being where you are supposed to be is more important than where you are going.

And sometimes the little decisions will make the big decisions for you!

Sweat the Small Stuff!

Sunday in Review 9.20.09

- I was driving around McHenry at about 5:30 am and realized that I was one of the brave and the few that was awake and out that early!  It was actually pretty peaceful!

- I met some nice folks at McDonalds at 5:30 am, as I bought some food that was part of an illustration for Sunday’s message!

- Our worship team played “God of this City” this Sunday!  I cannot get enough of that song!

-Our set up team was on point this morning, and tried a new arrangement of chairs today, I liked it and thought it worked out really well!

- I had been fighting a cold all week and coughed like 100 times during Sunday’s Message.  Sorry about that everyone!!

- God is doing some amazing things, and I am so thankful that I get to be a part of it!

- It felt full in here on Sunday and that was because it was!  I had a blast meeting some new friends on Sunday Morning!

- Jerry, who used to lead worship at Meadowland visited this week and played bass with the team!  It was cool to see him up there again!

- I had the opportunity to hear a few peoples’ “life stories” on Sunday!  I was excited to hear how people are taking their next steps on the Journey and how Meadowland Church is helping them in the process.

- After church Sunday we had the chance to go out to lunch with my Dad and Step Mom from lunch.  We had a blast, but Olive Garden was a little off their game!  More time to sit and talk……except for Shane he was a little bored being in the highchair that long.

- It was amazing watching the Bears defeat the Steelers.  Great game!

- While the Bears are my favorite football team, I am so privileged to be a part of the team here at Meadowland!  This is my team and I love it!

-Greater things are still to come, and Greater things are still to be done and it is all because of Jesus!

Laughing @ God…..

Have you ever laughed at God?

In Genesis 17:15-17 Abram has a face to face experience with God The Father. As we read this account, we realize this is a Holy Moment that changes the direction of Abram’s life, a Defining Moment as God gives Abram and new name (Abraham) to signify the promise that God is making with Abraham and you know how Abraham responds to God?   He LAUGHS!!

This is not a “he-he-ha-ha filled with joy” laugh, this is a “BWAHAHAHAH, when pigs fly, I do not believe you, thats a good one”…. laughter.

“Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” (Genesis 17:17)

This happens again in Genesis 18: 9-15, except this time Sarah is the one doing the laughing!  When God visits Abraham again, he tells Abraham – hey remember what I told you about Sarah getting pregnant and having a son, I will return to you about this time next year and your wife will give birth to a son!!

Sarah who is preparing food in the back of the tent, is not so bold to do the “BWAHAHAHAH, when pigs fly, I do not believe you, thats a good one”…. laughter to God’s face, rather she laughed to herself in the back of the tent and I imagine rolled her eyes and shook her head at what she thought was a ridiculous notion.

I love this…… God responds to Sarah’s disbelieving laughter with one question:

Is anything too hard for the Lord?

Thoughts from Genesis Chapter 17 and 18:

1. God’s vision and plan for our lives is always BIGGER than ours!

2.  You can laugh at God and not be struck dead!

3.  There will times in your life when God will present us with Holy Moment, Defining Point opportunities that will seem both impossible and ridiculous to us.

4. When God presents those  opportunities and you feel like doing the “BWAHAHAHAH, when pigs fly, I do not believe you, thats a good one”…. laugh, remember that NOTHING is too hard for God!

15 Things I Wish Someone Would Have Told Me…

This is a repost from Perry Noble.  I think these are all things we need to be reminded of from time to time!!  ENJOY!!

________________________________________________

From time to time a church planter will ask me, “what do you wish someone would have told you before you began?”  Here’s a list of fifteen things I came up with…

#1 – Everyone Will Not Understand You…SO Stop Trying To Explain Yourself.  Cast Vision…And MOVE Forward!

#2 – Everyone Will Not Like You…So STOP Trying To Be Popular.

#3 – You Don’t Have To Be The Person Who Actually Solves Every Problem….Admit You Are Not The Smartest Person and Let Your Experts Be Your Experts.

#4 – Spend WAY More Time Talking About Who You Are Rather Than Who You Are Not.

#5 – A Leader Is Always An East Target Because They Are…A Leader.  So, Get Over Yourself And Get On With What God Called You To Do!

#6 – When The Holy Spirit Presses Something Into Your Heart…Don’t Ignore Him.

#7 – Do NOT Expect God’s Next Step To Make Sense.

#8 – You Can’t Plan A Move Of God…But You Must Be Prepared For One!

#9 – Do Not Resist Something Just Because You Do Not Understand It!

#10 – People Who Claim You “Are Not Deep Enough” Are Obsessed With Information But Have No Desire To Live Out Transformation.

#11 – You Don’t Need To Listen To Everybody…But You Had Better Be Listening To Somebody Because God Didn’t Ask You To Take This Journey Alone.

#12 – Never Apologize For Asking People To Commit To Something…Jesus Didn’t!

#13 – The Church Has Been Underachieving For Way Too Long…So Dream BIG And Don’t Apologize For It.

#14 – There Will Be Days When You Want To Quit…Don’t…Jesus Didn’t! (Remember…DON’T GIVE UP…if you are discouraged, take a second and read this!)

#15 – The Gospel Changes Lives…PREACH Every Sermon Like It’s Your Last!!!